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Science for Sapiens A year in research (2024)

modified. They can also tell whether or not the cells have oxygen and carbon dioxide in the blood. With the work of
healed after administering antiviral drugs. the group for Erythrocytes in Antiviral Immunology of the
UMH, one day textbooks will be rewritten.
In addition, they study other fields applicable to health.
In oncology, they have worked with different anti-cancer With synchrotron light, red blood cells of fish that have been
agents to know which of them is more effective or simply treated with a DNA vaccine (Image 2, Image 3) can be com-
to locate the drug inside the cell and thus understand its pared with other red blood cells treated with a neutral subs-
mechanism of action and improve its effectiveness. “Lately tance, control. Image 1.
we have been working with biopsies of patients suffering
from rare diseases to better understand the disease at the The first thing of these cells that may stand out is that they
subcellular level and try to cure them with gene therapy”, have a nucleus. Indeed, while mammalian red blood cells
explains the scientist. The experiments with their micros- lose their nucleus when they mature, other animals such
cope enable selecting which type of gene therapy is most as amphibians, reptiles and birds maintain it. In the case of
effective because cells can be scanned like with a CT scan fish, only the abyssal luminescent fish (the family Gonosto-
and see inside them. matidae) have anucleate red blood cells in their blood. In
addition, it can be clearly seen that the cells that have come
In the case of fish viral infections, what can happen when a into contact with the vaccine are more active because they
pathogen enters a cell is that the cell fragments it and then have more organelles than the control cell. To achieve these
“shows” it to other cells of the immune system to activate results, about 500 images are processed and a three-dimen-
defences and alert the immune system. The fact that there sional reconstruction is done by painting, layer by layer,
are more endoplasmic reticulum and more mitochondria in each of the structures that are inside the cell. These images
vaccine-treated red blood cells means that the cell is using were processed by UMH graduate Alba Manso, during the
more energy and producing more protein. Red blood cells preparation of her Final Degree Project, and by UMH docto-
have gone beyond breaking down the virus: they are soun- ral student María Elizabeth Salvador.
ding the alarm. “We still don’t have the image of red blood
cells as cells of the immune system”, explains María del Mar
Ortega-Villaizán. We only think of them as transporters of

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