Researchers at the University of California, San Francisco have developed a ” cellular glue which they believe might one day pave the way for immense medical achievements, such as the manufacture of organs in the laboratory for transplantation and the reconstruction of damaged nerves beyond standard surgical possibilities.
Simply put, these scientists have developed a set of synthetic molecules that can be manipulated to trick cells in the human body into bonding with each other. These molecules make up what is called “cellular glue” and act like the adhesive molecules found naturally in and around cells that inadvertently dictate how our tissues, nerves and organs are structured and anchored together. . Only then can scientists voluntarily control them.
«
The properties of a tissue, like your skin for example, are largely determined by how the different cells are organized within it.
», a
declared in a statement Adam Stevens, a researcher at UCSF’s Cell Design Institute and first author of an article published in the journal
Nature
. «
We are designing ways to control this organization of cells, which is essential to be able to synthesize tissues with the properties we want them to have.
»
Eventually, doctors might use this cellular glue as a viable mechanism to repair injuries, regrow damaged nerves, and perhaps even work to regenerate vital organs such as the lungs or liver. An immense hope to solve the problem of organ donation.
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Our work reveals a flexible molecular adhesion code that determines which cells will interact, and how
», poursuit Adam Stevens. «
Now that we are beginning to understand it, we can harness this code to control how cells assemble into tissues and organs.
»
Ikea cells
Immediately following birth (and even while still in the womb), newborn cells are able to reconnect to each other when a connection is lost. This is mainly because children are still growing and their cells are actively assembling. This is also the reason why their scratches and abrasions tend to heal quite quickly.
In other words, children’s cellular molecules have a lot of precise instructions on how to fit together to form tissues, organs and nerves. To use a metaphor, they’re like clever little Ikea furniture that knows how to fit.
However, the research team explains that as we age, these biological instructions are no longer available. However, when an organ is damaged with age or other circumstances, they are sorely lacking.
That’s where cell glue molecules come in. Scientists can load them with information regarding which cellular molecules they need to bond with and even how strong that bond is. Then, this cellular glue can guide the affected cells towards each other, thus promoting healing and regeneration processes.
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In a solid organ, such as a lung or a liver, many cells will be bound quite tightly
“, explain the researchers. ”
But in the immune system, weaker bonds allow cells to travel through blood vessels or crawl between tightly bound cells in the skin or tissues of the organ to reach a pathogen or injury.
»
To make this kind of customization possible, the researchers added two important components to their cell glue. First, part of the molecule acts as a receptor. It remains outside the cell and determines the other cells with which the molecule is allowed to interact. Second, there is the determinant of the strength of this bond. This part exists inside the cell. By combining these two characteristics, the team explains that it is possible to create an array of cell adhesion molecules ready to bind in various ways.
«
We were able to create cells in a way that allows us to control which cells they interact with, as well as the nature of that interaction.
said Wendell Lim, director of UCSF’s Cell Design Institute and lead author of the paper.
CNET.com article adapted by CNETFrance
Image : UCSF
