Lifeboat Foundation: Safeguarding Humanity
Toggle light / dark theme

Blog

Get the latest international news and world events from around the world.

Log in for authorized contributors

Structure and evolutionguided design of minimal RNAguided nucleases

The design of RNA-guided nucleases with properties not limited by evolution can expand programmable genome-editing capabilities. However, generating diverse multidomain proteins with robust enzymatic properties remains challenging. Here, we use a protein design strategy that couples a structure-guided inverse-folding model with evolution-informed residue constraints to generate active, divergent variants of TnpB, a minimal CRISPR-Cas12–like nuclease, termed SynTnpBs. High-throughput screening of artificial intelligence–generated variants yielded editors that retained or exceeded wild-type activity in bacterial, plant, and human cells. Cryo–electron microscopy–based structure determination of the most divergent variant revealed stabilizing contacts in the RNA–DNA interfaces across conformations, demonstrating the design potential of this approach.

Insect-inspired electronic nose: Turning semiconductor chips into olfactory sensors

Bioengineers at the University of California San Diego integrated the olfactory receptor of an insect called a jumping bristletail into semiconductor chips made of graphene, creating an electronic nose capable of sniffing out a wide variety of small organic compounds. This biomimetic bioelectronic sensor can detect and distinguish between molecules that are difficult for conventional electronic sensors to differentiate. This work opens the door to building semiconductor-based chemical sensing systems inspired by nature for applications in health care, environmental monitoring, food quality, agriculture and biodefense.

In a paper published in Advanced Materials, researchers led by bioengineers at UC San Diego describe a method for manufacturing the MhOR5 odorant receptor from the insect Machilis hrabei at scale and chemically attaching the purified MhOR5 protein to high-performance graphene field effect transistors (gFETs). gFETs are semiconductor devices that rely on graphene instead of silicon as the conductive material, resulting in exceptional sensitivity to molecular changes.

The researchers tested their MhOR5-functionalized gFETs against 16 chemically diverse compounds, including DEET, hexanol and eugenol, at different concentrations. The sensor produced a concentration-dependent electrical response for each of the 16 compounds.

Can ctDNA Predict Both Benefit and Toxicity From Immunotherapy?

The investigators asked whether ctDNA status could simultaneously identify patients with a lower probability of therapeutic benefit and a higher likelihood of developing immune-related toxicity. If confirmed, ctDNA could become an important tool not only for predicting efficacy but also for improving treatment selection and avoiding unnecessary exposure to checkpoint inhibitors.

Study Design

The investigators performed a post hoc biomarker analysis of the randomized phase III IMvigor010 trial.

Let’s talk about my clone…

He makes sure to tell people he did not make embryos.

Friends, I did NOT create a human clone. What I did create are induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) — cells that can potentially become many different cell types and may one day help repair the body.

It’s one of the most promising technologies in regenerative medicine, and is already being explored in clinical research.

The science is fascinating, the ethical questions are important, and both deserve thoughtful discussion.

https://blueprint.bryanjohnson.com/?&…

Continue reading “Let’s talk about my clone…” | >

The Role of Lysophosphatidic Acid in Neuropsychiatric and Neurodegenerative Disorders

Individuals suffering from diverse neuropsychiatric and neurodegenerative disorders often have comparable symptoms, which may underline the implication of shared hereditary influences and the same biological processes. Lysophosphatidic acid (LPA) is a bioactive phospholipid and a crucial regulator of the development of adult neuronal systems; hence, it may play an important role in the onset of certain diseases such as Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s disease, and schizophrenia. During development, LPA signaling regulates many cellular processes such as proliferation, survival, migration, differentiation, cytoskeleton reorganization, and DNA synthesis. So far, six lysophosphatidic acid receptors that respond to LPA have been discovered and categorized based on their homology.

Tabby’s star may be orbited by a planetary-mass companion

By analyzing data from NASA’s Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) and conducting new radial velocity measurements, U.K. and French astronomers have found evidence that the mysterious Tabby’s star may be orbited by an object about nine times more massive than Jupiter. The new findings are published on the preprint server arXiv.

KIC 8,462,852, also known as Tabby’s star (after the discoverer Tabetha S. Boyajian), is a peculiar F3V main-sequence star showcasing deep, irregular flux variations of up to 20% in its light curve. The star is about 50% larger and more massive than the sun, with an effective temperature of 6,750 K. In 2021, it was found that Tabby’s star is part of a binary system with a red dwarf companion, which is about half the size and mass of our sun.

Several hypotheses have been proposed to explain the irregular dips in the light curve of Tabby’s star, including a family of exocomets or planetesimal fragments. It was even proposed that the flux variations could be caused by extraterrestrial megastructures, which was later debunked. However, the origin of these dips remains uncertain.

/* */