Lifeboat Foundation

New probes allow scientists to see four-stranded DNA interacting with molecules inside living human cells, unraveling its role in cellular processes.

DNA usually forms the classic double helix shape of two strands wound around each other. While DNA can form some more exotic shapes in test tubes, few are seen in real living cells.

However, four-stranded DNA, known as G-quadruplex, has recently been seen forming naturally in human cells. Now, in new research published today in Nature Communications, a team led by Imperial College London scientists have created new probes that can see how G-quadruplexes are interacting with other molecules inside living cells.

How will future astronauts get back home to Earth from Mars? According to a new study, they could make rocket fuel from the methane that’s already on the Red Planet.

At the same time, there was indeed more action. In one major victory, Amazon, Microsoft, and IBM banned or suspended their sale of face recognition to law enforcement, after the killing of George Floyd spurred global protests against police brutality. It was the culmination of two years of fighting by researchers and civil rights activists to demonstrate the ineffective and discriminatory effects of the companies’ technologies. Another change was small yet notable: for the first time ever, NeurIPS, one of the most prominent AI research conferences, required researchers to submit an ethics statement with their papers.

So here we are at the start of 2021, with more public and regulatory attention on AI’s influence than ever before. My New Year’s resolution: Let’s make it count. Here are five hopes that I have for AI in the coming year.

Take a look at space image processing, and try it yourself. Plus, catch up on the week’s space news.

Explore space art created by members of The Planetary Society’s community, and learn about a possible alien signal.

At the more advanced end of things, genetic modifications and advanced medical procedures might be available in the future that can restore muscle tissue, bone density, and organ health. If such treatments are available down the road, periodic visits to the doctor could allow Loonies to live happy and healthy lives in lower gravity.

In so many ways, a permanent human presence on the Moon could open the door to the entire Solar System. With the ability to refuel and resupply missions from a lunar site, space agencies could shave billions off the cost of deep-space missions. It would also facilitate missions to Mars, Venus, the Asteroid Belt, and beyond.

Cellular senescence, a state of permanent growth arrest, has emerged as a hallmark and fundamental driver of organismal aging. It is regulated by both genetic and epigenetic factors. Despite a few previously reported aging-associated genes, the identity and roles of additional genes involved in the regulation of human cellular aging remain to be elucidated. Yet, there is a lack of systematic investigation on the intervention of these genes to treat aging and aging-related diseases.

How many aging-promoting genes are there in the human genome? What are the molecular mechanisms by which these genes regulate aging? Can gene therapy alleviate individual aging? Recently, researchers from the Chinese Academy of Sciences have shed new light on the regulation of aging.

Recently, researchers from the Institute of Zoology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Peking University, and Beijing Institute of Genomics of CAS have collaborated to identify new human senescence-promoting genes by using a genome-wide CRISPR/Cas9 screening system and provide a new therapeutic approach for treating aging and aging-related pathologies.

It’s like the hydrogen bonds found in water, but way stronger.

Similar to the bonds found in water, but way more powerful, this new bond could offer deep insight into the true workings of chemical reactions.

Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) researchers have discovered that carbon nanotube membrane pores could enable ultra-rapid dialysis processes that would greatly reduce treatment time for hemodialysis patients.

The ability to separate molecular constituents in complex solutions is crucial to many biological and man-made processes. One way is via the application of a concentration gradient across a porous membrane. This drives ions or molecules smaller than the pore diameters from one side of the membrane to the other while blocking anything that is too large to fit through the pores.

In nature, biological membranes such as those in the kidney or liver can perform complex filtrations while still maintaining high throughput. Synthetic membranes, however, often struggle with a well-known trade-off between selectivity and permeability. The same material properties that dictate what can and cannot pass through the membrane inevitably reduce the rate at which filtration can occur.

A collaboration on an Apple Car would be huge! 👀🚗

Hyundai has already produced successful electricity-powered cars. However, talks with Apple could allow Hyundai to become a leading player in the EV market.

Hyundai Motors, a South Korea business that produces a variety of technology, has already moved into the electric vehicle market alongside its competitors. With that said, it has not reached the heights of the industry leaders such as Tesla.

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