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Category: biotech/medical – Page 14

Activin-A: Muscle Weakness In Cancer Survivors May Be Treatable

Tumors can destroy the blood vessels of muscles even when the muscles are nowhere close to the tumor. That is the key finding of a new study that my colleagues and I recently published in the journal Nature Cancer.

Muscle loss in cancer patients is a major health problem, but the exact causes of how precisely tumors affect muscles remain an active area of research.

Scientists in my lab were curious whether one explanation for the muscle loss in cancer patients could be that the cancer impairs the blood vessels that are necessary to supply nutrients and oxygen to muscles. Healthy blood vessels ensure that blood containing oxygen and nutrients is transported from the heart to all tissues and organs in the body, and then circulates back to the heart. Unhealthy blood vessels lose the ability to circulate sufficient blood and develop leaks, with nutrients seeping into the tissue prematurely and thereby cutting off the supply of nutrients to tissues that are further downstream.

3D Printing In Vivo Using Sound

Imagine if doctors could precisely print miniature capsules capable of delivering cells needed for tissue repair exactly where they are needed inside a beating heart. A team of scientists led by Caltech has taken a significant step toward that ultimate goal, having developed a method for 3D printing polymers at specific locations deep within living animals. The technique relies on sound for localization and has already been used to print polymer capsules for selective drug delivery as well as glue-like polymers to seal internal wounds.

(Someone already probably posted this. This is jus from Caltech)

When the team used the DISP platform to print polymers loaded with doxorubicin, a chemotherapeutic drug, near a bladder tumor in mice, they found substantially more tumor cell death for several days as compared to animals that received the drug through direct injection of drug solutions.

“We have already shown in a small animal that we can print drug-loaded hydrogels for tumor treatment,” Gao says. “Our next stage is to try to print in a larger animal model, and hopefully, in the near future, we can evaluate this in humans.”

The team also believes that machine learning can enhance the DISP platform’s ability to precisely locate and apply focused ultrasound. “In the future, with the help of AI, we would like to be able to autonomously trigger high-precision printing within a moving organ such as a beating heart,” Gao says.

Brain Abnormality in Modern Humans Linked to Ancient Neanderthal DNA

Significant brain defects known as Chiari malformations could be down the genes some of us have inherited from Neanderthals, according to a new study, causing a mismatch between brain shape and skull shape.

The study focuses on Chiari malformation type I (CM-I), where the lower part of the brain extends too far into the spinal cord – typically linked to having a smaller-than-normal occipital bone at the back of the skull. It can lead to headaches, neck pain, and more serious conditions, and is thought to affect up to 1 in 100 people.

Several other ancient human species had different skull shapes to our own, and a previous study published in 2013 put forward the idea that interbreeding between Homo sapiens and these other hominins may be a root cause of Chiari malformation type I (CM-I), the mildest type of the group.

Rethinking Inflammation: Is Everything We Know About Aging and Disease Wrong?

The environment strongly influences health outcomes, especially in industrialized societies. A new study from the Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health challenges the long-standing view that inflammation is a universal feature of aging. The research indicates that “inflammaging”—a p

LLNL researchers use AI to look for potential ALS treatments

Potential treatments for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and other neurodegenerative diseases may already be out there in the form of drugs prescribed for other conditions. A team of researchers from Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), Stanford University and the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) are using artificial intelligence and machine learning (AI/ML) to try to find them.

Clinical trials for new drugs can take up to 5–7 years, so repurposing existing drugs is one of the best ways to deliver treatments quickly. AI/ML can make it even faster. By analyzing long-term electronic health records (EHRs) of patients with ALS, the team can identify drugs — or combinations of drugs — prescribed for other conditions that may influence the progression of the disease. The drugs’ “off-target” effects may not only affect patient survival but also provide insight into how neurodegenerative diseases work and inform better therapies.

“If you talk to any ALS caregiver, you will be moved because the disease has such a grim prognosis, so being able to do something is tremendously motivating,” said Priyadip Ray, a staff scientist in LLNL’s Computational Engineering Division (CED) who leads the effort.

The Dawn of Tesla’s Robotaxi Network & Automated Transportation

Tesla’s launch of a robo-taxi network marks the beginning of a significant transportation disruption that will transform mobility, economy, geopolitics, and urban landscapes with the widespread adoption of electric autonomous vehicles ## ## Questions to inspire discussion.

Transportation Revolution.

🚗 Q: How will Tesla’s Robotaxi network impact transportation? A: Tesla’s Robotaxi network in Austin, Texas marks the ignition point for transportation disruption, with multiple companies competing to provide taxi rides without human drivers, potentially capturing 80–90% market share in 10–15 years.

🛢️ Q: What industries will be disrupted by autonomous electric vehicles? A: Autonomous electric vehicles will disrupt the oil and agriculture industries, as vehicles are the number one users of crude oil, and corn is the top agricultural product in the US, used to produce ethanol for gasoline.

🌆 Q: How will urban planning change with the rise of autonomous vehicles? A: Cities will repurpose parking spaces for retail, living areas, and solar panels, transforming urban planning and enabling new forms of transportation, including drones and aircraft.

Environmental Impact.

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