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Category: biotech/medical – Page 88

Generative AI models build new antibiotics starting from a single atom

Researchers have tapped into the power of generative artificial intelligence to aid them in the fight against one of humanity’s most pernicious foes: antibiotic-resistant bacteria. | Researchers have tapped into the power of generative artificial intelligence to aid them in the fight against one of humanity’s most pernicious foes: antibiotic-resistant bacteria. Using a model trained on a library of about 40,000 chemicals, scientists were able to build never-before-seen antibiotics that killed two of the most notorious multidrug-resistant bacteria on earth.

Gut Neurons Direct Immune Healing After Inflammation

Their previous work revealed that ILC2s are a major source of a tissue-healing growth factor called amphiregulin and have the capacity to receive neuronal signals that modulate their function and can impact disease progression and recovery.

In the new study, they demonstrated that the tissue-protective function of ILC2s depends on production of a molecule called adrenomedullin 2 (ADM2) from the enteric nervous system; administering the molecule expanded this group of ILC2s and provided therapeutic benefit in a preclinical model of inflammatory bowel disease, whereas loss of ADM2 signaling exacerbated disease due to the lack of these protective cells.

Engineers Take a Closer Look at How a Plant Virus Primes the Immune System to Fight Cancer

A virus that typically infects black-eyed peas is showing great promise as a low-cost, potent cancer immunotherapy—and researchers are uncovering why.

In a study published in Cell Biomaterials, a team led by chemical and nano engineers at the University of California San Diego took a closer look at how the cowpea mosaic virus (CPMV), unlike other plant viruses, is uniquely effective at activating the body’s immune system to recognize and attack cancer cells.

In preclinical studies, CPMV has demonstrated potent anti-tumor effects in multiple mouse models, as well as in canine cancer patients. When injected directly into tumors, CPMV therapy recruits innate immune cells—such as neutrophils, macrophages and natural killer cells—into the tumor microenvironment to destroy cancer cells. Meanwhile, it activates B cells and T cells to establish systemic, long-lasting anti-tumor memory. This immune reawakening not only helps clear the targeted tumor but also primes the immune system to hunt down metastatic tumors elsewhere in the body.

Unique fingerprints in 3D printing may foil adversaries

3D printing is a simple way to create custom tools, replacement pieces and other helpful objects, but it is also being used to create untraceable firearms, such as ghost guns, like the one implicated in the late 2024 killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson.

Netanel Raviv, assistant professor of computer science & engineering in the McKelvey School of Engineering at Washington University in St. Louis, led a team from the departments of Computer Science & Engineering and Biomedical Engineering that has developed a way to create an embedded fingerprint in 3D-printed parts that would withstand the item being broken, allowing authorities to gain information for forensic investigation, such as the identity of the printer or the person who owns it and the time and place of printing.

The research will be presented at the USENIX Security Symposium Aug. 13–15, 2025, in Seattle. The first authors of the paper are Canran Wang and Jinweng Wang, who earned doctorates in computer science in 2024 and 2025, respectively. The research is published on the arXiv preprint server.

Recreating a Rare Mutation Could Grant Almost Universal Virus Immunity For Days

A rare genetic mutation appears to make people basically invulnerable to viruses – and it could potentially be harnessed as a therapy. Researchers have now shown this surprising viral protection can be replicated in mice and hamsters.

“We have yet to find a virus that can break through the therapy’s defenses [in cell culture tests],” explains Columbia University immunologist Dusan Bogunovic, who first discovered this unusual antiviral superpower 13 years ago.

The mutation, a deficiency in interferon-stimulated gene 15 (ISG15), causes a mild yet persistent inflammation across the body. Examining patients’ immune cells revealed they’d had the usual run of encounters with flu, measles, chickenpox, and mumps, yet they’d never reported feeling particularly ill as a result.

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