Researchers have developed a machine learning model that predicts Cas9 proteins that can be tailored with designer properties for therapeutic use.
Category: bioengineering – Page 15
Solar cell efficiency record achieved with tin halide perovskite
University of Queensland researchers have set a world record for solar cell efficiency with eco-friendly perovskite technology. A team led by Professor Lianzhou Wang has unveiled a tin halide perovskite (THP) solar cell capable of converting sunlight to electricity at a certified record efficiency of 16.65%. The research is published in the journal Nature Nanotechnology.
Working across UQ’s Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology and the School of Chemical Engineering, Professor Wang said the certified reading achieved by his lab was nearly one percentage point higher than the previous best for THP solar cells.
“It might not seem like much, but this is a giant leap in a field that is renowned for delicate and incremental progress,” Professor Wang said.
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Scientists Develop New Gene Editing Tool that Replaces Entire Genes
Scientists from Mass General Brigham and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center have developed a novel gene editing tool called STITCHR. Unlike traditional CRISPR, STITCHR inserts entire genes at precise locations, minimizing unintended mutations. This gene editing tool simplifies use and offers potential as a one-time treatment for genetic disorders.
The technology uses retrotransposons, naturally occurring “jumping genes” found in all eukaryotic organisms, which can move and integrate into genomes. Using computational screening, the researchers identified and reprogrammed a specific retrotransposon to work with the nickase enzyme from CRISPR, forming the complete STITCHR system that allows a precise, seamless gene insertion into the genome.
STITCHR offers the potential to replace or supplement entire genes, creating a more universal treatment option for various genetic diseases. The research team is now working to improve its efficiency and move it toward clinical use. Their study, published in Nature, highlights how insights from basic cellular biology can drive innovation in genetic medicine and lead to new therapeutic tools.
New Strategy Enhances CRISPR Editing Efficiency for Therapeutic Use
While CRISPR-mediated gene editing has led to powerful advances across biology, medicine, and agriculture, challenges persist in optimizing the editing efficiency of enzymes, such as the widely used Cas9 nuclease. This is especially true in therapeutic use cases, where the goal is to attain high rates of editing via a relatively low and transient enzyme dose.
In a new study published in the April 2025 issue of The CRISPR Journal titled, “Hairpin Internal Nuclear Localization Signals in CRISPR-Cas9 Enhance Editing in Primary Human Lymphocytes,” researchers from the Innovative Genomics Institute (IGI) at the University of California (UC), Berkeley, present a strategy to improve editing efficiency in human immune cells for therapeutic applications by leveraging new constructs for nuclear localization signal (NLS) sequences.
“Efficient CRISPR enzyme production is essential for translation. This is one element that allowed the rapid clinical evaluation of Casgevy, the world’s first genome editing drug. Unfortunately, this aspect tends to be overlooked in the basic research performed in academia,” said Ross Wilson, PhD, assistant adjunct professor of molecular and cell biology at UC Berkeley, who led the new study.
Researchers resurrect extinct gene in plants with major implications for drug development
Northeastern University researchers resurrected an extinct plant gene, turning back the evolutionary clock to pave a path forward for the development and discovery of new drugs.
Specifically, the team, led by Jing-Ke Weng, a professor of chemistry, chemical biology and bioengineering at Northeastern, repaired a defunct gene in the coyote tobacco plant.
In a new paper, they detail their discovery of a previously unknown kind of cyclic peptide, or mini-protein, called nanamin that is easy to bioengineer, making it “a platform with huge potential for drug discovery,” Weng says. The paper is published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Novel method enables safe delivery of stem cells in critically ill patients on external lung support
A multidisciplinary clinical team led by Professor Bernat Soria from the Institute of Bioengineering at the Miguel Hernández University of Elche (UMH, Spain) has developed a new method to deliver cell therapies in patients on extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO), a life support system used in cases of severe lung failure.
The advance has been published in Stem Cell Research & Therapy. The team has opted not to patent the technique in order to encourage its use in public health systems once further clinical testing is completed.
The method—named CIBA, for “Consecutive Intrabronchial Administration”—enables the delivery of stem-cell-based treatments directly into the alveoli of critically ill patients who cannot receive standard intravenous cell therapy due to the ECMO system’s constraints.
Scientists Witness Living Plant Cells Build Their Own Cell Walls for the First Time
In a breakthrough with promising real-world applications, a team of Rutgers biophysicists, bioengineers, and plant biologists has captured the first live images.
In a groundbreaking study, researchers at Rutgers University-New Brunswick have captured continuous, 24-hour images of cellulose synthesis, the process by which plant cell walls are built, using living plant cells. This marks the first time the dynamic process of cell-wall construction has been observed in real time, offering critical insights that could lead to the development of more resilient crops, enhanced food production, and lower-cost biofuels.
Published in the journal Science Advances.