#Culturedbeef

#culturedbeef has been trending on my timeline and I could not help but blog about it. So what is all the excitement about? Well, If you missed it a Dutch scientist (tissue engineer to be specific) by name of Mark Post has produced meat in the lab and here’s how.

Image from nature

This is not the first time scientist have grown something out of nothing (to use the term loosely) but only this time #culturedbeef had its own special air time where the public could witness a burger being made from #culturedbeef. A pretty dear media spectacle but let’s not get moral about how Sergy Brin wishes to spend his billions because I for one enjoyed watching the Monday episode of Saturday kitchen. I did however wonder if the pair were neighbours or perhaps belonged to the same golf club. (Random thoughts).

Here’s a recap of the verdict.

Am I excited by it, ofcourse! This is yet again another scientific advancement which could be applied to several other processes. But is there any point to this? Considering the cost of production is much higher than rearing cattle that is enough reason to mark it down as low priority and perhaps try growing limbs instead. And if you want to argue the risk of disease wiping out a whole herd of cattle then you have no idea what a contaminated culture batch cost. 

As Mark Post rightly said his intention was to prove it could be done and not to create a cultured meat aisle in our supermarkets.

So the next time you 'google' Mark Post he’ll be known for trending with his #culturedbeef. 

Would I buy it if a pound sold for a penny, NO CHANCE!

1.  View conversation
2. 1. James Logan ‏@Dr_JamesLogan5 Aug

      Burgers made in a lab: would you eat it? What do you think about the concept??

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   2. hephziangela ‏@hanat_akordor5 Aug

      @Dr_JamesLogan no chance. Artificial meat!!!!!!! That's just wrong.

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   3. James Logan ‏@Dr_JamesLogan5 Aug

      Why? Genuinely interested to know RT “@hanat_akordor: @Dr_JamesLogan no chance. Artificial meat!!!!!!! That's just wrong.”

      Expand
   4. hephziangela ‏@hanat_akordor5 Aug

      @Dr_JamesLogan wldnt eat my diner in d lab, never mind meat. Surely itl be cultured aseptically? Lets say I'm a butcher so I dnt eat meat.

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      1:40 PM - 5 Aug 13 · Details
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3. hephziangela ‏@hanat_akordor5 Aug

   Fat free burger - isn't that suppose to be a good thing? Not if its grown in the lab. #culturedbeef

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4. hephziangela ‏@hanat_akordor5 Aug

   Close to meat but not that juicy. #culturedbeef

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Jumping through hoops with a light flash

Whoever thought the time would come when the mind could be controlled with the flick of a light switch. Pretty cool huh! And I’m not talking about hypnotherapy.  Think “opto” and think “light”, think “genetics” and think “DNA”. Put them together and you give birth to the concept of “optogenetics”.

Optogenetics is the exciting new area of research where specific brain cells (neurons) can be manipulated to respond to light thereby linking the cell function to a light flash.

Imagine the concept of a football game on a console. Push a button on the controller and a player passes the ball. Push another button and it’s a shot. Such is the concept of optogenetics. Flash a blue light and the neuron responsible for signalling movement kicks the ball flash a yellow light and the neuron is activated to trigger a throw.

The brain is a complex network of cells known as neurons with each neuron having a unique role. The role of each of these trillions of neurons is yet to be deciphered. Put these neurons together and we have the ability to multi task; - Coordinate movement, listen and speak, read and write, sing and dance. The processing of this information in the brain occurs as a result of electrical impulses that travel between neurons. Like a 4 x 4 relay race, one neuron ignites the baton from the start line, passes on the baton to the next athlete and the last neuron finishes the race. If a member of the team drops the baton along the way, the race is lost. Each neuron has its own genetic composition and it is the genes that tell the neuron how to function via gene regulators. These gene regulators switch themselves on or off to control the neuron.  In the same way scientist can influence these regulators such that the ability to switch a neuron on or off is controlled externally, in this case the trigger is via a light flash. 

With optogenetics, a light sensitive protein known as channelrhodopsin which is originally found in unicellular green algae and responds to blue light by moving towards it, is engineered and injected into a chosen neuron. When blue light is then shone on neurons, the cell containing the channelrhodopsin is activated and it sends signals to other neurons in its team to perform a designated function. Light pulses are sent within milli - seconds of each other thereby allowing scientists to monitor the sequence of events with precision. This way when the baton is dropped along the way it is easy to pinpoint the culprit.

Opsins is the umbrella term describing light sensitive proteins. Others include halorhodopsin which is sensitive to yellow light.     

So of what benefit is this to mankind. If we can understand how each of these neurons controls brain function and we are able to identify and isolate the neuron responsible for a specific brain disease be it Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, Cerebral palsy and so on, that one defective gene can be corrected to perform its original function. Basically assuming loss of speech is caused by the breakdown of gene X in the brain, Channel rhodopsin can by inserted into the neuron containing gene X and when this gene shuts down blue light pulses can be sent to reactivate its speech function thereby bringing back ones speech.

Other methods exploring this concept of manipulating neurons include therapeutic gene manipulation and gene therapy. 

S.C.I.E.N.C.E

7 letters for 7 days of the week.  24/7 you never rest.

Starting with a question mark and ending with a comma your journey never ends.  

Through our minds the questions keep unravelling.  

What if…? How about…? Why not….?

All day every day your quest for solutions persists.

Sequencing S, Connecting C, Inserting I, Eliminating E, Needing N, Curing C and Editing E,

You are always seeking for the alternative and searching to alter the shortfalls.

24/7 your task never cease.

Setting the stage for innovation your potential has no boundaries.

Curbing the misconceptions you serve us with evidence.

Investing in talent you’ve created opportunities for many.

Engaging with your neighbours conversations are started.

Never shutting down nor giving up but

Continuously seeking for improvements.

Encourage S.C.I.E.N.C.E to push its borders and eventually we hope to get it right

The Open access debate

Interested in the open access debate? Below is a downloadable link to a collection of articles by leading academics and publishers in the field of humanities and social science.

The open access debate

Dial a thought - A case of telepathy

Great minds they say think alike and twins are often two sides of the same coin such that the emotions of one is shared by the other. Is this a sixth sense, a gut feeling or a case of telepathy? One thing is for certain where telepathy is concerned, like Liverpool and its die-hard fans, you’ll never walk alone.

Very creative film writers have come up with some great movies exploring the concept of telepathy that keeps us all fascinated in our seats. My favourite of these movies will be ‘X-Men 3’ with a thrilling scene of Professor X and Jean Grey where we are entertained by a mind controlling battle between the two from objects flying to a building being uprooted.

Telepathy is described as the transfer of information between two subjects using the mind without any physical form of communication. As absurd as the notion may be, reports of telepathy have been recorded with the latest being an article published in New Scientist in February this year. The piece focused on the phenomenon of telepathy which had been achieved in rats after inserting a mind reading implant in the brain. Although the researchers are far from the finished work the concept remains a potential to be explored with the main hurdle being deciphering the complex communication network of neurons. These telepathic rats are however not the first to make mind reading headlines.



Sherman and Wilkins in their book titled thoughts through space claim to have channeled their thought in an experiment where they both attempted to read each other's mind from separate locations over 2000 miles apart. On comparisons of their notes months later  about 75% of the content was the same. Could it be mere coincidence, Maybe, maybe not.

One can only imagine the fascination in a future where telepathy becomes the norm as an accepted form of communication. All you have to do is have this device implanted and voila!. Almost like the impact of the internet and mobile telephony today which has transformed communication such that messages get around within seconds. Only this time in the case of telepathy the middle men disappear and we will all be a thought away.

If you’ve enjoyed reading this piece and wish to comment, forget the tablet, ignore the PC and never mind the phone because I’m only a thought away. 

IVF and its accessories

The scientific industry recently lost another prestigious pioneer in the person of Professor Robert Edwards - The man whom together with his fellow late colleague Dr Patrick Steptoe bore forth Louise brown via In vitro Fertilisation (IVF). 

There is no doubt that this ingenious discovery has gone down as one of the greatest scientific advancements’ of all time. As life changing as the birth of IVF has been to many the journey remains a predicament to a few.

Stringent rules such as selection criteria coupled with cost means for many seeking treatment via IVF, the miracle remains a distant dream. 

Qualification criteria such as weight, age, medical condition and number of children automatically disqualify some less fortunate candidates. Most couples’ in the UK are offered 3 treatment cycles but for some the traumatic experience means that the journey ends before the third attempt.

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I once met a young couple who had been trying to conceive for over a decade with no success. Tests revealed that the lady had fertility issues. In her case, this meant that she did not produce enough eggs hence reducing her chances of conception. IVF was offered and they finally found a ray of hope.  What they did not anticipate was the accessories that came along with it.

Hospital appointments, pre-medication, blood tests, scans and 2-3 times daily injections all seemed overwhelming. But when you find yourself in such a predicament, inconvenience is the last of your worries. Through all the anxiety the D day finally arrives and yet you can’t quiet grasp on to “hope” for fear of the unknown.  Low and behold at the first attempt the procedure had to be cancelled as her ovaries had other plans. After all the build-up of emotions only to be turned away, the couple held their own and returned home to start the preparation all over again.  The next appointment arrived, this time eggs were successfully harvested but the procedure failed. After the second cycle failed they decided to accept their fate and refused a third cycle. Understandably, emotional trauma can be very eerie.

Professor Robert Edwards and Patrick Steptoe have indeed transformed the face of conception and brought hope to many. For the young couple their hope of child birth was short-lived.  The success rates over the years however continue to rise and many more clinics around the world now offer the procedure. Needless to say, cost remains a major barrier.

As the life of another great scientist comes to an end, their legacy lives on and there is the need to honor this miracle by making IVF more accessible and the process less daunting to the unfortunate few craving for a  chance at child birth. 

Further information about IVF on the NHS may be accessed here. 

DNA @ 60

From DNA to gene manipulation the events from 60 years ago today have gone a long way to revolutionise medical applications by exploring our genes.  It was on 25^th April 1953 that John Watson and Francis Crick published their discovery of the DNA structure in the nature journal for which they later received a Nobel Prize for. Although rarely mentioned there were other contributors to this breakthrough in the persons of Rosalind Franklin and Maurice Wilkins with the latter also being recognised for his contributions but not the former due to her passing away at the early age of 37 to ovarian cancer. 

With the structure of the DNA deciphered, scientist have since moved on to complete the human genome and given birth to a host of DNA applications.

Thanks to DNA profiling it is now possible to trace relations, prove paternity/maternity and solve crimes. Gene testing can now help identify an individual’s susceptibility to a disease. The applications of gene therapy and recombinant DNA technology in medicine and from which other technologies have evolved remain endless. 

So raise your glasses to Francis, John, Maurice and Rosalind as we celebrate the 60^th anniversary of the double helix and take a moment to ponder over what the future holds for DNA manipulation and medicine.  

Invest in the future: Defeat Malaria

Dating back to over billions of years ago malaria has predominantly hovered over the continent of Africa with cases reported in Europe and North America. Over the centuries, the latter continents have eradicated cases whiles the problem persists in Africa. Although no longer an epidemic, malaria continues to be a burden, taking the lives of millions with a child reported to die every minute from the disease. This fatality is attributed to poverty in the region.

As we celebrate "World Malaria Day", join in the global campaign and take a moment to invest in the future of this cause to help defeat malaria. 

Find out how you can help here

For more information on world Malaria day, visit WHO

Celebrating Art

Google tells me today (April 15th), is designated World Arts Day (WAD). So here's to wishing all artists a happy world arts day.

April 15th =  the birthday of Leonardo da vinci

Discover more here

Controlling the brain with a light switch

Put together gene regulation, gene therapy and optogenetics and soon there'll be an end to brain disorders. 

Check out this youtube video by mittechtv