Lifeboat Foundation

We have to do this ❤️

Replacing research animals with tools that better mimic human biology could improve medicine.

By Rachel Nuwer

Continue reading “Can Better Biotech Finally Replace Lab Animals?” »

Micro-and nanoplastics are in our food, water and the air we breathe. They are showing up in our bodies, from testicles to brain matter. Now, University of British Columbia researchers have developed a low-cost, portable tool to accurately measure plastic released from everyday sources like disposable cups and water bottles.

A unique quantum effect in biology could be the key to understanding a common marker of Alzheimer’s, raising questions about current assumptions of the disease and informing the search for a cure.

A multi-university research team co-led by University of Virginia engineering professor Gustavo K. Rohde has developed a system that can spot genetic markers of autism in brain images with 89 to 95% accuracy.

Their findings suggest that doctors may one day see, classify and treat autism and related neurological conditions with this method, without having to rely on or wait for behavioral cues. And that means this truly personalized medicine could result in earlier interventions.

“Autism is traditionally diagnosed behaviorally but has a strong genetic basis. A genetics-first approach could transform understanding and treatment of autism,” the researchers wrote in a paper published in the journal Science Advances.

A long-running research endeavor reveals key chemical players that cement memories in place—and still more have yet to be discovered.

By Simon Makin

The persistence of memory is crucial to our sense of identity, and without it, there would be no learning, for us or any other animal. It’s little wonder, then, that some researchers have called how the brain stores memories the most fundamental question in neuroscience.

In his new book, to be published in September, neuroscientist Francisco Aboitiz links consciousness back to the earliest days of biological life.

Like a highway system, the vagus nerve branches profusely from your brain through your organs to marshal bodily functions, including aspects of mind such as mood, pleasure and fear.

Researchers at the École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) have developed a revolutionary miniaturized brain-machine interface (MiBMI) that converts brain activity directly into text. This breakthrough technology, housed on silicon chips with a total area of just 8mm², marks a significant advancement in brain-computer interface technology.

The study, published in the IEEE Journal of Solid-State Circuits and presented at the International Solid-State Circuits Conference, highlights a device that could dramatically improve communication for individuals with severe motor impairments.

During her PhD research at Johns Hopkins University, Klein learned how sex hormones can influence the brain and behavior.

A handful of immunologists are pushing the field to take attributes such as sex chromosomes, sex hormones, and reproductive tissues into account.