DNA, Science & Technology News

DNAzymes could outperform protein enzymes for genetic engineering

Chemistry professor Yi Lu led a team that developed a technique that allows DNAzymes to cut double-stranded DNA, enabling a wide range of genetic engineering applications.

by Liz Ahlberg Touchstone , University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Move over, gene-editing proteins—there’s a smaller, cheaper, more specific genetic engineering tool on the block: DNAzymes—small DNA molecules that can function like protein enzymes.

Researchers at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign have developed a technique that, for the first time, allows DNAzymes to target and cut double-stranded DNA, overcoming a significant limitation of the technology. DNAzymes have been used in biosensing, DNA computing and many other applications. However, when it comes to genetic engineering applications such as gene editing or gene therapy, they have faced a challenge: DNAzymes have only been able to target sites on single-stranded DNA, while the DNA coding for genes in cells is double-stranded. The researchers published their new technique in the Journal of the American Chemical Society.

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Batteries, Science & Technology News

Why ‘nuclear batteries’ offer a new approach to carbon-free energy

By David L. Chandler , Massachusetts Institute of Technology

This cut-away rendering of the MIT nuclear battery concept shows important components such as the instrumentation and control module, the reactor, and the power module. Credit: Massachusetts Institute of Technology

We may be on the brink of a new paradigm for nuclear power, a group of nuclear specialists suggested recently in The Bridge, the journal of the National Academy of Engineering. Much as large, expensive, and centralized computers gave way to the widely distributed PCs of today, a new generation of relatively tiny and inexpensive factory-built reactors, designed for autonomous plug-and-play operation similar to plugging in an oversized battery, is on the horizon, they say.

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Medical Breakthrough, Science & Technology News

New Technique Allows Researchers to Custom 3D Print Bacteria-Resistant Medical Devices

By Vanesa Listek

A team of engineers and health experts led by mechanics professor Ricky Wildman from the University of Nottingham, UK, found a new way to design and manufacture custom medical devices to boost performance and bacterial resistance. Using a combination of multi-material inkjet 3D printing and genetic algorithms, the researchers designed tailored composite artificial body parts and other medical devices with built-in functionality that offer better shape and durability while cutting the risk of bacterial infection at the same time. The study opens the possibility of a new manufacturing concept to produce devices with spatially distributed, customizable material functionalities in a cost-effective manner.

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Science & Technology News, Space Flight

Dreams Come True: First-Ever Luxury Space Hotel Nears Launch

Illustration of the Voyager hotel

By  Chris Young

The first prototype for an orbital hotel with artificial gravity may launch as soon as 2023.

The Orbital Assembly Corporation, a space construction firm run by NASA veterans, announced in a press statement today, June 24, that it has successfully demonstrated its technology for developing the world’s first space hotel.

The company carried out the demonstration during the official opening of its Fontana, California Facility, which will serve as its main headquarters as it aims to make luxury space holidays a reality before 2030.

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drones, Science & Technology News

You Must Pass the FAA’s TRUST Test to Legally Fly a Drone in the U.S.

By JARON SCHNEIDER

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has released its TRUST test, a free online training program to certify that pilots understand the rules of drone flight. It is required in order to fly a drone, even recreationally. 

The Recreational UAS Safety Test, otherwise known as TRUST, applies to all pilots. Even those who just operate a drone “for fun or personal enjoyment” must take this test in order to legally fly in the United States. If a drone weighs more than 0.55 pounds, pilots must additionally register it through the FAA’s Drone Zone.

The test is designed to provide education and testing for recreational flyers on important safety and regulatory information. The FAA says that even pilots who fly drones recreationally under the Exception for Recreational Flyers — which includes drone flights for educational purposes — must pass the test before they can legally fly.

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Food, Science & Technology News

5,000 burgers a day: World’s first cultured meat-production plant opens in Israel

Rehovot-based Future Meat‘s plant makes cell-based, slaughter-free meat production a reality.

BY NOGA MARTIN

 The world’s first industrial cultured meat facility has opened in the city of Rehovot, home to the Weizmann Institute of Science and the Hebrew University of Jerusalem Faculty of Agriculture, Israeli slaughter-free meat-production startup Future Meat Technologies announced on Wednesday.

With the capability to produce 500 kilograms (1,102 pounds) of cultured products a day, equivalent to 5,000 hamburgers, this facility makes scalable cell-based meat production a reality.

“This facility opening marks a huge step in Future Meat Technologies’ path to market, serving as a critical enabler to bring our products to shelves by 2022,” said Rom Kshuk, CEO of Future Meat Technologies. “Having a running industrial line accelerates key processes such as regulation and product development.”

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Science & Technology News, VR

Study suggests VR games may help children better cope with painful medical procedures

by Johns Hopkins University

A recent study by Johns Hopkins Medicine researchers suggests that gameplaying using virtual reality (VR) headsets may provide an engaging and practical distraction therapy for children undergoing painful medical procedures, such as venipunctures. Credit: Public domain, Jessica Lewis

Dealing with a painful medical procedure is difficult for anyone, but often more so if the patient is a child. For example, a venipuncture—the penetrating of a vein for a procedure such as drawing blood or inserting an intravenous tube—may make a young patient anxious or uneasy. Many hospitals, including Johns Hopkins Children’s Center (JHCC), have a dedicated child life services team to help children cope with these procedures, while others depend on more traditional methods of diversions such as toys or books. Now, a recent study by Johns Hopkins Medicine researchers suggests that gameplaying using virtual reality (VR) headsets—if the games are appropriate and carefully chosen for pediatric clinical situations—may be an engaging and practical addition to the list of distraction therapy options.

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Medical Breakthrough, Science & Technology News

No lab required: New technology can diagnose infections in minutes


McMaster University researcher Richa Pandey displays new technology that can analyze a medical sample and return an accurate, definitive result in minutes. Credit: McMaster University

The idea of visiting the doctor’s office with symptoms of an illness and leaving with a scientifically confirmed diagnosis is much closer to reality because of new technology developed by researchers at McMaster University.

Engineering, biochemistry and medical researchers from across campus have combined their skills to create a hand-held rapid test for bacterial infections that can produce accurate, reliable results in less than an hour, eliminating the need to send samples to a lab.

Their proof-of-concept research, published today in the journal Nature Chemistry, specifically describes the test’s effectiveness in diagnosing urinary tract infections from real clinical samples. The researchers are adapting the test to detect other forms of bacteria and for the rapid diagnosis of viruses, including COVID-19. They also plan to test its viability for detecting markers of cancer.

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AI, Science & Technology News

Sidekicks holographic AI companion robot

By Julian Horsey

Sidekicks are a unique take on the trend for AI companion robots” offering a holographic artificial intelligent friend which is voice-enabled and equipped with emotions and more. Equipped with a holographic display the Sidekick artificial intelligent companion has been designed to interact with its owner offering a variety of different features. Launched via Kickstarter this month the project has already raised is required pledge goal thanks to over 160 backers with still 23 days remaining. The AI companion is available as a digital application or can be housed in its own special environment.


Specially priced early bird pledges are now available for the innovative project from roughly $69 or £50 (depending on current exchange rates). If the Sidekicks campaign successfully raises its required pledge goal and fullfilment progresses smoothly, worldwide shipping is expected to take place sometime around January 2022. To learn more about the Sidekicks holographic AI companions.

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Science & Technology News, Virtual Reality

Varjo Reality Cloud lets you virtually experience a real place via ‘teleportation’

By Dean Takahashi

Varjo is unveiling its Reality Cloud platform for virtual teleportation. That means one person can capture the reality of a space in a particular location and share that reality in extreme detail for a remote person to experience, virtually.

The Varjo Reality Cloud shares the details of a room in photorealistic detail, showing someone remotely located a view of the room in real time. Yes, you read that. Varjo lets one person scan a 3D space and another person experience it virtually at almost the same time, as it can transfer the necessary data in compact streams of 10 megabits-to-30 megabits per second with almost no time delays, the company said.

It’s a pretty amazing technology that comes from the pioneering work that Varjo has done in creating high-end virtual reality and mixed reality headsets for enterprises such Volvo, which uses it to design cars in virtual environments.

The caveat, of course, is if the tech really works as envisioned.

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