Lifeboat Foundation: Safeguarding Humanity
Toggle light / dark theme

Blog – Page 63

Adeno-associated virus (AAV) is a prominent method for delivering genes in vivo. Therapeutic delivery to target cells is achieved through full capsids containing the gene cargo. However, the presence of empty capsids in the AAV drug product can reduce therapeutic effectiveness, necessitating their detection at various stages of the AAV production process. Traditional methods for assessing the AAV empty/full (E/F) ratio are often slow, labor-intensive, and require significant optimization.

Consider a novel, rapid, and high-throughput approach for determining the AAV E/F ratio using Octet® Biolayer Interferometry (BLI) alongside Octet® AAVX Biosensors. This cutting-edge technique evaluates intact viral capsids and is perfect for screening both crude and purified samples, offering a quicker and more efficient workflow with results available in as little as 30 minutes.

Discover the advantages of this innovative method and enhance your AAV workflow by downloading the technical note.

Read more | >

Imagine walking into your kitchen and instantly knowing if the fish you bought yesterday is still fresh—or entering an industrial site with sensors that immediately alert you to hazardous gas leaks. This isn’t science fiction—it’s the promise behind our newly developed nanomechanical sensor array, a powerful tool we’ve created to detect and analyze complex gases in real-time.

In our recent study published in Microsystems & Nanoengineering, we introduce a miniaturized array of silicon and polymer-based capable of detecting various gases quickly and accurately.

This array utilizes a simple yet ingenious principle: when gas molecules enter the sensor, they diffuse into specific polymers, causing them to swell slightly. This swelling generates detected by tiny piezoresistive sensors embedded in silicon. It’s like watching a sponge expand as it absorbs water—but at a microscopic scale, with the expansion measured electrically to detect and identify gases.

Read more | >

Astronomers have identified an exoplanet named Enaiposha, also known as GJ 1214 b, located 47 light-years from Earth. Initially classified as a mini-Neptune, further observations suggest it may belong to a different planetary category.

Read more | >

We now know it isn’t just neutron stars that emit such pulses. A white dwarf and a red dwarf star have been discovered closely orbiting each other emitting radio pulses every two hours. Their findings means we know it isn’t just neutron stars that emit such pulses, but these are spaced unusually far apart.

An international team of astronomers led by Dr Iris de Ruiter, now at the University of Sydney, has shown that a white dwarf and a red dwarf star orbiting each other every two hours are emitting radio pulses.

Thanks to follow-up observations using optical and x-ray telescopes, the researchers were able to determine the origin of these pulses with certainty. The findings explain the source of such radio emissions found across the Milky Way galaxy for the first time.

Read more | >

Keratinocytes produce collagen fibers, while deeper fibroblasts later modify the collagen fibers initially formed by keratinocytes. Challenging the long-standing belief that fibroblasts produce skin collagen, researchers at Okayama University have investigated collagen formation in the ‘glass-skinned’ amphibian axolotl and other vertebrates. They discovered that keratinocytes, the surface cells of the skin, are responsible for producing collagen, which is then transferred deeper to form the dermis. Later, fibroblasts migrate into this collagen layer, modifying and reinforcing its structure.

The skin consists of two primary layers. The epidermis, the outermost layer, is predominantly made up of keratinocytes, while the deeper dermis contains blood vessels, nerves, and structural proteins such as collagen, which give the skin its strength and texture. Traditionally, fibroblasts — specialized supporting cells within the dermis — have been believed to play a key role in producing collagen.

In humans, collagen is formed before and after birth. It has been believed that fibroblasts play an exclusive role in collagen production in the skin, and no keratinocytes contribute to collagen production. The statement “Collagen production in the human skin is achieved by fibroblasts” has been an unspoken agreement in the skin research field.

Read more | >

In a striking development, researchers have created a quantum algorithm that allows quantum computers to better understand and preserve the very phenomenon they rely on – quantum entanglement. By introducing the variational entanglement witness (VEW), the team has boosted detection accuracy while

Read more | >

Argonne scientists have unveiled new methods for controlling material properties. The breakthrough enables researchers to design materials with customized properties, offering unprecedented control over their optical and electronic behaviors. Imagine building a Lego tower with perfectly aligned

Read more | >

A quantum machine has used entangled qubits to generate a number certified as truly random for the first time, demonstrating a handy function that’s physically beyond even the most powerful supercomputer.

Researchers from the US and UK repurposed existing quantum supremacy experiments on Quantinuum’s 56-qubit computer to roll God’s dice. The result was a number so random, no amount of physics could have predicted it.

Quantum technology is becoming critical for secure electronic communication as cybersecurity threats increase.

Read more | >