Lentiviral vectors can mediate the efficient delivery, integration and expression of transgenes or short hairpin RNAs (shRNAs) in dividing as well as non-dividing cell hosts, either in vitro or in several organs in vivo. Lentiviruses enable stable long-term gene expression and are permanently integrated into the host genome. They have become important research tools, useful
The Kerafast fellowship program provides scientists with real-life experience in technology commercialization, helping them develop skills for careers on the business side of life science. Our fellows work onsite at select providing institutions to identify, characterize and eventually commercialize novel research tools created by other scientists at their institution. One such fellow is Dr. Lidia
Dendritic cells (DCs) are important components of the immune system, where they take up antigens and present them to T cells. DCs stimulate T cells and cause their expansion such that they can track down and fight threats in the body, such as viruses or cancerous cells. DC-based vaccines have shown some promise treating prostate
Adoptive T cell therapy (ACT) is a promising immunotherapy approach in which researchers engineer a patient’s own T cells to improve their cancer-fighting abilities. The approach involves harvesting T cells from a patient, quickly multiplying the cells in a laboratory and often engineering them to attack cancer cells more effectively. Then, the T cells are
Zika virus is spread through the bite of infected Aedus species mosquitoes. While generally not a major concern to healthy adults, infection with Zika virus poses a significant threat to pregnant women and their fetuses. Zika infection while pregnant can lead to serious birth defects such as microcephaly and congenital Zika syndrome. Given the mode
Research from Aarhus University in Denmark is providing new details about the structure of a DNA repair complex, information which could improve chemotherapy treatment of cancer. The new paper, published in The Journal of Biological Chemistry, cites Kerafast’s LOBSTR E. coli Expression Strain, developed by Dr. Thomas U. Schwartz at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology