April 3, 2025 The Best Source of News, Culture, Lifestyle for Culver City, Mar Vista, Del Rey, Palms and West Los Angeles

UCLA scientists release immune system-related gene study

UCLA scientists have shown that two genes not previously known to be involved with the immune system play a crucial role in
how progenitor stem cells are activated to fight infection, according to a study released Wednesday.

The discovery lays the groundwork for a better understanding of the role progenitor cells can play in immune system response and could lead to the development of more effective therapies for a wide range of diseases.

Results of the two-year study led by Eli and Edythe Broad Center of Regenerative Medicine and Stem Cell Research member Dr. Julian Martinez-Agosto was published online today ahead of print in the journal Current Biology.

Progenitor cells are the link between stem cells and fully differentiated cells of the blood system, tissues and organs. This maturation process, known as differentiation, is determined in part by the original environment that the progenitor cell came from, called the niche.

Many of these progenitors are maintained in a quiescent state or “standby mode” and are ready to differentiate in response to immune challenges, such as stress, infection or disease.

Dr. Gabriel Ferguson, a postdoctoral fellow in Martinez-Agosto’s lab and first author of the study, built upon the lab’s previous research that utilized the blood system of the fruit fly species Drosophila, showing that a specific set of signals must be received by progenitor cells to activate their differentiation into cells that can work to fight infection after injury.

Ferguson focused on two genes previously identified in stem cells but not in the blood system, named Yorkie and Scalloped, and discovered that they are required in a newly characterized cell type called a lineage specifying cell. These cells then essentially work as a switch, sending the required signal to progenitor cells.

The researchers further discovered that when the progenitor cells did not receive the required signal, the fly would not make the mature cells required to fight infection. This indicates that the ability of the blood system to fight outside infection and other pathogens is directly related to the signals sent by this new cell type.

“The beauty of this study is that we now have a system in which we can investigate how a signaling cell uses these two genes Yorkie and Scalloped, which have never before been shown in blood, to direct specific cells to be made,” said Martinez-Agosto, an associate professor of human genetics. “It can help us to eventually answer the question of how our body knows how to make specific cell types that can fight infection.”

Martinez-Agosto and Ferguson and colleagues next hope that future studies will examine these genes beyond Drosophila and extend to mammalian models, and that the system will be used by the research community to study the role of the genes Yorkie and Scalloped in different niche environments.

“At a biochemical level, there is a lot of commonality between the molecular machinery in Drosophila and that in mice and humans,” Ferguson said. “This study can further our shared understanding of how the microenvironment can regulate the differentiation and fate of a progenitor or stem cell.”

Said Martinez-Agosto: “Looking at the functionality of these genes and their effect on the immune response has great potential for accelerating the development of new targeted therapies.”

Related Posts

LAX Airport Server Finds Hate-Filled Message From Unidentified Diners

April 2, 2025

April 2, 2025

Waiter Says He Was Stunned by the Message Left by Customers Guillermo Ortiz, who works at Planet Hollywood inside the...

Sunset Strip Staple Le Petit Four Shuts Down After Landlord Pulls the Plug

April 2, 2025

April 2, 2025

End of an Era: Le Petit Four Forced to Close in West Hollywood In a stunning reversal to the upbeat...

Metro LA Pushes Back Sepulveda Transit Community Meetings

April 2, 2025

April 2, 2025

Environmental Review Delay Prompts Metro to Reschedule  Metro announced that community meetings scheduled for early April to discuss the Sepulveda...

County Board Approves New Homeless Agency, Redirecting Millions from Existing System

April 2, 2025

April 2, 2025

With Billions on the Line, LA County Moves to Centralize Homeless Response Los Angeles County is making a dramatic shift...

Put the Phone Down: LAPD and CHP Targets Distracted Drivers in April Crackdown

April 1, 2025

April 1, 2025

Hands-Free Law Violations Could Now Cost You More Than Just a Fine Throughout April, the Los Angeles Police Department will...

Five Arrested in Culver City After Attempted Carjacking and Vandalism Incident

April 1, 2025

April 1, 2025

Gun, Warrants, and Broken Glass: Culver City Police Tackle Two Crimes Police arrested four juveniles in connection with an attempted...

Kim Delaney, Partner Cleared After Weekend Arrest in Marina del Rey

April 1, 2025

April 1, 2025

Emmy-Winning Actress and Partner James Morgan Released Kim Delaney, the Emmy-winning actress recognized for her roles in NYPD Blue and...

(Video) Spending an Afternoon at Pacific Park on the Santa Monica Pier

April 1, 2025

April 1, 2025

Go To Pacpark.com For Tickets and More Information. Go To https://t.co/fDDgcY6b3e For Tickets and More Information.#amusementpark #rides #rollercoaster #summer #spring...

Matū Kai to Debut in Brentwood With Grass Fed Wagyu and Global Flair This Week

April 1, 2025

April 1, 2025

Farm-To-Fork Beef, Wood-Fired Flavors, and Sustainability Meet on San Vicente The team behind Beverly Hills’ acclaimed steakhouse Matū will soon...

Mid-City Freeway Death Under Investigation After Caltrans Workers Find Blanket-Covered Body

April 1, 2025

April 1, 2025

Woman Discovered on 10 Freeway Shoulder Identified; CHP Launches Probe Caltrans workers discovered a woman’s dead body around 9:00 a.m....

Community Support Saves Beloved West Hollywood Café from Closure

March 31, 2025

March 31, 2025

Packed Tables and Emotional Messages Helped Keep the Doors Open Le Petit Four, the popular Sunset Boulevard café known for...

Egg Beaters Recalled Over Possible Chemical Contamination

March 31, 2025

March 31, 2025

Massive Liquid Egg Recall Includes California Shipments Cargill Kitchen Solutions is recalling approximately 212,268 pounds of liquid egg products after...

Los Angeles County’s Measure A Raises Sales Tax On April 1, And It’s No Joke

March 31, 2025

March 31, 2025

Santa Monica, West Hollywood, Culver City, and Malibu Will See Higher Increases Starting April 1, Los Angeles County residents will...

Robbery Boast on Instagram Helps Send Beverly Hills Heist Suspect to Prison

March 31, 2025

March 31, 2025

Flashy Post, Federal Time: Smash-and-Grab Mastermind Sentenced Ladell Tharpe, 39, received an 84-month sentence from U.S. District Judge George H....

Culver City Rolls Out Hi-Lo Siren to Warn Residents During Emergencies

March 31, 2025

March 31, 2025

Hi-Lo Warning System Activated: Culver City Adds New Evacuation Tool In an effort to strengthen emergency preparedness and public safety,...