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Advanced Imaging Technique Reveals Immune Cell Metabolic States in Blood Samples

Advanced Imaging Technique Reveals Immune Cell Metabolic States in Blood Samples

Scientists at the Morgridge Institute for Research have developed an advanced imaging technique, Optical Metabolic Imaging (OMI), capable of characterizing the metabolic activity within individual immune cells from peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs). This method, detailed in Biophotonics Discovery, offers a non-destructive way to assess immune cell function, providing more detailed information than traditional cell counts. PBMCs, which are predominantly immune cells, are crucial for understanding disease progression and treatment effects in conditions like certain cancers and immune disorders. The OMI technique utilizes two long-wavelength photons to excite the inherent fluorescence of cell metabolism products, allowing researchers to identify whether PBMCs are metabolically active or quiescent without damaging the cells or requiring chemical labels. This approach achieved 93% accuracy in identifying metabolic states two hours after cell stimulation and could specifically identify quiescent and act...
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Eric Perreault Appointed CEO of Morgridge Institute for Research

Eric Perreault Appointed CEO of Morgridge Institute for Research

Eric Perreault, a distinguished research executive, academic leader, and biomedical engineering professor at Northwestern University, has been named the third Chief Executive Officer of the Morgridge Institute for Research. His tenure is set to commence in early 2027. The Morgridge Institute, an independent biomedical research organization closely affiliated with the University of Wisconsin–Madison, focuses on advancing biomedical frontiers to enhance human health. Perreault will lead a team comprising 24 investigators and nearly 200 additional members with expertise spanning biomedical sciences, engineering, science communication, ethics, and public engagement. The Morgridge Institute Board of Trustees selected Perreault in August following a national search for a successor to current CEO Brad Schwartz, who announced his retirement earlier this year. Schwartz will continue to lead the institute until Perreault assumes his role. Perreault's extensive background includes serving as Northwestern’s vice presi...
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Orca Bio to Present Clinical Data on TREGZI™ and Pipeline at Hematologic Oncology Meeting

Orca Bio to Present Clinical Data on TREGZI™ and Pipeline at Hematologic Oncology Meeting

Orca Bio, a commercial-stage biotechnology company based in Menlo Park, California, has announced that three clinical data and study updates will be presented and published at the 14th Annual Meeting of the Society of Hematologic Oncology. The meeting is scheduled to take place from September 9-12 in Houston, Texas. The presentations will include new data on TREGZI™, Orca Bio's recently FDA-approved precision-engineered cell therapy for allogeneic transplant in adults with hematologic malignancies. Additionally, an encore presentation will cover Orca Bio’s investigational allogeneic T-cell immunotherapy, Orca-Q®. Nate Fernhoff, Ph.D., co-founder and chief executive officer of Orca Bio, emphasized the importance of this event for sharing information about TREGZI's profile with the hematology community and providing updates on the company's clinical development program. The presentations will detail infection events with TREGZI versus conventional allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (alloHSCT)...
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Mansfield University Team Develops Tools to Detect Microplastics in Living Tissue

Mansfield University Team Develops Tools to Detect Microplastics in Living Tissue

A student-faculty team at Commonwealth University-Mansfield is developing innovative tools to detect and quantify microplastics within living biological tissue. Led by associate professors Elaine Farkas (chemistry and physics) and Kristen Long (biological sciences), and graduate student Jay Diya, the research focuses on isolating microplastics from mammalian tissue without damaging them. Diya is employing gentler enzyme-based methods to digest animal tissue, a departure from harsh chemicals that can destroy plastics. This meticulous process involves fluorescent microscopy and flow cytometry to track and count the tiny particles. The project, which began in 2018 with undergraduates Katherine Thompson and Cody McUmber, aims to understand where microplastics accumulate in organisms and their biological effects. McUmber's early work included initial mouse studies and examining liver histology for immune cell changes, laying the groundwork for deeper immunological questions.
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Aging Clocks Show Promise for Longevity Interventions but Face Reliability Challenges

Aging Clocks Show Promise for Longevity Interventions but Face Reliability Challenges

Aging clocks, developed using machine learning techniques on biological data, are designed to predict age-related conditions and mortality risk. These clocks utilize various data types, including omics data, clinical chemistry results from blood tests, and imaging data. When applied to individuals, a higher predicted age compared to chronological age often correlates with increased mortality risk and the presence of age-related conditions. The primary goal for these aging clocks is to provide a rapid assessment tool for novel longevity interventions, potentially eliminating the need for lengthy, decade-spanning clinical trials. However, a significant challenge remains: ensuring the reliability of these clocks in assessing the efficacy of new interventions. There is currently no direct, well-mapped connection between the data used to derive these clocks and the underlying mechanisms of aging, making it difficult to predict whether a given clock will accurately estimate the effects of a treatment without ext...
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VedaBio Partners with UCP Merchant Medicine to Position CRISPR Molecular Diagnostics for Urgent Care Market

VedaBio Partners with UCP Merchant Medicine to Position CRISPR Molecular Diagnostics for Urgent Care Market

VedaBio Partners with UCP Merchant Medicine to Position CRISPR Molecular Diagnostics for Urgent Care Market
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Aitia and Ono Pharmaceutical Partner to Advance Neurological Drug Discovery Using AI

Aitia and Ono Pharmaceutical Partner to Advance Neurological Drug Discovery Using AI

Aitia and Ono Pharmaceutical Partner to Advance Neurological Drug Discovery Using AI
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Precision Oncology Integrates Genomics and Multi-faceted Patient Care for Tailored Cancer Treatment

Precision Oncology Integrates Genomics and Multi-faceted Patient Care for Tailored Cancer Treatment

Precision oncology is evolving beyond simple mutation-to-drug matching by integrating genomics with various aspects of patient care. This approach utilizes serial molecular profiling and liquid biopsies to monitor tumor evolution, allowing for dynamic adjustments in treatment strategies. It combines genomic insights with considerations for metabolism, nutrition, immune-directed strategies, natural medicines, repurposed pharmaceuticals, and conventional oncology. The goal is to understand how a tumor grows, metabolizes, resists treatment, and evades immune surveillance, and then to target these vulnerabilities. Next-generation sequencing (NGS) plays a crucial role by providing a detailed molecular map of an individual patient's cancer, moving away from treating cancers solely based on their tissue of origin. This comprehensive strategy aims to create a more personalized and effective cancer treatment plan.
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VedaBio Partners with UCP Merchant Medicine to Integrate CRISPR Molecular Diagnostics into Urgent Care

VedaBio Partners with UCP Merchant Medicine to Integrate CRISPR Molecular Diagnostics into Urgent Care

VedaBio, a biotechnology company based in San Diego, California, has announced a multi-year partnership with UCP Merchant Medicine (UCPMM), a health system management company specializing in urgent care. This collaboration aims to position VedaBio's target amplification-free, CRISPR-based molecular diagnostics platform for the urgent care channel. The pre-launch groundwork will commence immediately, in anticipation of VedaBio's commercial launch, which is contingent upon FDA clearance. UCPMM, which serves 78 health system clients and over 300 urgent care centers across all 50 states, will leverage its extensive network and expertise to establish market expectations, performance benchmarks, training requirements, and pricing references for VedaBio's platform. The goal is to ensure the platform's successful integration into urgent care settings, addressing the significant unmet need for rapid, accurate, and accessible molecular testing in decentralized healthcare environments. Urgent care centers handle hund...
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Microbial Food Industry Shifts Focus to Manufacturing Readiness for Commercial Success

Microbial Food Industry Shifts Focus to Manufacturing Readiness for Commercial Success

Microbial Food Industry Shifts Focus to Manufacturing Readiness for Commercial Success
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AI Achieves Human-Level Performance in RNA Pseudoknot Folding, Advancing RNA-Based Therapeutics

AI Achieves Human-Level Performance in RNA Pseudoknot Folding, Advancing RNA-Based Therapeutics

Researchers from Stanford University and Carnegie Mellon University, collaborating through the citizen-science platform Eterna, have demonstrated that artificial intelligence (AI) can achieve performance comparable to experienced human designers in predicting and designing RNA pseudoknot structures. This breakthrough, published in 'Science,' involved an 'Openknot' competition where AI models and human participants were tasked with designing RNA base sequences to fold into specific pseudoknot structures. Initially, human participants outperformed most AI methods. However, by training an AI model called 'RNet' on approximately one million existing RNA data points, AI performance significantly improved. In two rounds of 20 challenges each, both AI and human designers successfully produced highly accurate structures for 19 challenges in each round. Further experiments using cryo-electron microscopy confirmed that some AI-designed RNAs not only formed the intended pseudoknot secondary structures but also create...
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Researchers Develop Spirulina with Bioavailable Vitamin B12, Offering Sustainable Alternative to Meat

Researchers Develop Spirulina with Bioavailable Vitamin B12, Offering Sustainable Alternative to Meat

Scientists have successfully cultivated Spirulina, a blue-green algae, to produce biologically active vitamin B12 at levels comparable to beef. This breakthrough, detailed in the scientific journal Discover Food, addresses a significant nutritional limitation of traditional Spirulina, which contains a form of B12 not bioavailable to humans. The research team, led by Dr. Asaf Tzachor of Reichman University, utilized advanced biotechnology and controlled light conditions to achieve this. The resulting carbon-neutral Spirulina biomass contains 1.64 µg of active vitamin B12 per 100 grams, surpassing the 0.7-1.5 µg per 100 grams found in beef. This development could provide a sustainable solution to vitamin B12 deficiency, a condition affecting over a billion people globally, while reducing reliance on animal agriculture. The cultivated Spirulina also exhibited other beneficial compounds with antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and immune-boosting properties.