Lifeboat Foundation: Safeguarding Humanity
Toggle light / dark theme

Blog – Page 94

A highly automated form of in vitro fertilisation (IVF) has led to a successful birth, raising hopes that this approach could cut the risk of human error during such procedures.

One method of IVF is intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI), where sperm is injected into eggs in a lab dish. This is commonly used in cases of male infertility, as the sperm don’t have to work to reach an egg. Any resulting embryos are then inserted into the uterus. IVF can also be done by mixing sperm and eggs in a lab dish in the hope that fertilisation will take place, which is generally less successful, but also requires less medical intervention.

Image: Conceivable Life Sciences

A baby has been born after being conceived via IVF performed by a machine, with a medical professional merely overseeing the process.

By Carissa Wong

Read more | >

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) serve as key regulators of enteric nervous system development, orchestrating migration, proliferation, and differentiation of enteric nervous system progenitors.

Aberrant miRNA expression underpins the pathogenesis of several enteric neuropathies, including Hirschsprung’s disease.

A convergence of miRNA activity across distinct enteric neuropathies highlights shared molecular pathways, exemplified by the miR-200 family.

Modulating the expression of miRNAs to influence their associated gene expression networks has therapeutic potential for enteric neuropathies. https://sciencemission.com/MicroRNA-regulation-of-enteric-ne…nd-disease

The enteric nervous system (ENS), an elaborate network of neurons and glia woven through the gastrointestinal tract, is integral for digestive physiology and broader human health. Commensurate with its importance, ENS dysfunction is linked to a range of debilitating gastrointestinal disorders. MicroRNAs (miRNAs), with their pleiotropic roles in post-transcriptional gene regulation, serve as key developmental effectors within the ENS. Herein, we review the regulatory dynamics of miRNAs in ENS ontogeny, showcasing specific miRNAs implicated in both congenital and acquired enteric neuropathies, such as Hirschsprung’s disease (HSCR), achalasia, intestinal neuronal dysplasia (IND), chronic intestinal pseudo-obstruction (CIPO), and slow transit constipation (STC).

Read more | >

Tools for mitochondrial protein complex evaluation during remodeling.

Assembly of mitochondrial proteins into high molecular weight complexes is essential for their functions.

The authors developed and validated two searchable compendia of these mitochondrial complexes.

These two online-available tools, MARIGOLD and MitoCIAO, map the mitochondrial protein interactions during membrane remodeling.

MARIGOLD provides ‘‘digital western blots’’ of queried proteins in their native complexes. MitoCIAO predicts their comigrating partners. MitoCIAO correctly predicted biologically validated interactions among components of the mitochondrial cristae organization system (MICOS) and optic atrophy 1 (OPA1) complexes.

These tools deorphanize two ATAD3A-containing complexes participating in cristae biogenesis and mitoribosome stability. https://sciencemission.com/MARIGOLD-and-MitoCIAO

Continue reading “MARIGOLD and MitoCIAO, two searchable compendia to visualize and functionalize protein complexes during mitochondrial remodeling” | >

You’ve probably seen a movie in which a character pulls up a hologram display that they can poke, prod, and manipulate as easily as you could mess with a real object sitting on a desk in front of you.

The idea is so ubiquitous in science fiction that it’s become nearly synonymous with the word “hologram.” In almost every news story written about hologram technology and how far it has come, at some point, a disclaimer has to be made explaining that ‘it’s not quite Tony Stark tech, but it’s still cool!’

Read more | >

The biological research of UC Santa Cruz’s Needhi Bhalla to determine the molecular motions at the heart of heredity has yielded a new discovery: The proper transfer of genetic materials depends on two key proteins that choreograph the delicate dance between chromosomes when sexual-reproduction cells divide.

When cells split to create eggs and sperm, they must undergo a crucial process called “meiotic crossover recombination.” This mechanism ensures that is properly shuffled between chromosomes, preventing errors that could lead to disorders such as miscarriages, infertility, birth defects, and even cancer.

This process also results in the endearing transfer of traits that parents see in their children. And beyond contributing to parental pride, Bhalla says meiotic crossover recombination is fundamental for human evolution by promoting . That’s why the identification of two specific proteins that play central roles in controlling how and where these crossovers happen is so significant.

Read more | >

Ironmaking could be on the edge of a major upgrade. Scientists have developed a cleaner, electrochemical method to extract iron that could one day rival traditional blast furnaces in cost while slashing pollution.

By customizing iron oxide particles and optimizing electrical conditions, the team achieved efficient, low-temperature metal production—paving the way for greener steelmaking on an industrial scale.

Rethinking Ironmaking with Electrochemistry.

Read more | >

Enthusiasts have been pushing the limits of silicon for as long as microprocessors have existed. Early overclocking endeavors involved soldering and replacing crystal clock oscillators, but that practice quickly evolved into adjusting system bus speeds using motherboard DIP switches and jumpers.

Internal clock multipliers were eventually introduced, but it didn’t take long for those to be locked down, as unscrupulous sellers began removing official frequency ratings and rebranding chips with their own faster markings. System buses and dividers became the primary tuning tools for most users, while ultra-enthusiasts went further – physically altering electrical specifications through hard modding.

Eventually, unlocked multipliers made a comeback, ushering in an era defined by BIOS-level overclocking and increasingly sophisticated software tuning tools. Over the past decade, however, traditional overclocking has become more constrained. Improved factory binning, aggressive turbo boost algorithms, and thermal ceilings mean that modern CPUs often operate near their peak potential right out of the box.

Read more | >

When personal computers were first invented, only a small group of people who understood programming languages could use them. Today, anyone can look up the local weather, play their favorite song or even generate code with just a few keystrokes.

This shift has fundamentally changed how humans interact with technology, making powerful computational tools accessible to everyone. Now, advancements in (AI) are extending this ease of interaction to the world of robotics through a platform called Text2Robot.

Developed by engineers at Duke University, Text2Robot is a novel computational robot design framework that allows anyone to design and build a robot simply by typing a few words describing what it should look like and how it should function. Its novel abilities will be showcased at the upcoming IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation (ICRA 2025) taking place May 19–23, in Atlanta, Georgia.

Read more | >