Researchers have developed a guide to help labs standardize the production of mature hepatic-like cells (HPCs) from stem cells and easily compare gene expression of HPCs to actual human liver tissue. This moderately high throughput protocol can enable a relatively quick assessment of the efficacy of stem cell differentiation and…
Simple blood test could determine preterm birth rate in low-resource countries
Preterm birth is a leading cause of death among children under the age of five, with low resource countries facing the greatest challenge. But before solutions can be tested, researchers first need to be able to accurately measure the problem at a population level. This has been particularly difficult in…
Simple, cheap C-peptide helps patients get the right diabetes diagnosis and treatment
A simple and inexpensive test to measure the body’s insulin levels is helping clinicians to determine what type of diabetes a patient has, meaning many people with diabetes can change treatment. This test has meant many more patients with diabetes are getting the right diagnosis of the type of diabetes…
7 simple steps for heart health also prevent diabetes
According to the American Heart Association (AHA), there are seven cardiovascular risk factors that people can change to improve their heart health. Dubbed “Life’s Simple 7,” these risk factors are: “smoking status, physical activity, weight, diet, blood glucose, cholesterol, and blood pressure.” The AHA note that research has shown that…