New Atlas

Medical Audio available

Detailed lung cell map uncovers new pieces of the asthma puzzle

Michael Irving June 17, 2019

As part of the Human Cell Atlas initiative researchers have mapped the different types of cells in the lungs, and spotted some crucial new differences between healthy and asthma-affected airways that could inspire some new drug targets.

Some newly identified differences between healthy and asthma-affected airways could inspire some new drug targets

Biology Audio available

How food dye may have unlocked 3D printable organs for transplant

Michael Irving May 5, 2019

3D printing organs is going through some teething issues. Now researchers have found a surprisingly simple answer to the complex problem of printing detailed vascular networks, and shown it off with a dramatic model of a breathing lung that passes oxygen into surrounding blood vessels.

A new bioprinted lung model demonstrates an intricate 3D-printed vascular network

Biology Audio available

Severe flu could cause taste buds to grow in your lungs

Michael Irving April 2, 2019

In extreme cases the flu virus can actually reshape the structure of the lungs. Now, researchers at the University of Pennsylvania have discovered a major part of that restructuring that until now had gone unnoticed – “taste bud cells” seem to grow in the lungs after a severe case of the flu.

Medical Audio available

Inhalable RNA could breathe new life into lung cancer treatments

Michael Irving January 6, 2019

In the body, mRNA molecules are in charge of instructing cells to produce specific proteins, and hijacking this natural system is emerging as a promising new way to treat a wide variety of illnesses. A new inhalable mRNA aerosol could be a potential new treatment for cystic fibrosis or lung cancer.

Lung epithelial cells that have taken up the mRNA particles (yellow dots), which makes them glow ...

Medical

Prototype device listens to lungs to check the heart

Ben Coxworth November 29, 2018

One of the key symptoms of congestive heart failure is fluid accumulation in the lungs. Currently, people need to visit a clinic in order to check for such accumulation. Thanks to a new device, however, they may soon be able to perform checks whenever they want, in their own home.

The device takes the form of a stethoscope-like acoustic sensor which is hard-wired to a smartphone

Health & Wellbeing Audio available

New study finds e-cigarette vapor impairs activity of key immune cells in the lung

Rich Haridy August 14, 2018

As e-cigarettes rise in popularity, many researchers are working hard to understand the long-term implications of vaping on human health. A new small study has now found that e-cigarette vapor can damage key immune cells in the lung, suggesting vaping may be more harmful that previously suspected.

New research suggests e-cigarette vapor can impair the ability of immune cells in the lungs to ...

Medical

Bioengineered lungs successfully transplanted into pigs

Michael Irving August 2, 2018

What if doctors could grow new organs for transplant on demand from a patient’s own cells? In a major step towards this future, scientists from the University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB) have now transplanted bioengineered lungs into pigs, with no complications arising from the procedure.

Medical

New cells discovered in the airway might hold the key to cystic fibrosis

Michael Irving August 1, 2018

We may be a step closer to new treatments for cystic fibrosis, as two research teams are now reporting the discovery of a new type of cell in the airways. These rare cells seem to be where most activity of a certain gene is located, mutations of which are known to cause cystic fibrosis.

Two studies have discovered new types of cells in the airways called pulmonary ionocytes (highlighted in ...

Medical

Inhalable viruses show promise as a better way to treat lung infections

Michael Irving July 18, 2018

As a lung infection, the most direct route to treat pneumonia would be inhalable drugs. Now researchers at Georgia Tech have made a step towards that goal, with breathable viruses that hunt down and kill disease-causing bacteria in the lungs.

Inhalable bacteriophages could be used to treat lung infections like pneumonia

Medical

Targeting underlying reason airways close could let asthmatics breathe easier

Rebekah Andrews February 5, 2018

Scientists understand that too much of a protein called mucin causes the lungs’ airways to close, triggering an asthma attack. Until now, the mechanism behind it was unknown. Researchers from Houston Methodist Research Institute believe the answer lies in how two molecules communicate.

A discovery by researchers at Houston Methodist Research Institute could lead to better drugs to treat ...