science blogspot

FAUCI: THIS COVID DRUG MIGHT ACTUALLY WORK "WHAT IT HAS PROVEN IS A DRUG CAN BLOCK THIS VIRUS." BY VICTOR TANGERMANN A coronavirus vaccine is likely still years out — but that isn’t discouraging research into potentially life-saving drug treatments for COVID-19 patients. One drug in particular is currently drawing the attention of experts. White House health advisor Anthony Fauci said yesterday that early trials of antiviral drug remdesivir, produced by Gilead Sciences, showed “quite good news,” as CNBC reports. The trial was conducted by the US National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) and involved 1,063 patients. Fauci told reporters that the NIAID trial showed a “clear-cut positive effect in diminishing time to recover.” But that doesn’t mean remdesivir is a miracle solve-all fix. The difference in the number of deaths of those who took it and in a placebo group “has not yet reached statistical significance,” according to Fauci. Mortality rate w...

New biologically derived metal-organic framework mimics DNA  April 8, 2019 ,  Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne S SION-19, a biologically derived MOF based on adenine was used to ‘lock’ Thymine (Thy) molecules in the channels through hydrogen bonding interactions between adenine and thymine. Upon irradiation, thymine molecules were dimerized into di-thymine (ThyThy). Credit: Peter G. Boyd/EPFL The field of materials science has become abuzz with "metal-organic frameworks" (MOFs), versatile compounds made up of metal ions connected to organic ligands, thus forming one-, two-, or three-dimensional structures. There is now an ever-growing list of applications for MOF, including separating petrochemicals, detoxing water from heavy metals and fluoride anions, and getting hydrogen or even gold out of it. But recently, scientists have begun making MOFs, made of   building blocks   that typically make up biomolecules, e.g. amino acids for proteins or ...

ANTI-AGING DRUG THAT KILLS OLD CELLS PASSES FIRST HUMAN TRIAL FEBRUARY 15TH 19__KRISTIN HOUSER__ FILED UNDER: HEALTH & MEDICINE PIXABAY/TAG HARTMAN-SIMKINS Cleaning House Not all damaged cells die. Some stick around as senescent cells, unable to divide but still able to produce chemical signals — and they could play a major role in the battle against aging. “It is thought that these cells and the substances they produce are involved in the process of aging,” longevity researcher Nicolas Musi from the University of Texas at Austin  told  MIT Technology Review . “The idea is that removing these cells may be beneficial to promote healthy aging and also to prevent diseases of aging.” Based on the results of a very early trial, there may be something to that theory. Doubled Up In January , Musi and his colleagues published the results of a trial in which they treated 14 patients suffering from the fatal lung ...

Blood test for pregnant women can predict premature birth Date: June 7, 2018 Source: Stanford Medicine Summary: A new blood test for pregnant women detects with 75-80 percent accuracy whether their pregnancies will end in premature birth. The technique can also be used to estimate a fetus's gestational age -- or the mother's due date -- as reliably as and less expensively than ultrasound. Share:           FULL STORY Pregnant woman and doctor. (stock image) Credit: © dgmphoto / Fotolia A new blood test for pregnant women detects with 75-80 percent accuracy whether their pregnancies will end in premature birth. The technique can also be used to estimate a fetus's gestational age -- or the mother's due date -- as reliably as and less expensively than ultrasound. Developed by a team of scientists led by researchers at Stanford University, the tests could help reduce problems related to premature birth, which affects 15 million i...

Found: A new form of DNA in our cells Scientists have tracked down an elusive 'tangled knot' of DNA Date: April 23, 2018 Source: Garvan Institute of Medical Research Summary: In a world first, researchers have identified a new DNA structure -- called the i-motif -- inside cells. A twisted 'knot' of DNA, the i-motif has never before been directly seen inside living cells. Share:      FULL STORY This is an artist's impression of the i-motif DNA structure inside cells, along with the antibody-based tool used to detect it. Credit: Chris Hammang It's DNA, but not as we know it. In a world first, Australian researchers have identified a new DNA structure -- called the i-motif -- inside cells. A twisted 'knot' of DNA, the i-motif has never before been directly seen inside living cells. The new findings, from the Garvan Institute of Medical Research, are published today in the leading journal Nature Chemistry. Deep inside the cells in our body li...

Dark chocolate consumption reduces stress and inflammation Data represent first human trials examining the impact of dark chocolate consumption on cognition and other brain functions April 24, 2018 Loma Linda University Adventist Health Sciences Center Findings from two new studies show dark chocolate consumption reduces stress and inflammation, while improving memory, immunity and mood. a b v e g d Cite This Page : Loma Linda University Adventist Health Sciences Center. "Dark chocolate consumption reduces stress and inflammation: Data represent first human trials examining the impact of dark chocolate consumption on cognition and other brain functions." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 24 April 2018. <www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/04/180424133628.htm>. FULL STORY Research shows there might be health benefits to eating certain types of dark chocolate. Credit: LLU Health New research shows there might be health benefits to eating certain types of dark chocolat...

Water filtration breakthrough using metal-organic frameworks Researchers discover efficient and sustainable way to filter salt and metal ions from water Date: February 9, 2018 Source: Monash University Summary: With two billion people worldwide lacking access to clean and safe drinking water, new research may offer a breakthrough solution. Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs), a next-generation material with the largest internal surface area of any known substance, can be used to capture, store and release chemical compounds -- in this case, the salt and ions in sea water. Share: FULL STORY Water (stock image). Credit: © Chepko Danil / Fotolia Water (stock image). Credit: © Chepko Danil / Fotolia Close With two billion people worldwide lacking access to clean and safe drinking water, joint research by Monash University, CSIRO and the University of Texas at...

All life forms on Earth use the same genetic alphabet of the bases A, T, C, and G—nitrogen-containing compounds that constitute the building blocks of DNA and spell out the instructions for making proteins. Now, scientists have developed the first bacterium to use extra letters, or unnatural bases, to build proteins. The new research builds on the team’s previous efforts to expand the natural genetic code. In 2014, the scientists engineered Escherichia coli bacteria (pictured) to incorporate an additional pair of bases —X and Y—into their DNA. The bacteria could store the unnatural bases and pass them onto daughter cells. But to be useful, these bases need to be transcribed into RNA molecules and then translated into proteins. So in the new study the researchers slipped the “alien” pair of bases into bacterial genes that also contained traditional bases. The microbes successfully “read” DNA containing the unnatural bases and transcribed it...