What is new in Biotech
Credit: I.M.Redesiuk - Fotolia.com
Bacteria-enhanced graphene oxide nanoparticles provide triple-action tumor eradication
4.4.2025 | Press monitoring
Modern cancer treatments have evolved beyond traditional chemotherapy to include targeted approaches such as immunotherapy, radiation therapy, and photothermal therapy. Graphene oxide (GO), known for its biocompatibility, high photothermal conversion efficiency, and large surface area, has emerged as a promising material for both drug delivery...
Liquid-bodied robot enables precise eradication of implant-related biofilm infections
2.4.2025 | Press monitoring
Medical implants inside the human body that lack immune protection are highly susceptible to biofilm infections. Traditional antibiotic therapy struggles to penetrate biofilm barriers, while surgical removal of infected implants carries risks of secondary trauma. An international research team led by the Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK)...
Enzyme engineering: New method selectively destroys disease-causing proteins
31.3.2025 | Press monitoring
Scientists have long struggled to target proteins that lack defined structure and are involved in cancer, neurodegenerative disorders like Parkinson's disease, and other serious illnesses. Now, a new study from Scripps Research demonstrates a proof of concept for a new strategy: engineering proteases – enzymes that cut proteins at specific sites...
Credit: CONTIPRO
DNA microscope creates 3D images of organisms from the inside out
28.3.2025 | Press monitoring
Standard genetic sequencing approaches can tell you a lot about the genetic makeup and activity in a sample, like a piece of tissue or drop of blood. But they don't tell you where specific genetic sequences were located inside that sample, or their relationship to other genes and molecules. Researchers at the University of Chicago are developing...
Sensor technology uses natures blueprint and machinery to monitor metabolism in body
26.3.2025 | Press monitoring
Today's metabolite sensing methods fall short. Most rely on resource-intensive lab tests that give only brief snapshots from isolated samples. The few sensors that can track metabolites continuously are largely limited to detecting blood sugar. An interdisciplinary research team led by the California NanoSystems Institute at UCLA, or CNSI, may...
How bacteria vaccinate themselves with genetic material from dormant viruses
24.3.2025 | Press monitoring
Like people, bacteria get invaded by viruses. In bacteria, the viral invaders are called bacteriophages, derived from the Greek word for bacteria-eaters, or in shortened form, "phages." Scientists have sought to learn how the single-cell organisms survive phage infection in a bid to further understand human immunity and develop ways to combat...
Nanotech-induced cooling found to improve crop yields in arid climates
21.3.2025 | Press monitoring
Scientists at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) have developed and combined a new nanoplastic and biodegradable mulch to passively cool greenhouses in hot, arid climates like those in the Middle East. Applying their technology, they lowered temperatures of miniature greenhouses by 25 degrees Celsius and increased crop...
Credit: JLycke - Fotolia.com
Add some spice: Curcumin helps treat Mycobacterium abscessus
19.3.2025 | Press monitoring
Mycobacterium abscessus is a fast-growing, pathogenic mycobacteria that can cause lung infections, and people who have respiratory conditions or are immunocompromised face a higher risk. It can also cause skin infections. The microbe is closely related to the one that causes tuberculosis and is naturally resistant to many antibiotics. Infections...
Magnetic microalgae: Tiny swimmers are on a mission to become robots
17.3.2025 | Press monitoring
A team of researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems (MPI-IS) in Stuttgart developed a biohybrid micro swimmer covered with magnetic material, whose swimming ability is largely unaffected by the coating. In nature, the ten-micron small, single-cell microalgae are fantastic swimmers, propelled by their two whip-like flagella...
Directly converting skin cells to brain cells yields 1,000% success
14.3.2025 | Press monitoring
Cooking up a batch of stem cells to treat illness or injury used to involve the ethically hairy practice of harvesting them from embryonic tissue. But in 2006, Japanese scientists identified a way to revert mature cells back into stem cells. From there, these induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) can be coaxed to become whatever cell type is...
