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Category: biotech/medical – Page 629

An evolutionarily conserved pathway that achieves a peaceful co-existence with genomic parasites

Transposable elements are mobile genetic elements that can relocate within the genome and disrupt the normal function of genes, but are at the same time a source of evolutionary diversity. The lab of Tugce Aktas at the Max Planck Institute for Molecular Genetics has identified a novel pathway that keeps the activity of transposons in somatic cells in check after they have been transcribed.

Their findings have now been published in Nature. The work is a collaboration with the labs of Zachary D. Smith at the Yale Stem Cell Center, U.S., and Franz-Josef Müller from the Universitätsklinikum Schleswig-Holstein, Germany.

Over the course of evolution, the genomes of many organisms have become cluttered with ancient genetic remnants from evolution or parts of retroviruses that inserted their genetic code millions of years ago. Nearly half of the human genome consists of these transposable elements, or transposons.

CRISPR-COPIES: New Tool Accelerates and Optimizes Genome Editing

CRISPR/Cas systems have undergone tremendous advancement in the past decade. These precise genome editing tools have applications ranging from transgenic crop development to gene therapy and beyond. And with their recent development of CRISPR-COPIES, researchers at the Center for Advanced Bioenergy and Bioproducts Innovation (CABBI) are further improving CRISPR’s versatility and ease of use.

“CRISPR-COPIES is a tool that can quickly identify appropriate chromosomal integration sites for genetic engineering in any organism,” said Huimin Zhao, CABBI Conversion Theme Leader and Steven L. Miller Chair of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering (ChBE) at the University of Illinois. “It will accelerate our work in the metabolic engineering of non-model yeasts for cost-effective production of chemicals and biofuels.”

Gene editing has revolutionized scientists’ capabilities in understanding and manipulating genetic information. This form of genetic engineering allows researchers to introduce new traits into an organism, such as resistance to pests or the ability to produce a valuable biochemical.

Scientists develop new technology to identify individual full-length human proteins

In a study published in Nature Nanotechnology, scientists from Delft University of Technology present a new technique to identify proteins. Proteins carry out essential functions in our cells, while playing a crucial role in diseases like cancer and COVID-19 infection. The researchers identify proteins by reading out the fingerprint, and comparing the fingerprint to patterns from a database.

Using this new technology, the researchers can identify individual, intact, full-length proteins, preserving all its information. This can shed light on the mechanisms behind many different diseases and allows earlier diagnosis.

Fluicell partners with Swedish researchers to 3D bioprint complex brain cell structures

Scientists from medical tech company Fluicell have partnered with clinical R&D firm Cellectricon and the Swedish Karolinska Institutet university to 3D bioprint neural cells into complex patterns.

Using the microfluidic printheads featured on Fluicell’s Biopixlar platform, the researchers were able to accurately arrange rat brain cells within 3D structures, without damaging their viability. The resulting cerebral tissues could be used to model the progress of neurological diseases, or to test the efficacy of related drugs.

“We’ve been using Biopixlar to develop protocols for the printing of different neuronal cells types, and we are very pleased with its performance,” said Mattias Karlsson, CEO of Cellectricon. “This exciting technology has the potential to open completely new avenues for in-vitro modeling of a wide range of central and PNS-related diseases.”

AI-powered neurotech developer Elemind emerges from stealth with backing from Bezos, Gates

It’s electric! A startup emerged from stealth this week with grand plans to pioneer a new form of neurotech dubbed “electric medicine.”

Elemind’s approach centers on artificial intelligence-powered algorithms that are trained to continuously analyze neurological activity collected by a noninvasive wearable device, then to deliver through the wearable bursts of neurostimulation that are uniquely tailored to those real-time brain wave readings.

Cancer breakthrough as doctors celebrate new ‘wonder drug’

Scientists have welcomed a “truly wonderful” new drug for a hard-to-treat and aggressive form of cancer.

Researchers led by a team at Queen Mary University of London said their new treatment “quadrupled” three-year survival rates and increased average survival by 1.6 months.

Academics said that the new drug, which works by cutting off the tumour ’s food supply, is the first of its type for mesothelioma in 20 years.