Lifeboat Foundation

There are lots of exciting companies working in the aging field, and it’s a great time to tell you about some of the more interesting ones. Most of these companies are a while away from human trials yet, but their innovations could possibly be truly game changing.

Underdog Pharmaceuticals is a spin-off company of SENS Research Foundation and is developing a novel approach to treating atherosclerosis.

Atherosclerosis is the number one killer worldwide, and it currently has no totally effective solution. There are three ways in which current medicine tries to address it: Lifestyle changes, including diet and exercise; drugs that slow down the rate of cholesterol accumulation; and interventions such as stents and bypass surgery.

In neurological diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease or Multiple Sclerosis, brain neurons are constantly being lost, resulting in memory lapses, speech disorders, mood swings and movement disorders, for example, as well as muscle tremors in the case of Parkinson’s. After six years of development, MedUni Vienna researchers from the Department of Neurology (Head: Thomas Berger), led by Roland Beisteiner, have developed a new method of treatment that represents a world first. Using a non-invasive ultrasound technique, it is now possible to reach all areas of the brain and activate neurons that can help to regenerate brain functions. The preliminary data, which have been prominently published on the international stage, show that this can improve brain performance. This has positioned Vienna as a world leader in an important sector of medicine.

The new method is called transcranial pulse stimulation with ultrasound (TPS) and was developed in collaboration with Swiss commercial partner Storz Medical and its project leader, Ernst Marlinghaus. “For the first time in the world, TPS enables us to penetrate into all areas of the brain by means of an ultrasound pulse delivered directly to the skull in a non-invasive, painless procedure, during which the patient is fully conscious, and to specifically target particular areas of the brain and stimulate them,” explains Beisteiner. The study was part of the inter-university cluster led by Roland Beisteiner and Tecumseh Fitch, which is attempting to improve patients’ brain functions by means of brain stimulation and is being jointly run by MedUni Vienna and the University of Vienna. Such clinical procedures must be carried out with great precision and must be tailored to the individual patient. However, the existing electromagnetic techniques such as e.g.

Interesting research paper on a new nanobot technology. I’m watching for ways in which suitable substrates for mind uploading can be constructed, and DNA self-guided assembly has potential.

Here are some excerpts and a weblink to the paper:

“…Chemical approaches have opened synthetic routes to build dynamic materials from scratch using chemical reactions, ultimately allowing flexibility in design…”

Continue reading “Dynamic DNA material with emergent locomotion behavior powered by artificial metabolism” »

The insulin pumps diabetics currently rely on do a great job of delivering the hormone as needed, but need regular replacing due to what are known as fibrils. These form over a day or two as insulin compounds accumulate into clumps and create the risk of blockages, but scientists in Australia have engineered what they say is a safer alternative, with egg yolks serving as their starting point.

The formation of fibrils means that diabetics need to replace their insulin pumps every 24 to 72 hours to avoid the risk of dangerous blockages, which bring with them a risk of life-threatening under-dosing. Beyond the dangers to the patient’s well-being, the need to regularly replace the pump increases the workload needed to manage their disease and means that portions of the medicine often go to waste.

So, there is considerable interest in developing synthetic insulin that doesn’t behave in this way. Researchers at Melbourne’s Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health approached this problem through a new technique it developed with scientists in Japan, whereby the insulin is engineered from egg yolks to allow for greater freedom over the final design.

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A drone is an autonomous unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) that can be programmed for automatic routing and delivery. These come handy in delivery medicines which is easier to carry and can add value to the pharma supply chain. Drone helps to deliver to places with the high expense involved or poor infrastructure and thereby plays a significant role in last-mile delivery.

The pace with which they are now being used for delivery, even Amazon is experimenting with the delivery mechanism offered by drone as its logistics and transport market is forecast to grow 20% in coming times.

Summary: Critical aspects of hippocampal function can be reversed in old age, or compensated for throughout life, with the help of neural stem cells. Source: TU DresdenWe all will experience it.

An international team of cancer researchers has developed a new type of copper-based nanoparticle that can kill tumor cells in mice. While the technology showed effectiveness on its own, by combining it with immunotherapy the scientists say it produced long-lasting effects, quickly killing off any cancer cells that dared to return.

The therapy centers on new knowledge around tumors’ aversion to certain types of nanoparticles. The research team made up of scientists from KU Leuven, the University of Bremen, the Leibniz Institute of Materials Engineering, and the University of Ioannina, discovered that tumor cells were particularly sensitive to nanoparticles made from copper and oxygen.

Once these copper oxide nanoparticles enter a living organism they dissolve and become toxic, killing off cancer cells that happen to be in the area. Key to the new nanoparticle design was the addition of iron oxide, which the researchers say enables it to kill off cancer cells while leaving healthy cells intact.