Press monitoring
Two leukemia babies in remission after injection of new kind of edited T-cells
6.2.2017 | Press monitoring
Two babies given an experimental kind of edited T-cells to treat their leukemia remain in remission after more than a year. The cells used to treat the two babies were part of a modified form of CAR-T cell therapy, in which a virus is used to edit a gene in an immune cell taken from the patient to cause it to attack cancer cells—once ready, it is...
Powerful Zika vaccine protects mice and monkeys from the virus
3.2.2017 | Press monitoring
A new vaccine against Zika virus gives mice and monkeys immunity in tests. The vaccine is based on the inactivated virus, and just one low dose is needed. “The critical difference between ours and everybody else’s is that it’s not a live virus. That makes it much safer and much easier to produce,” says Drew Weissman at the University of...
Arabica coffee genome sequenced
1.2.2017 | Press monitoring
The first public genome sequence for Coffea arabica, the species responsible for more than 70 percent of global coffee production, was released today by researchers at the University of California, Davis. Funding for the sequencing was provided by Suntory group, an international food and beverage company based in Tokyo. Now available for...
Rabies viruses reveal wiring in transparent brains
30.1.2017 | Press monitoring
Scientists under the leadership of the University of Bonn have harnessed rabies viruses for assessing the connectivity of nerve cell transplants: coupled with a green fluorescent protein, the viruses show where replacement cells engrafted into mouse brains have connected to the host neural network. A clearing procedure which turns the brain into...
Gene-blocking therapy reverses Alzheimer’s-like symptoms in mice
27.1.2017 | Press monitoring
Targeting tangles of tau protein in mice with Alzheimer’s-like symptoms has reversed their brain damage, halting memory loss and extending their lives. Clumps of two types of sticky protein build up in the brains of people with Alzheimer’s disease: beta-amyloid plaques, and tangles of tau. While many attempts to develop drugs to treat Alzheimer’s...
Rat-grown mouse pancreases help reverse diabetes in mice
25.1.2017 | Press monitoring
Rat-grown mouse pancreases help reverse diabetes in mice, say researchers at Stanford, University of Tokyo Mouse pancreases grown in rats generate functional, insulin-producing cells that can reverse diabetes when transplanted into mice with the disease, according to researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine and the Institute of...
Chemical engineers program yeast to convert plant sugars into oils
23.1.2017 | Press monitoring
MIT engineers have genetically reprogrammed a strain of yeast so that it converts sugars to fats much more efficiently, an advance that could make possible the renewable production of high-energy fuels such as diesel. The researchers, led by Gregory Stephanopoulos, the Willard Henry Dow Professor of Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology at MIT,...
Electronic gene control could let us plug bacteria into devices
20.1.2017 | Press monitoring
We don’t usually welcome bugs in digital technology, but that’s about to change. Researchers have developed a way to control bacterial genes at the flick of a switch using electricity. The ability of custom-made microbes to sense the environment and make biological molecules would be particularly valuable for devices that work inside the body,...
Tumor-seeking salmonella treats brain tumors
18.1.2017 | Press monitoring
Biomedical engineers at Duke University have recruited an unlikely ally in the fight against the deadliest form of brain cancer—a strain of salmonella that usually causes food poisoning. Clinicians sorely need new treatment approaches for glioblastoma, the most aggressive form of brain cancer. The blood-brain barrier—a protective sheath...
Cyanobacteria—the future of sunscreen?
16.1.2017 | Press monitoring
Sunscreens and moisturizers derived from biological sources such as cyanobacteria could represent a safer alternative to current, synthetically produced cosmetics, research published in the European Journal of Phycology suggests. Using organic matter to develop sunscreens could lessen the risk of adverse side effects, such as contact sensitivity...
