cells

It’s not just “nerves”, it’s sabotage to the cells

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Without a doubt, it is one of the phrases that we have heard ad nauseam: stress makes us hair falls out. And if this occurs in autumnthe increase is much greater. The problem is that science had not found a clear correlation to be able to say that this was 100% true. What we knew was that stress raised the cortisol and that this altered the growth cycles, but we lacked the ‘how’. Something that we have already managed to solve. A path for treatments. Without a doubt in the aesthetic world there is a great demand for treatments that solve baldness problems how are shampoos, vitamin supplements and without a doubt the option of hair follicle transplant They are on the order of the day. That is why understanding exactly why hair falls out in certain situations can end up helping to develop a greater number of medications. The study. The good news we have on the table comes from a study published in the magazine cell supported by previous research that has found the missing link regarding stress and hair loss. A priori it could be thought that cortisol, the so-called ‘stress hormone‘ could be responsible for this loss. But science has taken a turn of the helm by pointing to an electrical overload of the nervous system that would literally be frying the hair cells. The fighting system. Our nervous system has two very clear parts. One we call ‘parasympathetic‘which is the body’s brake and is active when we are most relaxed. But, on the other hand, we have the ‘sympathetic’ that is activated in times of stress, to increase heart rate or tension. It is precisely this system that causes this undesirable effect, especially because when activated it produces epinephrine or norepinephrinewhich is a powerful vasoconstrictor that causes the muscle to have more blood, tension to increase or the heart rate to skyrocket. And this is precisely the substance that travels to the hair follicles, being almost like a poison for the stem cells that are responsible for regenerating hair. As. All the cells in our body need energy to function, as if they were a small factory. Energy is ‘generated’ in what we call mitochondriawhich literally take oxygen from the blood to produce a reaction that releases the energy that the cell will use to do all its tasks such as synthesizing the necessary elements that our hair has. The problem is that with the arrival of norepinephrine to the cells, these mitochondria die, and a production system without energy is condemned to die. And this is precisely what happens to the cells of the hair follicle, causing the system to collapse and accompanied by hair loss. This is something that has been demonstrated in mice, where by blocking the entry gates of norepinephrine to the hair follicle cell, hair loss was blocked. The immune system. Beyond the effect of norepinephrine, we also find the effect of our own defenses. And there are many factors that can activate the immune system around the follicle, which explains why stress is such a common trigger of alopecia areatawhich is an autoimmune disease where the body itself attacks its own follicles as if they were something foreign when it is its own thing. The future of baldness. As we mentioned before with this door open, pharmacology can now do its job by looking for ways to block the effect of norepinephrine in these cells without affecting the rest of the body (where it is very necessary). Although not stressing and having a calm life, the truth is that it can be the best possible treatment for both baldness and other diseases, although in today’s society it is undoubtedly a great challenge. Images | Gustavo Sanchez In Xataka | Minoxidil seemed like the great miracle drug against baldness. A Google-funded pharmaceutical company has just surpassed it

Gray hair is not wear and tear, it is a cleansing of our tumor cells.

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For centuries, gray hair has been the universal symbol of aging, a simple aesthetic issue that reveals the passage of time or the excess of stress that sometimes occurs. it’s about covering with dyes. However, having gray hair can be good news for many people, since a study published in Nature Cell Biology just turned this idea on its head: white hair could actually be a biological defense mechanism. The fact that we begin to grow gray hair is for many people a great condemnation that reminds us that age forgives no one, and we even see young people with a lot of gray hair at an early age. But having gray hair can be a sign that is related to the risk of suffering from melanoma, which is one of the most aggressive skin cancers, especially when it is not caught in time. The dilemma of the cell. To understand why having a large amount of gray hair is good news, we have to go to the root of the hair. Here you will find the bulb of the hair folliclewhich is where the hair will grow. One of its fundamental components is the melanocyte stem cell, which is responsible for the pigment that gives color to the hair. That is why when these cells are affected is when you begin to have a color deficit. In this way, research indicates that when these cells suffer damage to their DNA, such as from exposure to the sun or according to agethe body activates a “checkpoint.” The mechanisms of action. When a cell with broken DNA appears on the scene, there is a chance that it will cause cancer if it begins to divide uncontrollably. In order to avoid this, stem cells use a process called “senodifferentiation” that causes the cell to stop dividing and be removed from the tissue. When these stem cells are eliminated, we are left without pigment reserves and the hair is born white, but the body has made sure to eliminate a potentially dangerous cell that could have generated a tumor if this defense system did not exist. The system may crash. Although our body has many defense systems to stop the proliferation of tumor cells, sometimes they fail and cancer is generated. Specifically, the study points to different carcinogens (including chemicals or UV radiation) that can ‘hack’ this cellular decision. Unlike pure radiation damage (which causes gray hair), carcinogens activate specific metabolic pathways (such as arachidonic acid metabolism) that force stem cells to survive and reproduce despite having damaged DNA. In this way, the stress of these carcinogens stimulates the stem cell niche to secrete a molecule called ligand KIT. This signal has the ability to block the “senodifferentiation” that we mentioned before, preventing damaged cells from being eliminated. The ‘good’ news is that the gray hair does not appear, but the bad news is that the damaged cells accumulate and expand, greatly increasing the risk of melanoma. There is, therefore, an antagonistic relationship: The fate of stem cells determines whether we will have gray hair or cancer. If the system works well, the cell is sacrificed and a gray hair emerges. If the system is circumvented by a carcinogen, the cell persists and the gray hair does not appear, but there is a greater risk of a tumor appearing. Aesthetic medicine. One of your goals right now may be avoid gray hair without the need for artificial dyes with the reactivation of these stem cells that have been ‘arrested’ and do not offer their pigment. But for these researchers we are facing a very bad idea. And they specifically point out that the repigmentation of gray hair in certain areas of the scalp could be, paradoxically, an early warning sign of melanoma, indicating that cells that should have ‘retired’ are returning to activity in an uncontrolled manner. In short, the next time you see a gray hair in front of the mirror, don’t just see it as a sign of old age. See it as a small victory for your body: a stem cell that decided to “retire” in time to protect you. Images | Alexandra Tran Natasha Brazil In Xataka | The rarest element on Earth aims to cure cancer. And Europe is already accelerating its production

records every excess, sleeplessness and stress in the cells for 20 years

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As we age, not only do we accumulate experiences and begin to observe the marks of the passage of time such as wrinkles, but something more silent happens in your body: an inflammation that does not hurt, but never completely goes away. Scientists call it inflammationand it is one of the keys to understanding why we age and how we could do it better. Your body remembers what happened 20 years ago. Researcher Juan Pablo de Rivero Vaccari, from the University of Miami so he warns. For years, the modern lifestyle—calorie diets, constant stress, lack of sleep and a sedentary lifestyle—has kept the immune system on a kind of permanent “red alert.” Normally, inflammation is a useful response: it helps repair tissues and defend us from infection. But when that response is not extinguished, it becomes a slow fire that gradually deteriorates the body’s systems. From Mayo Clinic they describe it like an internal civil war: innate immune cells, which should act only when faced with a threat, begin to chronically release inflammatory substances. Meanwhile, adaptive defenses—those that “learn” from viruses—are weakened. The result is felt in practice: a simple flu that takes weeks to pass, wounds that heal more slowly or constant fatigue. Immunologist Jessica Lancaster sums it up in a simple way: “With age, the immune system ages and this constant inflammation can deplete defenses and damage healthy tissues.” An internal fire? The inflammation of aging appears to arise from a combination of cellular stress, metabolism, and lifestyle. According to researcher Alan Cohen of Columbia University, stressed cells release proteins that indicate that “something is wrong,” even in the absence of disease. However, we do not all age the same. a study, published in Nature Aging by Cohen himself and colleagues from several universitiescompared people from Italy and Singapore to indigenous communities from Bolivia (the Tsimane) and Malaysia (the Orang Asli). The finding was surprising: only populations in industrialized countries showed the classic pattern of increasing inflammation with age. The hypothesis is clear: the inflammation It could be, more than an inevitable consequence of the passage of time, a side effect of modern life. Assembling the puzzle. Because science has already found the pieces. AT Yale University, Vishwa Dixit’s team analyzed plasma from adults who reduced their caloric intake by 14% over two years. They found that this moderate calorie restriction markedly reduced levels of a key inflammatory protein, complement C3a, linked to immune activation. In other words, they found that inhibiting C3a reduces age-related inflammation and improves metabolic health. Furthermore, in mice, pharmacological blockade of the same component of the complement system increased longevity and improved metabolic function. In parallel, another team, led by Marissa Schaferidentified a new marker of cellular aging: the interleukin-23 receptor (IL-23R). This biomarker increases with age in both humans and mice and is associated with inflammation in organs such as the kidney or liver. However, there is hope: certain senolytic drugs—such as fisetin (present in strawberries) or venetoclax, used against cancer—managed to reduce these inflammatory levels in old animals. The idea is simple but powerful: eliminate poorly aging cells to relieve inflammation from within. Any plan to avoid it? While science searches for treatments, experts agree: lifestyle remains our best medicine. From Mayo Clinic they explain it simply: sleeping well, maintaining a healthy weight, exercising and eating fewer ultra-processed foods are the most effective keys to strengthening the immune system. In fact, As Dr. Lancaster points out: “Sleep is probably the most critical factor for immunity, more so than diet or exercise.” During sleep, the body releases proteins that fight infections and eliminate brain toxins. For its part, in a report for the Washington Post They add that controlling blood pressure, visceral fat and blood sugar is essential to reduce inflammation. And Yale researcher Vishwa Dixit sums it up with ancient wisdom: “The same thing your grandmother and mine said: do things in moderation, don’t eat too much, and move more.” Towards aging without fire. Scientist Alan Cohen uses a perfect metaphor: “Inflammation is like a fire alarm. It’s not always pleasant, but it indicates that something is wrong. The important thing is not to turn it off, but to prevent it from ringing all the time.” For this reason, experts recommend not becoming obsessed with micromanaging each biological marker or pursuing eternal youth through supplements. Image | FreePik Xataka | The birth rate in Poland is a disaster and some hotels have had an idea: money for those who conceive during a stay

The place where dozens of animal cells are stored in case there is a great disaster

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In a basement from the Biomedical Research Park in Barcelona, ​​between liquid nitrogen clouds, an incalculable value treasure is saved: an ark of Noah of the 21st century. It does not contain couples of animals, but thousands of small tubes at -196 ° C that retain life. It is the Cryozooa pioneer biobanco that stores cell lines of hundreds of species, many of them to the edge of extinction. It is not an achievement, but a warning. At the head of this initiative is the renowned molecular biologist Tomàs Marquès-Bonet, one of the Greater world experts in genomics of great worlds. As the world has collected, This project is not a great achievementbut a last use resource in the event that the main species of our planet are extinguished. This is explained by the researcher himself: Recovering species with these techniques is the failure of society, but it is amazing to be able to do it. The first must be to preserve in your habitat the animals that remain alive. And when everything else has failed, it is better to have these banks than not to have them, like an ace in the manga Of a biopsy to cell immortality. The concept, inspired by the famous San Diego Frozen Zoo, is as elegant as powerful. The Cryozoo team collaborates with about twenty European zoos and aquariums to obtain small tissue samples, often during routine veterinary reviews. In this way, with a millimeter of leather you can create a stock of cell lines and keep them forever. The process is surprisingly pragmatic. Zoos send biopsies in tubes with a conservation medium. A complex cold chain is not always needed; Sometimes, as in the case of a stranded whale in Valencia, a little serum is enough to start. In the laboratory conservation is consumed. Once the fabric reaches the laboratory, Technicians cultivate cellsallowing them to divide and multiply to form a homogeneous population that is called ‘cell line’. Reprogramming to stem cells. The most revolutionary step is reprogramming. They can take a skin cell and, by laboratory techniques, return it to a pluripotent state, turning it into a stem cell of induced pluripotentiality (IPSC). “A stem cell is a pluripotent cell, which means that it can become what you want,” says Marquès-Bonet. And once this is achieved, the last step of cryopreservation of both cell lines and IPSC in liquid nitrogen is reached, where they can remain viable for decades, waiting for the science of the future to need them. A technique similar to that used for human embryo conservationfor example, in fertility processes. Currently, Cryozoo already houses more than 2,000 samples of almost 300 species, which have generated 350 high quality cell lines. Among its “treasures” are Montseny Triton cells (the most threatened amphibian in Europe), the Pyrenean frog, the ORYX DAMMAH (A species already extinct in nature) and even the rhinoceros Pedro, the longest in Europe, deceased in 2023. Quality on quantity. What distinguishes Cryozoo from other initiatives is not its size, but its obsession with quality. And it is that the bank’s goal is not to have the more cell lines the better, but to have the best and most viable. To achieve this, they have implemented a step that they consider crucial and that makes them unique: sequence the complete genome of each cell line they create. In this way, they ensure that the genome of the cultivated cell is a faithful representation to the original animal without genetic aberrations that have occurred in the laboratory. AND the fact of sequencing it It is also a great advance for science, because on many occasions it is the first time that this technique is done in a specific species. Something that will be in a repository that any researcher can consult. They want to avoid using these cells. With the ability to convert skin cells into ovules and sperm, the question is inevitable: is the ultimate goal of ‘de -sextinction’? But researchers have it clear: it is a red line that they never want to pass. Although technology has already allowed to bring functionally extinct species such as the Huron of black legs or the Przewalski horse, the Cryozoo team considers that its function is to be custodians of the genetic material, not to execute reproduction. They would only make their cells available to a project of this caliber if it had the validation of the International Union for Nature Conservation (IUCN) and a global consensus. Cloning is not the step. Although it can be attractive to make ‘photocopies’ of animals in a laboratory, the reality is that today It is a expensive and inefficient process. The real effort of the researchers today lies in preserving ecosystems so that animals live in them and reproduce naturally. Without man having to intervene. A cell bank to save animals … and also humans. The value of Cryozoo does not only reside in that distant possibility of resuscitating species. Its applications are immediate and revolutionary for current research. And it is that diseases can be studied without damaging any living being by infecting cells with a pathogen to see how cells react. But it goes further, being able to create ‘mini organs’ to investigate the biology of some species, test drugs safely or investigate human diseases in the genetics of these animals. A hope for an uncertain future. The changes that succumb to our planet can cause in the future to be a real climatic emergency. That is why we prepare the ‘end of the end of the world‘To collect all the seeds of the world, and now we also collect all animals. A genetic library that, in the best stage, we will only consult for pure scientific curiosity and never for a planetary emergency. Images | Gary Bendig Julia Koblitz In Xataka | Apocalypse diet: science already knows what survivors will eat a nuclear war

In South Korea there are parents voluntary in cells. There is a word that explains it: “Hikikomori”

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Jin Young-Hae is a fictional name. Your story is not. Last year this South Korean mother explained to the BBC Under the condition of the anonymity what has led him to – in a totally voluntary way – a blue monkey and spend hours and more hours held in a tiny, austere cell, not much greater than a closet and in which he did not have a company, mobile, or portable spent hours. Alone, with your thoughts. The only link with the outside from his peculiar prison was the small hole open at the door through which he was given food. Sounds strange, but there is a word that explains it: Hikikomori. Objective: to isolate yourself from the world. The choice of Mrs. Jin may seem extravagant, but she is not the only one who has made a similar decision in South Korea. BBC has spoken with other inmates and voluntary inmates. In addition to demanding anonymity, they all share two fundamental characteristics. The first, who are parents of young people who are between adolescence and thirty. The second, which have decided to participate in a special program that keeps them held during a brief period in isolation cells. And this last word can be understood in its most literal sense. Jin and the rest of the participants are housed in tiny habitats to which they cannot take or mobile phones. But … why? To understand. Jin or Park Han-Sil, another pseudonyms used by BBC to tell a real case, are mothers of South Korean youth who share another peculiarity: they have been isolated from the world. Jin is the mother of a 24 -year -old who lives withdrawn in his room, neglecting his cleaning and food. Park has a little older, 26 years old, who has already decided to cut all communication with society. Now he barely leaves his room and refuses to take the medication that doctors have scheduled. When voluntary, ladies Jin or Park try to better understand their offspring, put themselves into their skin in an extreme way and especially look for tools to communicate better with them. “I’ve been wondering what I did wrong … it’s painful,” Jin admits50 years. Now, and after passing through the cell, he claims to have “some clarity.” Park also recognizes that isolation has helped him understand the feelings of his offspring. “I have realized that it is important to accept his life without forcing him to fit into a specific mold.” “Confinement experience”. Neither Park nor Jin decided to be a good day in their homes, improvised. His have been planned experiences and the isolation have been done in the Happiness Factory rooms, where the inmates They arrive to experiment in their flesh the “confinement”. For this they can dress a uniform, leave their phones and laptops and be held in bare wall cells, without company. The BBC clarifies That since April there are other parents who have been participating in a 13 -week special education program funded by organizations such as Fundación for the Youth of Korea or the Blue Whale Recovery Center. The program has a clear, and complicated objective: show these fathers and mothers how to communicate better with their children. To this end, it includes a peculiar experience, a three -day period during which participants spend time in rooms in the province of Gangwon that replicate an isolation cell. The keyword: Hikikomori. Jin and Park are mothers of Hikikomoria term coined in Japan already decades ago and that identifies young people who at a certain time of their lives decide to be disturbed almost completely, cutting contact with the world that opens beyond their homes or rooms. The phenomenon is not new, but serious. At least according to the estimates that the authorities handle. Not long ago, the Ministry of Health and Welfare of South Korea conducted a survey between 15,000 young people between 19 and 34 years old and discovered that More than 5% They lived in isolation. If these figures move to the country as a whole, they would show that in South Korea there are hundreds of thousands of people in a similar situation: just over half a million (540,000). Understanding isolation. The program confesses Park, allows the parents of these young people to better understand the reason for seclusion. To her, for example, reading notes written by others Hikikomori He helped him understand his own son’s silences. The South Korean government also has studies that help become a clear idea of ​​the phenomenon of isolation among young people without going through an experience like Hapiness Factory. A study by the South Korean Ministry of Health reflects that 24.1% of young people between 19 and 34 years old who deconciate from the world do so by difficulties in finding work, 23.5% due to problems to relate and 24.8% due to family or health issues. Of backdrop is The competitive society Surcoreana, where from a very young age parents take their children to academies to end up accessing the most prestigious universities in the country. South Korea also stands out for its Work Days marathon. Concern beyond home. The one of Hikikomori It is a phenomenon serious enough to generate concern beyond families. In 2023 the government came to launch A campaign To encourage solitary young people to leave home and “reintegrate into society”, for which he did not hesitate to offer 450 euros designed for young people up to 24 years. Then there was talk that in the country there would be hundreds of thousands of people living in isolation. The advantages of a pause. The mothers and fathers of Hikikomori They are not the only ones in South Korea who seek voluntary isolation. In the country there are those who decide to confine themselves on their own choice, paying even hundreds of euros in exchange for the experience, simply to take a respite from their busy routines. The CBC chain told in 2018, which The case said From Suk-Won Kang, … Read more

Bie million years ago symbiosis between two cells created a new kingdom in nature. We are trying to replicate the meeting

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About one billion years ago an event happened that would change our planet forever. It was not the first time that an event of this Tupo was happening, in fact, when something similar happened millions of years before, the ban was opened to the appearance of complex life on earth. This time it was the time of the plants. All because one cell managed to swallow another. 1+1 = 1. A team of researchers He is trying to recreate In a laboratory the conditions that gave rise to the appearance of the unicellular organisms of which all past and present plants evolved. The project, baptized as 1+1 = 1, has an objective that goes beyond the study of the evolution of these organisms, could give rise to new tools to use both in biotechnology and medicine. A first radical change. To better understand the experiment, we must return to these two key moments in the evolutionary history of the Earth’s Vira. The first of the events that would mark these changes took about 2,000 million years ago, although the estimates vary. This change occurred when a simple, prokaryotic cell, swallowed another and turned it to its organelle. The engulmed cell had the ability to produce energy from chemical compounds, which became a useful tool for the “host” cell, which made it its private energy center, The mitochondria. Having such a source of energy was what allowed this cell to evolve, generate an independent nucleus and then give rise to complex life. Second act. About a billion years after the appearance of the first eukaryotic cells, the story was repeated again: one cell swallowed another and turned it into something of its own, another organelle. On this occasion, the swallowed cell was cyanobacteria, an organism capable of performing photosynthesis. When integrating into a eukaryotic cell, cyanobacteria went to become a chloroplastallowing his guest to enjoy the advantages of photosynthesis. This change gave way to a new kingdom of life, that of plants. From symbiosis to total union. The integration process between cells was slowly surely: first individual cells would have become a symbiotic relationship. A relationship that, over the years (millions, perhaps) would give rise to total integration. Replicate the process From beginning to end in laboratory it may not be feasible, so the work focuses on the first steps, in creating a “synthetic symbiosis” that allows us to investigate the processes that gave rise to the formation of complex cells. The team responsible for this project wants to observe the process closely, Replicating this synthetic relationship between two organisms in controlled conditions. The chosen microorganisms are a bacteria, Burstar Parameciumand a unicellular algae, Chlorella vulgaris. The relationship they seek to replicate the nature symbiosis, in which the bacteria acts as a algae host. New tools. To carry out the experiment, the team turned to microchips designed specifically for this, which allow studying cells closely maintaining control of light, temperature and nutrient availability in these cells. To “force” symbiosis, the team put the bacteria under stressful conditions and studied interactions with the other organism involved. Methodological details can be consulted In an article Posted in the magazine Lab on a chip. More common than it seems. We have proof of two occasions in which these advanced symbiosis changed the course of life, but the relationships between unicellular organisms that give rise to endosimbiosis do not seem to be something strange. In recent years We have seen similar cases discovered in nature, for example The case of the algae Braarudosphaera Bigelowiiwhich absorbed a newly discovered cyanobacteria called UCYN-A. In Xataka | Luca, this was the ancestral microorganism that all current living beings emerged Image | Witting et al. (2025), Forschungszentrum Jülich / Degleex Ganzorig

On their way to mass implementation, Perovskita cells have taken another step: 10 times more resistant

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Perovskita’s solar cells are known for their lightness, managing to develop Ultrafin panels with different applications, such as The candle of a ship. However, the stability of this type of cell meant a challenge for its commercial viability. Now, a group of researchers has managed to extend the useful life of a Perovskita solar cell. Short. Scientists from the University of Surrey They have developed Perovskita solar cells that, by incorporating aluminum oxide nanoparticles, improve both durability and efficiency. Thanks to this finding, cells will be more resistant for large -scale application. The problem to be solved. Here you have to make an important comparison, because the solar cells of the study are of Perovskita that are more efficient and economical than those of silicon, so it has been one of the main objectives of the researchers for their commercial implementation. However, the main challenge was that cells They suffered iodine leakscausing the structure to react chemically reducing its performance. In addition, factors such as humidity, heat and oxygen accelerate this process. The investigation. Surrey’s team, together with the United Kingdom physics laboratory and Sheffield University, He has discovered that when integrating aluminum oxide nanoparticles (Al₂O₃) within the Perovskita layer, iodine can be trapped and prevent it from escaping. This simple but effective approach drastically improves the structural integrity of Perovskita’s solar cells, making them more resistant to weather conditions. The results. Solar cells containing nanoparticles maintained high performance for more than two months (1,530 hours), compared to just 160 hours of Standard Perovskita cells. In this way, the investigation has achieved an increase in the durability of ten times more. The incorporation of these nanoparticles has helped create a more uniform Perovskita structure, which has reduced the defects of the material such as moisture and has improved electrical conductivity. Iodine is not always bad. Unlike this study, iodine can be the result of a solution if the right approach is sought. A study group from the University of Beijing has achieved Integrate iodine into a Perovskita structure. In this approach it has stabilized the material and has avoided the degradation that has historically limited its durability. A great future. In 2009, Perovskita’s solar cells only converted 3% of solar energy into electricity, wasting the remaining 97%. However, Thanks to recent advancesits efficiency has exceeded 25%, increasingly bringing them closer to generalized commercial adoption. This progress highlights the great potential of technology, and with more studies, it is expected to continue increasing, approaching even higher figures and opening new opportunities for solar energy. Image | Pexels and University of Surrey Xataka | How a new study has achieved cheaper Perovskita solar panels and more efficiently by capturing light on both sides

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