Lifeboat Foundation

A tiny, four-fingered “hand” folded from a single piece of DNA can pick up the virus that causes COVID-19 for highly sensitive rapid detection and can even block viral particles from entering cells to infect them, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign researchers report. Dubbed the NanoGripper, the nanorobotic hand also could be programmed to interact with other viruses or to recognize cell surface markers for targeted drug delivery, such as for cancer treatment.

Led by Xing Wang, a professor of bioengineering and of chemistry at the U. of I., the researchers describe their advance in the journal Science Robotics.

Inspired by the gripping power of the human hand and bird claws, the researchers designed the NanoGripper with four bendable fingers and a palm, all in one nanostructure folded from a single piece of DNA. Each finger has three joints, like a human finger, and the angle and degree of bending are determined by the design on the DNA scaffold.

Researchers in Lithuania present the molecular structure of a new, more-versatile CRISPR system for gene editing.

Advance paves the way for broad applications in medicine and biotech. Researchers from the UCLA Samueli School of Engineering and the University of Rome Tor Vergata in Italy have developed synthetic genes that function like the genes in living cells.

The artificial genes can build intracellular structures through a cascading sequence that builds self-assembling structures piece by piece. The approach is similar to building furniture with modular units, much like those found at IKEA. Using the same parts, one can build many different things and it’s easy to take the set apart and reconstruct the parts for something else. The discovery offers a path toward using a suite of simple building blocks that can be programmed to make complex biomolecular materials, such as nanoscale tubes from DNA tiles. The same components can also be programmed to break up the design for different materials.

The research study was recently published in Nature Communications and led by Elisa Franco, a professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering and bioengineering at UCLA Samueli. Daniela Sorrentino, a postdoctoral scholar in Franco’s Dynamic Nucleic Acid Systems lab, is the study’s first author.

This is the first symposium of Xapiens at MIT — “The Future of Homo Sapiens”

The future of our species will be majorly influenced by the technical advancements and ethical paradigm shifts over the next several decades. Artificial intelligence, neural enhancement, gene editing, solutions for aging and interplanetary travel, and other emerging technologies are bringing sci-fi’s greatest ideas to reality.

Continue reading “Ed Boyden — The Future of Humanity | Xapiens Symposium” »

In a new work, a team from the University of Pennsylvania tracked the impact of alcohol consumption from the age of 20 on brain health and came to disappointing conclusions.

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Binge drinking in early adults can lead to long-lasting and potentially permanent dysregulation in the brain, according to a new study in mice, led by researchers at Penn State. They found that neurons, cells that transmit information in the brain via electrical and chemical signals, showed changes following binge drinking were similar in many ways to those seen with cognitive decline.

These findings, published in the journal Neurobiology of Aging, reveal that binge drinking early in life may have lasting impacts that are predictive of future health issues, like Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias, the researchers said. The work could inform the development of therapeutics to help combat these changes — particularly in aging populations who may have given up alcohol decades earlier, according to Nikki Crowley, director of the Penn State Neuroscience Institute at University Park, Huck Early Career Chair in Neurobiology and Neural Engineering, assistant professor of biology in the Eberly College of Science, and the leader of the research team.

Continue reading “Early adult binge drinking has lasting impact on aging brain in mice” »

This capsule…

Inspired by the way that squids use jets to propel themselves through the ocean and shoot ink clouds, researchers from MIT and Novo Nordisk have developed an ingestible capsule that releases a burst of drugs directly into the wall of the stomach or other organs of the digestive tract.

This capsule could offer an alternative way to deliver drugs that normally have to be injected, such as insulin and other large proteins, including antibodies. This needle-free strategy could also be used to deliver RNA, either as a vaccine or a therapeutic molecule to treat diabetes, obesity, and other metabolic disorders.

Continue reading “A bioinspired capsule can pump drugs directly into the walls of the GI tract” »

Life extension technologies: Gene editing, Senolytics & more. Unlocking human longevity secrets.

Communication and coordination among different cells are fundamental aspects that regulate many functions in our body. This process, known as paracrine signaling, involves the release of signaling molecules by a cell into its extracellular matrix (ECM) or surroundings to communicate changes in its cellular processes or the local environment. These signaling molecules are then detected by neighboring cells, leading to various cellular responses.

For instance, during cell/tissue injury, the paracrine signaling process releases growth factors that signal nearby stem cells to assist in tissue repair in the form of scar tissue formation or blood clotting. Similar processes occur in the regulation of other vital functions, such as digestion, respiration, and reproduction. Additionally, paracrine signals influence the expression and activity of enzymes involved in drug metabolism and play a role in drug–drug interactions.

The signaling molecules, which may contain proteins and genetic material, are transported within tiny vesicles called exosomes. These vesicles serve as valuable biomarkers for various diseases and can even be engineered to carry drugs, making them a highly effective targeted drug delivery system. Notably, the hormone oxytocin and the neurotransmitter dopamine are paracrine messengers.

Insecticides have been used for centuries to counteract widespread pest damage to valuable food crops. Eventually, over time, beetles, moths, flies and other insects develop genetic mutations that render the insecticide chemicals ineffective.

Escalating resistance by these mutants forces farmers and vector control specialists to ramp up use of poisonous compounds at increasing frequencies and concentrations, posing risks to human health and damage to the environment since most insecticides kill both ecologically important insects as well as pests.

To help counter these problems, researchers recently developed powerful technologies that genetically remove insecticide-resistant variant genes and replace them with genes that are susceptible to pesticides. These gene-drive technologies, based on CRISPR gene editing, have the potential to protect valuable crops and vastly reduce the amount of chemical pesticides required to eliminate pests.