Sculpting structures with cells and light

from the new-art-form-or-stunt? dept.
John Doe brings our attention to an Oct. 20 report in Nature Science Update on a new use of optical tweezers by chemist George Whitesides et al: "Harvard scientists have made tiny sculptures from cells, pieced together one by one like building bricks. This technique is not simply an exercise in micro-aesthetics: it could one day be used to make biological sensors, or even replacement organs." CP: Work by George Whitesides just keeps showing up all over the place — Harvard's PR dept must be working hard.

Nanomedicine book gets rave review

from the sounds-like-he-liked-it dept.
Greg Fahy of UCLA Medical has published a review in Life Extension magazine of Freitas's book Nanomedicine: "Nanomedicine is an endlessly impressive and uniquely important book. Like Newtonís Principia and Drexlerís Nanosystems, it stands as a marker between all that has come before, and all that will come in the future. For it is effectively a blueprint for the futureóessentially the whole futureóof health, longevity and medicine. It is not quite a predictionópredictions are notoriously difficultóbut is instead an engineering sketch of what will be possible for medicine based on the laws of physics and chemistry, when humankind can do everything consistent with those laws of physics. Despite its focus on the ultimate future of medicine, Nanomedicine is relevant to nearly everyone alive today and now, in many ways. It may save many lives, and it will certainly elevate many more. It is, in a sense, a gift from the future to those of us living in the present."

Microbot Arm Can Work On A Single Cell

from the not-even-the-rain-has-such-small-fingers dept.
Several folks told the tale (also reported on Slashdot) of a 670 µm microbot developed at Linköping U., Sweden. The published paper, in Science, is available online.

From the abstract: "This microrobotic arm can pick up, lift, move, and place micrometer-size objects within an area of about 250 micrometers by 100 micrometers, making the microrobot an excellent tool for single-cell manipulation." (The researchers do not claim the ability to manipulate single cells in vivo, however.)

Early nanomedicine: "nanodecoys" defeat viruses

from the if-we-don't-get-colds-are-we-still-human? dept.
From a HealthSCOUT report: Imagine being able to fight a virus even before infection occurs. Researchers say they've done just that (at least in a petri dish), preventing cells from becoming infected with the influenza virus…Their technique employs nanodecoys, super-small molecules that bind to viruses before they enter cells and cause disease. Invented by study co-author Donald Tomalia, scientific director of the University of Michigan's Center for Biologic Nanotechnology, nanodecoys are just a few billionths of a meter across…The decoys can multiply, producing different generations that are larger than their predecessors — meaning that a larger, later-generation decoy potentially could hold a larger drug molecule in its interior zone…[co-author Esfand] also speculates that nanodecoys could be used on mucosal surfaces, such as the nasal passages, or in air-mask filters to fight biological warfare agents.

Immortality prevention described as "unlikely"

from the "a-little-knowledge-is-a-dangerous-thing" dept.
Saturn Graphix writes "In Daily Telegraph Full Article Here
'Why science may bring curse of immortality' by Roger Highfield
Better treatment of disease could lead to 'generational cleansing' as people live longer, an ethical expert warned last week [in the journal Science]. The elderly could be condemned to death by suicide or euthanasia after an allotted lifespan as medical advances raise the maximum age beyond 120, according to Dr John Harris, professor of bioethics at Manchester University. Professor Harris said a side-effect of research to treat the diseases of old age, such as dementia, cancer and arthritis, could be to extend the maximum age to immortality…He said it was unlikely that we could stop the progression to longer lifespans and even immortality. 'We should start thinking now about how we can live decently and creatively with the prospect of such lives.' "
CP: Some of us are already doing so.

"Say Ah!" article now online

from the hurry-up-we're-aging-fast dept.
Senior Associate RFreitas writes "If anyone would like to read my recent nontechnical nanomedicine article "Say Ah!", published in the July/August 2000 issue of The Sciences, it is now online." An excerpt: "The goals of nanorobotics may seem overblown, even wacky, to people today. But consider that, as recently as 1874, the British surgeon Sir John Eric Erichsen predicted that 'the abdomen, the chest, and the brain will be forever shut from the intrusion of the wise and humane surgeon.'…The hope and the dream is that, sometime in the not-too-distant future, [miniature medical] devices will be able to eliminate virtually all the common diseases of the twentieth century, and virtually all bodily pain and suffering as well."

Antioxidant therapy greatly extends nematode lifespans

from the eat-right,-live-well-(and-long) dept.

Two press releases on joint research by the Buck Center for Research in Aging and Emory University describe "using drugs that help eliminate oxygen radicals — the toxic byproducts of metabolism — scientists have extended the normal lifespan of the nematode worm C. elegans by approximately 50 percent. In addition, the scientists restored a normal lifespan to mutant worms that had a mitochondrial defect causing increased oxygen radical production and rapid aging."

The drugs used in the study were actually modified versions of naturally-occurring antioxidant enzymes. The findings were reported in the 1 September 2000 issue of the jouranl Science.

Prion linked to Alzheimer's and Mad Cow Diseases

from the Oh-that-explains-everything dept.

A researcher at Nankai University in Tianjin, China has found a link between degenerative brain diseases and prions. The work is described in this press release.

"This suggests a common molecular mechanism underlying the initiation stages of sporadic Alzheimer's disease and both sporadic and genetic prion diseases," says the study's lead researcher, Chi Ming Yang, Ph.D., a professor of chemistry at Nankai University. The research indicates that a source of prion-generated diseases may be damage to normal proteins caused by free radicals.

Stem cell ethics: primitive medicine causes disputes

from the Gush-vs-Bore dept.
Paul Ryan brings to our attention this LA Times story on the political controversy over stem cell use. Don't we all look forward to the day when we have real nanomedicine that doesn't require these bizarre kludges?

Freitas wins Drexler Prize … in year 2050

from the that's-great-but-is-there-any-cash-involved? dept.
The official journal of the Transplantation Society (Graft) has published a "future issue" set in the year 2050, in which Senior Associate Rob Freitas gives a keynote address accepting the 31st Annual Drexler Prize in Nanomedicine on the topic "Respirocytes in Nanomedicine: The Remarkable Story of One of the First Medical Nanorobots Ever Conceived". (Artwork contributed by Senior Associates Forrest Bishop and Philip Van Nedervelde.) Congratulations in advance, Rob!

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