Lifeboat Foundation

Studies in mammals have shown that the ‘memories’ of various environmental effects – such as diet, weight, and stress – are being passed on from dads to offspring, despite these states not being coded for in the DNA sequences carried by sperm. Now, we have a new explanation for how it’s possible.

The story has much to do with epigenetics. Molecules that attach themselves to DNA can act like on-off switches that control which sections of DNA get used – but until now we haven’t known which of these molecules can carry the settings marked by a father’s life experiences, to be incorporated into an embryo via sperm.

“The big breakthrough with this study is that it has identified a non-DNA-based means by which sperm remember a father’s environment (diet) and transmit that information to the embryo,” said McGill University epigeneticist Sarah Kimmins.

An ex vivo gene-edited cell therapy for sickle cell disease (SCD) being developed by Sangamo Therapeutics and Sanofi has generated positive early Phase I/II results in three patients—data that persuaded a committee of the European Medicines Agency (EMA) to support an orphan designation for the drug candidate.

The EMA’s Committee for Orphan Medicinal Products (COMP) has adopted a positive opinion for the orphan designation for BIVV003 (autologous CD34+ hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells transfected with zinc finger nuclease mRNAs SB-mRENH1 and SB-mRENH2) following its meeting of January 19–21— minutes of which were posted this month on the EMA’s website.

COMP based its recommendation on data showing that the first three patients with sickle cell disease ended up “without recurrence of previous SCD symptoms” following treatment with BIVV003 in the Phase I/II PRECIZN-1 trial (NCT03653247).

Using an improved version of the gene editing tool CRISPR/Cas9, researchers knocked out up to twelve genes in plants in a single blow. Until now, this had only been possible for single or small groups of genes. The approach was developed by researchers at Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg (MLU) and the Leibniz Institute of Plant Biochemistry (IPB). The method makes it easier to investigate the interaction of various genes. The study appeared in The Plant Journal.

The inheritance of traits in plants is rarely as simple and straightforward as Gregor Mendel described. The monk, whose experiments in the 19th century on trait inheritance in peas laid the foundation of genetics, in fact got lucky. “In the traits that Mendel studied, the rule that only one gene determines a specific trait, for example the color of the peas, happened to apply,” says plant geneticist Dr. Johannes Stuttmann from the Institute of Biology at MLU. According to the researcher, things are often much more complicated. Frequently there are different genes that, through their interaction with one another, result in certain traits or they are partly redundant, in other words they result in the same trait. In this case, when only one of these genes is switched off, the effects are not visible in the plants.

The scientists at MLU and IPB have now developed a way to study this complex phenomenon in a more targeted way by improving CRISPR/Cas9. These gene editing tools can be used to cut the DNA of organisms at specific sites. The team built on the work of biologist Dr. Sylvestre Marillonnet who developed an optimized building block for the CRISPR/Cas9 system at the IPB. “This building block helps to produce significantly more Cas9 enzyme in the plants, which acts as a scissor for the genetic material,” explains Stuttmann. The researchers added up to 24 different guide RNAs which guide the scissor enzyme to the desired locations in the genetic material. Experiments on thale cress (Arabidopsis thaliana) and the wild tobacco plant Nicotiana benthamiana proved that the approach works. Up to eight genes could be switched off simultaneously in the tobacco plants while, in the thale cress, up to twelve genes could be switched off in some cases.

“Most wastewater treatment plants are not designed for the removal of microplastics, so they are constantly being released into the receiving environment,” added Dung Ngoc Pham, NJIT Ph.D. candidate and first author of the study.

It’s estimated that an average-sized wastewater treatment plant serving roughly 400000 residents will discharge up to 2000, 000 microplastic particles into the environment each day. Yet, researchers are still learning the environmental and human health impact of these ultra-fine plastic particles, less than 5 millimeters in length, found in everything from cosmetics, toothpaste and clothing microfibers, to our food, air and drinking water.

Now, researchers at New Jersey Institute of Technology have shown that ubiquitous microplastics can become ‘hubs’ for antibiotic-resistant bacteria and pathogens to grow once they wash down household drains and enter wastewater treatment plants—forming a slimy layer of buildup, or biofilm, on their surface that allows pathogenic microorganisms and antibiotic waste to attach and comingle.

Continue reading “New study shows microplastics turn into ‘hubs’ for pathogens, antibiotic-resistant bacteria” »

The FDA does not use modern updated science to retest chemicals in food. This study showed that a common food preservative can increase food allergies and damage the immune system.

New science suggests the FDA should test all food chemicals for safety.

A food preservative used to prolong the shelf life of Pop-Tarts, Rice Krispies Treats, Cheez-Its and almost 1250 other popular processed foods may harm the immune system, according to a new peer-reviewed study by Environmental Working Group.

Continue reading “Researchers Warn: Preservative Used in Hundreds of Popular Foods May Harm the Immune System” »

In the agency’s study, researchers looked at 1566 patients who received antibiotics and found that 55.9% shouldn’t have received them based on practice guidelines.

Studies have shown patients with antibiotic-resistant infections are at an increased risk of worse clinical outcomes, such as severe disease and death, compared with patients with infections that can be treated with antibiotics.

This may be due to significantly longer hospital stays, high risk of treatment failure and increased risk of undergoing surgery, Goff said. According to the CDC, more than 35000 people die from antibiotic-resistant infections in the U.S. each year.

Continue reading “‘Superbugs’ kill more than 35K people in the US each year. Doctors may be partially to blame, study suggests” »

Studies on postmortem tissue may need to adjust for postmortem cell activity.

In the hours after we die, certain cells in the human brain are still active. Some cells even increase their activity and grow to gargantuan proportions, according to new research from the University of Illinois Chicago.

In a newly published study in the journal Scientific Reports, the UIC researchers analyzed gene expression in fresh brain tissue — which was collected during routine brain surgery — at multiple times after removal to simulate the post-mortem interval and death. They found that gene expression in some cells actually increased after death.

Continue reading “‘Zombie’ genes? Research shows some genes come to life in the brain after death” »

Furthermore, it implies that defects in the repair process, not the DNA damage itself, can potentially lead to developmental or neurodegenerative diseases.

Researchers at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) have discovered specific regions within the DNA of neurons that accumulate a certain type of damage (called single-strand breaks or SSBs). This accumulation of SSBs appears to be unique to neurons, and it challenges what is generally understood about the cause of DNA damage and its potential implications in neurodegenerative diseases.

Because neurons require considerable amounts of oxygen to function properly, they are exposed to high levels of free radicals—toxic compounds that can damage DNA within cells. Normally, this damage occurs randomly. However, in this study, damage within neurons was often found within specific regions of DNA called “enhancers” that control the activity of nearby genes.

Continue reading “DNA damage ‘hot spots’ discovered within neurons” »

Given the rate of overweight and obese people in the Western world, there are inevitably lots of fat people interested in life extension. Assuming that weight-loss trends continue with a high failure rate, the majority of fat spanners will not be able to lose and maintain their weight loss through diet and exercise.

This article explores effective life-extension interventions that do not include weight loss for people with an excess of adipose tissue.

Is it possible to be fat and healthy? Is obesity a death sentence? Learn about what the science says about life extension when fat.