The European food technology company, Mosa Meat (@mosa_meat), introduced the world’s first cultured beef hamburger back in 2013 by growing it naturally from cow cells. They have now announced the first closing of $55 million as part of a larger Series B funding round, which will be used to increase production and push cultivated beef to consumers.
Plastics are incredibly hard to break down and with growing consumerism, plastic pollution is evident nearly everywhere. Relatively new super-enzyme has shown to effectively degrade plastic within six days, showing promise for the future of recycling not only plastics but other waste using similar technology.
Plastics are incredibly hard to break down and with growing consumerism, plastic pollution is evident nearly everywhere. Relatively new super-enzyme has shown to effectively degrade plastic within six days, showing promise for the future of recycling not only plastics but other waste using similar technology.
Researchers at Dartmouth College have seen promising results by injecting animal tumors with a common plant virus known as the cowpea mosaic virus. After receiving the viral therapy, several dogs with oral cancer had their tumors completely disappear and went on to live into old age without recurring cancer. Given that around 85% of dogs with oral cancer will develop a new tumor within a year of radiation therapy, the results were striking. The team is now aiming for a human trial.
Researchers at Dartmouth College have seen promising results by injecting animal tumors with a common plant virus known as the cowpea mosaic virus. After receiving the viral therapy, several dogs with oral cancer had their tumors completely disappear and went on to live into old age without recurring cancer. Given that around 85% of dogs with oral cancer will develop a new tumor within a year of radiation therapy, the results were striking. The team is now aiming for a human trial.
Researchers at the University of Helsinki used artificial intelligence to create a system that uses signals from the brain to generate images of what the user is thinking.
Researchers at the University of Helsinki used artificial intelligence to create a system that uses signals from the brain to generate images of what the user is thinking.
Like marijuana, psychedelic drugs that were once considered illicit are now going mainstream. Although the substances, their effects, and the chemical compounds are quite different, psychedelics like psilocybin have followed the trail left by marijuana to mainstream acceptance.
Bioprinting micro robot deposits live human cells onto a lab dish inside a transparent plastic model of a stomach. Credit: Wenxiang Zhao
Scientists are aiming to treat stomach ulcers and other gastric wounds by exploring new ground in 3-D printing: depositing living cells directly inside the human body. Just as 3-D printers set down layers of material to create structures, bioprinters extrude living cells to produce tissues and organs.
Emmanuelle Charpentier of France, left and Jennifer Doudna of the U.S. While most awards are given to recipients whose research dates back a decade or so, Doudna and Charpentier’s work is relatively recent. Their CRISPR research paper was published in 2012 and currently has 6,000 citations already–only 700 of 50 million papers published since 1970 have that many. Since 2012, their CRISPR/Cas9 research has been applied in multiple different areas of genetic research from new genetically-modified crops, innovative medical treatments, and more. (AP Photo/Jose Vicente)
Established by Alfred Nobel, the Nobel Prize is said to honor those who “have conferred the greatest benefit for humankind.” The first women to jointly win the chemistry prize, Jennifer A. Doudna and Emmanuelle Charpentier, are to receive the award this year for their work in developing CRISPR/Cas9.
The team discovered that the Müller glia cells in zebrafish also go through gliosis, and the regeneration process only requires the organism to “turn on” it’s early development processes. This means the organisms that are capable of regenerating retinal neurons actually do follow a similar path to humans.
Researchers from the University of Notre Dame and other institutions have identified networks of genes that regulate the process responsible for determining whether neurons will regenerate in zebrafish. Once a neuron dies, it cannot be replaced. However, this study has demonstrated that neuron regeneration is possible.
The researchers believe that the study reveals the importance of the gut-brain relationship not only in terms of aging, but also other functions. They hope that this study can provide a stronger foundation to researching FMT further to improve quality of life in the elderly.
Cognitive decline is a common symptom of aging, however, a new study performed by the University of Florence revealed that fecal microbiota transplants (FMT) were able to reduce the decline that comes with aging. More specifically, the scientists wanted to test the mice in their experiment on spatial learning and memory.
In 1989, the team of scientists were able to identify the blood-borne virus. Because of their foundational research, Hepatitis C is the only chronic viral infection where almost all cases can be cured within a few months using a cocktail of medications–the current challenge is making the therapeutics cheaper and more widely available. The group’s work also was able to help screen donors and make the blood supply safer.
While their work works back to the seventies and eighties, (from left to right) Harvey J. Alter, Michael Houghton, and Charles M. Rice jointly won the Nobel Prize in medicine on Monday for their work in researching the hepatitis C virus. Still, there are around 70 million cases of hepatitis C worldwide with 400,000 deaths a year. Because of their research, other scientists were able to develop tests as well as developing treatments for the virus.
The scientists combined artificial intelligence, microfluidics, and nanoparticle inkjet printing to create this device. The novel biochip allows cancer cells to be characterized from a sample to understand not only the type but also vital information about a tumor that can be used to develop better cancer treatment drugs. By combining machine learning techniques with the inkjet printing technology, the biochips have potential to be an accessible, low-cost device.
A team of biomedical and electrical engineers with computer scientists at University of California, Irvine developed a biochip to examine tumor heterogeneity at a single-cell level.
Until now, scientists have been stuck looking at things on a small scale, around 35 nucleotides. But most of the interesting things that are biologically and medically relevant occur at a much larger scale of 100 nucleotides or more. The ability to look at things at a larger scale allows researchers to peek into molecules and see what is happening in a way that was previously unavailable.
Scientists from the University of Maryland developed a method to determine the structures of large RNA molecules at high resolution. This new method overcomes a challenge that has limited 3D analysis of RNA to only small molecules and pieces of RNA for the past 50 years. The technology could lead to targeted RNA therapeutic treatments for disease.
With one having 160 patients and the second, 155, the studies represent the largest trials for immunotherapy in relapsed cervical cancer to date. In the first, there was a 14% response rate in all treated patients and 19% in PD-L1 positive. In the second response rate was 22% and 27% respectively. The trials show potential for treatment and hope considering the limited treatments available.
Researchers from the Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center among other institutions revealed the data from two clinical trials investigating a programmed cell death protein 1 (PD-1) based immune therapy for metastatic cervical cancer.
When comparing the microbiomes with those of 29 vaginally born babies, they discovered that the treated babies’ microbiota evolved to resemble those of vaginally born babies within just 3 weeks. Compared with untreated C-section babies, the treated newborns had significantly fewer pathogenic bacteria.
The bacteria that live in our guts play key roles in immunity and development. However, babies born by C-section don’t get the rich blend of microbes that come from a traditional birth. Now, recent studies suggest feeding these infants a small amount of their mothers’ feces could normalize their gut microbiome and possibly give their immune systems a healthier start.
They hypothesized that by infecting a small population of mosquitoes and then releasing them into the wild, overtime, the bacteria will slowly spread to the offspring and eventually lead to eradicating the virus. Scientists decided upon Yogyakarta for its population and the impact that dengue fever has on the area—reports show 8 million cases and thousands of deaths yearly in Indonesia. Results showed that within areas the mosquitoes were released, dengue fever has dropped by 77 percent.
With the knowledge that cannabis compounds or synthetic derivatives have potential to help the body recover from intestinal infections, researchers can develop more advanced drugs to treat them, especially those that work faster than current treatment options.
Researchers from University of Texas Southwestern published findings explaining how the cannabis plant may alleviate symptoms of various bowel conditions. More specially, they researched endocannabinoids, a lip-based neurotransmitter that plays a role in regulating immunity, appetite, and mood, which also shares multiple features with compounds in cannabis.
The researchers were able to identify over 400 multifunctional proteins that interact with other proteins. They highlighted three proteins, CBP, MAPK, and NPas4 that all interact with each other when dopamine is released into the brain and results in neural changes.
Researchers from Nagoya University were able to identify a protein function that is involved with how dopamine is released into the brain. When there is a dopamine release, several proteins cause changes in brain activity–the little that was known about these proteins, motivated the scientists to pursue their study to find the role they play in “reward-related” gene expression.
The study used samples that were between two to six years old with insects embedded into it. The researchers were able to use PCR to amplify DNA samples that they retrieved from the resin and then ran the samples on gels to compare with a standard. Another study had provided insight that amplified DNA from these organisms but it did not provide clarity in the methods to make it reproducible.
Researchers from the University of Bonn and other institutions in Spain and Norway were able to extract DNA from resin samples, which could pave way for more insight on the creatures that roamed the Earth once before.
The research showed that making a virus from the stems of the virus rather than the head can shift the immune system’s focus to not only create antibodies for a specific strain but also create an immune response to other possible variations of the virus.
Scientists at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) investigated what our immune system prioritizes different target proteins in the vaccine. Hemagglutinin (HA) is the protein on the virus that the immune system targets. Researchers have indicated that the key to a universal flu vaccine depends on which part, the head or the stem, of the HA protein a treatment would target.
The C4 Rice Project is a group started by scientists at the International Rice Institute. Their goal was to engineer rice to yield larger crop yields to meet the demands of a high global population. While in 1995, at the start of their project, technology did not make their project feasible, developments such as CRISPR allow the researchers to continue on the legacy of the group today.
The C4 Rice Project is a group started by scientists at the International Rice Institute. Their goal was to engineer rice to yield larger crop yields to meet the demands of a high global population. While in 1995, at the start of their project, technology did not make their project feasible, developments such as CRISPR allow the researchers to continue on the legacy of the group today.
Parkinson’s disease is traditionally understood as a neurodegenerative disease that starts in the brain. While that does remain true in some cases, growing evidence suggests this disorder is actually two diseases, with one variant starting in the gut. In a recent brain imaging study, researchers found that in some people with Parkinson’s, damage to the nervous system begins in the intestinal nervous system and later travels to the brain. In some patients, the disease appears to emerge in the brain first.
Parkinson’s disease is traditionally understood as a neurodegenerative disease that starts in the brain. While that does remain true in some cases, growing evidence suggests this disorder is actually two diseases, with one variant starting in the gut. In a recent brain imaging study, researchers found that in some people with Parkinson’s, damage to the nervous system begins in the intestinal nervous system and later travels to the brain. In some patients, the disease appears to emerge in the brain first.
The innovation, called the Automated Recommendation Tool (ART) means it will not require years of developing a meticulous understanding of each part of a cell in order to manipulate it. Instead, the algorithms are capable of predicting how changes in a cell’s DNA or biochemistry will affect its behavior, where it then makes recommendations for the next engineering cycle with probabilistic predictions for attaining the desired goal.
Synthetic biology allows scientists to design biological systems to specification, such as engineering a microbe to produce a cancer-fighting agent. However, current methods of bioengineering are slow and laborious, with trial and error being the main approach. Now, scientists from Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory have developed a new tool that adapts machine learning algorithms to the needs of synthetic biology to guide development systematically.
Researchers from Columbia University and other institutions have bioengineered a living cartilage-bone temporomandibular joint (TMJ) graft, precisely matched to the recipient, both biologically and anatomically. Current treatments range from steroid injections for temporary pain relief, to surgical reconstructions using either prosthetics or donor tissue, which often fail to provide long-lasting repair.
Researchers from Columbia University and other institutions have bioengineered a living cartilage-bone temporomandibular joint (TMJ) graft, precisely matched to the recipient, both biologically and anatomically. The TMJ forms the back portion of the lower jaw to the skull. About 10 million people in the US alone suffer from TMJ dysfunction. Current treatments range from steroid injections for temporary pain relief, to surgical reconstructions using either prosthetics or donor tissue, which often fail to provide long-lasting repair.
A research coalition led by Pohang University of Science and Technology drastically reduced the time needed to harvest stem cells to two days. Normally, it requires a week on average to make stem cells into sheets, so the group’s two-day results are the fastest harvest time on record.
A research coalition led by Pohang University of Science and Technology drastically reduced the time needed to harvest stem cells to two days. Normally, it requires a week on average to make stem cells into sheets, so the group’s two-day results are the fastest harvest time on record.
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