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Category: biotech/medical – Page 619

Researchers at Karolinska Institute have developed a novel method using DNA Nanoballs to detect pathogens, aiming to simplify nucleic acid testing and revolutionize pathogen detection. The study’s results, published in Science Advances, could pave the way for a straightforward electronic-based test capable of identifying various nucleic acids in diverse scenarios quickly and cheaply.

Principal investigator Vicent Pelechano, an associate professor at Karolinska Institute’s Department of Microbiology, Tumor and Cell Biology, is cautiously optimistic about the technology’s potential to detect an array of pathogenic agents in real-world settings.

“The methodology involves combining Molecular Biology (DNA Nanoball generation) and electronics (electric impedance-based quantification) to yield a pioneering detection tool”, says Vicent Pelechano.

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This is a big deal, kids.

For the past five years, Silicon Valley biotech Rejuvenation Technologies has been quietly working on a therapeutic platform to extend telomeres in the human body, with the goal of boosting longevity and healthspan. Yesterday, the company emerged from stealth with a healthy seed funding round of $10.6 million, led by Khosla Ventures.

Rejuvenation has developed a synthetic mRNA-based approach to restoring telomeres to a “healthy length” – capable of reversing a decade of telomere shortening in a single dose. The mRNA produces telomerase, an enzyme that plays a critical role in maintaining the length of telomeres. Following positive preclinical results in lung and liver disease indications, the company is now preparing the path towards its first in-human trials.

Longevity. Technology: Telomeres are protective structures on our DNA that prevent the loss of genetic information as the cells in our bodies divide. With each cellular division, our telomeres gradually shorten and, when they become critically short, our cells enter a state of senescence or die. Research has shown that telomere length is closely associated with lifespan and healthspan, and telomere shortening is recognized as one of the primary hallmarks of aging.

Continue reading “Telomere-boosting mRNA therapeutic turns back the aging clock” | >

Immune cells have to respond to threats like invading pathogens and cancerous cells, and sometimes, they must push through tissues and move into tight spaces, and do it quickly. New work has shown that some immune cells have their own mechanisms to guide them through environments that are tough to navigate so they can reach the right place in time. This work, which has been reported in Science Immunology, may also help us learn more about boosting the natural immune response.

Dendritic cells are a type of white blood cell that are crucial to the immune response. They help link the general innate immune reaction that fights invaders broadly, and the adaptive immune response, which is aimed at very specific targets. Dendritic cells sit in tissues, monitoring it for foreign substances. If an infection is identified, the dendritic cells swing into action and signaling molecules called chemokines help them move to the lymph nodes to trigger the next part of the immune response.

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Telomerase helps maintain telomere length in our cells, influences how our bodies age, and why we develop diseases like cancer. If cells had enough telomerase, telomeres might not shorten at all. But in most somatic cells, it’s present in very low amounts — only enough to slow the telomere shortening down.

This is part of a short series of videos where we explore telomeres, telomere length and telomerase, as well as the impacts they have on our health.

Chapters:
00:00 What is telomerase?
00:25 What happens when telomeres are too short?
00:38 How does telomerase work?
01:23 How does telomerase affect cancer risk and aging?

Watch the next video explaining Telomere Biology Disorders: https://youtu.be/sVTd0ZkTH3k.

Continue reading “The links between telomerase and aging” | >

For the first time, scientists produced human kidneys out of chimeric embryos containing a mix of pig cells and human stem cells. The same technique can be used to produce heart and pancreas.

A team of Chinese researchers has successfully grown early-stage developing human kidneys into female pigs using chimeric embryos.

“This is the first time a solid human organ has been grown inside an animal species other than humans,” Liangxue Lai, senior study author and a biologist at the Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health, told Interesting Engineering.

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A new study explores the field of biological brain modeling, determining the brain’s structure is similar to a computer.

The brain has been designated as one of the most complex organs of the human body, comprised of features including intelligence, an interpreter of the senses, an initiator of body movement, and a controller of behavior, according to the National Institute of Health.

Now, a recent study discovered that a living model of this three-pound organ sheds light on the mechanisms of how humans understand and experience the world.

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The researchers claim it’s the first “complete” embryo model for simulating all the important components that form in the early embryo.

The science of baby-making is clear. A sperm cell (which contains genetic material from the father) and an egg cell (which contains genetic material from the mother) must fuse in order for a human embryo to develop.

However, science and technology are constantly improving in the fields of embryology and stem cell research.

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The discovery surprised scientists when researchers in Israel recently consulted them for their expertise on specialized cells called M cells.

M cells act as gatekeepers for the immune system in organs like the intestine and lungs. They play a crucial role in delivering specialized antigen cells during the development of the body’s immune system.

In the mouse study on the thymic epithelium, researchers at the Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel wanted to determine the function of M cells in the gut and airways.

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Summary: The blood-brain barrier (BBB) in carpenter ants isn’t just a protective boundary, but actively shapes ant behavior.

The BBB produces an enzyme called Juvenile hormone esterase (Jhe) that degrades the Juvenile Hormone (JH3), which promotes foraging behavior. The presence and degradation of JH3 by the BBB helps determine whether an ant becomes a forager or soldier.

Interestingly, similar mechanisms might influence mouse behavior, hinting at broader implications beyond ants.

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Tiny dents on thin material produce photon-polarizing magnetic fields.

Researchers at Los Alamos National Laboratory have developed a technique that can produce polarized photons more easily and cheaply than existing methods. The technique.

Quantum communication uses photons to carry information, much as classical communication uses electrons. But while classical computers encode information by turning current… More.

Continue reading “How artificial intelligence gave a paralyzed woman her voice back” | >