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Category: biotech/medical – Page 225

DNA origami suggests route to reusable, multifunctional biosensors

Using an approach called DNA origami, scientists at Caltech have developed a technique that could lead to cheaper, reusable biomarker sensors for quickly detecting proteins in bodily fluids, eliminating the need to send samples out to lab centers for testing.

“Our work provides a proof-of-concept showing a path to a single-step method that could be used to identify and measure and proteins,” says Paul Rothemund (BS ‘94), a visiting associate at Caltech in computing and mathematical sciences, and computation and neural systems.

A paper describing the work recently appeared in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. The lead authors of the paper are former Caltech postdoctoral scholar Byoung-jin Jeon and current graduate student Matteo M. Guareschi, who completed the work in Rothemund’s lab.

Scientists reveal key to affordable, room-temperature quantum light

Quantum light sources are fickle. They can flicker like stars in the night sky and can fade out like a dying flashlight. However, newly published research from the University of Oklahoma proves that adding a covering to one of these light sources, called a colloidal quantum dot, can cause them to shine without faltering, opening the door to new, affordable quantum possibilities. The findings are available in Nature Communications.

Quantum dots, or QDs, are so small that if you scaled up a single quantum dot to the size of a baseball, a baseball would be the size of the moon. QDs are used in a variety of products, from computer monitors and LEDs to and biomedical engineering devices. They are also used in and communication.

A research study led by OU Assistant Professor Yitong Dong demonstrates that adding a crystalized molecular layer to QDs made of perovskite neutralizes surface defects and stabilizes the surface lattices. Doing so prevents them from darkening or blinking.

Scientists Identify 15 Key Motives Driving Human Behavior

Researchers from HSE University and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine have identified 15 core motives that drive human behavior. By examining individuals’ perspectives, preferences, and actions through an evolutionary framework, they revealed how these motives interact to shape personal habits and social relationships. Their findings are published in Personality and Individual Differences.

Psychologists have long sought to understand what drives human behavior, employing various theories to analyze underlying motivations. One of the most well-known models is Abraham Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, introduced in the mid-20th century. However, while many approaches emphasize the social aspects of motivation, they often overlook its evolutionary foundations.

A group of researchers at HSE University and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine proposed analyzing human behavior motives from an evolutionary perspective. In the proposed framework, all motives are viewed as evolutionary adaptations that enhanced early humans’ ability to survive in their environment and continue to influence behavior today. The scientists proceed from the premise that if certain evolutionary mechanisms once triggered specific behaviors, the underlying motives can be identified using standard psychometric techniques.

AI chatbots ease embarrassment, but humans handle anger better, research finds

Many people have experienced frustration when dealing with artificial intelligence chatbots for customer support or technical assistance. New research from the University of Kansas has found when dealing with embarrassing issues, people prefer the anonymity and nonjudgmental nature of AI chatbots. However, when angry, they still preferred dealing with a fellow human.

The COVID-19 pandemic both angered and embarrassed people around the world as they dealt with new and frequently changing information and misinformation on vaccines, social distancing and related topics. KU researchers conducted a lab-based experimental study in which they gauged people’s attitudes about vaccines, showed them content that could arouse anger or embarrassment and randomly assigned them AI or human assistance to further gauge their knowledge and attitudes about vaccines.

Vaibhav Diwanji, assistant professor of journalism and mass communications at KU and lead author of the study, researches new and emerging technologies’ influence on consumers.

CARTA: Oxytocin’s Pathway to the Origins of Speech and Dance

Dr. Theofanopoulou studies neural circuits behind sensory-motor behaviors like speech and dance, aiming to develop drug-and arts-based therapies for brain disorders. Her brain imaging research reveals overlapping motor cortex regions controlling muscles for speech and dance, while transcriptomic studies show upregulation of the oxytocin gene pathway in key areas like the motor cortex and brainstem. Using zebra finches, Bengalese finches, white-rumped munias, and humans, she demonstrates oxytocin’s role in vocal production. She also developed genomic tools to apply these findings across vertebrates. Her future work explores oxytocin-based drugs and dance therapies to treat speech and motor deficits in brain disorders. Recorded on 02/14/2025. [3/2025] [Show ID: 40384]

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Learn more about anthropogeny on CARTA’s website:
https://carta.anthropogeny.org/

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CERN’s curved magnet prototype promises advancements in particle physics and medicine

What do rope winding and giant pasta shapes have to do with particle physics? The answer is a new superconducting magnet prototype under development at CERN, lovingly named Fusillo because of its shape.

Originally, CERN physicists became interested in developing this technology for use in compact particle accelerators, for example in a new storage ring for the CERN-based experiment ISOLDE. However, development of this technology could also have a big impact in the medical field. For example, one of the possible future applications of magnets like Fusillo is in hadron therapy to treat cancer.

Hadron therapy is a type of radiotherapy that uses beams of protons or light ions to irradiate cancer tissue. Compared to X-rays, which use beams of light, beams of ions release less energy along their path and more energy in one specific spot.

Nanoparticles offer enhanced treatment for root canal infection with fewer complications

Apical periodontitis, a chronic and hard-to-treat dental infection, affects more than half of the population worldwide and is the leading cause of tooth loss. Root canal is the standard treatment, but existing approaches to treat the infection have many limitations that can cause complications, leading to treatment failure.

Now, researchers at the School of Dental Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, and School of Engineering and Applied Sciences have identified a promising new therapeutic option that could potentially disrupt current treatments. The team of researchers is part of the Center for Innovation & Precision Dentistry, a joint research center between Penn Dental Medicine and Penn Engineering that leverages engineering and computational approaches to advance oral and craniofacial health care innovation.

In a paper published in the Journal of Clinical Investigation, they show that ferumoxytol, an FDA-approved iron oxide nanoparticle formulation, greatly reduces infection in patients diagnosed with apical periodontitis.

Yale doctor’s cancer vaccine puts nine patients into remission

A groundbreaking cancer ‘vaccine’ developed by a Yale University scientist has reversed the disease in nine patients.

All patients enrolled in the study between March 2019 and September 2021 were free from kidney cancer at the three-year follow-up in July 2023, marking a major milestone.

The type of kidney cancer they had — stages three and four clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC) — kills between 85 and 90 percent of patents.

The Green Anesthesia Initiative: A New Path to Sustainable Health Care

Dr. Douglas Colquhoun: “Inhaled anesthetics are a natural area to pursue reductions in emissions because, as greenhouse gases, they are so disproportionately bad for the environment.”

How can greener anesthesia help both patients and the environment? This is what a recent study published in The Lancer Planetary Health hopes to address as a team of researchers at the University of Michigan (U-M) Medical School investigated a multitude of benefits regarding the use of anesthesia free of pollutants and greenhouse gases, which they are traditionally known to contain. This study has the potential to help researchers, medical professionals, legislators, and the public better understand the benefits of providing patients with “greener” anesthesia, along with the environmental benefits, as well.

For the study, the researchers started the Green Anesthesia Initiative (GAIA) in March 2022 to monitor the use of pollutant-free—such as nitrous oxide—anesthesia aged 1 year and older between March 1, 2021, and February 28, 2023. The goal of GAIA was to ascertain patient health and environmental impact resulting from this new anesthetic treatment. In the end, the researchers monitored 45,692 patients (50.8 percent women and 49.2 percent men) before GAIA and 47,199 patients (also 50.8 percent women and 49.2 percent men) after GAIA, with results showing a 14.38 kilograms (31.7 pounds) per patient reduction in carbon dioxide emissions.

“Tens of thousands of people undergo general anesthesia at Michigan Medicine every year,” said Dr. Douglas Colquhoun, who is an assistant professor of anesthesiology at U-M Medical School and lead author of the study. “Inhaled anesthetics are a natural area to pursue reductions in emissions because, as greenhouse gases, they are so disproportionately bad for the environment. We’ve shown that small changes in our practice lead to big changes for the environment and, importantly, no changes for the patients.”

Regulatory Roles of Exosomes in Aging and Aging-Related Diseases

Exosomes are small vesicles with diameters ranging from 30 to 150 nm. They originate from cellular endocytic systems. These vesicles contain a rich payload of biomolecules, including proteins, nucleic acids, lipids, and metabolic products. Exosomes mediate intercellular communication and are key regulators of a diverse array of biological processes, such as oxidative stress and chronic inflammation. Furthermore, exosomes have been implicated in the pathogenesis of infectious diseases, autoimmune disorders, and cancer. Aging is closely associated with the onset and progression of numerous diseases and is significantly influenced by exosomes. Recent studies have consistently highlighted the important functions of exosomes in the regulation of cellular senescence.