Contents
21 June 2017
Vol 9, Issue 395
Vol 9, Issue 395
Research Articles
- The long noncoding RNA Wisper controls cardiac fibrosis and remodeling
A super-enhancer–associated long noncoding RNA, Wisper, controls cardiac fibrosis and pathological remodeling in the damaged heart.
- VP4- and VP7-specific antibodies mediate heterotypic immunity to rotavirus in humans
Individual human VP4- and VP7-binding monoclonal antibodies mediate serotype cross-reactive neutralizing immunity to rotaviruses.
- Targeting factor D of the alternative complement pathway reduces geographic atrophy progression secondary to age-related macular degeneration
The phase 2 MAHALO clinical trial shows that lampalizumab reduces geographic atrophy secondary to age-related macular degeneration and implicates complement dysregulation in disease pathogenesis.
Report
- Infectivity of Plasmodium falciparum sporozoites determines emerging parasitemia in infected volunteers
Infectivity of P. falciparum sporozoites determines the course of primary malaria infection in human volunteers.
Editors' Choice
- Flipping the kill switch
Alveolar macrophages display an impairment in delayed bacterial killing in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) that may contribute to an increased susceptibility to bacterial infection.
- When they go low, we go high
High-frequency electrical interference can be used to drive activity deep in the brain.
- “AMP”(K)ed up recovery from ischemia-reperfusion injury
Aging decreases tolerance to ischemia-reperfusion injury, which is mitigated by sestrin2-driven substrate metabolism.
About The Cover
ONLINE COVER The Secret Life of Fibroblasts. Fibroblasts produce extracellular matrix proteins in response to cardiac injury. Micheletti et al. identified a long noncoding RNA, Wisper, up-regulated in cardiac fibroblasts in mice after myocardial infarction. They determined that Wisper contributes to fibrosis during pathogenic cardiac remodeling by regulating cardiac fibroblast proliferation, survival, and matrix production. Inhibiting Wisper in mice after myocardial infarction reduced cardiac dysfunction and scar size. WISPER is conserved in humans and is increased in heart tissue from patients with aortic stenosis, suggesting that targeting this long noncoding RNA could help treat cardiac fibrosis. [CREDIT: LUNAMARINA/ISTOCKPHOTO]