Lifeboat Foundation

A commonly available oral diuretic pill approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration may be a potential candidate for an Alzheimer’s disease treatment for those who are at genetic risk, according to findings published in Nature Aging. The research included analysis showing that those who took bumetanide — a commonly used and potent diuretic — had a significantly lower prevalence of Alzheimer’s disease compared to those not taking the drug. The study, funded by the National Institute on Aging (NIA), part of the National Institutes of Health, advances a precision medicine approach for individuals at greater risk of the disease because of their genetic makeup.

The research team analyzed information in databases of brain tissue samples and FDA-approved drugs, performed mouse and human cell experiments, and explored human population studies to identify bumetanide as a leading drug candidate that may potentially be repurposed to treat Alzheimer’s.

“Though further tests and clinical trials are needed, this research underscores the value of big data-driven tactics combined with more traditional scientific approaches to identify existing FDA-approved drugs as candidates for drug repurposing to treat Alzheimer’s disease,” said NIA Director Richard J. Hodes, M.D.

While the Hubble Space Telescope ages, the James Webb Telescope prepares to launch.

With the aging Hubble space telescope experiencing another malfunction, how does the venerable telescope compare with its soon to the forthcoming James Webb?

This videoclip is an excerpt of a movie produced by CGTN America entitled “Gene Therapies and the Promise of the Fountain of Youth” which was released in January 2021.

He añadido S/T en Español.

As tech titans invest in the quest to extend our lives, Anjana Ahuja asks if longer lifespans are at last possible — and at what cost.

News, analysis and comment from the Financial Times, the worldʼs leading global business publication.

So would the private station be a viable replacement for the ISS? The ageing station, which is a partnership between the US, Russia and other nations, is only funded until 2,024 with a 2028 extension looking probable, but it cannot last forever.

Blue Origin says its space station will be fully operational in the late 2020s, but deadline slippage is common when it comes to huge space-related projects like this one. “They can dream of being fully operational in the late 2020s, but in the space sector they often aim for aspirational targets and if they miss it by a year or two or three then they at least have something they’re aiming for until then,” says space analyst Laura Forczyk. “It’s almost inevitable that things take longer and are more expensive than planned.”

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Researchers at MIT and Harvard University have designed a way to selectively turn on gene therapies in target cells, including human cells. Their technology can detect specific messenger RNA sequences in cells, and that detection then triggers production of a specific protein from a transgene, or artificial gene.

Because transgenes can have negative and even dangerous effects when expressed in the wrong cells, the researchers wanted to find a way to reduce off-target effects from gene therapies. One way of distinguishing different types of cells is by reading the RNA sequences inside them, which differ from tissue to tissue.

By finding a way to produce transgene only after “reading” specific RNA sequences inside cells, the researchers developed a technology that could fine-tune gene therapies in applications ranging from regenerative medicine to cancer treatment. For example, researchers could potentially create new therapies to destroy tumors by designing their system to identify cancer cells and produce a toxic protein just inside those cells, killing them in the process.

Scientists say it could represent a bridge between freshwater and marine species.

A team of researchers publishing in Aging have shown that resveratrol reduces inflammation and partially restores function in a rat model of spinal injury.

In line with previous research

This is far from the first study that aimed to use approaches associated with aging research in order to spur regeneration. For example, we have previously reported that removing senescent cells aids in spinal cord regeneration in a rodent model, at least partially because of the associated reduction in inflammation.

Recent advancements in biotechnology have immense potential to help address many global problems; climate change, an aging society, food security, energy security, and infectious diseases.

Biotechnology is not to be confused with the closely related field of biosciences. While biosciences refer to all the sciences that study and understand life, biology, and biological organisms, biotechnology refers to the application of the knowledge of biosciences and other technologies to develop tech and commercial products. Biotechnology is the application of innovation to biosciences in a bid to solve real-world medical problems.

Throw Artificial Intelligence into the mix and we suddenly have a really interesting pot of broth. Several AI trends have already proven beneficial to the development of biotechnology. Dr. Nathan S. Bryan, an inventor, biochemist and professor, who made a name for himself as an innovator and pioneer in nitric oxide drug discovery, commercialization, and molecular medicine, offers his insights on these contributions.