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UPI
02-07-2025
- Health
- UPI
Science seek to tap amazing healing powers of the mouth's interior
1 of 2 | The amazing ability of the mouth's lining to quickly heal itself without scarring is likely due to a specific cellular action that could be applied to skin wounds sustained elsewhere on the body, according to a study released Wednesday. File Photo by Molly Riley/UPI | License Photo ST. PAUL, Minn., July 2 (UPI) -- The cellular action that enables the mouth's interior lining to heal quicky and without scarring has always been a mystery but a new study suggests it may be linked to a specific "signaling pathway." That new knowledge is raising hopes the mouth lining's healing powers could be applied to other skin wounds, which take far longer to heal and often leave permanent, unsightly scars, according to a preclinical study published Wednesday by Cedars-Sinai Medical Center and University of California-San Francisco researchers. The study on mice provides evidence that the "Gas6/AXL" protein/enzyme signaling pathway is likely responsible for the mouth's amazing ability to heal itself completely from even deep bite wounds within a matter of days with no leftover scarring, the authors wrote in the journal Science Translational Medicine. Known as the oral mucosa, the mouth's interior lining heals fast and cleanly, even though it is continuously exposed to different types of microbes, abrasion from foods, motion and tension. This unique regenerative capacity is made possible by specialized gene programs activated during injury, but just how those mechanisms work has been unknown. In the study reported Wednesday, a research team led by Dr. Ophir Klein, executive vice dean of Children's Health at Cedars-Sinai and executive director of Cedars-Sinai Guerin Children's in Los Angeles, found that by manipulating levels of the AXL enzyme they could affect how wounds healed. For instance, if they inhibited AXL in mice, the healing of oral mucosa wounds worsened, making them more like skin wounds. Conversely, when they stimulated AXL in facial skin wounds, they healed more efficiently and with reduced scarring, much like the oral mucosa. Boosting the levels of AXL suppresses the expression of another protein called Focal Adhesion Kinase, or FAK, which plays a significant role in scar formation during wound healing. Should future research validate the benefits for humans, the new knowledge could aid in developing new therapies to heal skin wounds with reduced scarring, Klein said. "We are actively thinking about harnessing AXL-driven repair in both the mouth and the skin, and perhaps in other tissues as well," he told UPI in emailed comments. "One application that comes to mind is to improve healing and reduce scarring in the skin for burn victims or those with other cutaneous disorders. "Another is that there are a number of diseases of the mouth, many of them autoimmune, in which severe oral ulcers form and heal poorly or not at all. These are different from canker sores, also known as aphthous ulcers, which many people get and which typically heal on their own; the more severe ulcers are difficult to treat and cause very significant illnesses, and we currently do not have good therapies for them." A related direction for research could focus on "obtaining a deeper understanding of the effects of AXL signaling on scarring and regeneration at a molecular level, in terms of other components of the signaling pathways," Klein added. "It will also be interesting to explore the role of this pathway in other tissues and organs, and in the context of distinct injuries and perturbations --for example, physical cuts vs heat burns vs irradiation versus chemical insults." Meanwhile, a pair of recent animal studies led by the University of Arizona in Tucson similarly have shown that the use of FAK inhibitors can make skin grafts look more like healthy skin and produce less scarring, raising hopes for a potential new treatment for survivors of blast wounds, burns and other major injuries. Kellen Chen, an assistant research professor in the university's Department of Surgery and lead author of those papers, said the current Cedars-Sinai study appears to add to a mounting list of evidence that "FAK acts as a central mediator of scarring in the oral mucosa gives additional credence to the importance of this factor." Chen was not involved with the new study. "A better understanding of how the oral mucosa heals without scarring through the FAK pathway will allow us to better develop therapies to target FAK for healing in the future," he told UPI. Chen said his team has the funding to pursue Food and Drug Administration approval for a FAK inhibitor, or FAKI, hydrogel therapy and expects to conduct human trials soon. The growing evidence that wound healing can be accelerated at the cellular level "could have strong clinical implications for the treatment of severe injuries for humans and animals, especially because there are zero FDA-approved treatments that reduce scar formation," he added. "Patients with severe injuries or burns can suffer a lifetime of pain and disfigurement from scarring. The potential to heal burn injuries with regeneration, rather than scarring, would dramatically change the lives of these patients."
UPI
07-06-2025
- Business
- UPI
Trump order seeks to boost U.S. drone industry
The DJI Zenmuse XT drone with aerial thermal imaging camera is displayed at the at the 2016 International CES, a trade show of consumer electronics, in Las Vegas. File Photo by Molly Riley/UPI | License Photo June 7 (UPI) -- President Donald Trump is taking aim at drone technology from two directions -- boost the U.S. industry and crack down on malicious activity. Trump on Friday signed executive orders on efforts to spur U.S. production relevant to drone technology, increase U.S. drone security and regulation efforts, and an unleated one to promote design and eventual use of commercial supersonic aircraft. "Unmanned aircraft systems, otherwise known as drones, offer the potential to enhance public safety as well as cement America's leadership in global innovation," an executive order titled Restoring American Airspace Sovereignty read. "But criminals, terrorists, and hostile foreign actors have intensified their weaponization of these technologies, creating new and serious threats to our homeland. Another order, titled Unleashing American Drone Dominance, declares that "building a strong and secure domestic drone sector is vital to reducing reliance on foreign sources, strengthening critical supply chains and ensuring that the benefits of this technology are delivered to the American people." There are more than a million registered drones in the United States, according to the FAA with more than 400,000 commercial drones and more than 350,000 for recreational use. In a press release, the Commercial Drone Alliance said it has "believed that innovation and security are two sides of the same coin. Outdated regulations have long impeded technological innovation and hindered transparency in our airspace." Lisa Ellman, chief executive of the Commercial Drone Alliance, also lauded the executive orders for aiming at both innovation and security simultaneously. "We fully support the long-overdue steps taken by the Trump administration in these Executive Orders -- establishing a framework to scale safe and secure drone operations while enhancing drone security and airspace transparency -- to modernize our domestic drone policy and assure American aviation leadership into the next century of flight," she said in the release. Drone dangers Trump has warned that drones have been used to smuggle drugs across borders, and could threaten large public gatherings, such as the 2026 World Cup and the 2028 Summer Olympics, both in the United States. "It is the policy of the United States to ensure control over our national airspace and to protect the public, critical infrastructure, mass gathering events, and military and sensitive government installations and operations from threats posed by the careless or unlawful use of UAS," the security related order reads. Chinese-made drones from companies like DJI or Autel are not outright banned, but the Federal Acquisition Security Council has been called on to "publish a Covered Foreign Entity List ... identifying companies that pose supply chain risks." In 2022, the U.S. Treasury added DJI and seven other companies to its Chinese Military-Industrial Complex list, which indicates some level of national security concern. The includes a ban on U.S.-based companies exporting technology to them. The majority of drones are estimated to be built in China, The New York Times reported. The Justice Department and FAA were told to enforce civil and criminal penalties for drone operators who violate laws or airspace restrictions. There will be grants for state and local law enforcement to access drone-detection and tracking equipment. The Federal Aviation Administration requires all drones weighing more than 0.55 of a pound to be registered, in addition to restricting how high they can be flown without authorization. The Justice Department and FAA were told to more robustly enforce civil and criminal penalties for drone operators who violate laws or airspace restrictions. Grant programs are planned for state and local law enforcement to access drone-detection and tracking equipment., the order also indicates Drone industry growth In his first term, Trump sought to increase the use of drones and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick has been directed to promote exports of U.S.-made drones, in addition to federal agencies being ordered to prioritize purchases of them. "The United States must accelerate the safe commercialization of drone technologies and fully integrate UAS into the National Airspace System," the order reads. "The time has come to accelerate testing and to enable routine drone operations, scale up domestic production, and expand the export of trusted, American-manufactured drone technologies to global markets." The order directs the FAA to allow commercial users and public safety officials not to fly drones beyond their range of sight, meaning that a user must be able to see the drone they are operating. "Building a strong and secure domestic drone sector is vital to reducing reliance on foreign sources, strengthening critical supply chains, and ensuring that the benefits of this technology are delivered to the American people," the order says. Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy was directed to initiate artificial intelligence tools to assist in and expedite the review of a UAS waiver application, and the Transportation Department was told to develop an Electric Vertical Takeoff and Landing Pilot Program to accelerate the deployment of safe and lawful eVTOL operations in the United States. Supersonic flight An additional executive order titled "Leading the World in Supersonic Flight" seeks to promise planes that travel at supersonic speeds, which are greater than the speed of sound at approximately 768 mph at sea level, or Mach 1. "The United States stands at the threshold of a bold new chapter in aerospace innovation," the order reads. "For more than 50 years, outdated and overly restrictive regulations have grounded the promise of supersonic flight over land, stifling American ingenuity, weakening our global competitiveness, and ceding leadership to foreign adversaries." The order noted that "advances in aerospace engineering, materials science, and noise reduction now make supersonic flight not just possible, but safe, sustainable, and commercially viable." The order repeals regulations prohibiting cross-country supersonic flights, which for decades have precluded nonmilitary air travel over land at faster-than-sound speeds. The Concorde was manufactured from 1965 to 1979, but are no longer flown by airlines, however, Boom Supersonic and NASA are currently developing new supersonic passenger jets.
