Lifeboat Foundation

Hi everybody. Today, it was published a paper in which it’s described the research that led to the identification and testing of a peptide that reduces the amount of senescent cells in the skin, and that peptide is being used in the first product in the whole world (as far as I know) that is already in the market and reduces the amount of senescent cells in humans (in this case, in the skin). The paper can be found in I don’t think it’s an ordinary thing that a product that reduces the amount of senescent cells is being sold in the market. After many years watching Aubrey de Grey’s talks, and reading news about promising researches about senescent cells, and about the formation of many companies to research how to reduce the amount of senescent cells, finally there is something that reached the public. This paper is very important as it allows that the rejuvenation field analyzes it and be prepared to seize this opportunity to show to the world, in practice, that the theoretical base of the rejuvenation therapies can be translated to practice and rejuvenate the human body — in this case, the skin. As some of you already know, the company which organized this research and launched the product is OneSkin, and its CEO, Carolina Reis, has been presenting their research in several conferences in the rejuvenation field in the last months. OneSkin is a company with its interests, of course, but at the same time is a representative of the rejuvenation field which is opening a path for all the other companies.

Skin aging has been primarily related to aesthetics and beauty. Therefore, interventions have focused on reestablishing skin appearance, but not necessarily skin health, function, and resilience. Recently, cellular senescence was shown to play a role in age-related skin function deterioration and influence organismal health and, potentially, longevity. In the present study, a two-step screening was performed to identify peptides capable of reducing cellular senescence in human dermal fibroblasts (HDF) from Hutchinson-Gilford Progeria (HGPS) patients. From the top four peptides of the first round of screening, we built a 764-peptide library using amino acid scanning, of which the second screen led to the identification of peptide 14. Peptide 14 effectively decreased HDF senescence induced by HGPS, chronological aging, ultraviolet-B radiation, and etoposide treatment, without inducing significant cell death, and likely by modulating longevity and senescence pathways. We further validated the effectiveness of peptide 14 using human skin equivalents and skin biopsies, where peptide 14 promoted skin health and reduced senescent cell markers, as well as the biological age of samples, according to the Skin-Specific DNA methylation clock, MolClock. Topical application of peptide 14 outperformed Retinol treatment, the current gold-standard in anti-aging skincare. Finally, we determined that peptide 14 is safe for long-term applications and also significantly extends both the lifespan and healthspan of C. elegans worms tested in two independent testings. This highlights the potential for geroprotective applications of the senotherapeutic compounds identified using our screening platform beyond the skin.

MB, AZ, CR, LB, EA, and JC are named as inventors of a patent directed at this invention, which is solely owned by OneSkin, Inc. MB, AZ, CR, EA, and JC are co-founders of OneSkin Inc. SAV and MR are co-founders of the startup company NemaLife Inc. that is commercializing microfluidic devices used in this study and licensed from Texas Tech University. SAV, MR, and TA are named inventors on a patent owned by Texas Tech University and receive royalty fees.

The right indoor lighting can help set the mood, from a soft romantic glow to bright, stimulating colors. But some materials used for lighting, such as plastics, are not eco-friendly. Now, researchers reporting in ACS Nano have developed a bio-based, luminescent, water-resistant wood film that could someday be used as cover panels for lamps, displays and laser devices.

Consumer demand for eco-friendly, renewable materials has driven researchers to investigate wood-based thin films for optical applications. However, many materials developed so far have drawbacks, such as poor mechanical properties, uneven lighting, a lack of water resistance or the need for a petroleum-based polymer matrix. Qiliang Fu, Ingo Burgert and colleagues wanted to develop a luminescent wood film that could overcome these limitations.

The researchers treated balsa wood with a solution to remove lignin and about half of the hemicelluloses, leaving behind a porous scaffold. The team then infused the delignified wood with a solution containing quantum dots—semiconductor nanoparticles that glow in a particular color when struck by ultraviolet (UV) light. After compressing and drying, the researchers applied a hydrophobic coating. The result was a dense, water-resistant wood film with excellent mechanical properties. Under UV light, the quantum dots in the wood emitted and scattered an orange light that spread evenly throughout the film’s surface.

The secrets of the solar system can drive economic return for all.

The launch of NASA’s fifth Mars rover marks a new milestone in the era of space exploration. It puts focus on the need for greater collaboration, equity and inclusion among international partners to ensure the sustainable, peaceful and fair use of resources. Guidelines for interacting and norms of behaviour are as essential to ensure success in space as on Earth.

Continue reading “Reaching for the Moon, Mars and beyond: This is how space exploration can benefit all” »

The study of the brain of extinct organisms sheds lights on their behaviors. However, soft tissues, like the brain, are not usually preserved for long periods. Hence, researchers reconstruct the brains of dinosaurs by analyzing the cranial cavities under computed tomography. It demands well-preserved braincases, which is the region that envelops the brain tissues. To date, complete and well-preserved neurocrania from the oldest dinosaurs worldwide have not been found.

In 2015, a Brazilian paleontologist from the Universidade Federal de Santa Maria, Dr. Rodrigo Temp Müller, unearthed an exceptionally well-preserved skeleton from a fossiliferous locality in southern Brazil. The skeleton, approximately 233 million years old (Triassic period), belongs to a small carnivorous dinosaur named Buriolestes schultzi and the entire braincase was preserved. Now, Brazilian researchers have reconstructed the first complete brain of one of the oldest dinosaurs worldwide.

The study was published in Journal of Anatomy and performed by Rodrigo T. Müller, José D. Ferreira, Flávio A. Pretto, and Leonardo Kerber from the Universidade Federal de Santa Maria and Mario Bronzati from the Universidade de São Paulo.

After a long, seven-year development, an experimental fusion reactor in the UK has been successfully powered on for the time, achieving ‘first plasma’: confirmation that all its components can work together to heat hydrogen gas into the plasma phase of matter.

This transition – achieved last week by a machine called MAST Upgrade in Culham, Oxfordshire – is the fundamental ingredient of a working nuclear fusion reactor, a dream scientists have been trying to realise for decades.

Continue reading “A Huge Fusion Experiment in The UK Just Achieved The Much Anticipated ‘First Plasma’” »

Researchers at the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL) have gained a better understanding of a promising method for improving the confinement of superhot fusion plasma using magnetic fields. Improved plasma confinement could enable a fusion reactor called a spherical tokamak to be built smaller and less expensively, moving the world closer to reproducing on Earth the fusion energy that powers the sun and stars.

The improved confinement is made possible by the so-called enhanced pedestal (EP) H-mode, a variety of the high performance, or H-mode, plasma state that has been observed for decades in tokamaks around the world. When a fusion plasma enters H-mode, it requires less heating to get to the superhot temperatures necessary for fusion reactions.

The new understanding reveals some of the underlying mechanics of EP H-mode, a condition that researchers discovered more than a decade ago. Scientists led by physicists at PPPL have now found that the EP H-mode improves upon H-mode in spherical tokamaks by lowering the density of the plasma edge.

Blizzard president J. Allen Brack said the system has dramatically reduced toxic chat and repeating offenses.

In April 2019, Blizzard shared some insights into how it was using machine learning to combat abusive chat in games like Overwatch. It’s a very complicated process, obviously, but it appears to be working out: Blizzard president J. Allen Brack said in a new Fireside Chat video that it has resulted in an “incredible decrease” in toxic behavior.

Continue reading “Overwatch toxicity has seen an ‘incredible decrease’ thanks to machine learning, says Blizzard” »

A new $32,000 electric camper is getting some hype this week, but we are highly skeptical about the vehicle. Is it a scam?

Electric Brands, a Germany-based startup, has been taking reservations and investments for what it calls the eBussy, a modular electric vehicle platform that can be configured in different vehicles, including an electric camper.

Several media outlets have been reporting on the project this week, resulting in thousands of reservations for the vehicle.

Both desktop and Android versions are affected.