Latest Articles
Single-Cell DNA Sequencing Weaves a Way Towards Personalized Cancer Treatment
ArticleHigh-throughput single-cell analysis has been regularly acclaimed as a transformative technology for sequencing and a huge step towards the goal of personalized medicine. Will Tapestri, a sequencing platform developed by Mission Bio, be the game-changer in DNA analysis we have been waiting for?
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A Controversial World-first: Gene-Edited Human Babies
ArticleA Chinese scientist, He Jiankui, has claimed that he helped make the world-first gene-edited babies: two twin baby girls. Reportedly, he used CRISPR-Cas9 to edit embryos for seven couples during IVF fertility treatment, and engineered the embryos to possess resistance to HIV infection. He Jiankui, from the Southern University of Science and Technology, is now facing investigation over whether the experiment was illegal.
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Mitosis vs. Meiosis
ArticleMitosis and meiosis are two kinds of cell division that are essential to most forms of life on earth. Here we investigate the key differences and similarities between the two processes.
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Emerging Classes of Next-generation Biotherapeutics
ArticleWe are entering uncharted territory in biopharmaceutical development. Emerging new classes of treatments are harnessing the natural power of viruses and cells and engineering them to fight human diseases. As our arsenal of conventional therapies begins to fail, a new army of biotherapeutics is on the horizon. Here, we look at two new classes of treatments leading the charge.
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Care in the Community – How Biofilms Improve Bacterial Survival
ArticleA single bacterial cell on its own is vulnerable to attack and like many living things they can benefit from safety in numbers. But bacteria take communal living to a whole new level, forming veritable civilizations - the bacterial biofilm.
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Overcoming Western Blot Reproducibility Problems
ArticleThis article outlines key workflow steps to help researchers perform better western blots. By executing best practices in these steps – sample preparation, gel electrophoresis, gel transfer, protein detection, and image analysis – researchers can expect good western blot data.
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High-Throughput LC-MS for Early Drug Screening and Biomarker Detection
ArticleIn this article, we explore two novel high-throughput analytical methods based on liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) analysis that can augment early drug screening and biomarker detection in the clinic.
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Antigenic Drift vs Antigenic Shift
ArticleAs part of the host-pathogen arms race, viruses are continually evolving to evade the host immune response, be it from previous infection or immunity acquired through vaccination. Here we take a look at the processes of antigenic drift and antigenic shift.
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Through the Looking Glass of Single Cell Proteomics
ArticleTo pick apart the differences between individual cells in complex multicellular organisms, we need to look at cells one-by-one. This article takes a look at how several scientists in North America are using single cell proteomics (SCP) technologies to discern disease pathogenesis and enhance directed stem-cell differentiation.
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Understanding the Lytic Cycle – What Are the Steps?
ArticleBacteriophage (phage) are viruses that specifically infect bacteria. They have a two-phase lifecycle, residing in a dormant state within the host genome (lysogenic cycle) or hijacking the host cellular machinery for their own replication (lytic cycle). Here we will explore the important steps of the lytic cycle.
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