Category: biotech/medical
J147 is an experimental drug that has been shown to treat Alzheimer’s disease, and it also appears to reverse some aspects of aging. It is also poised to enter human clinical trials in the near future, although how it works has been somewhat of a puzzle.
A new study published in the journal Aging Cell has changed all that, and the results are quite intriguing[1]. Researchers at the Salk Institute have solved the mystery of how J147 works and why it makes old flies, mice, and cells more youthful.
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Microsoft has built an AI tool that predicts the accuracy of CRISPR so that researchers can avoid making incorrect edits of DNA.
Missing the target: CRISPR uses two components: a cutting protein and a guide RNA that directs it to the part of a genome you want to cut. The guide RNA is about 20 letters long. Problem is, multiple sites in a genome can have the same series of letters, so CRISPR could snip the wrong section—known as an “off target” effect.
Why that matters: Off-target effects are one of the biggest safety concerns with CRISPR. Making incorrect cuts in a genome could, say, switch on a cancer-causing gene.
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It’s crazy to think that we still don’t quite understand the mechanism behind one of the most common medical interventions — general anaesthetic.
But researchers in Australia just got a step closer by discovering that one of the most commonly used anaesthetic drugs doesn’t just put us to sleep; it also disrupts communication between brain cells.
The team investigated the drug propofol, a super-popular option for surgeries worldwide. A potent sedative, the drug is thought to put us to sleep through its effect on the GABA neurotransmitter system, the main regulator of our sleep-and-wake cycles in the brain.
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TUESDAY, Jan. 9, 2018 — In a potential advance for medical research, scientists say they’ve created the first functioning human muscle from skin cells.
The breakthrough could lead to better genetic or cell-based therapies, as well as furthering investigations into the causes and treatment of muscular disorders, the Duke University team said.
“The prospect of studying rare diseases is especially exciting for us,” Nenad Bursac, professor of biomedical engineering, said in a university news release.
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The scientist behind an advanced sex robot has plans for 3D printed offspring. Samantha, developed by Spanish robotics firm Synthea Amatus, went on sale in the United Kingdom last month for around $5,000 — but while the A.I. present in the initial version offers a range of functions like telling jokes, discussing philosophy and synchronizing climaxes, a future version could offer more ambitious features.
“I can make them have a baby. It’s not so difficult. I would love to have a child with a robot,” Sergei Santos, creator of Samatha, told The Sun in a Friday story.
Sex robots are a growing, but controversial, area of artificial intelligence. While some argue that such machines could spark a wider discussion about sexuality, others object to the aim to replicate human interaction. Futurologist Ian Pearson claims that by 2050, more than half of people will have sex with a robot.
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The extinction of various species has led to a segregation of human activity and natural activity, says Stewart Brand of The Long Now Foundation, which focuses on long-term strategies for the next 10,000 years. The organization develops biotechnology to allow humans to better co-exist with nature. In this interview filmed at the 2016 Aspen Ideas Festival, Brand discusses how biotechnology can be used to bring back the passenger pigeon from extinction and mitigate climate change at last.
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