Spinach has left deep childhood memories for many post-70s and post-80s generations because of the cartoon image of Popeye. Apart from appearing on our table as usual, it is truly endowed with the expectation of great power by scientists. The team of Dr. LIN Xianfeng and Prof. FAN Shunwu, from the orthopedics of Sir Run Run Shaw Hospital (SRRSH), Zhejiang University School of Medicine, and the team of Prof. TANG Ruikang from the Zhejiang University Department of Chemistry, successfully...

Symptomatic treatment was commonly used for chronic diseases in the past. For example, diabetes was often treated by controlling the increase of glucose and alleviating various diabetes-induced complications with insulin. However, how to prevent diabetes has remained elusive in the scientific and medical community, and it has become a global research hotspot to find out the origin of the disease for early intervention.Recently, the team led by Prof. HUANG Hefeng from Women’s Hospital at the Zhe...

Myelin is a multiple-layered structure formed by oligodendrocytes. The ensheathment of axons by myelin plays an important role in both functional integrity and long-term survival of axons and thus regulates activity of the central nervous system (CNS). However, with ageing, some myelin sheaths exhibit myelin ageing and even myelin degeneration termed as demyelination, which is the key pathological feature of the autoimmune inflammatory diseases of CNS such as multiple sclerosis (MS) and an early...

Since November 2021, the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron has spread expeditiously all over the world and gradually superseded the previous attention-capturing the SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern (VOCs). The Omicron variant harbors more than 30 mutations in the spike protein, leading to immune evasion from many therapeutic neutralizing antibodies. Therefore, it is of immense clinical significance to develop a potent neutralizing antibody against the Omicron variant.On March 28, 2022, Prof. ZHU Yongqun at ...

You might get used to the 3D glasses in the movie theatre, but have you seen an ophthalmologist wearing 3D glasses and staring at the screen in the operating theatre?On March 24, two combined cataract and vitreoretinal surgeries were conducted by Prof. FANG Xiaoyun with the help of NCvideoHD, a three-dimensional high-definition visualization system, at the Eye Center of the Second Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine (SAHZU).The success of the surgeries not only indicates ...

The interaction between tumor cells and cells in the microenvironment is crucial for tumor metastasis. At present, there is an in-depth understanding of paracrine signaling-mediated cell-to-cell interactions in the tumor microenvironment and its role in tumor metastasis. For example, during the progression of gastric cancer, a variety of cytokines, growth factors and extracellular matrix proteins have been reported to promote the progression and metastasis of tumor cells. Clinically, we have not...

“There are no heroes who fall from the sky. Thanks to the medical team of the Children’s Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine (ZUCH)!” Congcong’s mother shared this message on the Wechat to express her gratitude on the 15th International Rare Disease Day after her son successfully received the ultrasound-guided intrathecal injection of Nusinersen, the first disease-modifying therapy for Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA). Congcong has suffered from SMA for 13 years. With no medic...

Stretch, as a form of mechanical force, plays a crucial role in regulating cell behaviors, preventing injuries and repairing tissues such as lung, heart, brain and skeletal system. Among them, stretch in bone tissues has captured the most immense attention in clinical applications, for bone tissues are continuously exposed to stretch stimulation during physiological activities. The structure and function of bone tissues relies on a proper amount of stretch stimulation, while lack of exercises te...

Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM), characterized by left ventricular hypertrophy and fibrosis, is the most common monogenic cardiovascular disorder with global distribution and diverse clinical spectrum. The disease prevalence has been estimated at approximately 1:500 in the general population and even higher (1 case per 200) when both clinical and genetic diagnoses are taken into accounts. Patients with HCM are predisposed to heart failure, outflow tract obstruction and arrhythmias. The most vi...

Uncontrolled cell proliferation is a hallmark of cancer. To sustain the ceaseless cell division, cancer cells rewire metabolic pathways in order to provide sufficient nutrient and energy for mitotic progression. Metabolic reprogramming of cancer cells is usually orchestrated by dysregulation of metabolic enzymes. It is generally thought that dysregulated metabolic enzymes contribute to cell cycle progression mainly by providing essential metabolites to meet the cellular needs for biosynthesis an...