A team of researchers led by Professor Hiroshi Asahara, National Research Institute for Child Health and Development has examined the functions of a gene involved in the development of the tendons. Applications are available in regenerative medicine.
We call the tendons and thick fibrous tissue that connect muscle to bone. They transmit muscle forces to bone, allowing movement. They are mainly composed of collagen fibers secreted by some specialized cells. A tendon is likely to wear out from repeated activity, or weaken with age: this may cause a tear or rupture of the tendon. The healing of tendon disorders is slow and often incomplete.
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Carbon nanotubes were discovered in Japan by S. Iijima in 1991, published in Nature 354, 56 (1991), during the research on fullerenes. The great impact of nanostructured materials is due to its large surface properties and improved roads open to a wide variety of new applications. So, have attracted and are attracting considerable interest as constituents of new materials and nanoscale devices.
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