Press monitoring
Biofabrication: 3-D printing, sonic tweezers, and the creation of neurons in microscopic cages
11.5.2020 | Press monitoring
Microscopically small cages have been produced at TU Wien (Vienna) with grid openings only a few micrometers in size, making them ideal for holding cells and allowing living tissue to grow in a very specific shape. This new field of research is called biofabrication. In a collaboration with Stanford University, the researchers introduced nerve...
Plant virus nanoparticles pitched as treatment for autoimmune diseases
8.5.2020 | Press monitoring
Viruses are getting a pretty bad rap lately, but they’re not always our enemy. In a new study led by the University of Verona, researchers have used plant viruses to make new nanoparticles that show promise in mice for treating autoimmune diseases like type 1 diabetes and rheumatoid arthritis. Using viruses for good is nothing new. One type known...
Viruses gleaned from healthy feces fight obesity in mice
6.5.2020 | Press monitoring
Altering the gut microbiome by transplanting the stool contents from a healthy donor is emerging as a promising way to treat a variety of conditions, including everything from autism to inflammatory bowel disease to cancer. Scientists looking to this technique as a way of treating obesity have found some early success in mice, after implanting...
Nanostimulators boost stem cells for muscle repair
4.5.2020 | Press monitoring
In regenerative medicine, an ideal treatment for patients whose muscles are damaged from lack of oxygen would be to invigorate them with an injection of their own stem cells.
Adding soil to wounds may halt the bleeding
1.5.2020 | Press monitoring
Via lab mouse trials, scientists at Canada's University of British Columbia recently discovered that the naturally-occurring silicates in soil activate a blood protein found in all terrestrial (land-based) mammals. Once triggered, that protein – known as coagulation Factor XII – starts a chain reaction that causes blood to clot, forming a...
Mint scent inhibits the growth of weeds
29.4.2020 | Press monitoring
Some plants are very successful in the competition for space, nutrients, and water. They inhibit the growth of their competitors by chemical signals that cause cells of the neighboring plant to die. Scientists of the Botanical Institute of Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) study this effect for potential use in environmentally compatible...
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Peptide weakens superbugs to make old antibiotics effective again
27.4.2020 | Press monitoring
Antibiotics were one of the most important medical breakthroughs of the 20th century, but while they helped us win the battle for a while, bacteria may yet win the war. New antibiotics are in development of course, but it’s an expensive and time-consuming process and bacteria will again render the final product ineffective in a matter of years. A...
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Decoy nanoparticles can block HIV and prevent infection
24.4.2020 | Press monitoring
Flipping the standard viral drug targeting approach on its head, engineers at the University of California San Diego have developed a promising new "nanosponge" method for preventing HIV from proliferating in the body: coating polymer nanoparticles with the membranes of T helper cells and turning them into decoys to intercept viral particles and...
CRISPR combines with stem cell therapy to reverse diabetes in mice
22.4.2020 | Press monitoring
For a few years now, scientists at Washington University have been working on techniques to turn stem cells into pancreatic beta cells as a way of addressing insulin shortages in diabetics. After some promising recent strides, the team is now reporting another exciting breakthrough, combining this technique with the CRISPR gene-editing tool to...
Carbon nanotubes embedded in leaves detect chemical signals that are produced when a plant is damaged
20.4.2020 | Press monitoring
MIT engineers have developed a way to closely track how plants respond to stresses such as injury, infection, and light damage, using sensors made of carbon nanotubes. These sensors can be embedded in plant leaves, where they report on hydrogen peroxide signaling waves. Plants use hydrogen peroxide to communicate within their leaves, sending out...
