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Feb 4, 2020

Refining the Allotopic Expression of Mitochondrial Genes

Posted by in categories: biotech/medical, genetics, life extension

Researchers from SENS Research Foundation, including Matthew O’Connor and Amutha Boominathan, have published a new study showing how codons play an important role in getting copies of mitochondrial genes placed in the cellular nucleus to express themselves correctly [1].

A possible solution to mitochondrial diseases

Mitochondrial disease is not a single disease; in fact, it is a group of rare and related conditions that are thought to affect perhaps 1 in 5000 people. These are caused due to mutations in the genes involved in the process of aerobic respiration, one of the main functions of our mitochondria.

Feb 4, 2020

Nobel Laureate James P. Allison Cures Cancers With Immunotherapy

Posted by in category: biotech/medical

James P. Allison believed that unleashing the immune system was a way to beat cancer when almost no one else did. A Nobel Prize and a growing list of cancer survivors vindicate him.

Feb 4, 2020

Regulation of Nrf2 signaling and longevity in naturally long-lived rodents

Posted by in categories: biotech/medical, genetics, life extension

Both genetically altered and naturally long-lived mammals are more resistant to toxic compounds that may cause cancer and age-associated diseases than their shorter-lived counterparts. The mechanisms by which this stress resistance occurs remain elusive. We found that longer-lived rodent species had markedly higher levels of signaling activity of the multifunctional regulator nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor (Nrf2) and that this increase in cytoprotective signaling appeared to be due to species differences in Kelch-like ECH-Associated Protein 1 (Keap1) and β-transducin repeat-containing protein (βTrCP) regulation of Nrf2 activity. Both of these negative regulators of Nrf2-signaling activity are significantly lower in longer-lived species. By targeting the proteins that regulate Nrf2 rather than Nrf2 itself, we may be able to identify new therapies that impact aging and age-associated diseases such as cancer.

The preternaturally long-lived naked mole-rat, like other long-lived species and experimental models of extended longevity, is resistant to both endogenous (e.g., reactive oxygen species) and environmental stressors and also resists age-related diseases such as cancer, cardiovascular disease, and neurodegeneration. The mechanisms behind the universal resilience of longer-lived organisms to stress, however, remain elusive. We hypothesize that this resilience is linked to the activity of a highly conserved transcription factor, nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor (Nrf2). Nrf2 regulates the transcription of several hundred cytoprotective molecules, including antioxidants, detoxicants, and molecular chaperones (heat shock proteins). Nrf2 itself is tightly regulated by mechanisms that either promote its activity or increase its degradation.

Feb 4, 2020

First genomic study of schizophrenia in African people turns up broken genes

Posted by in categories: genetics, neuroscience

Genetic studies of mental illness have largely been conducted in people with European ancestry.

Feb 4, 2020

Fungi That ‘Eat’ Radiation Are Growing on the Walls of Chernobyl’s Ruined Nuclear Reactor

Posted by in categories: biotech/medical, nuclear energy

Back in 1991, scientists were amazed when they made the discovery…

In the eerie environment inside the abandoned Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant, researchers remotely piloting robots spotted pitch black fungi growing on the walls of the decimated No. 4 nuclear reactor and even apparently breaking down radioactive graphite from the core itself. What’s more, the fungi seemed to be growing towards sources of radiation, as if the microbes were attracted to them!

More than a decade later, University of Saskatchewan Professor Ekaterina Dadachova (then at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York) and her colleagues acquired some of the fungi and found that they grew faster in the presence of radiation compared to other fungi. The three species tested, Cladosporium sphaerospermum, Cryptococcus neoformans and Wangiella dermatitidis, all had large amounts of the pigment melanin, which is found – among many places – in the skin of humans. People with a darker skin tone have much more of it. Melanin is known to absorb light and dissipate ultraviolet radiation, but in the fungi, it seemed to also be absorbing radiation and converting it into chemical energy for growth, perhaps in a similar fashion to how plants utilize the green pigment chlorophyll to attain energy from photosynthesis.

Feb 4, 2020

80% of coronavirus victims are over 60, Chinese health official says

Posted by in category: health

80% of victims were over the age of 60 and 75% had some form of underlying condition, according to China’s National Health Commission.


The death rate from the Wuhan coronavirus across mainland China stands at 2.1%, China’s National Health Commission said in a press update on Tuesday.

In Hubei province, the epicenter of the outbreak, the rate is 3.1%, said Jiao Yahui, deputy director of the National Health Commissions State Health Administration.

Continue reading “80% of coronavirus victims are over 60, Chinese health official says” »

Feb 4, 2020

Anti-solar cells: A photovoltaic cell that works at night

Posted by in categories: solar power, sustainability

What if solar cells worked at night? That’s no joke, according to Jeremy Munday, professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at UC Davis. In fact, a specially designed photovoltaic cell could generate up to 50 watts of power per square meter under ideal conditions at night, about a quarter of what a conventional solar panel can generate in daytime, according to a concept paper by Munday and graduate student Tristan Deppe. The article was published in, and featured on the cover of, the January 2020 issue of ACS Photonics.

Munday, who recently joined UC Davis from the University of Maryland, is developing prototypes of these nighttime solar cells that can generate small amounts of power. The researchers hope to improve the power output and efficiency of the devices.

Munday said that the process is similar to the way a normal solar cell works, but in reverse. An object that is hot compared to its surroundings will radiate heat as infrared light. A conventional solar cell is cool compared to the sun, so it absorbs light.

Feb 4, 2020

This AI-Guided Drone Has Mapped One of Earth’s Deepest Subterranean Lakes

Posted by in categories: drones, robotics/AI

A team of roboticists and divers used an AI-powered drone to explore underwater caves farther than humans ever have.

Feb 4, 2020

Inside the Lab That’s Turning Moon Water Into Rocket Fuel

Posted by in categories: robotics/AI, space travel, sustainability

The moon’s water could serve as a precious resource for deep space exploration, but how do we actually turn it into rocket fuel?
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To be a space miner, there are a few things you might need: the sun, some lunar soil, a pretty powerful mirror, and the perfect angle.

Continue reading “Inside the Lab That’s Turning Moon Water Into Rocket Fuel” »

Feb 4, 2020

Oxybreath Pro — Breakthrough Face Mask to Protect You and Your Family

Posted by in categories: health, innovation

The World Health Organization has recently declared the China coronavirus a global health emergency. 1 What’s worse is that cases of the coronavirus have jumped tenfold. The death toll is 304 and rising. 2

It would be an understatement to say that there is a growing sense of panic. The best advice I’ve heard is to stay calm and take pratical measures to protect yourself.