Source: Duke University Medical Center
Date: November 15, 2010
Summary;
SINGAPORE – Researchers at Duke-NUS Graduate Medical School in Singapore have uncovered a novel feedback mechanism that controls the delicate balance of brain stem cells. Zif, a newly discovered protein, controls whether brain stem cells renew themselves as stem cells or differentiate into a dedicated type of neuron (nerve cell). In preclinical studies, the researchers showed that Zif is important for inhibiting overgrowth of neural stem cells in fruit flies (genus Drosophila) by ensuring that a proliferation factor (known as aPKC) maintains appropriate levels in neural stem cells. The study was published in the Nov. 16 issue of Developmental Cell journal.
