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Research teams have successfully regenerated mouse brain circuits using rat stem cells, showcasing a new method for restoring brain function and studying interspecies brain development.

These findings open up possibilities for treating neurological diseases and understanding brain evolution, while also hinting at future clinical applications and ethical challenges in using similar techniques for human organ transplantation.

Scientists regenerate neural pathways in mice with cells from rats.

MIT researchers have innovated a method to observe the interaction between genes and enhancers by monitoring their activation times, helping to pinpoint drug targets for genetic disorders. This technique also enhances understanding of eRNA’s function in gene regulation and disease treatment.

Gene Expression and Enhancer Mapping

Although the human genome contains about 23,000 genes, only a fraction of those genes are turned on inside a cell at any given time. The complex network of regulatory elements that controls gene expression includes regions of the genome called enhancers. These are often located far from the genes that they regulate.

Proteins carry out many of the essential function of cells, and scientists have spent years learning about the expression of protein-coding genes. When genes are active, they are transcribed as messenger RNA (mRNA) molecules, which are then exported from the nucleus of the cell, where the DNA is kept, and into the cytoplasm, where mRNA molecules are translated into proteins. But many RNA molecules that do not code for protein are also exported from the nucleus and into the cytoplasm.

Scientists wanted to know more about what this non-coding RNA is doing, especially since it can often be found at high levels. Reporting in Nature, scientists have now used yeast cells to show that many of these non-coding RNA molecules are antisense RNAs (asRNAs), which have sequences that are complementary to mRNAs. So the right asRNA can anneal to its mRNA match. This turns out to promote the export of mRNAs from the nucleus to the cytoplasm, which boosts gene expression; a kind of “superhighway” for the transport of mRNAs is created with asRNAs to accelerate gene activity.

Robots with human skin.

In a breakthrough that isn’t at all creepy, scientists have devised a method of anchoring living human skin to robots’ faces. The technology could actually have some valuable applications, beyond making Westworld-like scenarios a reality.

Two years ago, Prof. Shoji Takeuchi and colleagues at the University of Tokyo successfully covered a motorized robotic finger with a bioengineered skin made from live human cells.

Continue reading “New technique gives robotic faces living human skin” »

The CRISPR gene-editing technique has revolutionised biology, but now an even more powerful system called bridge editing could let us completely reshape genomes.

By Michael Le Page

THE SINGULARITY IS NEARER: When We Merge With A.I., by Ray Kurzweil ______ A central conviction held by artificial intelligence boosters, but largely ignored in public discussions of the technology, is that the ultimate fulfillment of the A.I. revolution will require the deployment of microscopic robots into our veins. In the short term, A.I. may help us print clothing on demand, help prevent cancer and liberate half of the work force. But to…

Hacking my brain implant wouldn’t do much, he asserted, adding, “You might be able to see like some of the brain signals. You might be able to see some of the data that Neuralink’s collecting.”

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Norland Arbaugh did not specify the data that is being collected by Neuralink chip which is almost the size of a coin and contains thousands of electrodes that monitor and stimulate brain activity, as per the company. This information is digitally transmitted to researchers.

Using cryo-electron microscopy, the structural mechanism by which non-coding bridge RNA confers target and donor DNA specificity to IS110 recombinases for programmable DNA recombination is explored.

Summary: Researchers successfully connected lab-grown brain tissues, mimicking the complex networks found in the human brain. This novel method involves linking “neural organoids” with axonal bundles, enabling the study of interregional brain connections and their role in human cognitive functions.

The connected organoids exhibited more sophisticated activity patterns, demonstrating both the generation and synchronization of electrical activity akin to natural brain functions. This breakthrough not only enhances our understanding of brain network development and plasticity but also opens new avenues for researching neurological and psychiatric disorders, offering hope for more effective treatments.