京都大学の研究チームは、ヒトの血液細胞の起源が約7億年前に存在した単細胞生物にまで遡ることを突き止めた。分析の結果、現代の免疫細胞が多細胞動物の出現にまで遡る古代の進化の道筋を反映していることが明らかになった。
チームは、細胞の種類や種を超えて遺伝子発現を比較する新たな手法を開発した。このアプローチにより、血液細胞の系統の進化樹を構築し、単細胞生物との類似点を特定することが可能となった。中でもマクロファージは、これらの初期の祖先との最も近い関連性を示しており、血液細胞の最も古い形態である可能性が示唆された。
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A review in the journal Aging (Aging-US) says senescent cells—often dubbed “zombie cells”—can contribute to wound healing and tissue stability in some settings, even as other senescent cells promote inflammation and age-related disease.
Researchers at UCLA have identified senescent immune cells, dubbed 'zombie' cells, that accumulate in aging livers and contribute to fatty liver disease. By eliminating these cells in mice, the team reversed liver damage and reduced body weight, even on an unhealthy diet. The findings, published in Nature Aging, suggest similar mechanisms may drive human liver conditions.
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Researchers in Sweden have created insulin-producing cells from human stem cells that reversed diabetes symptoms when transplanted into mice. The cells matured after placement in the eye and maintained glucose regulation for months. The work was published in Stem Cell Reports.
Genetic analysis of remains from a megalithic tomb near Bury, 50 kilometers north of Paris, reveals a complete population turnover around 3000 BC. The earlier group shared genetics with northern European farmers, while newcomers arrived from southern France and the Iberian Peninsula. Researchers link the shift to disease, environmental stress, and social changes.
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Researchers have analyzed mitochondrial DNA from eight Neanderthal teeth found in Stajnia Cave in Poland, reconstructing the genetic profile of a small group that lived there around 100,000 years ago. The study, published in Current Biology, marks the first such multi-individual genetic picture from a single site north of the Carpathians. The findings show genetic links to Neanderthals across Europe and the Caucasus.