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Bone cells can help kids with facial surgery

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New York:  Children with facial deformities who normally have to wait until adulthood for corrective surgery may now breathe easy as researchers have found that certain cells that drive bone growth can be used to treat those kids.

A certain subset of cartilage-making cells, known as chondrocytes, replicate themselves, make other bone cells and drive bone growth, the findings showed.

“Up until now, the 9442_8060842129cells that drive this bone growth have not been understood very well,” said Noriaki Ono from University of Michigan.

“If we can find a way to make bones that continue to grow along with the child, maybe we would be able to put these pieces of growing bones back into children and make their faces look much better than they do,” Ono explained.

It has long been thought that these chondrocytes die when children reached adolescence and their bones stopped growing, Ono pointed out.

But researchers have now found that some chondrocytes do not die, but rather transform themselves into other types of bone-growing and bone-healing cells.

Many factors cause craniofacial deformities, and all are devastating to children.

In children with Goldenhar syndrome, underdeveloped facial tissues can harm the developing jawbone.

Another bone deformity called deformational plagiocephaly causes a child’s head to grow asymmetrically.

The study appeared in the journal Nature Cell Biology.

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Covid toll in Karnataka is a worrying sign for state government

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Even though Karnataka recorded the lowest number of Covid deaths in April since the virus struck first in 2020, the state is recording a rise in the positivity rate (1.50 per cent). Five people died from the Covid infections in April as per the statistics released by the state health department. In March, the positivity rate stood around 0.53 per cent. In the first week of April it came down to 0.38 per cent, second week registered 0.56 per cent, third week it rose to 0.79 per cent and by end of April the Covid positivity rate touched 1.19 per cent.

on an average 500 persons used to succumb everyday in the peak of Covid infection, as per the data. Health experts said that the mutated Coronavirus is losing its fierce characteristics as vaccination, better treatment facilities and awareness among the people have contributed to the lesser number of Covid deaths.

During the 4th and 6th of April two deaths were reported in Bengaluru, one in Gadag district on April 8, two deaths were reported from Belagavi and Vijayapura on April 30. The first Covid case was reported in the state in March 2020 and three Covid deaths were recorded in the month. In the following month 21 people became victims to the deadly virus, and May 2020 recorded 22 deaths. The death toll recorded everyday after May crossed three digits. However, the third wave, which started in January 2

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