Progress in Understanding Regeneration in Salamanders

Shwann cells are shown here in a salamander limb. When the limb regrew after being amputated, only these cells wrapped around nerve fibers; other cell types did not turn into Shwann cells. Credit: D. Knapp/E. Tanaka The salamander is a superhero of regeneration, able to replace lost limbs, damaged lungs, sliced spinal cord — even …

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Neutron star crust is ten billion times stronger than Steel

Computer simulations show that the breaking strength of neutron star crust is about 10 billion times more than for terrestrial engineering materials such as metal-alloys where the strength is measured in fractions of a GPa. The largest contributor to this tremendous difference is of course the enormous pressure and thus density of the crust. The …

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Key protein, FOX03a, helps shields some people from HIV, could lead to HIV vaccine

. In an advance online edition of Nature Medicine, the scientists explain how the protein, FOX03a, shields against viral attacks and how the discovery will help in the development of a HIV vaccine. This research could also advance therapies for other viral diseases. Given their perfect resistance to HIV infection, elite controllers represent the ideal …

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