This week in science

Author

Neil Baugh
June 05, 2024

Happy Wednesday morning! Thanks for joining in for another week. Here’s 5 new articles to satisfy your science crave for the week.

Public have no difficulty getting to grips with an extra thumb, study finds

Cambridge researchers have shown that members of the public have little trouble in learning very quickly how to use a third thumb – a controllable, prosthetic extra thumb – to pick up and manipulate objects. The team tested the robotic device on a diverse range of participants, which they say is essential for ensuring new technologies are inclusive and can work for everyone.

www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1045968?et_rid=60662105&et_cid=5230905

We’ve all heard that having thumbs is a big advantage. Well, what about 2? This recently published study developed a second opposable thumb and looked into how people adjusted to it for everyday use. Overall, the users approved and were able to quickly grasp how to use the new robotic digit.

The full study (unfortunately paywalled): https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/scirobotics.adk5183

First pig-to-human liver transplant recipient ‘doing very well’

The transplant aims to prolong the life of the patient and provides important lessons for doctors.

www.nature.com/articles/d41586-024-01613-4

If you’ve been reading for a while, you know I love my xenotransplants (animal → human). Specifically, there’s been an explosion of pig to human transplants in the last 2 years for a variety of organs including the heart, kidney, thymus, and now liver.

The transplant recipients have been in poor shape and out of other options. Xenotransplants are highly experimental and have many kinks to work out before their perfected, but the recipients are both giving themselves hope and providing valuable info that informs that next designs.

You never know if you’ll be the one that finally works.

There’s a whole system of neural communication that happens behind the scenes. Our brain doesn’t just let us think and act, it also sends a constant stream of signals all across our body. This includes to areas we don’t typically think about in the context of neural activity, such as fat deposits.

In this study, the scientists explored how the communication between the hypothalamus and fat deposits affects aging. They found that upon stimulation, the fat deposits send out signals that slows age-related changes throughout the body.

‘Smart’ antibiotic can kill deadly bacteria while sparing the microbiome

Compound called lolamicin targets a group of harmful microbes but does not disturb those that live peacefully in the gut.

www.nature.com/articles/d41586-024-01566-8

A common issue with antibiotics is that they can kill the good bacteria we have living in our guts. The authors designed a new antibiotic agent that targets a pathway common in harmful (gram negative) bacteria but not the beneficial type we live with.

Say goodbye to food allergies with this nanoparticle therapy - Advanced Science News

Encapsulating allergens in nanoparticles was found to reprogram the immune system, suppressing severe reactions to food allergies.

www.advancedsciencenews.com/say-goodbye-to-food-allergies-with-this-nanoparticle-therapy

Food allergies range from being mildly annoying to deadly and don’t currently have a cure. This paper describes a newly developed nanoparticle system designed to treat allergic responses by targeting the immune system.

See you next week for more science,

Neil

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