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Category: biotech/medical – Page 524

The Collective Intelligence of Cells During Morphogenesis: What Bioelectricity Outside the Brain Means for Understanding our Multiscale Nature with Michael Levin — Incredible Minds.

Recorded: April 29, 2023.

Each of us takes a remarkable journey from physics to mind: we start as a blob of chemicals in an unfertilized quiescent oocyte and becomes a complex, metacognitive human being. The continuous process of transformation and emergence that we see in developmental biology reminds us that we are true collective intelligences – composed of cells which used to be individual organisms themselves. In this talk, I will describe our work on understanding how the competencies of single cells are harnessed to solve problems in anatomical space, and how evolution pivoted this scaling of intelligence into the familiar forms of cognition in the nervous system. We will talk about diverse intelligence in novel embodiments, the scaling of the cognitive light cone of all beings, and the role of developmental bioelectricity as a cognitive glue and as the interface by which mind controls matter in the body. I will also show a new synthetic life form, and discuss what it means for bioengineering and ethics of human relationships to the wider world of possible beings. We will discuss the implications of these ideas for understanding evolution, and the applications we have developed in birth defects, cancer, and traumatic injury repair. By merging deep ideas from developmental biophysics, computer science, and cognitive science, we not only get a new perspective on fundamental questions of life and mind, but also new roadmaps in regenerative medicine, biorobotics, and AI.

Michael Levin received dual undergraduate degrees in computer science and biology, followed by a PhD in molecular genetics from Harvard. He did his post-doctoral training at Harvard Medical School, and started his independent lab in 2000. He is currently the Vannevar Bush chair at Tufts University, and an associate faculty member of the Wyss Institute at Harvard. He serves as the founding director of the Allen Discovery Center at Tufts. His lab uses a mix of developmental biophysics, computer science, and behavior science to understand the emergence of mind in unconventional embodiments at all scales, and to develop interventions in regenerative medicine and applications in synthetic bioengineering. They can be found at www.drmichaellevin.org/

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Researchers map gene switches and brain cell types associated with schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, Alzheimer’s.

Alzheimer’s disease is a disease that attacks the brain, causing a decline in mental ability that worsens over time. It is the most common form of dementia and accounts for 60 to 80 percent of dementia cases. There is no current cure for Alzheimer’s disease, but there are medications that can help ease the symptoms.

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According to a study recently presented at the European Respiratory Society International Congress in Milan, Italy, young people who have used e-cigarettes are more than twice as likely to report experiencing chronic stress.

The study was presented by Dr Teresa To, a senior scientist at The Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids) in Toronto, Canada. She said: “Research is starting to show how vaping affects young people’s physical and mental health. For example, our previous research has shown that those who vape are more likely to suffer an asthma attack. In this study, we were particularly interested in the relationship between vaping, mental health, and quality of life among young people.”

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Dementia affects more than 55 million people around the world.

A number of factors can increase a person’s risk of developing dementia, including high blood pressure, poor sleep, and physical inactivity.

Meanwhile, keeping cognitively, physically, and socially active, and limiting alcohol consumption, can reduce the risk.

Recently, a large Swedish study observed that chronic stress and depression were linked to a higher risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease, the most common form of dementia. The researchers found people with a history of both chronic stress and depression had an even greater risk of the disease.

Globally, around 280 million people have depression, while roughly 300 million… More.

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The most common screening test for prostate cancer — a measure of prostate-specific antigen, or PSA, levels — so often suggests cancer where there is none that clinical guidelines no longer recommend the test for men over 70 and leave the decision up to younger patients.

Scientists at Stanford Medicine and their collaborators aim to make PSA screening more accurate — by calibrating PSA levels to each man’s genetics. Applying this type of personalization could significantly reduce overdiagnosis and better predict aggressive disease. Their research was published June 1 in Nature Medicine.

In addition to the regular blood-based PSA test, such personalized screening would require a germline genetic test, typically done on saliva, blood or cheek swab samples, to look for inherited genetic variants that affect PSA levels.

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While it’s not possible to completely prevent a fall, exercises that focus on balance and strength training can reduce the risk of falling. “We treat elderly adults for injuries sustained from falls, and other patients who feel unsteady while walking or standing and are fearful of falling,” says Lora Stutzman, a physical therapist with the Johns Hopkins Rehabilitation Network. “These exercises can help improve balance and build strength to help prevent future falls.”

For older adults, activities such as squatting, standing up from a chair and walking may be difficult or cause them to feel unsteady, which increases their risk of falling. The following exercises are intended for those who have a low risk of fall and are able to stand on their own without support from others. Always talk to your doctor or physical therapist first before starting new exercises, especially if you have weak balance.

Stutzman demonstrates two exercises below.

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