Lifeboat Foundation

Today, we are going to take a look at the topic of NAD+, its precursor, nicotinamide mononucleotide, and the debate surrounding the ability of these molecules to pass through the cell membrane.

NAD+ is critical for cellular function

Nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD+) is a redox cofactor, but it is also a critical signaling molecule that regulates cell function and survival in response to environmental changes such as nutrient intake and cellular damage. Age-related changes to the level of NAD+ in the cell impacts mitochondrial function, nutrient sensing and metabolism, redox reactions, circadian rhythm, immune and inflammatory responses, DNA repair, cell division, protein-to-protein signaling, chromatin, and epigenetics.

The Alzheimer’s Hypothesis

Introduction

Continue reading “The Alzheimer's Hypothesis” »

Cystic fibrosis is the most common genetic disease among Caucasians. Now scientists believe they have discovered the origin of this often lethal genetic mutation and how it spread throughout Europe.

A new potential method to administer gene therapy without triggering an immune response.

Scientists at Stanford University School of Medicine managed to administer effective gene therapy in mice without triggering an autoimmune reaction. The research, led by Dr. Peggy Ho, Ph.D., was published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences [1].

Study abstract

Continue reading “Administering Gene Therapy Without Triggering Immune Response” »

The overarching goal of the talks, which open tomorrow at the United Nations in New York City, is crafting a new agreement to protect biodiversity in the high seas, which include two-thirds of the ocean. Much of discussions, which will run until 17 September, are expected to focus on long-standing proposals to establish protected zones where fishing and development would be limited or banned. But the negotiations also aim to replace today’s free-for-all scramble for marine genetic resources with a more orderly and perhaps fairer regime.

Nations open historic negotiations on marine biodiversity pact.

Principles of game theory offer new ways of understanding genetic behavior, a pair of researchers has concluded in a new analysis appearing in the Journal of the Royal Society Interface. Its work opens the possibility of comprehending biological processes, and specifically biochemistry, through a new scientific lens.

The exploration considers signaling game theory, which involves sender and receiver interactions with both seeking payoffs.

“The view of genes as players in a signaling game effectively animates genes and bestows simple utilities and strategies—thus, unique personalities—on them,” explains Bhubaneswar “Bud” Mishra, a professor at NYU’s Courant Institute of Mathematical Sciences, who co-authored the analysis with Steven Massey, an associate professor at the University of Puerto Rico. “In this view, the genome possesses characteristics of a molecular society, complete with deception, imitation, cooperation, and competition—not unlike human society. This adds a grandeur to a traditional view of life and the interactions it is made up of.”

Continue reading “Researchers outline game-theory approach to better understand genetics” »

The new method for turning mature cells into stem cells skips genetic modification.

It’s the year 2038. The word “flavor” has fallen into disuse. Sugar is the new cigarettes, and we have managed to replace salt with healthy plants. We live in a society in which we eat fruit grown using genetics. We drink synthetic wine, scramble eggs that do not come from chickens, grill meat that was not taken from animals, and roast fish that never saw the sea… Here’s a futurist outlook at the next two decades of food developments, from robot farmers to 3D-printed meals to AI monitoring of your daily calorie intake.

A far better approach, then, is the middle course. Rather than prejudge the products of biotechnology, regulators should screen new plants and single out those that might need special monitoring or restrictions. In the U.S., the Food and Drug Administration does something similar on a voluntary basis for foods made from plants with engineered proteins. Companies submit data about their new products, and if the FDA decides it has no further questions, they can claim their foods are “generally recognized as safe.”

Europe and the U.S. should avoid an all-or-nothing approach to regulating plants made with Crispr.