Compositions, devices and methods are described for improving adhesion, attachment, and/or differentiation of cells in a microfluidic device or chip. In one embodiment, one or more ECM proteins are covalently coupled to the surface of a microchannel of a microfluidic device. The microfluidic devices can be stored or used immediately for culture and/or support of living cells such as mammalian cells, and/or for simulating a function of a tissue, e.g., a liver tissue, muscle tissue, etc. Extended adhesion and viability with sustained function over time is observed.

The present disclosure provides antibodies and antigen-binding fragments thereof that specifically bind to human PAR-2 and compositions comprising such antibodies or antigen-binding fragments thereof. In a particular aspect, the antibodies or antigen-binding fragments thereof that specifically bind to human PAR-2 block the interaction between a PAR-2 activating ligand and an extracellular domain of PAR-2, and/or blocks PAR-2 activation by a PAR-2 activating ligand, In further aspects, the antibodies or antigen-binding fragments can be used to treat diseases or conditions associated with increased expression of PAR-2 and/or diseases or conditions that can be alleviated by antagonizing activation of PAR-2 by a PAR-2 activating ligand (e.g., airway diseases, skin diseases, cancer, orofacial granulomatosis, inflammatory conditions, and pain associated with various diseases or conditions).

The present invention concerns compositions and methods related to approaches to render ineffective Th1 T cells resistant to the inhibitory cytokine milieu present in a cancer microenvironment. In particular embodiments, tumor-specific T cells are modified to employ a chimeric receptor that binds inhibitory/suppressive cytokines and converts their intracellular consequences to a Th1 immunostimulaotyr/activating signal. In specific embodiments, the T cells employ a chimeric antigen receptor having exodomains for IL10, IL13 and/or IL4 fused with the signal transducing endodomains for IL2 and/or IL7.

A reagent for differentiating somatic cells into alveolar epithelial cells includes an NK2 homeobox family gene expression vector, and a Fox family gene expression vector, a method for manufacturing alveolar epithelial cells, the method including forcing a somatic cell to express an NK2 homeobox family gene and a Fox family gene and culturing the somatic cell after forced expression, an alveolar epithelial cell manufactured by the manufacturing method, and a cell medicine including the alveolar epithelial cell.

The invention provides methods and compositions for inducing brown fat cell differentiation through modulation of both Prdm16 and C/EBPβ activity and/or expression. Also provided are methods for preventing or treating obesity or an obesity related disorder in a subject through stimulation of both Prdm16 and C/EBPβ expression and/or activity. Further provided are methods for identifying compounds that are capable of modulating both Prdm16 and C/EBPβ expression and/or activity.

The present invention relates to the purification of poloxamers to be used as cell culture media additives. Activated carbon can be used to remove hydrophobic high molecular weight components which reduce the efficacy of poloxamers as cell culture additives.

The present invention relates to isolated haemoglobin from worms belonging to the Nereididae family and its use in cell culture medium, in preservation solutions and as artificial oxygen carrier for transfusion.

A simple, highly flexible and scalable platform for making functional complex tissues with heterogeneity and irregularity is provided. The method includes combining undifferentiated cells, such as pluripotent or multipotent stem cells, with a biomaterial to make multiple undifferentiated or naïve subunits, exposing the undifferentiated or naïve subunits to different cell culture environments for induction of differentiation towards different lineages as required by that complex tissue, and combining the then functional subunits with or without the undifferentiated subunits. The differentiated subunits thus combined can be cultured under biological, chemical, and/or physical culture conditions suitable to fine-tune the structural and functional properties of the bioengineered complex tissue to form a bioengineered tissue graft that mimics the structural and functional characteristics of native complex tissue. The bioengineered tissue graft can then used to replace dysfunctional tissue.

The present invention relates to methods of treating or preventing cancer and other diseases using molecules, particularly polypeptides, more particularly immunoglobulins (e.g., antibodies), comprising a variant Fc region, wherein said variant Fc region comprises at least one amino acid modification relative to a wild-type Fc region, which variant Fc region binds an FcγR that activates a cellular effector (“FcγR.sub.Activating,” such as FcγRIIA or FcγRIIIA) and an FcγR that inhibits a cellular effector (“FcγR.sub.Inhibiting,” such as FcγRIIA) with an altered Ratio of Affinities relative to the respective binding affinities of such FcγR for the Fc region of the wild-type immunoglobulin. The methods of the invention are particularly useful in preventing, treating, or ameliorating one or more symptoms associated with a disease, disorder, or infection where either an enhanced efficacy of effector cell function mediated by FcγR is desired (e.g., cancer, infectious disease) or an inhibited effector cell response mediated by FcγR is desired (e.g., inflammation, autoimmune disease).

Described in the present application are methods for preparing populations of hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs), e.g., autologous and/or allogenic HSCs, using mechanical stretching or Trpv4 agonisists, and methods of use of the HSCs in transplantation. In some embodiments, the methods include providing a population comprising hemogenic endothelial (HE) cells, and (i) contacting the HE cells with an amount of an agonist of transient receptor potential cation channel-subfamily vanilloid member 4 (Trpv4); and/or (ii) subjecting the cells to cyclic 2-dimensional stretching, for a time and under conditions sufficient to stimulating endothelial-to-HSC transition. Also provided herein are methods for treating subjects who have, bone marrow, metabolic, and immune diseases; the methods include administering to the subject a therapeutically effective amount of hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) obtained by a method described herein.