Unlocking the secrets of regeneration: Study discovers how salamanders replace limbs - and it may help humans do the same
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It's long been known that salamanders are capable of growing new limbs, but scientists believe they have finally discovered how the process works.
Researchers at University College London (UCL) identified a biological pathway, called ERK (Extracellular signal-regulated kinases), must be constantly active for salamander cells to regenerate - a process not seen in the same way in other mammals.
Although a long way from achieving the same feat in humans, the discovery could help researchers unlock the 'regenerative potential' of cells across other animals.
Scientists may have uncovered the secret of the salamander's ability to grow new limbs. Though a long way from achieving the same feat in people, the discovery could help researchers unlock the 'regenerative potential' of human cells. Pictured is a salamander known as Notophthalmus viridescens (the eastern newt)
Salamanders are lizard-like amphibians famous for their capacity to replace body parts; cut a salamander's leg off, and in time it will grow a new one.
IS CLIMATE CHANGE MAKING SALAMANDERS SMALLER?
A study claims that wild salamanders in North America are getting smaller as their surroundings get warmer and drier, forcing them to burn more energy in a hotter climate.
Researchers from the University of Maryland found that salamanders in the Appalachians today were nearly a tenth smaller than their ancestors in the 1950s.
The changes were most marked in the Southern Appalachians and at low elevations - settings where detailed weather records showed the climate has warmed and dried out most.
Scientists have predicted that some animals will get smaller in response to climate change and, the researchers sasy, this is strong confirmation of that prediction.
In the same way, the creatures are able to regenerate tails, jaws, eyes, organs and even spinal cords.
In adult mammalian cells, the ERK pathway is not fully active. When forced to be, cells acquire a greater potential for reprogramming and regeneration.
The researchers announced their findings in the journal Stem Cell Reports.
Through the ERK pathway, proteins communicate signals from a cell's surface to the nucleus containing its genetic material.
'While humans have limited regenerative abilities, other organisms, such as the salamander, are able to regenerate an impressive repertoire of complex structures including parts of their hearts, eyes, spinal cord, tails, and they are the only adult vertebrates able to regenerate full limbs,' said Lead scientist Dr Max Yun from UCL's Institute of Structural and Molecular Biology.
'We're thrilled to have found a critical molecular pathway, the ERK pathway, that determines whether an adult cell is able to be reprogrammed and help the regeneration processes.
'Manipulating this mechanism could contribute to therapies directed at enhancing regenerative potential of human cells.'
Further research will now focus on understanding how the important pathway is regulated during limb regeneration, and which other molecules are involved in the process.
Salamanders are lizard-like amphibians famous for their capacity to replace body parts; cut a salamander's leg off, and in time it will grow a new one. In the same way, the creatures are able to regenerate tails, jaws, eyes, organs and even spinal cords. Pictured is a stock photo of a giant palm salamander in Guatemala
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