Lifeboat Foundation

People genetically adapted to diving, 13 min. is a record, not average for them, they are exceptional anyway.

Picture yourself holding your breath. How long can you last underwater? A minute? Two? You probably imagined yourself sitting a foot or so beneath the surface of a pool during this exercise, but consider how long you can hold your breath actively swimming as deep below the surface of the ocean as you can go. This would probably look like maybe 30 seconds of swimming down followed by a rush to the surface. The Bajau people of the Philippines, though, according to reports, could quite confidently imagine swimming 200 feet below the ocean surface for up to 13 minutes.

These abilities aren’t merely the result of dedicated training. The Bajau people have lived their lives at sea for generations, so much so that they’ve developed special adaptations to their oceanic lifestyle.

We’re joined by Dr. Denis Noble, Professor Emeritus of Cardiovascular Physiology at the University of Oxford, and the father of ‘systems biology’. He is known for his groundbreaking creation of the first mathematical model of the heart’s electrical activity in the 1960s which radically transformed our understanding of the heart.

Dr. Noble’s contributions have revolutionized our understanding of cardiac function and the broader field of biology. His work continues to challenge long-standing biological concepts, including gene-centric views like Neo-Darwinism.

Continue reading “Denis Noble — Why The Last 80 Years of Biology was Wrong” »

Inside every cell, inside every nucleus, your continued existence depends on an incredibly complicated dance. Proteins are constantly wrapping and unwrapping DNA, and even minor missteps can lead to cancer. A new study from the University of Chicago reveals a previously unknown part of this dance—one with significant implications for human health.

In the study, published Oct. 2 in Nature, a team of scientists led by UChicago Prof. Chuan He, in collaboration with University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio Prof. Mingjiang Xu, found that RNA plays a significant role in how DNA is packaged and stored in your cells, via a gene known as TET2. The paper is titled “RNA m⁵C oxidation by TET2 regulates chromatin state and leukaemogenesis.”

This pathway also appears to explain a long-standing puzzle about why so many cancers and other disorders involve TET2-related mutations—and suggests a set of new targets for treatments.

Unlocking the complexities of the fruit fly brain is a crucial step toward understanding the human brain. Fruit flies share many genetic similarities with humans, making them a valuable model organism for studying brain functions as well as diseases.

“An estimated 75% of human genes related to diseases have homologs in the fly genome,” Sebastian Seung, co-leader of the research team, told Interesting Engineering (IE).

Continue reading “139,000 Neurons of Adult Fruit Fly Brain Mapped For The First Time” »

The same technique could also be applied to studies of brain damage, Ruetz said. “Neural stem cells in the subventricular zone are also in the business of repairing brain tissue damage from stroke or traumatic brain injury.”

The glucose transporter connection “is a hopeful finding,” Brunet said. For one, it suggests not only the possibility of designing pharmaceutical or genetic therapies to turn on new neuron growth in old or injured brains, but also the possibility of developing simpler behavioral interventions, such as a low carbohydrate diet that might adjust the amount of glucose taken up by old neural stem cells.

The researchers found other provocative pathways worthy of follow-up studies. Genes relating to primary cilia, parts of some brain cells that play a critical role in sensing and processing signals such as growth factors and neurotransmitters, also are associated with neural stem cell activation. This finding reassured the team that their methodology was effective, partly because unrelated previous work had already discovered associations between cilia organization and neural stem cell function. It is also exciting because the association with the new leads about glucose transmission could point toward alternative avenues of treatment that might engage both pathways, Brunet said.

CRISPR-Cas systems help to protect bacteria from viruses. Several different types of CRISPR-Cas defense systems are found in bacteria, which differ in their composition and functions. Among them, the most studied proteins today are Cas9 and Cas12, also known as DNA or “gene scissors,” which have revolutionized the field of genome editing, enabling scientists to edit genomes and correct disease-causing mutations precisely.

The foundation hopes to prevent extinctions, and obtain the necessary biological material to safeguard genetic diversity.

Already backed by a confirmed $50 million in funding, its goal is to halt the extinction crisis through three key conservation focus points.

Continue reading “Colossal Biosciences Launches $50 Million Foundation To Halt Extinction Crisis” »

Pathogen encounter can result in epigenetic remodeling that shapes disease caused by heterologous pathogens.

The therapeutic potential of antigen-independent innate immune memory (IIM) is of particular relevance in the context of respiratory viruses with pandemic potential. Lercher et al. find that antiviral IIM in alveolar macrophages following SARS-CoV-2 infection ameliorates disease caused by a secondary unrelated pathogen, influenza A virus.