Category Biology/Biotechnology

Fasting may help people lose weight, but new research suggests going without food may also boost human metabolic activity, generate antioxidants, and help reverse some effects of aging. Scientists at the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University (OIST) and Kyoto University identified 30 previously-unreported substances whose quantity increases during fasting and indicate a variety of health benefits.

“We have been researching aging and metabolism for many years and decided to search for unknown health effects in human ...

Schematic of the speech reconstruction method.

Advance marks critical step toward brain-computer interfaces that hold immense promise for those with limited or no ability to speak. In a scientific first, Columbia neuroengineers have created a system that translates thought into intelligible, recognizable speech. By monitoring someone’s brain activity, the technology can reconstruct the words a person hears with unprecedented clarity. This breakthrough, which harnesses the power of speech synthesizers and artificial intelligence, could lead to new ways for computers to communicate directly with the brain...

Scientists have discovered how a mutated gene can affect the three-dimensional interactions of genes in the cell, leading to various forms of cancer. Inside the cell, DNA is tightly wrapped around proteins and packed in a complex, 3D structure that we call “chromatin.” Chromatin not only protects our genetic material from damage, but also organizes the entire genome by regulating the expression of genes in three dimensions, unwinding them to be presented to the cell’s gene-expression machinery and then winding them back in.

Inside the 3D chromatin structure there are certain regions called “topologically associating domains” or TADs...

Cardiovascular risk of diets rich in saturated fats found in meats and the benefits of plant-based and dairy alternatives. The type of saturated fats we eat can affect our risk of a heart attack, according to a study published in the International Journal of Cardiology...