Collaborate Disseminate
Forget invisible ink – in the future spies could be sending secret messages encoded directly into the DNA of living cells. Researchers at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) have demonstrated a “DNA Typewriter” by encoding full sentences into DN… Continue reading DNA typewriter encodes full sentences into living cells
Climate change is threatening many species with extinction, so we owe it to them to try to help. Japanese scientists have now successfully cloned mice from freeze-dried adult cells, which can be stored easily for long periods of time. Importantly, the … Continue reading Mice cloned from freeze-dried cells could improve species conservation
As important as the CRISPR-Cas9 gene-editing tool has been, it has a relatively high error rate, which can introduce potentially harmful mutations. Researchers in Germany have now developed a more refined tool that reduces errors by nicking DNA instead… Continue reading New gene editing tool reduces errors by nicking DNA not cutting
Researchers at Tsinghua University in China have developed a new drug cocktail that can convert cells into totipotent stem cells, the very seeds of life. These cells can differentiate into any cell in the body, potentially bypassing the need for sperm … Continue reading Drug cocktail makes stem cells that could grow organisms from scratch
An emerging way to treat diabetes is to repair or replace the cells in the body that naturally produce insulin. Swedish researchers have now identified a molecule that helps stimulate the growth of new insulin-producing cells, and uncovered how it work… Continue reading New potential diabetes treatment regenerates insulin-producing cells
The liver can regenerate itself after taking damage, but whether that ability fades as we age has long been unknown. A new study has found that age doesn’t slow down the liver’s regeneration, and whether you’re 20 or 80, your liver is on average just t… Continue reading Your liver stays just three years old on average throughout your life
Kidneys perform a vital function in removing waste and toxins from the blood, but how exactly cells transport that fluid through the organs has remained a mystery. Now researchers at Johns Hopkins University have investigated the mechanical forces at w… Continue reading Previously unobserved pumping action of kidney cells discovered
The techniques our cells use to dispose of waste products offers some exciting avenues for us to potentially intervene in their behavior, whether it’s clogging up these garbage disposal systems to bring cancer undone or repairing their defects to tackle Alzheimer’s. Research from MIT has shown how this activity is ramped up during cell division, with the newly discovered mechanism potentially offering scientists a “toggle” for treating these kinds of diseases.
Tags: Cells, Cancer, Alzheimer’s Disease, MIT, New Atlas Audio
Continue reading Cells’ trash disposal system shapes as a “toggle” for cancer treatment
Some cells can turn cancerous when they divide, due to chromosomes getting “lost” in the process. In a new study, researchers at the University of Warwick have uncovered what happens to these lost chromosomes and how to recover them, potentially leadin… Continue reading Recovering tangled chromosomes could prevent cells turning cancerous
Scientists have created new artificial microbes by combining two very different organisms into one functioning entity. The hybrid of a yeast and a bacterium adds evidence to a long-standing hypothesis on how advanced life may have evolved.Continue Read… Continue reading New synthetic hybrids of yeast and bacteria demonstrate ancient evolution