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Category: biotech/medical – Page 28

Elevated mtDNA copy number in older adults is linked to methylation of mitochondrial and nuclear regulatory regions

Growing evidence shows that epigenetic modification and mitochondrial dysfunction are hallmarks of aging and are associated with the development of a wide range of age-related diseases. Mitochondrial biogenesis, which is marked by mitochondrial DNA copy number (mtDNAcn), is one of the major regulations of mitochondrial function by a set of transacting elements, including mitochondrial DNA polymerase gamma (POLG), working on the mtDNA control region. In this study, we investigated the mtDNAcn and the methylation status at both mtDNA control and POLGA promoter regions in human blood cells from individuals with a wide range of ages. A total of 119 blood samples were collected, including 24 umbilical cord blood samples from newborns and 95 peripheral blood samples from individuals aged 18 to 96 years.

Allosteric binding site for anthraquinones at the human P2X4 receptor

Sarcomas comprise a heterogeneous group of malignant neoplasms that include genomically simple and genomically complex subtypes. This consensus provides guidelines for efficient, rational use of next-generation sequencing in their clinical management.

This consensus review establishes guidelines for the rational and efficient use of next-generation sequencing−based technology in the clinical management of sarcoma.

Altered regional brain activity underlying the higher postoperative analgesic requirements in abstinent smokers: A prospective cohort study

New in JNeurosci from Wei, Tao, Bi et al: Smokers who have quit their nicotine use have altered brain activity linked to heightened pain sensitivity and a need for more postoperative pain relief.

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Perioperative abstinent smokers experience heightened pain sensitivity and increased postoperative analgesic requirements, likely due to nicotine withdrawal-induced hyperalgesia. However, the underlying neural mechanisms in humans remain unclear. To address this issue, this study enrolled 60 male patients (30 abstinent smokers and 30 nonsmokers) undergoing partial hepatectomy, collecting clinical data, smoking history, pain-related measures, and resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI). Compared to nonsmokers, abstinent smokers showed lower pain threshold and higher postoperative analgesic requirements. Neuroimaging revealed altered brain function in abstinent smokers, including reduced fractional amplitude of low-frequency fluctuations (fALFF, 0.01 – 0.1 Hz) in the ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC), increased regional homogeneity (ReHo) in the left middle occipital gyrus, and decreased functional connectivity (FC) between the vmPFC to both the bilateral middle temporal gyrus and precuneus. Preoperative pain threshold was positively correlated with abstinence duration and specific regional brain activities and connectivity. Further, the observed association between abstinent time and pain threshold was mediated by the calcarine and posterior cingulate cortex activity. The dysfunction in vmPFC and left anterior cingulate cortex was totally mediated by the association between withdrawal symptoms and postoperative analgesic requirements. These findings suggest that nicotine withdrawal might alter brain functional activity and contribute to hyperalgesia for the abstinent smokers. This study provided novel insights into the supraspinal neurobiological mechanisms underlying nicotine withdrawal-induced hyperalgesia and potential therapeutic targets for postoperative pain in abstinent smokers.

Significance statement Abstinent smokers experienced heightened pain and require more analgesics after surgery, yet the underlying neural mechanisms remain poorly understood. This prospective cohort study identified altered regional brain activity associated with reduced pain thresholds and increased postoperative analgesic requirements in abstinent smokers. We found specific brain regions that were functionally altered and correlated with pain-related outcomes, which mediated the relationship between abstinence and pain-related behaviors. These findings provided novel insights into the supraspinal mechanisms of nicotine withdrawal-induced hyperalgesia and point to potential therapeutic targets for improving postoperative pain management in abstinent smokers.

Sensor uses acoustic waves to detect objects at smallest scales

At the heart of every camera is a sensor, whether that sensor is a collection of light-detecting pixels or a strip of 35-millimeter film. But what happens when you want to take a picture of something so small that the sensor itself has to shrink down to sizes that cause the sensor’s performance to crater?

Now, Northeastern University researchers have made a breakthrough discovery in sensing technologies that allows them to detect objects as small as individual proteins or single cancer cells, without the additional need to scale down the sensor. Their breakthrough uses guided acoustic waves and specialized states of matter to achieve great precision within very small parameters.

The device, which is about the size of a belt buckle, opens up possibilities for sensing at both the nano and quantum scales, with repercussions for everything from quantum computing to precision medicine.

Advanced neuromorphic engineering approaches for restoring… : Regenerative Medicine Reports

Isting gap in neuromorphic engineering by mimicking biological neuron dynamics and realizing effective clinical applications to promote functional recovery and quality of life enhancement in patients with brain injury. The novel neuromorphic engineering approaches leverage the dynamic behavior of brain neurons, incorporating electronic circuits that emulate neuronal dynamics. A basic configuration involves a neural model designed to mimic the dynamics of a living neuron, with the potential to replace damaged brain tissue when implanted, thus restoring signal propagation. An enhanced configuration integrates a closed-loop system, wherein the feedback signal from biological neurons synchronizes the artificial neuron with its living counterpart, allowing continuous self-adjustment of system parameters and promoting a neuro-autogenerative regime.

DNA will replace hard drives as data storage in the future

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Chris Mason is a professor of genomics, physiology, and biophysics at Cornell, doing research on the long-term effects of space on the human body. He is the author of The Next 500 Years: Engineering Life to Reach New Worlds.

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A chemically inducible, leakless Cre recombinase by split-protein-based efficient and enhanced degradation (SPEED)

A combination of self-assembling split-Cre with a destabilizing domain system is found to be an effective way to improve the degradation efficiency of destabilized Cre in the absence of Trimethoprim (Tmp) while maintaining efficient TMP-inducible DNA recombination.

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