Press monitoring
Gene editing could destroy herpes viruses living inside you
4.7.2016 | Press monitoring
Almost all of us carry one form or another of herpes virus, and the consequences can be far worse than the occasional cold sore. Herpes viruses also cause shingles and can be implicated in blindness, birth defects and even cancer – and as yet, we can’t rid ourselves of them. One of our best ways to combat herpes viruses is by blocking the enzyme...
Over 100 Nobel Laureates Condemn Greenpeace\'s Opposition To GMOs
1.7.2016 | Press monitoring
Countless studies have comprehensively concluded that there are no detrimental health effects of consuming GMO crops. Unfortunately, Greenpeace steadfastly seems to think that they are a clear and present threat to us and the wider world, no matter how much scientific data is thrown at them. Scientists, it seems, have finally had enough. An...
Drug candidate shrinks tumor when delivered by plant virus nanoparticle
29.6.2016 | Press monitoring
In a pair of firsts, researchers at Case Western Reserve University and Massachusetts Institute of Technology have shown that the drug candidate phenanthriplatin can be more effective than an approved drug in vivo, and that a plant-virus-based carrier successfully delivers a drug in vivo. Triple-negative breast cancer tumors of mice treated with...
Scientists engineer tunable DNA for electronics applications
27.6.2016 | Press monitoring
DNA may be the blueprint of life, but it's also a molecule made from just a few simple chemical building blocks. Among its properties is the ability to conduct an electrical charge, making one of the hottest areas in engineering a race to develop novel, low-cost nanoelectronic devices. Now, a team led by ASU Biodesign Institute researcher...
3D printing heart parts at 30,000 feet
24.6.2016 | Press monitoring
If you live anywhere near the Gulf of Mexico, earlier this month, while you were sipping your coffee or surfing the web, a plane was zooming 30,000 ft (about 9,100 m) overhead, simulating weightlessness while a 3D bioprinter spit out heart and vascular structures created with human stem cells. The project was a joint effort between several...
First monkey genetically engineered to have Parkinson’s created
22.6.2016 | Press monitoring
The world’s first monkey genetically engineered to have Parkinson’s disease has been created by researchers in Japan. Other monkeys created as part of the same project mimic Alzheimer’s disease and motor neurone disease. While many scientists were encouraged by the possibility of gaining unique insight into hard-to-treat brain disorders, the news...
Using CRISPR as a recording device
20.6.2016 | Press monitoring
A small team of researchers at Harvard University has taken another look at CRISPR and has found that it can be used as a recording device of sorts, keeping track of when and where a given bacterium has been exposed to different viruses. In their paper published in the journal Science, the team describes their study, their findings and the ways...
New plant engineering method could help fill demand for crucial malaria drug
17.6.2016 | Press monitoring
A new and inexpensive technique for mass-producing the main ingredient in the most effective treatment for malaria, artemisinin, could help meet global demands for the drug, according to a study to be published in the journal eLife. Artemisinin is produced in low yields by a herb called Artemisia annua, otherwise known as sweet wormwood....
Engineers develop a new biosensor chip for detecting DNA mutations
15.6.2016 | Press monitoring
Bioengineers at the University of California, San Diego have developed an electrical graphene chip capable of detecting mutations in DNA. Researchers say the technology could one day be used in various medical applications such as blood-based tests for early cancer screening, monitoring disease biomarkers and real-time detection of viral and...
Scientists identify protein which boosts rice yield by fifty percent
13.6.2016 | Press monitoring
A research team has developed rice crops with an improved ability to manage their own pH levels, enabling them to take up significantly more nitrogen, iron and phosphorous from soil and increase yield by up to 54 percent. Rice is a major crop, feeding almost 50 percent of the world's population and has retained the ability to survive in changing...
