The genetic makeup of any given brain cell differs from all others. That realization may provide clues to a range of psychiatric diseases.
- By Simon Makin on May 3, 2017
Category: genetics – Page 609
Update bundle #4
News from the world of rejuvenation biotechs.
Gone are—for now—the golden days when I would publish a new post each week. So, for as long as my schedule is going to be this busy, I’ll have to be content with update bundles. I thought I’d let you know about a few news items and interesting things going on in anti-ageing community.
On June 30 LEAF will host their first Journal Club event, with dr Oliver Medvedik. The topic will be the implications of epigenetic alterations on aging and as a primary aging process.
The recurring crowdfunding campaign to support LEAF has reached $1110, thus surpassing the first goal of $1000. The next one is $2000, and it’d be great if you could help us reach it, and advertise the campaign so that others may help too.
New Research Points to a Genetic Switch That Can Let Our Bodies Talk to Electronics
- Our bodies are biologically based and therefore are not equipped to communicate with electronics efficiently. New research could make it possible to genetically engineer our cells to be able to communicate with electronics.
- The development has the potential to allow us to eventually build apps that autonomously detect and treat disease.
Microelectronics has transformed our lives. Cellphones, earbuds, pacemakers, defibrillators – all these and more rely on microelectronics’ very small electronic designs and components. Microelectronics has changed the way we collect, process and transmit information.
Bronze Age beaker culture invaded Britain 4,000 years ago
New research carried out one of the biggest ever studies of ancient genomes…
A Bronze Age ‘beaker culture’ invaded Britain 4,000 years ago: Intruders forced out ancient farmers that built famous relics such as Stonehenge.
- New research carried out one of the biggest ever studies of ancient genomes
- It found that beaker people forced prehistoric Neolithic farmers out of Britain
- DNA analyses found that Britain underwent a 90 per cent shift in its genetic make-up when the beaker folk arrived
Humans Can Now “Print” Genetic Code and Engineer Life
Scientists’ ability to create organisms through synthetic biology is getting easier and cheaper fueling the start of a new era in biology. Synthetic biology has already lead to some innovations such as lab-grown meat, advancement in medicine, and even helping to bring back extinct species.
Scientists Uncover Genes That May Help Combat Aging and Disease
These specialized genes could help us prevent aging.
These Cells Are Engineered to Be Controlled by a Smartphone
To Dr. Mark Gomelsky, a professor at the University of Wyoming, genetically engineered therapeutic cells are like troops on a mission.
The first act is training. Using genetic editing tools such as CRISPR, scientists can “train” a patient’s own cells to specifically recognize and attack a variety of enemies, including rogue tumor soldiers and HIV terrorists.
Then comes the incursion. Engineered cells are surgically implanted to the target site, where they’re left to immediately carry out the mission. The problem, says Gomelsky, is adding a command center “that could coordinate their activities in real time according to the developing situation,” such as telling cells when to activate and when to stop.
Researchers Find Gut Bacteria Can Trigger Brain Lesions That Lead to Strokes
In yet another study that has connected conditions in the gut to diseases of the brain, scientists have linked the cause of common blood vessel abnormalities in the brain to bacteria colonies in the stomach.
These malformations can lead to strokes called cerebral cavernous malformations (CCMs), which don’t leave patients with many options — if surgery can’t be performed, there’s little left but palliative care. But figuring out what causes these abnormalities could led to treatments that block them before they even occur.
An international team led by researchers from the University of Pennsylvania studied genetically engineered mice that were prone to developing vascular lesions in their brains.
Scientists have eliminated HIV in mice using CRISPR
An important breakthrough has been made in the eradication of AIDs. Scientists have found they can successfully snip out the HIV virus from mouse cells using CRISPR/Cas9 technology.
Right now patients with the deadly virus must use a toxic concoction of anti-retroviral medications to suppress the virus from replicating. However, CRISPR/Cas9 can be programmed to chop out any genetic code in the body with scissor-like precision, including, possibly, all HIV-1 DNA within the body. And if you cut out the DNA, you stop the virus from being able to make copies of itself.
First published in the journal Molecular Therapy, the team is the first to show HIV can be completely annihilated from the body using CRISPR. And with impressive effect. After just one treatment, scientists were able to show the technique had successfully removed all traces of the infection within mouse organs and tissue.
The Scientist Who Discovered a Master Gene to Control Aging
“Sirtuins are kind of like an orchestra working together to produce a symphony, but each piece, each section, has its own role. Together you get a unified outcome, which we think is improved health.”
— Dr. Leonard Guarente
Dr. Leonard Guarente’s office in the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Koch Biology Building is, at first glance, a modest room filled with the artifacts of a decades-long career as a professor and researcher: archives of important journals including Cell, Molecular and Cellular Biology, and Nature; framed covers of his most important papers (he’s published more than 250); achievement awards recognizing his work in genetics and molecular biology; photos of his family; and odds and ends like a dagger presented to him by a student from Thailand and a faded bottle of The Macallan single malt scotch from 1980.