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Archive for the ‘biotech/medical’ category: Page 1927

Jun 14, 2018

Why a 19-year-old Bitcoin millionaire built a working Dr. Octopus suit

Posted by in categories: biotech/medical, bitcoin, cyborgs, education

What would you do if you were a 19-year-old kid with $3.3 million? There are few people more equipped to answer that than teenaged bitcoin millionaire Erik Finman. His answer? You use some of that cash to build a Doctor Octopus-style exosuit and try and shake up the education system.

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Jun 14, 2018

The power of prosthetics

Posted by in categories: biotech/medical, cyborgs

Artificial fingers for doing everything naturally.

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Jun 14, 2018

Gene Therapy Repairs Spinal Cord Damage In Formerly Paralyzed Rats

Posted by in category: biotech/medical

A team of European scientists believes that their gene therapy research could prove to be a life-changing option for individuals who suffer from spinal cord injuries.

A research team from King’s College in London has taken a giant step toward helping paralyzed individuals regain “control of their hands.” In a recent experiment, the scientists have had success repairing spinal cord damage in rats using gene therapy.

The spinal cord is a cylindrical tube of nerve fibers and connected tissue that is enclosed within the spine. It carries instructions to virtually every part of the body, forming the central nervous system.

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Jun 14, 2018

Pioneering Stem Cell Trial Seeks to Cure Babies Before Birth

Posted by in category: biotech/medical

Even before she was born, Elianna Constantino had already cheated death.

Elianna has a rare inherited blood disorder called alpha thalassemia major, which prevents her red blood cells from forming properly. The disease, which has no cure, is usually fatal for a developing fetus.

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Jun 14, 2018

How microgrids could boost resilience in New Orleans

Posted by in categories: biotech/medical, business, food

During Hurricane Katrina and other severe storms that have hit New Orleans, power outages, flooding and wind damage combined to cut off people from clean drinking water, food, medical care, shelter, prescriptions and other vital services.

In a year-long project, researchers at Sandia and Los Alamos national laboratories teamed up with the City of New Orleans to analyze ways to increase community resilience and improve the availability of critical lifeline services during and after severe weather.

The team used historical hurricane scenarios to model how storms cause localized flooding, disrupt the electrical system and cut off parts of the community from lifeline services. Sandia researchers then developed a tool to analyze and identify existing clusters of businesses and community resources in areas less prone to inundation—such as gas stations, grocery stores and pharmacies that could be outfitted with microgrids to boost resilience.

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Jun 14, 2018

Cellular Cilia Implicated in Cancer Drug Resistance

Posted by in category: biotech/medical

A connection between cancer and cellular cilia.


A team at the Institute of Cancer Research in London led by Dr. Barbara Tanos has found out that cellular organelles known as “cilia” may be a viable target for undermining many cancers’ drug resistance [1].

Study summary

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Jun 14, 2018

Hypertension Is Often Self-Inflicted and Somewhat Reversible

Posted by in categories: biotech/medical, life extension

Hypertension is an increasingly encountered condition in modern society, as sedentary lifestyles, poor diet, and other unhealthy lifestyle choices are becoming more prevalent.

The aging processes generally cause our blood pressure to rise, as they steadily clog our arteries, stiffen blood vessels, and cause our hearts to work harder to get blood to all our tissues. However, the rate at which this happens is subject to a great deal of variation, and diet and lifestyle are two big influences on this. At least initially, hypertension is frequently self-inflicted and something that we can reverse to a certain extent, as a new study shows.

Researchers have recently demonstrated that a program seeking to help people change their lifestyles through diet and exercise was almost as effective as some medications for reducing blood pressure.

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Jun 14, 2018

Why a DNA data breach is much worse than a credit card leak

Posted by in categories: biotech/medical, cybercrime/malcode, encryption, genetics, health, neuroscience

As the Equifax hack last year showed, there’s a lack of legislation governing what happens to data from a breach. And ultimately, a breach of genetic data is much more serious than most credit breaches. Genetic information is immutable: Vigna points out that it’s possible to change credit card numbers or even addresses, but genetic information cannot be changed. And genetic information is often shared involuntarily. “Even if I don’t use 23andMe, I have cousins who did, so effectively I may be genetically searchable,” says Ram. In one case, an identical twin having her genetic data sequenced created a tricky situation for her sister.


This week, DNA testing service MyHeritage revealed that hackers had breached 92 million of its accounts. Though the hackers only accessed encrypted emails and passwords — so they never reached the actual genetic data — there’s no question that this type of hack will happen more frequently as consumer genetic testing becomes more and more popular. So why would hackers want DNA information specifically? And what are the implications of a big DNA breach?

One simple reason is that hackers might want to sell DNA data back for ransom, says Giovanni Vigna, a professor of computer science at UC Santa Barbara and co-founder of cybersecurity company Lastline. Hackers could threaten to revoke access or post the sensitive information online if not given money; one Indiana hospital paid $55,000 to hackers for this very reason. But there are reasons genetic data specifically could be lucrative. “This data could be sold on the down-low or monetized to insurance companies,” Vigna adds. “You can imagine the consequences: One day, I might apply for a long-term loan and get rejected because deep in the corporate system, there is data that I am very likely to get Alzheimer’s and die before I would repay the loan.”

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Jun 13, 2018

New stem cell technique tested for babies with life-threatening heart condition

Posted by in category: biotech/medical

The diagnosis is devastating and you look for anything that’s going to give you hope.

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Jun 13, 2018

Researchers reveal how disrupting gut-brain communication may affect learning and memory

Posted by in categories: biotech/medical, food, neuroscience

The connection between food and memory is one of those fundamentally human experiences we can all relate to. A compelling new study from the University of Southern California has revealed an intriguing explanation behind this phenomenon, and it illustrates how strongly the “second brain” in our gut communicates with our brain.

Inside our gastrointestinal tract lies a massive mesh of neurons often referred to as our “second brain.” While this neuronal control system primarily works to independently manage our digestive system, it also has been found to directly communicate with the brain via a long nerve, called the vagus nerve.

The vagus nerve has been found to mediate a great deal of metabolic communication between the gut and the brain. For example, one recent study revealed how feeding behavior, modulated by activity in the hippocampus, is directly activated by vagal nerve stimulation, mediated by signals from the gastrointestinal tract.

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