Such superbugs may also be contributing to the tens of thousands of excess deaths occurring during the COVID-19 era. Hence why doctors around the world are sounding the alarm.
Doctors worry that a dangerous yeast, which can colonize a person’s skin without generating symptoms, is rising due to medical centers being overrun.
A team of researchers at Duke University have developed an imaging technology for tagging structures at a cellular level that overcomes the shortcomings of existing antibody-based techniques. Immunofluorescence imaging is a key part of the cell biologist’s toolbox, in which a fluorescent ‘flare’ attached to an antibody allows them to visualize the presence of specific target proteins in cell or tissue samples. The issue is that this specificity isn’t always 100 percent — sometimes the antibodies bind to other closely related proteins as well, making it difficult to interpret the results.
Duke’s cell biology chair Scott Soderling has led a team that developed Homology-independent Universal Genome Engineering (HiUGE), an innovation that uses gene-editing technology to rise above the shortcomings of traditional commercial antibodies for imaging.
“We had this idea that CRISPR could be a really amazing tool to address the pressing problem of trying to identify and label these hundreds of proteins,” said Soderling.
Summary: Study reveals a new role for serotonin in the development of the human neocortex. Serotonin acts cell-extrinsically as a growth factor for basal progenitors in the developing neocortex. Researchers report placenta-driven serotonin likely contributed to the evolutionary expansion of the neocortex in humans.
Source: Max Planck Society
During human evolution, the size of the brain increased, especially in a particular part called the neocortex. The neocortex enables us to speak, dream and think. In search of the causes underlying neocortex expansion, researchers at the Max Planck Institute of Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics in Dresden, together with colleagues at the University Hospital Carl Gustav Carus Dresden, previously identified a number of molecular players. These players typically act cell-intrinsically in the so-called basal progenitors, the stem cells in the developing neocortex with a pivotal role in its expansion.
#BreastCancerAwarenessMonth
Breast cancer treatments are always evolving and improving. In 2019, fresh perspectives to approach cancer therapy led to exciting breakthroughs for treatments in research.
Today’s treatments are more targeted and capable of altering the breast cancer disease course while also maintaining your quality of life. In recent years, many therapeutic options have emerged for treating stage 4, or metastatic breast cancer, greatly improving survival rates.
Breast cancer treatment research is ongoing and always improving the lives of those living with the condition. Here are the breakthrough treatments of 2019 as well as current treatments and information on finding a cure.
Well, considering current events…
The Tesla HEPA Filter and Bioweapon Defense Mode have repeatedly proven their usefulness and even vital necessity. At the moment, only Model S and Model X have the air-cleaning feature, however, there is a high probability that the HEPA filter will be installed in Model Y.
Hacker @greentheonly/Twitter has once again noticed several updates that should be made available to Model Y. He claims that the car will receive a HEPA filter and the corresponding Bioweapon Defense Mode. He also clarified that Model 3 most likely won’t receive it at this point.
ModelY gets the 3rd row “flat fold”. It also got HEPA filter and corresponding biohazard mode — this apparently is not planned for model3 at this time. Standard/Adaptive air suspension made reappearance on 3/Y so it’s also certainly in the works.— green (@greentheonly) October 22, 2020
Scientists from Scripps Research and Los Alamos National Laboratory have devised a method for mapping in unprecedented detail the thickets of slippery sugar molecules that help shield HIV from the immune system.
Mapping these shields will give researchers a more complete understanding of why antibodies react to some spots on the virus but not others, and may shape the design of new vaccines that target the most vulnerable and accessible sites on HIV and other viruses.
The sugar molecules, or “glycans,” are loose and stringy, and function as shields because they are difficult for antibodies to grip and block access to the protein surface. The shields form on the outermost spike proteins of HIV and many other viruses, including SARS-CoV-2, the coronavirus that causes COVID-19, because these viruses have evolved sites on their spike proteins where glycan molecules—normally abundant in cells—will automatically attach.
‘This is only good news in our fight against the illness,’ researcher says.
But Silicon Valley is not the home of ingenuity for nothing. When the pandemic hit, many start-up engineers in the area, like Dr. Wessells, moved their gear into their home garages so they could keep innovating. And if it wasn’t the garage, then it was the living room.
Labs closed in the pandemic, but innovation doesn’t stop. So while some workers have the home office, engineers have the garage.