Technology – Page 921 – Shamskm: A site to exchange knowledge and solutions

Scientists Use Animal-Free Reagents to Create Clinical-Grade Neurons from Skin Cells

Using a specially designed facility, UCLA stem cell scientists have taken human skin cells, reprogrammed them into cells with the same unlimited property as embryonic stem cells, and then differentiated them into neurons while completely avoiding the use of animal-based reagents and feeder conditions throughout the process.

Generally, stem cells are grown using mouse “feeder” cells, which help the stem cells flourish and grow. But such animal-based products can lead to unwanted variations and contamination, and the cells must be thoroughly tested before they can be deemed safe for use in humans. (more…)

Growing U.S. Violent Extremism – Facts on the Ground: UMD Database

COLLEGE PARK, Md. – Over the past decade, attacks and plots by homegrown terrorists in the United States have increased, the work of extremists from across the political spectrum – roughly 40 percent of it by so-called ‘lone wolf,’ non-aligned actors – says an analysis by the National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism (START) based at the University of Maryland.

The statistics underscore the threat addressed in a White House plan released Thursday: Strategic Implementation Plan for Empowering Local Partners to Prevent Violent Extremism in the United States – a blueprint for “building community resilience against violent extremism.” (more…)

A Better Way to ID Extreme Weather Events in Climate Models

Berkeley Lab scientists help automate the search for hurricanes and other storms in huge datasets

You’d think that spotting a category 5 hurricane would never be difficult. But when the hurricane is in a global climate model that spans several decades, it becomes a fleeting wisp among mountains of data. (more…)

Novel Nanoparticle Mimicking Virus Offers New Route to Gene Therapy

Researchers at Yale University have developed a novel nanoparticle with promising applications in gene therapy, a type of medical treatment that addresses the root causes of diseases now typically treated for symptoms.

The advance could lead to new therapies for many forms of cancer, including brain tumors, as well as for cystic fibrosis and Huntington’s Disease. (more…)

The Heart of The Plant

Palo Alto, CA — Food prices are soaring at the same time as the Earth’s population is nearing 9 billion. As a result the need for increased crop yields is extremely important. New research led by Carnegie’s Wolf Frommer into the system by which sugars are moved throughout a plant—from the leaves to the harvested portions and elsewhere—could be crucial for addressing this problem. Their work is published December 8 by Science Express. (more…)

MU Veterinarians Find Infections Faster By Monitoring Blood Compound

Blood test for dogs could lead to similar human test; severe infections kill more than half of patients

COLUMBIA, Mo. – In pets and people, the time it takes to diagnose an infection may mean life or death. Now, a University of Missouri veterinarian is identifying ways to diagnose pet infections in approximately a third of the current diagnosis time. The resulting test could be used eventually for humans. (more…)

UCLA Study Finds U.S. Has More Elected, Appointed Asian American Officials Than Ever

More Asian Pacific Americans hold public office in the United States than at any other time in U.S. history, a sign of the community’s growing engagement with the political process, according to a newly released political almanac published by UCLA’s Asian American Studies Center.

The 14th edition of the National Asian Pacific American Political Almanac, first published in 1976, contains information on all 3,000 current elected and appointed officials. It also analyzes political trends and makes electoral projections of the nation’s 17 million Asian Pacific Americans. (more…)

Body Rebuilding: Scientists Regenerate Muscle in Mice

New Study Uses Reprogrammed Human Cells and Bioengineered Microthreads

A team of scientists from Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) and CellThera, a private company located in WPI’s Life Sciences and Bioengineering Center, have regenerated functional muscle tissue in mice, opening the door for a new clinical therapy to treat people who suffer major muscle trauma. (more…)