31 Jul

Posted at 18:38h in Scoop.it

A Nature study authored by a global team of scientists and led by Sumit Chanda, Ph.D., professor at Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute, has identified 21 existing drugs that stop the replication of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19.

 

The scientists analyzed one of the world’s largest collections of known drugs for their ability to block the replication of SARS-CoV-2, and reported 100 molecules with confirmed antiviral activity in laboratory tests. Of these, 21 drugs were determined to be effective at concentrations that could be safely achieved in patients. Notably, four of these compounds were found to work synergistically with remdesivir, a current standard-of-care treatment for COVID-19.

 

Sourced through Scoop.it from: www.sbpdiscovery.org

28 Jul

Posted at 10:55h in Scoop.it

Scientists at the University of California, Davis, have successfully produced a bull calf, named Cosmo, who was genome-edited as an embryo so that he’ll produce more male offspring. The research was presented in a poster today (July 23) at the American Society of Animal Science meeting. Using the genome-editing technology CRISPR, researchers can make targeted cuts to the genome or insert useful genes, which is called a gene knock-in.

  

MORE MALES, MORE BEEF

 

 

Sourced through Scoop.it from: www.ucdavis.edu

24 Jul

Posted at 14:55h in Scoop.it

Just how old is the Universe? Astrophysicists have been debating this question for decades. In recent years, new scientific measurements have suggested the universe may be hundreds of millions of years younger than its previously estimated age of approximately 13.8 billions of years.

 

Now new research published in a series of papers by an international team of astrophysicists, including Neelima Sehgal, PhD, from Stony Brook University, suggest the universe is about 13.8 billion years old. By using observations from the Atacama Cosmology Telescope (ACT) in Chile, their findings match the measurements of the Planck satellite data of the same ancient light.

 

 

Sourced through Scoop.it from: news.stonybrook.edu

24 Jul

Posted at 14:52h in Scoop.it

Virginia Tech researchers have proven that a single gene can convert female Aedes aegypti mosquitoes into fertile male mosquitoes and identified a gene needed for male mosquito flight.

 

Male mosquitoes do not bite and are unable to transmit pathogens to humans. Female mosquitoes, on the other hand, are able to bite.

Female Aedes aegypti mosquitoes require blood to produce eggs, making them the prime carriers of the pathogens that cause Zika and dengue fever in humans.

 

 

Sourced through Scoop.it from: vtnews.vt.edu

18 Jul

Posted at 18:15h in Scoop.it

As the coronavirus pandemic continues, it’s becoming clear that, for the foreseeable future at least, face masks are here to stay. They’re mandatory on public transport, they’re compulsory in shops in Scotland, and from July 24, shoppers will need to wear them in England or face a £100 fine.

But as we all don our masks as evidence in favour of the garment’s effectiveness in curbing the spread of coronavirus mounts, obscuring part of our face is having a detrimental effect on how some of us communicate with each other.

 

Sourced through Scoop.it from: www.wired.co.uk