Lifeboat Foundation

Scientists at the Max Planck Institute have developed a synthetic pathway that can capture CO₂ from the air more efficiently than in nature, and shown how to implement it into living bacteria. The technique could help make biofuels and other products in a sustainable way.

Plants are famous for their ability to convert carbon dioxide from the air into chemical energy to fuel their growth. With way too much CO₂ in the atmosphere already and more being blasted out every day, it’s no wonder scientists are turning to this natural process to help rein levels back in, while producing fuels and other useful molecules on the side.

In the new study, Max Planck scientists developed a brand new CO₂-fixation pathway that works even better than nature’s own tried-and-true method. They call it the THETA cycle, and it uses 17 different biocatalysts to produce a molecule called acetyl-CoA, which is a key building block in a range of biofuels, materials and pharmaceuticals.

READ MORE: Suspected cyberattack renders most gas stations in Iran out of service

The hacking of the Municipal Water Authority of Aliquippa is prompting new warnings from U.S. security officials at a time when states and the federal government are wrestling with how to harden water utilities against cyberattacks.

The danger, officials say, is hackers gaining control of automated equipment to shut down pumps that supply drinking water or contaminate drinking water by reprogramming automated chemical treatments. Besides Iran, other potentially hostile geopolitical rivals, including China, are viewed by U.S. officials as a threat.

Artificial intelligence (AI) has been advancing rapidly, but its inner workings often remain obscure, characterized by a “black box” nature where the process of reaching conclusions is not visible. However, a significant breakthrough has been made by Prof. Dr. Jürgen Bajorath and his team, cheminformatics experts at the University of Bonn. They have devised a technique that uncovers the operational mechanisms of certain AI systems used in pharmaceutical research.

Surprisingly, their findings indicate that these AI models primarily rely on recalling existing data rather than learning specific chemical interactions for predicting the effectiveness of drugs. Their results have recently been published in Nature Machine Intelligence.

Which drug molecule is most effective? Researchers are feverishly searching for efficient active substances to combat diseases. These compounds often dock onto protein, which usually are enzymes or receptors that trigger a specific chain of physiological actions.

Why let minor quibbles like the laws of causality get in the way of charging batteries?

Integrating large language models (LLMs) into various scientific domains has notably reshaped research methodologies. Among these advancements, an innovative system named Coscientist has emerged, as outlined in the paper “Autonomous chemical research with large language models,” authored by researchers from Carnegie Mellon University and Emerald Cloud Lab. This groundbreaking system, powered by multiple LLMs, is a pivotal achievement in the convergence of language models and laboratory automation technologies.

Coscientist comprises several intricately designed modules, with its cornerstone being the ‘Planner.’ This module operates using a GPT-4 chat completion instance, functioning as an interactive assistant capable of understanding user commands such as ‘GOOGLE,’ ‘PYTHON,’ ‘DOCUMENTATION,’ and ‘EXPERIMENT.’ Additionally, the ‘Web Searcher’ module, fueled by GPT-4, significantly enhances synthesis planning. Notably, it has exhibited exceptional performance in trials involving acetaminophen, aspirin, nitroaniline, and phenolphthalein. The ‘Code execution’ module, triggered by the ‘PYTHON’ command, facilitates experiment preparation calculations. Meanwhile, the ‘Automation’ command, guided by the ‘DOCUMENTATION’ module, implements experiment automation via APIs.

The prowess of the GPT-4-powered Web Searcher module in synthesis planning is evident in its success across diverse trials, demonstrating a capacity for efficient exploration and decision-making in chemical synthesis. Furthermore, the documentation search module equips Coscientist with the ability to utilize tailored technical documentation efficiently, enhancing its API utilization accuracy and improving overall experiment automation performance.

In a comprehensive review, researchers from Soochow University, Beijing Graphene Institute and Xiamen Silan Advanced Compound Semiconductor Co., Ltd. have collaborated to provide a systematic overview of the progress and potential applications of graphene as a buffer layer for nitride epitaxial growth.

The paper brings together perspectives from academia, research institutions, and semiconductor industry professionals to propose solutions for critical issues in semiconductor technology.

Graphene, a two-dimensional material known for its exceptional electrical and mechanical properties, has garnered significant interest for its prospective use in the growth of nitride semiconductors. Despite notable advancements in the chemical vapor deposition (CVD) growth of graphene on various insulating substrates, producing high-quality graphene and achieving optimal interface compatibility with Group III-nitride materials remain major challenges in the field.

A team of researchers from the ITACA Institute of the Universitat Politècnica de València (UPV) and the Research Institute of Chemical Technology, a joint center of the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC) and the UPV, has discovered a new method for the manufacture of metal nanocatalysts that is more sustainable and economical.

With great potential in the industrial sector, the method would contribute to the decarbonization of industry. The work has been published in the journal ACS Nano.

This new method is based on the exsolution process activated by microwave radiation. Exsolution is a method of generating metallic nanoparticles on the surface of ceramic materials. “At elevated temperatures and in a reducing atmosphere (usually hydrogen), metal atoms migrate from the structure of the material to its surface, forming metal nanoparticles anchored to the surface. This anchoring significantly increases the strength and stability of these nanoparticles, which positively impacts the efficiency of these catalysts,” explains Beatriz García Baños, a researcher in the Microwave Area of the ITACA Institute at the UPV.

Every year I compile what I think were some important contributions to longevity research. Here is my list for 2023.\
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Intro — 00:00\
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What causes aging? — 00:32\
Hallmarks Of Aging: An Expanding Universe \
The DREAM Complex Functions As Conserved Master Regulator Of Somatic DNA-Repair Capacities \
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Biomarkers — 02:00\
The Aging Biomarker Consortium Represents A New Era For Aging Research In China\
Longitudinal fundus imaging and its genome-wide association analysis provide evidence for a human retinal aging clock\
A Foundation Model For Generalizable Disease Detection From Retinal Images\
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Cellular reprogramming — 04:30\
Chemically induced reprogramming to reverse cellular aging\
Loss of epigenetic information as a cause of mammalian aging\
In vivo reprogramming leads to premature death linked to hepatic and intestinal failure\
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Lifespan extension — 07:30\
Astaxanthin and meclizine extend lifespan in UM-HET3 male mice; fisetin, SG1002 (hydrogen sulfide donor), dimethyl fumarate, mycophenolic acid, and 4-phenylbutyrate do not significantly affect lifespan in either sex at the doses and schedules used\
Taurine deficiency as a driver of aging\
Dietary supplementation of clinically utilized PI3K p110α inhibitor extends the lifespan of male and female mice\
Optogenetic Rejuvenation Of Mitochondrial Membrane Potential Extends C. Elegans Lifespan\
Reversal Of Biological Age In Multiple Rat Organs By Young Porcine Plasma Fraction\
Multi-Omic Rejuvenation And Life Span Extension On Exposure To Youthful Circulation\
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Biotechnology — 13:50\
Intravascularly infused extracellular matrix as a biomaterial for targeting and treating inflamed tissues\
Intradermally delivered mRNA-encapsulating extracellular vesicles for collagen-replacement therapy\
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Why we age — 15:15\
Ageing as a software design flaw\
The Longevity Bottleneck Hypothesis: Could Dinosaurs Have Shaped Ageing In Present‐Day Mammals?\
Reconsidering Life History Theory Amid Infectious Diseases\
Blood Group A Enhances SARS-CoV-2 Infection\
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What’s next? — 16:50\
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There are many items missing from this list — these are only the papers I found time to read. Please post below any I missed! \
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ICYMI\
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2022 longevity papers\
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2021 longevity papers\
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Please note that The Sheekey Science Show is distinct from Eleanor Sheekey’s teaching and research roles at the University of Cambridge. The information provided in this show is not medical advice, nor should it be taken or applied as a replacement for medical advice. The Sheekey Science Show and guests assume no liability for the application of the information discussed.\
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Icons in intro; \.

Scientists studying the chemical makeup of asteroid Ryugu and the Murchison meteorite find intriguing differences in their organic molecules.