Press monitoring
Neutrophil nanosponges soak up proteins that promote rheumatoid arthritis
7.9.2018 | Press monitoring
Engineers at the University of California San Diego have developed neutrophil "nanosponges" that can safely absorb and neutralize a variety of proteins that play a role in the progression of rheumatoid arthritis. Injections of these nanosponges effectively treated severe rheumatoid arthritis in two mouse models. Administering the nanosponges...
Scientists decode opium poppy genome
5.9.2018 | Press monitoring
Scientists have determined the DNA code of the opium poppy genome, uncovering key steps in how the plant evolved to produce the pharmaceutical compounds used to make vital medicines. The discovery may pave the way for scientists to improve yields and the disease resistance of the medicinal plant, securing a reliable and cheap supply of the most...
Can a transgenic chestnut restore a forest icon?
3.9.2018 | Press monitoring
American chestnuts, towering 30 meters or more, once dominated forests throughout the Appalachian Mountains. But in the early 1900s, a fungal infection appeared on trees at the Bronx Zoo in New York City, and then spread rapidly. The so-called chestnut blight – an accidental import from Asia – releases a toxin that girdles trees and kills...
Prototype bionic eye created with custom 3D printer
31.8.2018 | Press monitoring
When he was an assistant professor at Princeton University, Michael McAlpine led the development of a 3D-printed bionic ear. Now an associate professor at the University of Minnesota, he has gone on to 3D-print a rudimentary bionic eye – and it could eventually lead to versions capable of replacing the real thing. A McAlpine-led team began with a...
Metabolic engineering of E. coli for the secretory production of free haem
29.8.2018 | Press monitoring
Researchers of KAIST have defined a novel strategy for the secretory production of free haem using engineered Escherichia coli (E. coli) strains. They utilized the C5 pathway, the optimized downstream pathways, and the haem exporter to construct a recombinant micro-organism producing extracellular haem using fed-batch fermentation. This is the...
Enzymes produced by gut bacteria can make universal blood more efficiently
27.8.2018 | Press monitoring
For several decades researchers have been working to find an effective way to convert one blood type into another. Type O blood, often considered the universal blood type, is most useful in emergency situations. New research presented at the National Meeting & Exposition of the American Chemical Society has revealed that an enzyme produced by gut...
Newly discovered class of molecules may boost cancer vaccine development
24.8.2018 | Press monitoring
Cancer vaccines are designed to heighten the immune system's awareness of a tumor's unique features, boosting its ability to recognize, attack, and destroy the cancer. To date, effective cancer vaccines have focused on what are called "neoantigens," tumor-specific peptides that result from acquired mutations. But not every tumor produces...
Nanobot pumps destroy nerve agents
22.8.2018 | Press monitoring
Once in the territory of science fiction, "nanobots" are closer than ever to becoming a reality, with possible applications in medicine, manufacturing, robotics and fluidics. Today, scientists report progress in developing the tiny machines: They have made nanobot pumps that destroy nerve agents, while simultaneously administering an...
The wheat code is finally cracked
20.8.2018 | Press monitoring
Today in the international journal Science, the International Wheat Genome Sequencing Consortium (IWGSC) published a detailed description of the genome of bread wheat, the world's most widely cultivated crop. This work will pave the way for the production of wheat varieties better adapted to climate challenges, with higher yields, enhanced...
First ever RNA-based gene-silencing drug approved by FDA, and it\'s not cheap
17.8.2018 | Press monitoring
Twenty years after the breakthrough discovery illustrating how RNA interference can be used to silence certain genes, and over a decade after the research won a Nobel prize, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved the first drug utilizing this method for adult clinical treatment. The condition, hereditary transthyretin-mediated...
