Category Biology/Biotechnology

Researchers have genetically modified a common houseplant to remove chloroform and benzene from the air around it. Small molecules like chloroform, which is present in small amounts in chlorinated water, or benzene, which is a component of gasoline, build up in our homes when we shower or boil water, or when we store cars or lawn mowers in attached garages. Both benzene and chloroform exposure have been linked to cancer.

Now researchers at the University of Washington have genetically modified a common houseplant – pothos ivy – to remove chloroform and benzene from the air aroun...

New battery-free, easily implantable weight-loss devices developed by engineers could offer a promising new weapon for battling the bulge. In laboratory testing, the devices helped rats shed almost 40% of their body weight. Results of the study were published today (Dec. 17, 2018) in the journal Nature Communications.

Measuring less than 1cm across, or about a third of the area of a U.S...

A new test for cervical cancer was found to detect all of the cancers in a randomised clinical screening trial of 15,744 women, outperforming both the current Pap smear and human papillomavirus (HPV) test at a reduced cost, according to a study led by Queen Mary University of London.

The study, published in the International Journal of Cancer, compared a new ‘epigenetics-based’ cervical cancer test with Pap smear and HPV tests, and investigated how well it predicted the development of cervical cancer up to five years in advance in a large study of women aged 25-65 in Canada.

As opposed to checking for patterns in the DNA genetic code itself that are indicative of the HPV virus, the new test looks at the naturally-occurring chemical markers that app...

Scientists create electrical protein switches triggered by chemicals. Scientists at Rice University have developed synthetic protein switches to control the flow of electrons.

The proof-of-concept, metal-containing proteins made in the Rice lab of synthetic biologist Joff Silberg are expressed within cells upon the introduction of one chemical and are functionally activated by another chemical. If the proteins have been placed in the cell, they can simply be turned on and off...