The “Lipid Invasion Model” argues that lipids entering the brain due to blood brain barrier damage is the determining cause of the Alzheimer’s Disease. The presence of excess lipids in the brain cells of Alzheimer’s patients is an element of Alois Alzheimer’s 1906 research, but little has been published about this connection since. The hypothesis, […]
COVID 19 / Sensors
Sensors monitor physiological variables post vaccine
Wearable sensors could improve clinical trials by enabling earlier identification of abnormal reactions. Currently, vaccine safety in clinical trials is primarily determined by participants’ subjective self-reporting. Dan Yamin, Yiftach Gepner, and Tel Aviv University colleagues used a chest patch sensor to monitor various health indicators in 160 participants, before and after receiving the Pfizer BioNTech […]
Sensors
Touch sensors enable speech and sound to be understood
Amir Amedi and Reichman University colleagues have released a study describing touch-based technology to help people understand speech and sound – and to detect their location in the future. The sensory substitution device can deliver speech simultaneously through audition and as fingertip vibrations which correspond to low frequencies extracted from the speech input. 40 non-native-English-speaking […]
Autism / Brain / MRI
Prenatal MRI study suggests autism differences may begin in the womb
A small Boston Children’s Hospital study led by Assistant Professor Emi Takahashi and postdoc Alpen Ortug showed increased volume of the insular lobe as a potential strong prenatal MRI biomarker that could predict the emergence of ASD later in life. It revealed significant differences in brain structures at 25 weeks’ gestation between children who were […]
Genome / Genomics
Complete, gapless human genome sequence published
The T2T consortium have published the first complete, gapless sequence of a human genome, two decades after the Human Genome Project produced the first draft human genome sequence. Having a complete, gap-free sequence of the roughly 3 billion bases in our DNA is critical for understanding the full spectrum of human genomic variation and for […]
COVID 19 / Sensors
Hopkins developed saliva sensor improves speed and accuracy of COVID detection
David Gracias and Ishan Barman at Johns Hopkins have developed a COVID 19 sensor which provides fast and accurate results using a drop of saliva placed on a device. No additional chemical modifications like molecular labeling or antibody functionalization are required, which could allow the sensor to be used in wearable devices. Current PCR tests […]