Vertex Pharma (VRTX) announces FDA nod gene editing therapy, Casgevy, developed with CRISPR Therapeutics (CRSP) for beta-thalassemia (TDT).
When young, these neurons signal fatty tissues to release energy fueling the brain. With age, the line breaks down. Fat cells can no longer orchestrate their many roles, and neurons struggle to pass information along their networks.
Using genetic and chemical methods, the team found a marker for these neurons—a protein called Ppp1r17 (catchy, I know). Changing the protein’s behavior in aged mice with genetic engineering extended their life span by roughly seven percent. For an average 76-year life span in humans, the increase translates to over five years.
The treatment also altered the mice’s health. Mice love to run, but their vigor plummets with age. Reactivating the neurons in elderly mice revived their motivation, transforming them from couch potatoes into impressive joggers.
Big discovery on the patterns of evolution and how it’ll change medicine and even potentially climate change and synthetic biology.
The experts meticulously analyzed the pangenome — a complete set of genes within a species. By deploying a machine learning technique known as Random Forest, and processing data from 2,500 complete genomes of a single bacterial species, the team embarked on a journey to unravel the mysteries of evolutionary predictability.
“The implications of this research are nothing short of revolutionary,” said Professor McInerney, the lead author of the study.
Continue reading “Paradigm shift: Evolution is not as random as we thought” »
CRISPR pioneer Jennifer Doudna, Ph.D., looks set to continue to push the boundaries of gene editing, as she announces plans to team up with life sciences giant Danaher to create a center focused on generating new therapies for rare and other diseases.
The center, which will be based at the headquarters of Doudna’s own Innovative Genomics Institute (IGI) and referred to as the Danaher-IGI Beacon for CRISPR Cures, “aims to use CRISPR-based gene editing to permanently address hundreds of diseases with a unified research, development and regulatory approach,” according to a Jan. 9 release from Danaher.
An unexpected genetic discovery in wheat has led to opportunities for the metabolic engineering of versatile compounds with the potential to improve its nutritional qualities and resilience to disease.
Researchers in the Osbourn group at the John Innes Centre have been investigating biosynthetic gene clusters in wheat – groups of genes that are co-localized on the genome and work together to produce specific molecules.
Background: The Promise of Prime Editing
Prime editing is a promising technology for changing genomic deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) that has the potential to be used to cure genetic diseases in individuals. Prime editors are proteins that can replace a specific deoxyribonucleic acid sequence with another. PE systems necessitate three distinct nucleic acid hybridizations and are not dependent on double-strand deoxyribonucleic acid breaks or donor deoxyribonucleic acid templates.
Researchers must devise efficient and safe techniques to deliver prime editors in tissues in the in vivo settings to fulfill PE’s objective. While viral delivery techniques such as adenoviruses and adeno-associated viruses (AAVs) can transport PE in vivo, non-viral delivery techniques like lipid nanoparticles can sidestep these concerns by packaging PEs as temporarily expressing messenger ribonucleic acids.
Before delving into the prospects of the Fifth Industrial Revolution, let’s reflect on the legacy of its predecessor. The Fourth Industrial Revolution, characterised by the fusion of digital, physical, and biological systems, has already transformed the way we live and work. It brought us AI, blockchain, the Internet of Things, and more. However, it also raised concerns about automation’s impact on employment and privacy, leaving us with a mixed legacy.
The promise of the Fifth Industrial Revolution.
The Fifth Industrial Revolution represents a quantum leap forward. At its core, it combines AI, advanced biotechnology, nanotechnology, and quantum computing to usher in a new era of possibilities. One of its most compelling promises is the extension of human life. With breakthroughs in genetic engineering, regenerative medicine, and AI-driven healthcare, we are inching closer to not just treating diseases but preventing them altogether. It’s a vision where aging is not an inevitability, but a challenge to overcome.
Cutting-edge research engineers skin bacteria to treat acne, presenting a novel therapeutic approach for skin conditions.
In a study led by the Translational Synthetic Biology Laboratory Department of Medicine and Life Sciences (MELIS) at Pompeu Fabra University, an international research team has successfully engineered Cutibacterium acnes, a type of skin bacterium, to secrete a therapeutic molecule to treat acne symptoms. This innovative approach holds promise for addressing skin alterations and other diseases using living therapeutics.
Engineering smart skin bacteria
Continue reading “Scientists engineer smart bacteria that live in your skin to treat acne” »
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Bioengineers and tissue engineers intend to reconstruct skin equivalents with physiologically relevant cellular and matrix architectures for basic research and industrial applications. Skin pathophysiology depends on skin-nerve crosstalk and researchers must therefore develop reliable models of skin in the lab to assess selective communications between epidermal keratinocytes and sensory neurons.
In a new report now published in Nature Communications, Jinchul Ahn and a research team in mechanical engineering, bio-convergence engineering, and therapeutics and biotechnology in South Korea presented a three-dimensional, innervated epidermal keratinocyte layer on a microfluidic chip to create a sensory neuron-epidermal keratinocyte co-culture model. The biological model maintained well-organized basal-suprabasal stratification and enhanced barrier function for physiologically relevant anatomical representation to show the feasibility of imaging in the lab, alongside functional analyses to improve the existing co-culture models. The platform is well-suited for biomedical and pharmaceutical research.
Scientists at the Max Planck Institute have developed a synthetic pathway that can capture CO2 from the air more efficiently than in nature, and shown how to implement it into living bacteria. The technique could help make biofuels and other products in a sustainable way.
Plants are famous for their ability to convert carbon dioxide from the air into chemical energy to fuel their growth. With way too much CO2 in the atmosphere already and more being blasted out every day, it’s no wonder scientists are turning to this natural process to help rein levels back in, while producing fuels and other useful molecules on the side.
In the new study, Max Planck scientists developed a brand new CO2-fixation pathway that works even better than nature’s own tried-and-true method. They call it the THETA cycle, and it uses 17 different biocatalysts to produce a molecule called acetyl-CoA, which is a key building block in a range of biofuels, materials and pharmaceuticals.
