Lifeboat Foundation

Age catches up with us all eventually, but in some people the right genes can make that chase into our twilight years a relatively leisurely one.

A few years ago Italian researchers discovered something special about people who live well into their 90s and beyond: they commonly have a version of a gene called BPIFB4 that protects against cardiovascular damage and keeps the heart in good shape for a longer period of time.

By introducing the mutated gene into older mice, the scientists have now seen how the variant rewinds markers of biological heart aging by the equivalent of more than 10 human years.

There should be some vaccine against common cold because globally millions of people suffer s due to this disease.

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is the most common pathogen responsible for lower respiratory diseases in children. So far, there is no effective treatment or preventative vaccine available for RSV infection, although ribavirin and dexamethasone are commonly prescribed. Resveratrol has been shown to inhibit the replication of several other viruses, thus the effect of resveratrol on RSV-induced inflammatory mediators in 9HTEo cell cultures was evaluated, and possible mechanisms of action were explored and compared with dexamethasone and ribavirin. Incubation with resveratrol resulted in decreased IL-6 production and partial inhibition of RSV replication. Resveratrol treatment also inhibited virus-induced TIR-domain-containing adapter-inducing interferon-β (TRIF) and TANK binding kinase 1 (TBK1) protein expression. These data demonstrate the ability of resveratrol to inhibit cytokine production by RSV in airway epithelial cells, indicating that it might be a therapeutic agent with both anti-inflammatory and antiviral potential for the treatment of RSV infection.

When we were little, our parents told us to take our vitamins so we could grow big and strong. Now, researchers from Japan find that one particular supplement may even fix a broken heart.

In a study that published recently in European Heart Journal, researchers from Osaka University have revealed that a dietary supplement can dramatically reverse the signs of heart disease in a subset of patients.

Coronary artery disease (CAD), which involves narrowing or even closing of the arteries of the heart and often leads to heart attack, is a major cause of death worldwide. Despite the existence of treatments such as cholesterol-lowering drugs and drug-eluting stents—a new stent technology for local drug delivery—death from this condition is still common, and some patients appear to be resistant to treatment.

It turns out that it is now pretty standard to have no external stitches for spaying, and in fact, if I had to do it over again, I would have picked one port keyhole surgery which would have been even easier to heal from. (That would have required switching vets.) So for only $400, Kaia not only had advanced surgery with no outside stitches, but she was made into a cyborg with a microchip being implanted. Pretty impressive!

This is just one example of us rushing headlong into a science fiction-type future. The biggest such example being ChatGPT which feels way more intelligent than previous chatbots. It used to be that Ray Kurzweil would say that we would have AGI in 2029 and everyone else predicted dates such as 2070 or never. Now many people pick 2029 and I could definitely see the tech behind ChatGPT being part of the recipe for AGI. For me, the first example that AGI was coming, was Content-Aware Fill being added to Photoshop. That feature allows you to erase a person from a beach scene in one quick step. Very impressive!

One more example of tech advancing is that a few years ago my right eye’s retina partially detached. My doctor did surgery with cryotherapy in his office, and inserted a sulfur hexafluoride bubble to stabilize everything. He followed up the next day with laser therapy, again in his office. No hospital needed. Eye fixed!

Continue reading “Our doggie Kaia just had some organs removed (spayed) and I was surprised that she didn’t get the standard cone of shame” »

Bryan Johnson is 45 years old but, according to a new report, his test results show he has the heart of a 37-year-old and the lungs of a young adult.

Johnson is a biotech entrepreneur who hopes to game nature’s course of aging and have the organs and health of an 18-year-old by going through an intense data-driven experimental program he’s called Project Blueprint.

According to a recent Bloomberg profile of the CEO, Johnson could spend up to $2 million on his body this year and there are early glimpses that show he may be on track to unlocking the secret to age reversal.

Continue reading “A CEO who sold his company for $800 million has helped build 4 $1 billion companies — here’s why he thinks investors should get in early on one of tech’s unsexy, neglected markets” »

Professors complain that some students are turning in papers written by ChatGPT and other AI’s. This means the whole paradigm of how we teach students has got to change. And fast.

The potential of our brains is being wasted by the old paradigm of education and how we’ve been mechanized by The Industrial Age.

The qualia it takes to do what tradesmen like welders and mechanics and plummer’s do cannot be easily automated or coded and will soon be at a premium. Professionals like doctors and attorneys and professors, for that matter can easily be replaced by AI.

Continue reading “The Enemy of my Enemy is AI” »

Researchers in the US have made progress on a ‘universal’ influenza vaccine, which would cover all strains and help reduce deaths in future flu pandemics.

Scientists at the University of Connecticut Health, Yale University, and Johns Hopkins University have discovered that certain cancer cells possess the ability to evade limitations caused by oxygen deprivation, enabling the cancer cells to continue to grow.

The findings were recently published in the journal Cell Systems. The research was led by Kshitiz, an assistant professor in the Department of Biomedical Engineering, in collaboration with scientists Chi V. Dang from Johns Hopkins and Andre Levchenko from Yale.

Nearly a decade ago, the researchers observed a strange phenomenon while looking at cancer cells under hypoxia—or a lack of oxygen.

Just when we are getting accustomed to artificial intelligence in our daily lives, get ready for a new disruptor: synthetic biology, or syn-bio, the design and engineering of biological systems to create and improve processes and products. It promises to become a manufacturing paradigm of the future.

Recent advances in molecular, cell, and systems biology have enabled scientists to shift their focus from research of syn-bio to design and engineering, creating some truly mind blowing applications. By using microorganisms, for example, companies can now manufacture an infinite number of things, cell by cell, from scratch. This offers new ways of producing almost everything that humans consume, from flavors and fabrics to foods and fuels.

By the end of the decade, syn-bio may be used extensively in manufacturing industries that account for more than a third of global output, according to BCG Henderson Institute, Boston Consulting Group’s strategy think tank. Various sources estimate that the syn-bio market today is about $10 billion and is expected to reach $30 billion in the next five years.