Lifeboat Foundation

The way the team made the human–monkey embryo is similar to previous attempts at half-human chimeras.

Here’s how it goes. They used de-programmed, or “reverted,” human stem cells, called induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs). These cells often start from skin cells, and are chemically treated to revert to the stem cell stage, gaining back the superpower to grow into almost any type of cell: heart, lung, brain…you get the idea. The next step is preparing the monkey component, a fertilized and healthy monkey egg that develops for six days in a Petri dish. By this point, the embryo is ready for implantation into the uterus, which kicks off the whole development process.

This is where the chimera jab comes in. Using a tiny needle, the team injected each embryo with 25 human cells, and babied them for another day. “Until recently the experiment would have ended there,” wrote Drs. Hank Greely and Nita Farahany, two prominent bioethicists who wrote an accompanying expert take, but were not involved in the study.

Toshiba’s Cambridge Research Laboratory has achieved quantum communications over optical fibres exceeding 600 km in length, three times further than the previous world record distance.

The breakthrough will enable long distance, quantum-secured information transfer between metropolitan areas and is a major advance towards building a future Quantum Internet.

The term “Quantum Internet” describes a global network of quantum computers, connected by long distance quantum communication links. This technology will improve the current Internet by offering several major benefits – such as the ultra-fast solving of complex optimisation problems in the cloud, a more accurate global timing system, and ultra-secure communications. Personal data, medical records, bank details, and other information will be physically impossible to intercept by hackers. Several large government initiatives to build a Quantum Internet have been announced in China, the EU and the USA.

What Are Telomeres?

As our cells divide (a process known as mitosis), our cells replicate the long strands of DNA located within the nucleus of our cells (known as chromosomes). This process however is imperfect, and due to the mechanics of how this is carried out by the body, the DNA is shorted ever so slightly during each replication cycle. I will not get into the details on how exactly this happens in this article, but if you are interested then this video should give you a better understanding of this process. In order to prevent important parts of the DNA being lost through the replication process, areas of what is mostly blank DNA at the end of the chromosomes are used as a sort of sacrificial buffer, allowing for the DNA to be replicated without the loss of genetic information. These areas of the chromosomes are known as telomeres. In addition to providing a buffer zone for DNA replication, telomeres also prevent broken strands of DNA attaching themselves to the ends of chromosomes, which both prevents chromosomes from becoming conjoined, as well as allowing for the opportunity for the broken strand of DNA to be repaired.

Continue reading “Does Telomere Length Really Affect Lifespan?” »

Exceptionally high-quality videos allow scientists to formally introduce a remarkable new comb jelly.

High levels of labile iron have been linked to neurodegenerative disorders like Alzheimer’s before. Similarly, copper is another mineral typically shielded safely in a protein, yet thoroughly capable of making a mess of our brains in labile form.

Set aside every scrap of iron inside a human body and you might have enough to fashion a nail or two. As for copper, you’d be lucky to extract just enough to make a small earring.

Scarce as they are, these two metals are necessary for our survival, playing essential roles in human growth and metabolism. But one place we wouldn’t expect to find either is clumped inside our brain cells.

Continue reading “Deposits of Copper And Magnetic Iron Found in Alzheimers Patients Brains” »

Thousands of researchers from more than 70 countries are developing a comprehensive map of every kind of cell in the human body, an endeavor that could transform our understanding of diseases and medicine.

#Moonshot #Science #BloombergQuicktake.
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Continue reading “Building the Ultimate Map of the Human Body” »

Circa 2018

The death-cap mushroom has a long history as a tool of murder and suicide, going back to ancient Roman times. The fungus, Amanita phalloides, produces one of the world’s deadliest toxins: α-amanitin. While it may seem ill-advised, researchers are eager to synthesize the toxin because studies have shown that it could help fight cancer. Scientists now report in the Journal of the American Chemical Society how they overcame obstacles to synthesize the death-cap killer compound.

α-Amanitin achieves its impressive deadliness by acting as a potent inhibitor of RNA polymerase II, the enzyme primarily responsible for transcribing genes into the messenger molecule RNA. Using α-amanitin bound to antibodies against tumor molecules, cancer researchers have reportedly cured mice of pancreatic cancer. These conjugates are currently in human trials; however, the only way to obtain α-amanitin so far has been to harvest mushrooms, which is time-consuming and results in relatively small amounts of the compound. Synthetic production approaches have been hampered by α-amanitin’s unusual bicyclic structure, among other tricky features. David M. Perrin and colleagues decided to take on the challenge to produce the toxin in the laboratory, once and for all.

The researchers had to work through three key obstacles to produce α-amanitin in the laboratory: production of the “oxidatively delicate” 6-hydroxy-tryptathionine, the an enantio-selective synthesis of (2 S, 3 R, 4 R)-4, 5-dihydroxy-isoleucine and a diastereoselective sulfoxidation to favor the (R)-sulfoxide. Due to its toxic nature, the researchers limited production to less than a milligram, but based on their results, they are confident that good yields are can be readily obtained by scaling up the process. The researchers also say that the development of this synthetic route will enable chemists to attenuate the toxicity and potentially improve α-amanitin’s activity against cancer, something that is only made possible by the use of synthetic derivatives.

Circa 2020 o,.o!

Every robot is, at its heart, a computer that can move. That is true from the largest plane-sized flying machines down to the smallest of controllable nanomachines, small enough to someday even navigate through blood vessels.

New research, published August 26 in Nature, shows that it is possible to build legs into robots mere microns in length. When powered by lasers, these tiny machines can move, and some day, they may save lives in operating rooms or even, possibly, on the battlefield.

Continue reading “Nano Robots Walk Inside Blood When Hit With Lasers” »

Calico has made some important discoveries about Yamanaka factors.

In a preprint paper, scientists from Calico, Google’s longevity research behemoth, suggest that contrary to our previous understanding, transient reprogramming of cells using Yamanaka factors involves suppressing cellular identity, which may open the door to carcinogenic mutations. They also propose a milder reprogramming method inspired by limb regeneration in amphibians [1].

Rejuvenation that can give you cancer

Continue reading “Calico Scientists Develop Safer Cellular Reprogramming” »