KI researchers, in collaboration with Rockefeller University and the Medical College of Wisconsin, have successfully modeled hepatitis C infection in the lab using cells derived from induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs). This represents the first described iPSC model of infectious disease, and could enable study of patient-specific responses to disease and treatment. The findings were reported in the recent edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.  read more

A collaborative team of researchers from the KI, Mass. General Hospital, and Agios Pharmaceuticals has developed an imaging technology to detect a mutation found in up to eighty-six percent of the brain tumors known as low-grade gliomas. This technology could help researchers determine whether drugs targeting the tumors are actually working.   read more
 

KI and Whitehead researchers have found they can boost the production and quality of iPS cells simply by tweaking the levels of reprogramming factors used.  These results may increase the potential for iPS cells to be used as therapies for diseases such as cancer, Parkinson's, and Alzheimer's. The findings are reported in the December 2nd issue of Cell Stem Cell. read more

Researchers from MIT and Massachusetts General Hospital report that glutamine, a plentiful amino acid, can serve as an alternate starting point for lipid synthesis when glucose and oxygen are scarce.  The finding, detailed in the Nov. 20th online edition of Nature, helps explain how cancer cells continue to grow rapidly in tissues with limited nutrients.   It also illuminates new drug targets that might be used to selectively starve cancers out. read more

Bill Weir of ABC's Nightline visited the Cima lab to learn all about their implantable sensor, which could allow doctors to continuously and non-invasively monitor tumor environments.  The segment appeared on the ABC News program, "This Could Be Big." view video