Lifeboat Foundation

A breakthrough COVID-19 treatment using pineapples has been accidently discovered by Australian scientists, but how does it compare to a vaccine?

Angela Cox speaks with Professor David Morris, the man behind the discovery.

“Observations of metastasising cells revealed something intriguing—a high level of something called methylmalonic acid (MMA), a metabolic byproduct that appears to accumulate as we get older.”

“So how does MMA induce these changes in cancer cells? The key seems to be in a sort of reprogramming that “switches on” a gene called SOX4.

Prior research has shown SOX4 encourages cancer cells to become more aggressive and prone to metastasis.

Continue reading “Study finds cancer-boosting culprit that multiplies with age” »

Research is showing a strong link between handgrip strength, walking speed, and cognition, indicating how improved physical health could boost elderly minds.

Based at Barwon Health, in the heart of Geelong’s clinical health precinct, researchers are working to identify the risk factors —such as changes in muscle mass, muscle strength and physical performance—for developing sarcopenia (loss of muscle mass, strength and function with advancing age) across the lifespan.

This testing involves the Geelong Osteoporosis Study (GOS) which began in the early 1990s, gathering adult participants from the electoral roll in the Barwon Statistical Division. During recent follow-up testing, researchers also measured cognitive function through a computer-based program, in tandem with physical health evaluations.

For decades, greater than 60% of the human genome was believed to be “junk DNA” that served little or no purpose in the course of human development. Recent research by Colorado State University is challenging this notion to show that junk DNA might be important after all.

A new study, published on June 5 in Aging Cell, found that a portion of noncoding genetic material, called repetitive element transcripts, might be an important biomarker of the aging process.

Tom LaRocca, an assistant professor in the Department of Health and Exercise Science and faculty member in the Columbine Heath Systems Center for Healthy Aging at CSU, led the study to investigate a growing body of evidence that repetitive elements—transposons and other sequences that occur in multiple copies in the human genome —may become active over time as we age.

The rare satellite image shows a Chinese nuclear submarine entering into the mysterious submarine cave system at Yulin Naval Base on Hainan Island.

SpaceX just plucked another payload fairing out of the sky, and you can see video of the dramatic cosmic catch.

Primer Labs features examples that A.I. systems capable of natural language processing are poised to have a big impact on business.

Scientists Determine ‘Oumuamua Isn’t Made From Molecular Hydrogen Ice After All

The debate over the origins and molecular structure of ‘Oumuamua continued with an announcement in that despite earlier promising claims, the interstellar object is not made of molecular hydrogen ice after all.

Summary: Variations of CD38, a gene associated with attachment behaviors in humans and animals, may play a key role in relationship behaviors and perceptions that support bonding.

Source: Scientific Reports

Variations in a gene called CD38, which is involved in attachment behaviour in non-human animals, may be associated with human romantic relationship dynamics in daily life, according to a study published in Scientific Reports.