Scientist at Cornell University have developed a remarkable new material, which is made out of DNA and which undergoes metabolism. One of the crucial aspects of life is metabolic activity, which essentially means that large molecules are broken down and small molecules are used to build larger ones. The dynamic material that the Cornell team [&hell (Read more...)
Tag: Genetics
Engineered Matrix to Improve T Cell Immunotherapy
Researchers from Johns Hopkins University have developed an “artificial lymph node” to help multiply antigen-specific T cells to fight cancer. They used a hydrogel that contains immunostimulatory antigen-presenting nanoparticles to encourage T cells to proliferate, and have increased activity against specific antigens. Current T-cell ba (Read more...)
3D-Printed Heart From Patient’s Own Tissues
Researchers from Tel Aviv University in Israel have developed a 3D printing approach to create a heart with a patient’s own cells. The investigators used patient-derived cellular and acellular material obtained from fatty tissue, along with a unique bioprinter, to 3D-print a heart. The team isolated cells from a patient tissue sample and used (Read more...)
Microbial Signature for Colorectal Cancer Identified Using Machine Learning
Researchers from the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) in Heidelberg, Germany, the University of Trento in Italy, and other international collaborators leveraged a machine learning algorithm to identify a subset of gut bacteria associated with colorectal cancer, the third most common cancer worldwide. They performed a meta-analysis of ei (Read more...)
AI Outlines Working Neurons Faster Than Humans, Speeds Research of Brain
Artificial intelligence techniques are becoming important tools in medicine and biomedical research. Tasks that require a great deal of precision, patience, and previous knowledge can now be taught to computers. A field where AI may be particularly useful is neurology, as the time scales and number of cells involved can be overwhelming for many exp (Read more...)
Aligning Living Cells Within 3D Printed Tissues Using Ultrasound
One of the ways of making bioengineered tissues is to embed living cells within 3D printed constructs. This is already a common practice in labs around the world, but researchers at North Carolina State University have figured out a way of improving the technique. One limitation of simply dumping cells into a 3D printed structure […]
Miniaturized Optical Chip Can Identify Individual Biomolecules for Personalized Medicine
Researchers at Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne have developed an optical chip that can identify individual biomolecules in small sample volumes, using an ordinary camera and metasurfaces, an emerging technology in photonics. The researchers hope that their technology could pave the way for diagnostic chips that can identify t (Read more...)
CRISPR-Chip Can Detect Genetic Mutations Within Minutes
Researchers at the University of California, Berkeley and the Keck Graduate Institute of The Claremont Colleges have developed a hand-held device that can detect genetic mutations, such as those causing genetic diseases or affecting how people respond to certain drugs, in just minutes. The device employs a combination of CRISPR and graphene transis (Read more...)
New Microscope Sees Large Groups of Neurons in Living Brains
Most current methods of looking at the activity of the brains of living animals are very limited in their field of view and/or frame rate. This makes it difficult to understand the complex activity taking place inside the brain that involves more than one small region of the organ. This is all rapidly changing as […]
Light and Sound Induce Brainwaves to Clear Brains of Amyloid Plaques
Alzheimer’s disease has no cure at this point. Only a few therapies that try to slow the progression are available, but there’s a light, and some sound, at the end of the tunnel. Researchers at MIT and Georgia Tech have now shown they can reduce the buildup of amyloid plaques in mouse models of Alzheimer’s […]
Bioreactors Inside Body Grow New Bones for Transplantation
Injuries and disease often necessitate putting something in place of where natural bone is. While there are custom-made artificial orthopedic implants and native bone grafts, researchers from Rice University have now shown a new and better way. The team printed in 3D a bioreactor mold within which new bone can grow. It is made to be […]
(Read more...)Macular Degeneration Treated with Viral Delivery of Gene Into Eye
A number of degenerative eye diseases are related to photoreceptors no longer functioning properly. There can be a host of reasons that photoreceptors don’t work, but soon it may not be that important to know why the disease is happening. That is because researchers at University of California, Berkeley have come up with a way […]
3D Brain Organoids Model Rare Neural Disease
Direct studies on the brain are inherently difficult, as it’s a complex and fragile organ hidden behind a thick skull. Animal studies can help, but animal brains are different from human ones. In order to better study how the brain works and its pathophysiology, researchers have been working on growing tiny replicas of specific parts [&hellip (Read more...)
Multi-Parameter Sensors Detect Chemical and Physical Stimuli
Sensors are usually made to detect specific chemical or physical stimuli, making it difficult to create devices that can monitor a variety of different parameters at the same time. Now researchers at Technion-Israel Institute of Technology have developed an unusual sensor, built out of conductive ink formed into origami arrays, tha (Read more...)
Scientists Image Crawling Fruit Fly Larvae Down to Individual Cells and Even Reveal Activity Inside
Scientists at Columbia University have developed an amazing new microscope for viewing neurons, and they used it to image proprioceptive neurons in living fruit fly larvae. These neural cells help the larvae orient itself. The videos the Columbia team created are simply incredible, particularly if you consider how small these animals are and t (Read more...)
Handheld Skin Bioprinter Heals Deep Open Wounds With Patient’s Own Cells
The human organism has a number of physiologic processes that work together to heal skin wounds. Sometimes wounds are so large and difficult that these healing mechanisms simply can’t access damaged tissues. Researchers at Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine in North Carolina are now reporting the development of a bioprinter (Read more...)
Tea Bag Implant Protects Islet Cells While Letting Insulin Flow Out
Type 1 diabetes patients have to inject themselves with insulin to replace the inability of beta cells of pancreas to produce the hormone. To cure Type 1 diabetes will require either a way to “fix” the pancreas and prevent it from being damaged by the immune system, or some sort of implant that can generate […]
Tea Bag Implant Protects Islet Cells While Letting Insulin Flow Out
Type 1 diabetes patients have to inject themselves with insulin to replace the inability of beta cells of pancreas to produce the hormone. To cure Type 1 diabetes will require either a way to “fix” the pancreas and prevent it from being damaged by the immune system, or some sort of implant that can generate […]
Bioengineered Gel to Reduce Risk of Bone Marrow Transplants
Bone marrow transplantation is a potentially life-saving treatment for leukemia, multiple myeloma, and HIV. The procedure involves depleting the patient’s immune system, then infusing blood stem cells from a donor, which develop into a new immune system. Unfortunately, during the transplant process, patients are susceptible to disease and inf (Read more...)
Neuron Tracking Tool Lets Scientists Study Complex Functionality of Brain
In order to understand how the brain functions, we have to be able to track the movement and activity of individual neurons. This is maddeningly complex at present, as single neural cells have to be visually tracked by grumpy lab techs to understand even a tiny bit of what’s going on. Now a new tool called […]