What is new in Biotech
Grow-your-own stem cells may repair Parkinson’s damage
24.7.2023 | Press monitoring
Researchers from Scripps Research and Cardiff University used induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) from skin cells of two people with Parkinson’s disease to grow young neurons, which were then transplanted into rats with the degenerative condition. By timing the growth of the new cells just right, they’re able to replace the damaged neurons and...
Researchers design synthetic peptide to kill antibiotic-resistant bacteria
21.7.2023 | Press monitoring
Researchers at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) have designed a short peptide capable of poisoning a key enzyme in disease-causing bacteria, including some of most deadly and antibiotic-resistant species. Made from a short stretch of about 24 amino acids, the peptide mimics the action of a natural toxin which inhibits a class of enzymes...
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Bioengineered yeast feed on agricultural waste
19.7.2023 | Press monitoring
Researchers at the School of Engineering report making modified yeast that can feed on a wider range of materials, many of which can be derived from agricultural by-products that we don't use – leaves, husks, stems, even wood chips, things often referred to as "waste biomass." Why is it important to make yeast that can feed on these...
Researchers create edible, transparent composite packaging with biocellulose
17.7.2023 | Press monitoring
Plastic food packaging accounts for a significant proportion of plastic waste in landfills. In the face of escalating environmental concerns, researchers are looking to bio-derived alternatives. Now, scientists at The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) have developed an edible, transparent and biodegradable material with considerable...
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Building a better forest tree with CRISPR gene editing
14.7.2023 | Press monitoring
Researchers at North Carolina State University used a CRISPR geneediting system to breed poplar trees with reduced levels of lignin, the major barrier to sustainable production of wood fibers, while improving their wood properties. The findings hold promise to make fiber production for everything from paper to diapers greener, cheaper and more...
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Caterpillar toxin could punch holes in cancer cells for future therapies
12.7.2023 | Press monitoring
In a new study, scientists from the University of Queensland have found that the venom found in the bristles of the asp caterpillar (Megalopyge opercularis) can punch holes in cells in the same way that the sickness-causing E. coli and Salmonella bacterial toxins can. Fascinatingly, the asp has retained this molecular hole-punching trait for more...
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Scientists make common pain killers from pine trees instead of crude oil
10.7.2023 | Press monitoring
A team of scientists, from the University of Bath's Department of Chemistry and Institute for Sustainability have found a way to create two of the world's most common painkillers, paracetamol and ibuprofen, out of a compound found in pine trees, one which is also a waste product from the paper industry. It is perhaps not widely known that many...
Developing a human malaria-on-a-chip disease model
7.7.2023 | Press monitoring
Michael J. Rupar, and a research team at Hesperos Inc., Florida, U.S., developed a functional, multi-organ, serum-free system to culture P. falciparum – a protozoan that predominantly causes severe and fatal malaria, in order to establish innovative platforms to develop therapeutic drugs. The platform contained four human organ constructs,...
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mRNA Trojan Horse tricks cancer into making toxins to kill itself
5.7.2023 | Press monitoring
Inside all living cells are ribosomes, which are essentially tiny factories that produce proteins. Exactly which proteins they make depends on the 'blueprints' they receive, and these come from messenger RNA (mRNA) molecules. Over the past few decades, scientists have found that they can hijack this mechanism to make beneficial proteins on...
Transplantation of genome-edited iPS cells delivers therapeutic molecules in vivo
3.7.2023 | Press monitoring
Induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells have a great impact on biology and medicine, and they are expected to improve regenerative medicine. Since 2014, when a sheet of retinal pigment epithelial cells derived from iPS cells was transplanted into patients with age-related macular degeneration, clinical trials have been conducted with various cell...
