Recent Comments

    Category Biology/Biotechnology

    Designing and Programming Living Computers

    November 15, 2022, Categories  Physics, Technology/Electronics, Biology/Biotechnology

    Conceptual illustration: bacterial cells as artificial neural circuits

    Transforming bacterial cells into living artificial neural circuits; applications include biomanufacturing and therapeutics. Bringing together concepts from electrical engineering and bioengineering tools, Technion and MIT scientists collaborated to produce cells engineered to compute sophisticated functions – “biocomputers” of sorts. Graduate students and researchers from Technion – Israel Institute of Technology Professor Ramez Daniel’s Laboratory for Synthetic Biology & Bioelectronics worked together with Professor Ron Weiss from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology to create genetic “devices” designed to perform computations like artificial neural circuits...

    Read More

    The Gut Microbiome’s Supersized Role in Shaping Molecules in our Blood

    November 11, 2022, Categories  Health/Medical, Biology/Biotechnology

    Metabolites associated with both genetics and the microbiome. (A) The 20 metabolites with the highest total R² that were significantly associated with both host genetics and the microbiome. Blue and green colored bars denote individual R² values in genetics-only and microbiome-only regression models, respectively. Gray bars denote R² values from regression using joined genetics and microbiome data. 0.9% of the variance in butyrylcarnitine plasma abundance was explained by microbial features (i.e. too little to be visible in the barplot). (B) R² values obtained by either adding individual contributions of genetics and the microbiome (additive) or by performing a joint regression (joint). The difference between the two groups indicates a small, but nonetheless significant, overlap in variance explained by genetics and the microbiome. However, the variances explained by host genetics and the microbiome were largely additive. Stars denote significance (*** -p<0.001).
    Metabolites associated with both genetics and the microbiome. (A) The 20 metabolites with the highest total R² that were significantly associated with both host genetics and the microbiome. Blue and green colored bars denote individual R² values in genetics-only and microbiome-only regression models, respectively. Gray bars denote R² values from regression using joined genetics and microbiome data. 0.9% of the variance in butyrylcarnitine plasma abundance was explained by microbial features (i.e. too little to be visible in the barplot). (B) R² values obtained by either adding individual contributions of genetics and the microbiome (additive) or by performing a joint regression (joint)...
    Read More

    OHSU Scientists Identify Molecule that could help Treat Parkinson’s

    November 11, 2022, Categories  Health/Medical, Biology/Biotechnology

    Locomotion activates PKA through dopamine and adenosine in striatal neurons | Nature
    : In vivo PKA activity imaging reveals cell-type-specific modulation of PKA by dopamine.

    Discovery could immediately suggest new avenues for drug development. Researchers at Oregon Health & Science University have discovered that the neurotransmitter adenosine effectively acts as a brake to dopamine, another well-known neurotransmitter involved in motor control.

    Scientists found that adenosine operates in a kind of push-pull dynamic with dopamine in the brain; the discovery published today in the journal Nature.

    “There are two neuronal circuits: one that helps promote action and the other that inhibits action,” said senior author Haining Zhong, Ph.D., scientist with the OHSU Vollum Institute...

    Read More

    New Hope for Patients with Severe Bone Loss

    November 10, 2022, Categories  Health/Medical, Biology/Biotechnology

    FmocFF/hyaluronic acid (HA) composite hydrogel formation and structural characterization. (a) Molecular structure of the FmocFF peptide. (b) Molecular structure of HA. (c) Inverted vials of FmocFF (left), FmocFF/HA composite hydrogel (middle) and HA (right). (d) Transmitting electron microscopy micrograph of the FmocFF/HA composite hydrogel. (e) Scanning electron microscopy micrograph of the FmocFF/HA composite hydrogel. (f) The FmocFF/HA composite hydrogel was formed in a 9 mm diameter × 2 mm depth silicone mould. (g) The FmocFF/HA composite hydrogel is injected through a 27-gauge needle. [Colour figure can be viewed at wileyonlinelibrary.com

    Researchers induced bone regeneration with a special hydrogel that mimics the bone’s natural environment...

    Read More