They say ‘I believe in nature. Nature is harmonious’. Every big fish is eating every smaller fish. Every organ is fighting constantly invading bacteria. Is that what you mean by harmony? There are planets that are exploding out there. Meteorites that hit another and blow up. What’s the purpose of that? What’s the purpose of floods? To drown people? In other words, if you start looking for purpose, you gotta look all over, take in the whole picture. So, man projects his own values into nature. — Jacque Fresco (March 13, 1916 — May 18, 2017)
When most of us use the word ‘nature‘, we really don’t know much about it in reality. — Ursa.
Unlocking The Secrets Of Salamander Regeneration For Regenerative Therapies — Dr. Maximina Yun, Ph.D., CRTD / Center for Regenerative Therapies TU Dresden, Technische Universität Dresden.
Dr. Maximina Yun, Ph.D. (https://tu-dresden.de/cmcb/crtd/forschungsgruppen/crtd-forsc…oup-leader) is Research Group Leader at the Center for Regenerative Therapies Dresden (CRTD), Technical University Dresden, jointly affiliated with Max Planck Institute for Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics (MPI-CBG).
Dr. Yun and her group (https://tu-dresden.de/cmcb/crtd/forschungsgruppen/crtd-forschungsgruppen/yun) study the cellular and molecular basis of regeneration of complex structures with the help of salamanders (like newts and axolotls) and these vertebrates exceptional regenerative abilities, which in contrast to humans, are capable of regenerating complex tissues, and even entire organs, to a remarkable extent. Therefore, they offer unique insights into what molecular mechanisms must be in place for achieving quasi-perfect regeneration.
Research in the Yun group focuses on three main areas: describing cellular and molecular mechanisms driving regeneration (Mechanisms underlying the plasticity of the differentiated state), their connection with cellular aging (Role and regulation of senescence in regeneration), and the role that the immune system plays in regenerative context.
The research in the Yun group combines advanced molecular biology methods with state-of-the-art microscopy. Most recently the group has established Salamander-Eci, a novel method that enables the three-dimensional visualization of salamander tissues for a more comprehensive understanding of regenerative processes.
The University of Copenhagen in Denmark is a very unique place. Apart from being one of the oldest universities in Scandinavia, it is also one of the top universities in the world. So far, 39 Nobel laureates have been affiliated with the University and it sports a spectacular center for healthy aging which hosts the Biology of Aging lab. In September 2021 the University of Copenhagen hosted the 8th annual Aging Research and Drug Discovery (ARDD) meeting.
This year’s ARDD meeting, held at the Ceremonial Hall of the University, was the largest conference on aging and biopharma in the world for the second consecutive year.
The conference, which took place from August 31 to September 3, brought together leaders in the field of longevity research with the focus on aging research, drug discovery and biomarker development. Those who regularly read my articles know that I believe that aging research is the emerging trend in the biopharmaceutical industry. The field is well and truly emerging and ARDD is one of the first conferences to credibly bring together pharmaceutical companies, startups, clinicians, venture capital firms, and representatives from academia to the same table.
The first ARDD meeting was held in 2014 at Basil, Switzerland. Back then, the meeting was known as the Aging Forum and was part of the MipTec and Basel Life congresses. From its inception, the conference was intended to bring together the pharmaceutical industry, leading academics, investors, and startups while maintaining a very high level of scientific credibility, while focusing on the translational potential.
If you thought the Hubble Space Telescope was about to be surpassed by the new James Webb Space Telescope (Webb), think again.
Now on its way to its observing position a million miles from Earth, Webb has a 6.6 meter mirror–compared to the 2.4-meter mirror inside Hubble–so six times more collecting power.
Should we compare Webb with Hubble? No–Webb is an infrared telescope while Hubble deals mainly in optical (visible) light.
Besides, Hubble has just issued a stunning new image, one of several in the last few weeks, that prove that there’s plenty of life left in the old space telescope yet.
The main image of this article, above, was released yesterday and shows a spiral galaxy called NGC 105 about 215 million light-years away in the constellation Pisces. It also shows, top-left, a smaller galaxy. Are the two colliding? No–it’s merely a chance alignment of the two objects in the night sky. That smaller galaxy is much further away.
Our reluctance to think, talk or communicate about death is even more pronounced when we deal with others’ loss compared to our own, new research finds, but either way we tend to frame attitudes and emotions in a sad and negative way.
Teaching new more positive ways to address these difficult conversations is the focus of a new paper in PLOS ONE journal by palliative care specialists across Australia.
Led by Flinders University’s Research Centre for Palliative Care, Death and Dying (RePaDD) and Palliative and Supportive Services, researchers from Flinders, CQUniversity Australia, NT Palliative Care Central Australia and University of Technology Sydney, surveyed 1,491 people about the use of language to express their feelings and insights into death and dying.
Researchers at Human Longevity have developed technology that can generate images of individuals face using only their genetic information. But not all are convinced.
And calls out to collaborating agencies to do their part.
NASA Administrator Bill Nelson revealed on Friday that the Biden administration has committed to extend the operations of the International Space Station (ISS) through 2030, and to continue cooperating with international partners in Europe (ESA, European Space Agency), Japan (JAXA, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency), Canada (CSA, Canadian Space Agency), and Russia (State Space Corporation Roscosmos) for research endeavors.
“The International Space Station is a beacon of peaceful international scientific collaboration and for more than 20 years has returned enormous scientific, educational, and technological developments to benefit humanity. I’m pleased that the Biden-Harris Administration has committed to continuing station operations through 2030,” Nelson said.
“The United States’ continued participation on the ISS will enhance innovation and competitiveness, as well as advance the research and technology necessary to send the first woman and first person of color to the Moon under NASA’s Artemis program and pave the way for sending the first humans to Mars. As more and more nations are active in space, it’s more important than ever that the United States continues to lead the world in growing international alliances and modeling rules and norms for the peaceful and responsible use of space.”
The U.S. population grew at the slowest rate on record in 2021 as slowing migration, an aging population and low birth rates were exacerbated by the Covid pandemic, U.S. Census Bureau data released Tuesday show.
The population expanded by just 0.1% or 392,665 people this year, a smaller increase than during the influenza pandemic and World War I in the early years of the last century. It’s also the first time since 1937 that the population has expanded by less than 1 million.
Washington and New York were among the regions with the biggest drop in people while Idaho, Utah and surrounding states gained the most, the data show.
I’ve covered a lot of longevity science research this year so have summarised some of the key highlights here!!! Many breakthroughs & research I couldn’t cover — let me know what your favourite news this year was in the comments!!
