Lifeboat Foundation

The mRNA vaccine success story is one of the few positives to emerge from COVID-19. But these vaccines from Moderna and Pfizer/BioNTech are only the tip of the iceberg in the coming RNA medical technology revolution.

Australia, including our newly established UNSW RNA Institute, is well-placed to take a leading role in this revolution. With its eyes firmly set on making NSW a global force in the RNA industry, the NSW Government is backing a new RNA Bioscience Alliance between all the NSW Universities as well as funding a $15 million RNA production network between some of the state’s leading research organizations to bootstrap pre-clinical RNA research. UNSW’s RNA Institute is a key part of this drive, and with a $25 million investment brings together world-leading expertise to support the state and national agenda.

So beyond mRNA vaccines, what are these RNA therapeutics on the horizon? And what is the secret sauce that finally got mRNA vaccines to work after many years of trying? To understand this, let’s first tackle what RNA is and how it is used in medicine.

“These data suggest that differences in the microbiota following antibiotics in early life can reprogram the immune system long-term, with the consequences of this reprogramming emerging later in life, including effects on immunity, metabolism and even lifespan,” Prof Lynn said.

A team of researchers from SAHMRI and Flinders University has found a link between the type of microbiome that repopulates the gut following antibiotics and shortened lifespan in mice.

Researchers at the University of Sussex in England have found a way to create tiny and speedy semiconductors: crinkling graphene or other 2D materials.

Researchers uncover new backdoor used by FIN8 to target financial institutions.

A computer retailer in the United States was recently attacked with a new backdoor malware called “SideWalk.”

Silicon Valley’s most succesful incubator is doubling down on space tugs.

Backed by Y Combinator, the space company is developing solar thermal rockets.

Maybe.

To combat this issue, Astroscale Inc., a private Japan-headquartered company, has devised several commercial spacecrafts tasked with decluttering space. The company is on track to deliver the world’s first garbage truck for removing defunct satellites in 2,024 and today announced its prototype completed its first demonstration in space. Although experts say that one active debris remover isn’t enough to solve the problem, it is an important move toward protecting valuable equipment in space, including satellites that aid with everything from weather forecasts to GPS navigation.

Continue reading “Can the World’s First Space Sweeper Make a Dent in Orbiting Debris?” »

The world of lab-grown meats is fast filling with all kinds of tasty bites, from burgers, to chicken breasts, to a series of increasingly complex cuts of steak. Expanding the scope of cultured beef are scientists from Japan’s Osaka University, who have leveraged cutting-edge bioprinting techniques to produce the first lab-grown “beef” that resembles the marbled texture of the country’s famed Wagyu cows.

From humble beginnings that resembled soggy pork back in 2,009 to the classic steaks and rib-eyes we’ve seen pop up in the last few years, lab-grown meat has come along in leaps and bounds. The most sophisticated examples use bioprinting to “print” living cells, which are nurtured to grow and differentiate into different cell types, ultimately building up into the tissues of the desired animal.

The Osaka University team used two types of stem cells harvested from Wagyu cows as their starting point, bovine satellite cells and adipose-derived stem cells. These cells were incubated and coaxed into becoming the different cell types needed to form individual fibers for muscle, fat and blood vessels. These were then arranged into a 3D stack to resemble the high intramuscular fat content of Wagyu, better known as marbling, or sashi in Japan.

El Salvador began installing Bitcoin ATMs, allowing its citizens to convert the cryptocurrency into U.S. dollars and withdraw it in cash, as part of the government’s plan to make the token legal tender.

The government will install 200 of the teller machines to initially accompany its digital wallet called Chivo, a local slang term for ‘cool,’ President Nayib Bukele said on Twitter. Transactions will be commission free, he said, adding that there will also be 50 financial branches across the country for withdrawing or depositing money.