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Category: biotech/medical – Page 1,688

We aren’t using all of our tools to treat Covid-19

More treatments are available for Covid-19 as hospitalizations spike, but some drugs are sitting on the shelves unused.

As record daily Covid-19 hospitalizations and deaths this month in the US have pushed the pandemic to new crisis levels, senior government health officials have lamented that many patients are not getting the drugs — including monoclonal antibodies, antivirals, and corticosteroids — available to treat the disease, leaving many doses unused.

“Even with a vaccine, we know we will not prevent every infection,” said US Surgeon General Jerome Adams on January 14 during a press conference. “So today we want to remind everyone that for those of you who do contract Covid, we have excellent treatments to keep you out of the hospital, to keep you out of the ICU, to help you recover quickly.”

Moderna working on combination COVID-19 vaccine booster and flu shot

Sept 9 (Reuters) — Moderna Inc (MRNA.O) said on Thursday it is developing a single vaccine that combines a booster dose against COVID-19 with its experimental flu shot.

The company hopes to eventually add vaccines it is working on for respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and other respiratory diseases as an annual shot.

“We believe this is a very large opportunity that is ahead of us, if we could bring to market a high efficacy pan-respiratory annual booster,” Moderna Chief Executive Officer Stéphane Bancel said during a presentation to update investors on its drugs in development.

New programmable gene editing proteins found outside of CRISPR systems

Within the last decade, scientists have adapted CRISPR systems from microbes into gene editing technology, a precise and programmable system for modifying DNA. Now, scientists at MIT’s McGovern Institute and the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard have discovered a new class of programmable DNA modifying systems called OMEGAs (Obligate Mobile Element Guided Activity), which may naturally be involved in shuffling small bits of DNA throughout bacterial genomes.

These ancient DNA-cutting enzymes are guided to their targets by small pieces of RNA. While they originated in bacteria, they have now been engineered to work in human cells, suggesting they could be useful in the development of gene editing therapies, particularly as they are small (~30% the size of Cas9), making them easier to deliver to cells than bulkier enzymes. The discovery, reported in the journal Science, provides evidence that natural RNA-guided enzymes are among the most abundant proteins on earth, pointing toward a vast new area of biology that is poised to drive the next revolution in genome editing technology.

The research was led by McGovern investigator Feng Zhang, who is James and Patricia Poitras Professor of Neuroscience at MIT, a Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator, and a core institute member of the Broad Institute. Zhang’s team has been exploring natural diversity in search of new molecular systems that can be rationally programmed.

Mammals Carry a Graveyard of Viruses in Our DNA, And It Could Have a Crucial Purpose

Huge swaths of our DNA library are made up of non-coding genes that were long regarded as “junk DNA”. Recent findings, however, have shown these bits of DNA actually have many purposes in mammals.

Some help form the structure in our DNA molecules so they can be packaged neatly within our cell nuclei while others are involved in gene regulation. Now, researchers from the University of New South Wales in Australia have discovered another potential purpose for these non-coding instructions, within the genomes of marsupials.

Some of the gene sequences once considered “junk” are actually fragments of viruses left buried in our DNA from an infection in a long-forgotten ancestor.

Texas researchers develop new bioink specifically for 3D bioprinting blood vessels

A team of researchers from Texas A&M University’s Department of Biomedical Engineering has designed and 3D bioprinted a highly realistic model of a blood vessel.

The model is made of a newly nanoengineered, purpose-built hydrogel bioink and closely mimics the natural vascular function of a real blood vessel, as well as its disease response. The team hopes its work can pave the way for advanced cardiovascular drug development, expediting treatment approval while eliminating the need for animal and human testing altogether.

“A remarkably unique characteristic of this nanoengineered bioink is that regardless of cell density, it demonstrates a high printability and ability to protect encapsulated cells against high shear forces in the bioprinting process,” said Akhilesh Gaharwar, associate professor at the university and co-author of the study. “Remarkably, 3D bioprinted cells maintain a healthy phenotype and remain viable for nearly one month post-fabrication.”

AI Can Make Better Clinical Decisions Than Humans

Summary: Machine learning algorithm produced fewer decision-making errors than professionals when it came to clinical diagnosis of patients.

Source: University of Montreal.

It’s an old adage: there’s no harm in getting a second opinion. But what if that second opinion could be generated by a computer, using artificial intelligence? Would it come up with better treatment recommendations than your professional proposes?

#TransVision Future Summit 2021 • Welcome to Madrid 8 — 12 October • Dinners & UNESCO site tours

Check out our second promo for #transvision #future Summit 2021 (#madrid Oct. 8 — 12), featuring the optional dinner/cocktails we are scheduling, and 2 full-day #tours of several #unescoworldheritage sites and historical places near Madrid: Segovia, Ávila, Monsaterio de El Escorial & Valley of the Fallen on Oct. 11 and Alcalá de Henares, Aranjuez & Toledo on Oct. 12. It’s going to be espectacular! You don’t wanna miss those, so get your tickets now! 😊 Get your tickets here -> www.TransVisionMadrid.com.

The event itself will be a lot of fun, so make sure to register to come to Madrid in person, or to watch it via streaming (at a reduced price). There will be talks about #longevity #artificialintelligence #cryonics and much much more.

Promo by Sergio Tarrero for Alianza Futurista as Diamond Sponsor of TransVision Future Summit 2021. Alianza Futurista will also provide live video production, streaming and post production services for this event.

Humanity Plus Humanity Plus Magazine Ilustre Colegio Oficial de Médicos de Madrid (ICOMEM) Alcor Life Extension Foundation Cryonics Institute Cryonics Institute Posthuman Network Posthuman Network Cryonics4U Longevity Conferences Longevity for All International Longevity Alliance U.S. Transhumanist Party Transhumanist Party Australia Transhumanist Party Australia Group Transhumanist UK Rational Transhumanism Singularity University Ray Kurzweil Ray Kurzweil Singularity Ray Kurzweil Singularity Ray Kurzweil’s Singularity Singularity Hub Singularity Network Transhumanismo Brasil SingularityNET Singularitarianism Foresight Institute Lifeboat Foundation Machine Intelligence Research Institute KrioRus The Hedonistic Imperative — Paradise Engineering Future of Life Institute Future of Humanity Institute (Oxford University) The Long Now Foundation Global Catastrophic Risk Institute CLUB DE SEGUIDORES DE JOSÉ LUIS CORDEIRO (OFICIAL) Aubrey de Grey Dr. Aubrey de Grey HashtagTeam 🤩

http://www.TransVisionMadrid.com.

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