Complex buildings generally depend upon a scaffold as they are assembled. The brain uses the same principle. During development, early nerve cell projections target a precocious group of inhibitory cells, the somatostatin interneurons, which are essential for the correct assembly of cortical circuits. Later in development these signals weaken as mature circuits form. Deepanjali Dwivedi PhD, Gord Fishell, and Gabrielle Pouchelon found that this process relies on chemical sensors on these interneurons that signal when it is time to dispense with early wiring and establish adult function. Remarkably, when this process is perturbed the basic exploratory behavior of mice is affected. Read more in Nature Communications. #BroadInstitute #Science #ScienceNews #Research #ScientificResearch
Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard
Research Services
Cambridge, MA 126,370 followers
About us
The Broad Institute brings together a diverse group of individuals from across its partner institutions — undergraduate and graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, professional scientists, administrative professionals, and academic faculty. The culture and environment at the Broad is designed to encourage creativity and to engage all participants, regardless of role or seniority, in the mission of the Institute. Within this setting, researchers are empowered — both intellectually and technically — to confront even the most difficult biomedical challenges. The Institute’s organization is unique among biomedical research institutions. It encompasses three types of organizational units: core member laboratories, programs and platforms. Scientists within these units work closely together — and with other collaborators around the world — to tackle critical problems in human biology and disease.
- Website
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http://www.broadinstitute.org/
External link for Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard
- Industry
- Research Services
- Company size
- 501-1,000 employees
- Headquarters
- Cambridge, MA
- Type
- Nonprofit
- Founded
- 2003
- Specialties
- Chemical biology, Genomics, Imaging, Metabolite profiling, Proteomics, RNAi, Therapeutics discovery and development, Cancer, Cell circuits, Genome sequencing and analysis, Epigenomics, Infectious disease, Metabolism, Psychiatric disease, and Medical and population genetics
Locations
Employees at Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard
Updates
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Mass spectrometry-based single cell proteomics (SCP) is becoming a viable complement to other single cell technologies (single cell DNA sequencing, RNA sequencing, imaging, etc.), along the way addressing challenges related to sensitivity and throughput. Writing in Nature Communications, Claudia Ctortecka, Steven Carr, and colleagues describe their efforts to combine chip-based sample preparation, workflow automation, high-throughput liquid chromatography, latest generation mass spectrometry instrumentation, and computational advances to enhance SCP depth and reproducibility. Their efforts have resulted in an integrated workflow that will allow SCP studies to move beyond cell identification and explore complex biology. #BroadInstitute #Science #ScienceNews #Research #ScientificResearch
Automated single-cell proteomics providing sufficient proteome depth to study complex biology beyond cell type classifications - Nature Communications
nature.com
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Our researchers have built AI models that predict potential toxic effects of drugs before they are tested in humans. These tools were trained on FDA-curated data and while they won’t replace traditional testing, promise to help better guide research and make drug development more efficient. #MachineLearning #DrugDevelopment #BroadInstitute #Science #ScienceNews #Research #ScientificResearch
De-risking drug discovery with predictive AI
broadinstitute.org
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While antibiotics target bacterial pathogens directly, killing them or interfering with their growth, in a study published in Nature Chemical Biology, Margarita Parada Kusz, Anne Clatworthy, Deborah Hung, and colleagues instead looked for compounds that alter the interactions between bacteria and their host. They found that 3-hydroxykynurenine (3-HK), a product of host tryptophan metabolism, protects zebrafish from lethal Pseudomonas and Salmonella infections. Surprisingly, 3-HK stops bacterial growth within immune cells called macrophages via kainate receptors, which are better known for their roles as neurotransmitter receptors in the nervous system. The findings demonstrate that host-directed therapies could be a potent approach for promoting recovery from infections. #BroadInstitute #Science #ScienceNews #Research #ScientificResearch
3-Hydroxykynurenine targets kainate receptors to promote defense against infection - Nature Chemical Biology
nature.com
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Seramount has recognized the Broad Institute as one of its 100 Best Companies, for the seventh time, recognizing Broad’s ongoing commitment and leadership in the areas of paid time off and leaves, benefits and work-life programs, and workplace best practices. Learn more about why Broad earned a spot on this year’s list at https://bit.ly/4cCajDh #BroadInstitute
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Microglia help regulate the brain by interacting with other cells and releasing molecules such as the complement protein C1q. This protein mediates the pruning of synapses — junctions between neurons — in development and disease and accumulates in the brain during aging, but its function in the adult brain remains unknown. In Cell, Nicole Scott-Hewitt, Beth Stevens, and colleagues report that C1q accumulates in neurons' ribonucleoprotein complexes. They also found that this interaction relies on RNA, and that mice without C1q show altered neuronal protein production. The findings outline this interaction's biophysics and underscore C1q's importance in intracellular processes. #BroadInstitute #Science #ScienceNews #Research #ScientificResearch
Microglial-derived C1q integrates into neuronal ribonucleoprotein complexes and impacts protein homeostasis in the aging brain
cell.com
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In tumor genomes, telomeres have been found beyond their normal locations at the ends of chromosomes, yet analysis of repetitive genomic elements like these using short-read sequencing has been challenging. To explore telomere structures in cancer cell lines and samples, Kar-Tong Tan, Heng Li, Matthew Meyerson, and colleagues used long-read sequencing to identify such neotelomeres (those occurring at new sites), as well as events where short telomeres fuse with chromosomal arms and other complex telomeric alterations. Additionally, using short-read sequencing they saw that these events vary in frequency across 40 cancer types. Described in Cell Genomics, their framework can help examine other highly repetitive sequences such as centromere arrays. #BroadInstitute #Science #ScienceNews #Research #ScientificResearch
Neotelomeres and telomere-spanning chromosomal arm fusions in cancer genomes revealed by long-read sequencing
cell.com
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A new study from Broad and Massachusetts General Hospital Cancer Center researchers, Robert Manguso, Nabeel El-Bardeesy, and Meng-Ju Wu, in Science Magazine finds cancer drugs inhibiting IDH1 production lead to the expression of ancient viral particles, triggering an antiviral response that kills tumor cells. These drugs are approved for certain brain and liver tumors, as well as myeloid leukemias, and the discovery suggests methods to enhance the efficacy of the mIDH1 inhibitors and potential applications to similar cancers. #BroadInstitute #Science #ScienceNews #Research #ScientificResearch
Targeted drug treatment leads tumor cells to imitate viral infection
broadinstitute.org
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Cystic fibrosis is one of the most common genetic disorders, causing thick mucus build-up in the lungs and other parts of the body, breathing problems, and infection. A three-drug cocktail known as Trikafta has greatly improved patient quality of life since its development in 2019, but can cause cataracts and liver damage and must be taken daily at a cost of about $300,000 per year. Now, scientists have developed a prime editing approach that efficiently corrects the most common cystic fibrosis mutation in human lung cells, which could pave the way to a one-time treatment as effective as existing daily therapies. #BroadInstitute #Science #ScienceNews #Research #ScientificResearch #CysticFibrosis #CysticFibrosisResearch
Prime editing efficiently corrects cystic fibrosis mutation in human lung cells
broadinstitute.org
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Brain organoids are a powerful platform for modeling the cellular impacts of genetic variants on the brain. They are typically constructed using cells from single donors, but Noelia Antón Bolaños, Irene Faravelli, Paola Arlotta, and collaborators from the Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research and the Klarman Cell Observatory have developed a new generation of brain organoids that incorporate cells from multiple people. These brain "chimeroids" can help researchers study the influence of individuals' genetic background on the brain's cellular responses to toxic exposures, disease-associated variants, and potential therapeutic compounds. #BroadInstitute #Science #ScienceNews #Research #ScientificResearch #BrainResearch
Brain chimeroids offer window into relationships between genetics and exposures
broadinstitute.org