In AIP Advances, researchers describe how to exploit DNA origami as a platform to build superconducting nanoarchitectures. The structures they built are addressable with nanometric precision that can be used as a template for 3D architectures that are not possible today via conventional fabrication techniques. Inspired by previous works using the DNA molecule as a template for superconducting nanowires, the group took advantage of a recent bioengineering advance known as DNA origami to fold DNA into arbitrary shapes.
Tag: Bioengineering
A smart ring shows it’s possible to detect fever before you feel it
Advance could pave the way for early warning system on COVID-19 and flu using wearables
When Strains of E.coli Play Rock-Paper-Scissors, It’s Not the Strongest That Survives
What happens when different strains of bacteria are present in the same system? Do they co-exist? Do the strongest survive? In a microbial game of rock-paper-scissors, researchers at the University of California San Diego’s BioCircuits Institute uncovered a surprising answer.
Neurons stripped of their identity are hallmark of Alzheimer’s disease, study finds
Researchers at the University of California San Diego have identified new mechanisms in neurons that cause Alzheimer’s disease. In particular, they discovered that changes in the structure of chromatin, the tightly coiled form of DNA, trigger neurons to lose their specialized function and revert to an earlier cell state. This results in the loss of synaptic connections, an effect associated with memory loss and dementia.
‘Monster tumors’ could offer new glimpse at human development
Finding just the right model to study human development—from the early embryonic stage onward—has been a challenge for scientists over the last decade. Now, bioengineers at the University of California San Diego have homed in on an unusual candidate: teratomas.
LLNL develops first-ever living, 3D-bioprinted aneurysm to test surgical treatments
A Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory team, along with their collaborators, has become the first to produce a living, bioprinted aneurysm outside of the human body, perform a medical procedure on it, and observe it respond and heal as it would in an actual human brain.
Magnetic Field and Hydrogels Could Be Used to Grow New Cartilage
Instead of using synthetic materials, Penn Medicine study shows magnets could be used to arrange cells to grow new tissues
Researchers Use Lab-grown Tissue Grafts for Personalized Joint Replacement
A multidisciplinary team from Columbia Engineering, Columbia’s College of Dental Medicine and Department of Medicine, Louisiana State University, LaCell LLC, and Obatala Sciences has now bioengineered living cartilage-bone temporomandibular joint grafts, precisely matched to the recipient, both biologically and anatomically. Their new study, published today in Science Translational Medicine, builds upon a long series of their previous work on bioengineering functional cartilage and bone for regenerative medicine and tissue models of disease.
Machine Learning Takes on Synthetic Biology: Algorithms Can Bioengineer Cells for You
Scientists at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory have developed a new tool that adapts machine learning algorithms to the needs of synthetic biology to guide development systematically. The innovation means scientists will not have to spend years developing a meticulous understanding of each part of a cell and what it does in order to manipulate it.
Artificial intelligence identifies, locates seizures in real-time
Research from the McKelvey School of Engineering at Washington University in St. Louis has shown that understanding brain activity as a network instead of readings from an EEG allow for more accurate and efficient detection of seizures in real-time.
WFIRM Scientists Prove Bioengineered Uteri Support Pregnancy
WFIRM scientists were able to show that bioengineered uteri in an animal model developed the native tissue-like structures needed to support normal reproductive function.
Scientists Aim Gene-Targeting Breakthrough Against COVID-19
Scientists at Berkeley Lab and Stanford have joined forces to aim a gene-targeting, antiviral agent called PAC-MAN against COVID-19.
Bangladeshi eggplant farmers reap rewards via genetics
Farmers in Bangladesh achieved significantly higher yields and revenues by growing insect-resistant, genetically engineered eggplant, a new Cornell study has found.
Engineers develop low-cost, high-accuracy GPS-like system for flexible medical robots
Roboticists at the University of California San Diego have developed an affordable, easy to use system to track the location of flexible surgical robots inside the human body. The system performs as well as current state of the art methods, but is much less expensive.
NIH-funded MD2K Center releases app that alerts user if close contact with COVID-19 cases
Researchers at the University of Memphis-based Center of Excellence for Mobile Sensor Data-to-Knowledge (MD2K) have introduced a new mobile app that may support physical distancing during the COVID-19 pandemic. MD2K is supported by NIH with a grant administered by NIBIB.
Discovery of new biomarker in blood could lead to early test for Alzheimer’s disease
UC San Diego researchers discovered that high blood levels of RNA produced by the PHGDH gene could serve as a biomarker for early detection of Alzheimer’s disease. The work could lead to the development of a blood test to identify individuals who will develop the disease years before they show symptoms.
Composing New Proteins with Artificial Intelligence
Proteins are the building blocks of life and scientists have long studied how to improve them or design new ones. Traditionally, new proteins are created by mimicking existing proteins or manually editing their amino acids. This process is time-consuming, and it is difficult to predict the impact of changing an amino acid. In APL Bioengineering, researchers explore how to create new proteins by using machine learning to translate protein structures into musical scores, presenting an unusual way to translate physics concepts across domains.
Advances in Computer Modeling, Protein Development Propel Cellular Engineering
A review of recent work in biophysics highlights efforts in cellular engineering, ranging from proteins to cellular components to tissues grown on next-generation chips. Author Ngan Huang said the fast pace of development prompted her and her colleagues to take stock of promising areas in the field as well as hurdles researchers can expect in coming years. They discuss their work in this week’s APL Bioengineering.
NIH announces $1 million prize competition to target global disease diagnostics
The National Institutes of Health has launched a $1 million Technology Accelerator Challenge (TAC) to spur the design and development of non-invasive, handheld, digital technologies to detect, diagnose and guide therapies for diseases with high global and public health impact. The Challenge is focused on sickle cell disease, malaria and anemia and is led by NIH’s National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB).
UAH research into developing artificial lymph nodes has immunotherapy implications
Research into engineering artificial organs that mimic the functions of human lymph nodes at The University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH) has garnered one of its professors a $507,777 National Science Foundation (NSF) Faculty Early Career Development Program (CAREER) Award.
Controlling CAR T cells with light selectively destroys skin tumors in mice
UC San Diego bioengineers have developed a control system that could make CAR T-cell therapy safer and more powerful when treating cancer. By programming CAR T cells to switch on when exposed to blue light, the researchers controlled the cells to destroy skin tumors in mice without harming healthy tissue.
Speakers announced for 2020 Experimental Biology meeting
Renowned scientists including Nobel laureates, research pioneers and celebrated educators will convene at the Experimental Biology (EB) 2020 meeting, to be held April 4–7 in San Diego. Bringing together more than 12,000 life scientists in one interdisciplinary community, EB showcases the latest advances in anatomy, biochemistry, molecular biology, investigative pathology, pharmacology and physiology.
Superior “Bio-Ink” for 3D Printing Pioneered
Rutgers biomedical engineers have developed a “bio-ink” for 3D printed materials that could serve as scaffolds for growing human tissues to repair or replace damaged ones in the body. Their study was published in the journal Biointerphases.
Assessing ‘stickiness’ of tumor cells could improve cancer prognosis
Researchers led by UC San Diego built a device that sorts and separates cancer cells from the same tumor based on how “sticky” they are. They found that less sticky cells migrate and invade other tissues more than their stickier counterparts, and have genes that make tumor recurrence more likely.
Opening Up DNA to Delete Disease
Protein editorial assistants are clearing the way for cut-and-paste DNA editors, like CRISPR, to access previously inaccessible genes of interest. Opening up these areas of the genetic code is critical to improving CRISPR efficiency and moving toward futuristic, genetic-based assaults on disease. The DNA-binding editorial assistants were devised by a U.S.-based team of bioengineers, who describe their design in APL Bioengineering.
The Wild World of Microbe-Made Products – Skis Now Included
Biomanufacturing – harnessing biological processes in cells and microbes to design and manufacture products – is revolutionizing how we make everything from futuristic consumer goods to sustainable fuels to breakthrough medicines. Every biomanufactured product can be traced back to discoveries in the lab, but translating that science into a real-world product can be tricky. Berkeley Lab helps move great ideas, like outdoor gear made from algae oil, from conception to commercialization.
LLNL researchers mimic blood-brain barrier on chip-based device
With a recent publication in the journal Annals of Biomedical Engineering (ABME), a team of LLNL researchers are one step closer to recapitulating the brain’s response to both biochemical and mechanical cues in a chip-based platform.
Six Berkeley Lab Scientists Named AAAS Fellows
Six scientists from the Department of Energy’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) have been named Fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS).
Drug-light combo could offer control over CAR T-cell therapy
UC San Diego bioengineers are a step closer to making CAR T-cell therapy safer, more precise and easy to control. They developed a system that allows them to select where and when CAR T cells get turned on so that they destroy cancer cells without harming normal cells. The system requires two “keys”—the drug Tamoxifen and blue light—to activate CAR T cells to bind to their targets. Just one key keeps the cells inactive.