New Atlas

Biology Audio available

CRISPR breakthrough uses "hairpin lock" for more precise genetic engineering

Michael Irving April 16, 2019

The CRISPR gene-editing system is incredibly accurate, but it’s not unusual for it to be a little bit off target sometimes. Now, biomedical engineers at Duke University have created an RNA “lock” that can apparently make the system far more precise, and it works with all kinds of CRISPR variations.

The new hairpin lock – blue section at the top left – folds back on itself ...

Science Audio available

New evidence suggests life on Earth started in shallow ponds, not deep oceans

Michael Irving April 15, 2019

How did life emerge from non-living matter? The prevailing hypothesis is that life got started in the ocean, where hydrothermal vents provided just the right chemical reactions. But a new MIT study has found that ancient oceans probably didn’t have enough nitrogen – but shallow ponds might have.

A new study gives more evidence that life got started in shallow ponds, not the deep ...

Medical Audio available

Decade-long study reveals key "master switch" regulating immune system activity

Rich Haridy February 11, 2019

A huge variety of disease essentially stems from a dysfunctional immune system. After ten years of work a new study has revealed, for the first time, the discovery of a molecule that has been found to modulate the immune system’s activity.

It's hoped the discovery of an immune system "master switch" will lead to new clinical treatments ...

Medical Audio available

Inhalable RNA could breathe new life into lung cancer treatments

Michael Irving January 6, 2019

In the body, mRNA molecules are in charge of instructing cells to produce specific proteins, and hijacking this natural system is emerging as a promising new way to treat a wide variety of illnesses. A new inhalable mRNA aerosol could be a potential new treatment for cystic fibrosis or lung cancer.

Lung epithelial cells that have taken up the mRNA particles (yellow dots), which makes them glow ...

Science Audio available

Octopuses on ecstasy and the mummy juice conspiracy: The weirdest science stories of 2018

Rich Haridy December 27, 2018

Science is amazing, but sometimes scientists do get a little niche in their studies. Here is a list of the weirdest science stories we came across this year, from twerking robots to bizarre snail-to-snail memory transference and a fountain-of-youth sarcophagus conspiracy that sums up 2018.

New Atlas looks back at some of the weirder stories from the world of science in ...

Medical Audio available

Two experimental cancer drugs team up after unexpected discovery

Michael Irving December 4, 2018

Researchers at MIT have combined two experimental cancer drugs, protein kinase inhibitors and ribonuclease drugs, and found that they worked better together than alone. The discovery could help reduce side effects of cancer treatments and make them more effective.

MIT researchers have combined two experimental cancer drugs into one treatment that's more effective than either ...

Medical

Cellular kill code discovery may help extinguish cancers

Rich Haridy October 30, 2018

Research has discovered that inside every cell in the human body is a kill code designed to trigger self-destruction if it senses a cell is turning cancerous. Across two studies the scientists homed in on the code underlying this mechanism and believe it may lead to a new kind of cancer treatment.

An ancient mechanism can hopefully be appropriated in the future to develop a new way of ...

Medical Audio available

Promising new universal flu vaccine may be just a few years away from market

Rich Haridy August 22, 2018

A new study led by researchers at the University of Pennsylvania has demonstrated the efficacy of a new universal flu vaccine. Having been proven impressively effective in animal tests, the team hopes to move the vaccine into human trials within the next couple of years.

Yet another candidate is in the running to be the first safe and effective universal flu ...

Medical

First ever RNA-based gene-silencing drug approved by FDA, and it's not cheap

Rich Haridy August 12, 2018

Twenty years after the breakthrough discovery illustrating how RNA interference can be used to silence certain genes, and over a decade after the research won a Nobel prize, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved the first drug utilizing this method for adult clinical treatment.

Onpattro (patisiran) is the first RNA-interfering treatment to hit the market after nearly 20 years of ...

Science

Controversial study raises new doubts over unwanted genetic damage caused by CRISPR

Rich Haridy July 16, 2018

A new research paper has again raised doubts over the safety and accuracy of the CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing technique. The study suggests that the gene editing process can cause extensive unforeseen and unpredictable alterations to DNA sequences outside of the intended targets.

A study is raising new doubts over the accuracy of the CRISPR-Car9 gene editing technique