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BOB HIRSHON (host):
Egg research hatches unexpected benefits. I’m Bob Hirshon and this is Science Update.
In the early 1970s, microbiologist Stanley Cohen was studying chicken eggs when he noticed something really weird: bacteria-fighting immune compounds, even though there were no immune cells to produce them. Cohen found that they, and a whole family of similar molecules, were produced by many kinds of cells- not just in chickens, but in people, too. He named them cytokines, and they turned out to be critical to many cell functions.
STANLEY COHEN:
The cytokines are basically the vocabulary that cells use as part of their language in talking to each other. And allows it to interact with other cells.
HIRSHON:
Today, cytokine research has led to new treatments for cancer, heart disease, Alzheimer’s disease and many other illnesses. Last week, Cohen received a Golden Goose Award, for silly-sounding research that yields enormous benefits. I’m Bob Hirshon, for AAAS, the science society.
Story by Bob Hirshon