SciTech #ScienceSunday Digest - 45/2016.
SciTech #ScienceSunday Digest - 45/2016.
Permalink here: http://www.scitechdigest.net/2016/11/synthetic-biology-devices-biohub-cell.html
Synthetic biology devices, Biohub cell atlas, Neuronal interfaces, Neuronal transplants, DIY senolytics, Precise atom arrays, Solid metallic hydrogen, Regenerating spinal injuries, UV lithography, One shot deep learning.
1. Synthetic Biology Devices
The latest round of the International Genetically Engineered Machine competition has produced a number of synthetic biology devices in the form of genetically modified bacteria, and including a biological heat induced light bulb, a microbial fuel cell with higher electrical output, a biological capacitor, and light-dependent resistors http://www.nextbigfuture.com/2016/10/synthetic-biology-competition-team.html. Good to see DIY BIO with basic microfluidic chips becoming more sophisticated. In related news there are attempts to engineer bacteria to create biocement out of soils in order to form natural foundations for buildings and other structures http://www.ncl.ac.uk/press/news/2016/10/thinkingsoils/.
2. Quake’s BioHub Cell Atlas
I’ve long admired Stephen Quake’s groundbreaking work on microfluidics and it is good to see his latest effort to run BioHub in creating the most comprehensive human cell atlas ever assembled https://www.technologyreview.com/s/602732/mark-zuckerberg-is-funding-a-facebook-for-human-cells/. There are good reasons to suspect that there are thousands of different types of cells with distinct functions that are otherwise difficult to tell apart, and in any case many more than the typical 300 types of cells quoted. BioHub’s human cell atlas project is possible thanks to some of Quake’s microfluidic inventions allowing individual cells to be captured and analysed, and will enable high throughput inspection and mapping of tens of millions of human cells and their distinct molecular signatures.
3. Neuronal Interfaces
A new electrically controlled ion pump is able to deliver neurotransmitter chemicals such as acetylcholine at almost the same rate as live neurons http://spectrum.ieee.org/the-human-os/biomedical/devices/highspeed-electronic-pump-mimics-neural-signaling. The device exploits thin films that are a few hundred nanometers thick, using an induced electrical current to push the neurotransmitters through tiny channels to where they need to go, making the journey in 50ms, and activating subsets of neurons at these locations. Interesting applications in stimulating neurons with neurotransmitters instead of crude electrodes. In related news the smallest ever extracellular needle-electrodes have been developed http://www.medindia.net/news/worlds-smallest-extracellular-needle-electrodes-developed-164729-1.htm.
4. Neuronal Transplants Integrate into Brain Networks
Recent demonstrations in mice have shown that transplanted embryonic neurons integrate into the host brain, replacing damaged neurons and successfully carrying out those functions in existing networks https://www.neuro.mpg.de/3378043/news_publication_10801776. This work demonstrated functional integration into the damaged visual cortex of mice, showed that the neurons survived, differentiated into the correct cell type, formed normal and appropriate synaptic connections, and for all intents and purposes replaced the damaged elements to restore normal signalling activity for the region. Very promising for many diseases and age-related neurodegeneration.
5. DIY Senolytics
One of the seven main causes of age related damage, the accumulation of senescent cells, is attracting serious investment and pharmaceutical efforts to develop senolytic therapies to target and clear these cells in order to restore the body to more youthful levels. However, there are drugs that already exist, such as Navitoclax, typically developed as cancer treatments and shown to selectively kill senescent cells, that people might be able to obtain and to pursue personal senescent cell clearance today https://www.fightaging.org/archives/2016/10/on-the-topic-of-senescent-cells-should-we-all-be-trying-to-take-navitoclax/. The clinical trial data showing dosing and side effects is available, the raw drug while expensive can be obtained and might be made cheaper, the assays to determine effectiveness are widely available. Something I should really look into.
6. Precise Large Scale Atom Arrays
Optical tweezer technology is becoming more sophisticated with the demonstration of a new system using laser tweezers to pick and hold individual atoms from a cloud, up to 50 atoms at a time, in a precisely ordered array, and to move these atoms around to different positions as needed http://news.mit.edu/2016/scientists-set-traps-atoms-single-particle-precision-1103. This new technique uses neutral atoms (ions are difficult to hold in dense arrays due to repulsion) and might find applications in creating new materials, information storage, processing, and possible quantum computations.
7. Solid Metallic Hydrogen
For the first time solid metallic hydrogen has been created in the laboratory http://www.nextbigfuture.com/2016/11/harvard-researchers-created-solid.html. This was achieved by subjecting a sample of hydrogen to pressures of 495 GPa. The material is believed to be metastable and once the pressure is released it may still exist as solid metallic hydrogen at room temperature; an experiment still to be conducted. If so it could potentially be transformative as solid metallic hydrogen is predicted to be a superconductor, and would also comprise a powerful rocket propellant. In related news superconductivity is being induced in non-superconducting materials http://www.uh.edu/news-events/stories/2016/October/10312016Paul-Chu-New-Discovery-Superconductivity.php.
8. Regenerating Spinal Injuries
A protein called connective tissue growth factor (CTGF) has been identified as crucial to allowing zebra fish to successfully regenerate injured and severed spinal cords https://today.duke.edu/2016/11/scientists-find-key-protein-spinal-cord-repair. The protein is 90% identical in humans and zebra fish, and human CTGF introduced into fish with a non-functional CTGF gene were able to regenerate severed spinal cords. CTGF is secreted by cells and grows across the injured site to form a bridge between the two spinal cord ends, allowing neurons and other support cells to migrate and reform a functional connection. It is hoped that this understanding leads to human therapies in future.
9. Pushing Computing Forward
First, major chip fabs are pushing extreme ultraviolet lithography technology forward for hopeful deployment by 2018 http://spectrum.ieee.org/semiconductors/devices/leading-chipmakers-eye-euv-lithography-to-save-moores-law. Achieving this demands numerous sophisticated challenges are solved just to generate, control, and manage the light, which has a wavelength of 13.5nm compared to the current 193nm in use - which will nonetheless be used to produce 7nm features in 2018 from the current 14nm features in production; but the next generation of 5nm features will require ultraviolet. Second, Optalysys is producing a novel laser optical computing technology to speed up certain types of computations https://www.technologyreview.com/s/602765/computing-with-lasers-could-power-up-genomics-and-ai/.
10. Deep Learning After Seeing Objects Once
Google’s DeepMind group has developed new deep learning technology that is capable of “one-shot” learning, recognising objects from a single example https://www.technologyreview.com/s/602779/machines-can-now-recognize-something-after-seeing-it-once/. This builds on work to add memory components to deep learning systems, and must still be trained up on hundreds of categories of images, but after this training it can recognise new objects from just a single picture. The development and ongoing advances of deep learning technology continues to amaze.
SciTech Tip Jar: http://www.scitechdigest.net/p/donate.html
Permalink here: http://www.scitechdigest.net/2016/11/synthetic-biology-devices-biohub-cell.html
Synthetic biology devices, Biohub cell atlas, Neuronal interfaces, Neuronal transplants, DIY senolytics, Precise atom arrays, Solid metallic hydrogen, Regenerating spinal injuries, UV lithography, One shot deep learning.
1. Synthetic Biology Devices
The latest round of the International Genetically Engineered Machine competition has produced a number of synthetic biology devices in the form of genetically modified bacteria, and including a biological heat induced light bulb, a microbial fuel cell with higher electrical output, a biological capacitor, and light-dependent resistors http://www.nextbigfuture.com/2016/10/synthetic-biology-competition-team.html. Good to see DIY BIO with basic microfluidic chips becoming more sophisticated. In related news there are attempts to engineer bacteria to create biocement out of soils in order to form natural foundations for buildings and other structures http://www.ncl.ac.uk/press/news/2016/10/thinkingsoils/.
2. Quake’s BioHub Cell Atlas
I’ve long admired Stephen Quake’s groundbreaking work on microfluidics and it is good to see his latest effort to run BioHub in creating the most comprehensive human cell atlas ever assembled https://www.technologyreview.com/s/602732/mark-zuckerberg-is-funding-a-facebook-for-human-cells/. There are good reasons to suspect that there are thousands of different types of cells with distinct functions that are otherwise difficult to tell apart, and in any case many more than the typical 300 types of cells quoted. BioHub’s human cell atlas project is possible thanks to some of Quake’s microfluidic inventions allowing individual cells to be captured and analysed, and will enable high throughput inspection and mapping of tens of millions of human cells and their distinct molecular signatures.
3. Neuronal Interfaces
A new electrically controlled ion pump is able to deliver neurotransmitter chemicals such as acetylcholine at almost the same rate as live neurons http://spectrum.ieee.org/the-human-os/biomedical/devices/highspeed-electronic-pump-mimics-neural-signaling. The device exploits thin films that are a few hundred nanometers thick, using an induced electrical current to push the neurotransmitters through tiny channels to where they need to go, making the journey in 50ms, and activating subsets of neurons at these locations. Interesting applications in stimulating neurons with neurotransmitters instead of crude electrodes. In related news the smallest ever extracellular needle-electrodes have been developed http://www.medindia.net/news/worlds-smallest-extracellular-needle-electrodes-developed-164729-1.htm.
4. Neuronal Transplants Integrate into Brain Networks
Recent demonstrations in mice have shown that transplanted embryonic neurons integrate into the host brain, replacing damaged neurons and successfully carrying out those functions in existing networks https://www.neuro.mpg.de/3378043/news_publication_10801776. This work demonstrated functional integration into the damaged visual cortex of mice, showed that the neurons survived, differentiated into the correct cell type, formed normal and appropriate synaptic connections, and for all intents and purposes replaced the damaged elements to restore normal signalling activity for the region. Very promising for many diseases and age-related neurodegeneration.
5. DIY Senolytics
One of the seven main causes of age related damage, the accumulation of senescent cells, is attracting serious investment and pharmaceutical efforts to develop senolytic therapies to target and clear these cells in order to restore the body to more youthful levels. However, there are drugs that already exist, such as Navitoclax, typically developed as cancer treatments and shown to selectively kill senescent cells, that people might be able to obtain and to pursue personal senescent cell clearance today https://www.fightaging.org/archives/2016/10/on-the-topic-of-senescent-cells-should-we-all-be-trying-to-take-navitoclax/. The clinical trial data showing dosing and side effects is available, the raw drug while expensive can be obtained and might be made cheaper, the assays to determine effectiveness are widely available. Something I should really look into.
6. Precise Large Scale Atom Arrays
Optical tweezer technology is becoming more sophisticated with the demonstration of a new system using laser tweezers to pick and hold individual atoms from a cloud, up to 50 atoms at a time, in a precisely ordered array, and to move these atoms around to different positions as needed http://news.mit.edu/2016/scientists-set-traps-atoms-single-particle-precision-1103. This new technique uses neutral atoms (ions are difficult to hold in dense arrays due to repulsion) and might find applications in creating new materials, information storage, processing, and possible quantum computations.
7. Solid Metallic Hydrogen
For the first time solid metallic hydrogen has been created in the laboratory http://www.nextbigfuture.com/2016/11/harvard-researchers-created-solid.html. This was achieved by subjecting a sample of hydrogen to pressures of 495 GPa. The material is believed to be metastable and once the pressure is released it may still exist as solid metallic hydrogen at room temperature; an experiment still to be conducted. If so it could potentially be transformative as solid metallic hydrogen is predicted to be a superconductor, and would also comprise a powerful rocket propellant. In related news superconductivity is being induced in non-superconducting materials http://www.uh.edu/news-events/stories/2016/October/10312016Paul-Chu-New-Discovery-Superconductivity.php.
8. Regenerating Spinal Injuries
A protein called connective tissue growth factor (CTGF) has been identified as crucial to allowing zebra fish to successfully regenerate injured and severed spinal cords https://today.duke.edu/2016/11/scientists-find-key-protein-spinal-cord-repair. The protein is 90% identical in humans and zebra fish, and human CTGF introduced into fish with a non-functional CTGF gene were able to regenerate severed spinal cords. CTGF is secreted by cells and grows across the injured site to form a bridge between the two spinal cord ends, allowing neurons and other support cells to migrate and reform a functional connection. It is hoped that this understanding leads to human therapies in future.
9. Pushing Computing Forward
First, major chip fabs are pushing extreme ultraviolet lithography technology forward for hopeful deployment by 2018 http://spectrum.ieee.org/semiconductors/devices/leading-chipmakers-eye-euv-lithography-to-save-moores-law. Achieving this demands numerous sophisticated challenges are solved just to generate, control, and manage the light, which has a wavelength of 13.5nm compared to the current 193nm in use - which will nonetheless be used to produce 7nm features in 2018 from the current 14nm features in production; but the next generation of 5nm features will require ultraviolet. Second, Optalysys is producing a novel laser optical computing technology to speed up certain types of computations https://www.technologyreview.com/s/602765/computing-with-lasers-could-power-up-genomics-and-ai/.
10. Deep Learning After Seeing Objects Once
Google’s DeepMind group has developed new deep learning technology that is capable of “one-shot” learning, recognising objects from a single example https://www.technologyreview.com/s/602779/machines-can-now-recognize-something-after-seeing-it-once/. This builds on work to add memory components to deep learning systems, and must still be trained up on hundreds of categories of images, but after this training it can recognise new objects from just a single picture. The development and ongoing advances of deep learning technology continues to amaze.
SciTech Tip Jar: http://www.scitechdigest.net/p/donate.html
Comments
Post a Comment