HHS Undermines U.S. Biotech, Promotes Pseudoscience
Hasn’t HHS already done enough damage to U.S. biomedical science and biotech? Why kill one of the few things that still works in America? ANS: it’s part of a darker dystopian MAHA vision to elevate pseudoscience in its place. My article @BakerInstitute https://t.co/im2MxYT4Oc
Therapeutic SASP Targets Halt Brain Cell Senescence Spread
Characterizing the SASP-Dependent Paracrine Spreading of Senescence Between Human Brain Cell Types "we identified specific SASP targets for therapeutic intervention in the context of human brain cells and thereby informed the SASP-dependent reaction of immune cells and age-related tissue dysfunction across...
Time-to-Market Is SynBio’s Biggest Scaling Hurdle
Great conversation with Jamie Bacher about the one challenge synbio must solve: time to market. Jamie argues that scaling biotech requires more than great strains—process dev, downstream, analytics, and new financing models all matter. Excited to have him at #SynBioBeta2026. Read the...
CZI Biohub Leverages AI to Outpace Funders in Biomedical Research
CZI’s Biohub aims to harness AI for groundbreaking biomedical research, potentially surpassing other leading funders in influence and investment. Wendy Paris Reports: https://tinyurl.com/28f6rnzc Related IP Resources: The Chan Zuckerberg Initiative -https://tinyurl.com/nhhw9a9u Disease Research Grants -https://tinyurl.com/akr4pv9h Grants for Science Research -https://tinyurl.com/mpdstvy2 Tech Philanthropists -https://tinyurl.com/bdewp5v8 Journalism
Cutting Illumina DNA Prep Volume Without Introducing Bias
Colleague is looking for input on reducing library prep costs for metagenomic sequencing using Illumina DNA Prep kit. They ask "Has anyone successfully reduced library prep volumes without introducing bias? If so, how much reduction worked for you?"
NR & NMN Boost Blood NAD+ via Gut Microbiome
The differential impact of three different NAD+ boosters on circulatory NAD and microbial metabolism in humans “Collectively, the clinical data combined with the ex vivo human microbiota and human whole-blood experiments led us to propose a human model where NR and...
Oral NR/NMN Boosts Blood and Brain NAD in Two Weeks
The NAD-brain pharmacokinetic study of NAD augmentation in blood and brain using oral precursor supplementation 🔎 “… oral NR or NMN in humans produces a slow but robust and sustained elevation of systemic and cerebral NAD that stabilizes after ∼2 weeks…” https://t.co/Hvp1NvRwl0
Epigenetic Aging Clocks Lack Reliable Real‑world Accuracy
This is a thoughtful essay on a new preprint from Raghav Sehgal and Albert Higgins-Chen that’s worth your time. It highlights something we don’t talk about enough: for biological aging clocks to be useful outside of research, they need to...
Trump Targets NIH Funding Amid $1.5T War Spend
Trump once again going for draconian cuts to NIH, though not as catastrophic as he sought for the last round (and didn't get). Meanwhile, he wants $1.5T for war. I doubt he'll be any more successful with NIH cuts than...
Dead Worms Boost Lifespan Through Separate Mechanisms
Exposure to deceased remains of conspecifics extends the lifespan of young and aged C. elegans via distinct pathways https://t.co/B1VE91Y1lj
Aging May Be Evolutionary Program, Not Random Decay
Is aging programmable? It implies there IS a program created by evolution, not only accident or entropy. But that's a debate. Here's a paper by business consultant Michael Ringel, on this very topic, with many good citations. https://t.co/fREM4AHnJG
GEN's First Top‑10 Organoid Companies and Growth Drivers
3April: Which are GEN's first-ever Top 10 Organoid Companies (5 publicly traded, 5 privately held)? And what's driving growth for these and other organoid companies? Check out my latest A-List for @GENbio: https://t.co/6D589lVk9s
Synonymous Mutations Can Disrupt TF Sites and Cause Disease
Every exome analysis I have seen filters out synonymous variants first. "Silent mutations, skip them." But 15% of human codons sit inside transcription factor binding sites. A synonymous change that breaks a TF site can cause disease with the protein completely intact. https://t.co/yzkdi82kEd
Debating Brainless Clones as Personal
Are you pro-bodyoid or anti-bodyoid? For the purpose of this poll, a bodyoid is: a newborn clone of you lacking a cortex, a.k.a. a brainless clone, gestated by a paid surrogate. It's organs are a perfect match (isogenic) to you...
Black‑Box Warnings Can Slash Drug Revenues—Investors Beware
Approved drugs can have a "black box" (aka boxed) warning, the highest safety-related warning that FDA can put on an approved drug Usually applied to multiple drugs in the same class it can hamper revenue potential if alternatives exist Investors should be...
Annotate Second Methionine when CDS Begins with MM
Question: If a transcript has a CDS that starts with two methionines, what's the general rule for sequence annotation? Should I make it so if two METs in a row at the beginning, annotate the closest MET to rest of sequence...
Japan Approves Conditional Stem‑cell Parkinson’s Replacement Therapy
Woah. I'm slightly embarrassed that I missed this for a few weeks. Finally there is approval, in a Large Nation, for a stem cell-based REPLACEMENT therapy for an age-related condition. The condition is, no surprise, Parkinson's, which I always highlight...
Personalized NAD Boosting Needed; Redox Fingerprints Reveal Disease
Dynamics of blood NAD and glutathione in health, disease, aging and under NAD-booster treatment “In healthy population (n=299;18-70 year-olds) redox metabolites follow normal distribution in blood and remain unchanged during aging. NAD-boosting increased 4-6 fold the blood NAD+ depending on individual,...
Mono Infection Triples Risk of Developing Multiple Sclerosis
New study has strengthened link between infectious mono and Multiple Sclerosis. By analyzing 2 decades of health records, researchers found people who contracted mono as teenagers or adults were 3x more likely to develop MS later vs those who didn’t https://t.co/6DLZMEWyU6
Cell‑Free DNA Production Ends Decades‑Old Cloning Bottleneck
Most of synthetic biology has been completely transformed in the last decade. DNA manufacturing? Still running on cloning workflows from the 1970s. That's the bottleneck Jodi Barrientos, CEO of @ribbonbiolabs, is tackling head-on — and she's on the @SynBioBeta Main Stage on...
H5N1 Bird‑to‑Cattle Spillover Traced Across US
So pleased to contribute to this preprint on H5N1 spillover from birds to dairy cattle from the Moo Flu Crew, led by the excellent @jepekar. We traced both B3.13 in Texas and D1.1 in Nevada and Arizona to look at...
Anthropic Pays $400M for AI Biotech, Touts 38,500% IRR
Anthropic acquired an AI for biological research startup for just over $400 million. You can read the letter Dimension wrote to their LPs which boasts a 38,513% IRR https://t.co/wneesuT5u7
Nanosecond Electric Pulses Rejuvenate Aging Endothelial Cells
Nanosecond pulsed electric field applications rejuvenate aging endothelial cells by rescuing mitochondrial-to-nuclear retrograde communication https://t.co/DT8GXNLlxO
FDA's Future: New CBER Chief & Rare Disease Flexibility
On this week’s pod, we chatted with @docrodwong about the FDA, the next CBER chief and regulatory flexibility for rare diseases https://t.co/f6L7gwcNsr via @statnews
Ancient Ig-Like Domain Controls Disease-Linked SWI/SNF Complexes
a (presumably primordial) Ig-like domain regulates the disease relevant SWI/SNF chromatin remodeling complexes that's pretty cool https://t.co/Iit0Swrx0I
Blocking KDM4 Reactivates Tumor Suppressor, Halts AML
Scientists have restored a silenced tumor-suppressor gene in mice with acute myeloid leukemia by blocking KDM4 enzymes, suggesting a potential new therapeutic approach that avoids harming normal blood cells. leukemia
Seeking Alternative Tools for Genetic Code Sequence Search
Anyone know of software or a web server that can search a sequence for alternative genetic codes? Been trying to install Codetta https://t.co/Wd7IMD23Cy but can't get it running so looking for alternatives.
Lowering Barriers Unlocks Biotech’s Biggest Potential
What if the biggest unlock in biotech is simply access? Douglas Crawford built MBC BioLabs to lower barriers and enable 500+ startups. Excited to have him at SynBioBeta 2026. Visit the @SynBioBeta website to read the full article. https://t.co/HEfhvmwZ8i
Collaboration Between Bioinformaticians and Wet Biologists Drives Science
🧵The most underrated superpower in science: Bioinformaticians and wet biologists working together. Here’s why it matters. https://t.co/PRuGiq6CbV
BeamTx's Risto‑cel Shows Promising Phase
1/@BeamTx announced the publication of clinical data from its Phase 1/2 BEACON clinical trial evaluating risto-cel - formerly known as $BEAM-101 for the treatment of sickle cell disease (SCD). The data was presented at #ASH25 🧵👇 & was published in...
Patients Maintain Weight Loss After Discontinuing GLP‑1s, Epic Shows
Interesting data from Epic medical records - suggests that for many patients in the "real world", they are able to keep the weight off after stopping GLP1s... https://t.co/dHfYdG6rEX #EpicResearch
Creatine Plus Probiotic Eases Depression via Gut‑brain Energy Boost
1/2) New placebo-controlled human randomized controlled trial finds creatine + a specific probiotic is effective in treating depression. The mechanism is fascinating, involving the probiotic increasing creatine transporters in the gut, leading to increased brain energy metabolism. If you're passionate about this...
Sinclair Reverses Mouse Infertility, Challenges Menopause Limits
David Sinclair's lab just reversed infertility in mice that had been infertile for 6 months. They took 16-month-old mice, the equivalent of a woman well past menopause, and made them produce offspring again. The belief has always been that mammals run out...
Young Plasma Boosts Antioxidant Defense, Preserves Aged Lungs
Young plasma transfer enhances antioxidant defense and preserves structural integrity in aged lung tissue https://t.co/v1lR1EyCKv https://t.co/ZYJu1qNsDl
Biotech Gains as Pharma Approval Success Diverges
Pharma has varying levels of success developing drugs. That's a boon for biotech Here are the biopharma companies ranked by likelihood of first approval (LoA%) from 2006-2022 $AMGN, $NVO, #Eisai top the list $GSK, #Astellas, $ABBV are at the bottom #learnbiotechinvesting #BiotechPrometheus
Clinicians Invited to Join Controlled MDMA Study at UCL
Clinicians: UCL and Drug Science invite you to contribute to a controlled exploration of MDMA’s psychological effects. Eligible participants will undergo two medically supervised sessions at UCL. This work aims to build a psychoanalytically grounded model of its therapeutic action....
China’s Clinical Trials Surge, Outpacing US and Europe
In 2010, China accounted for fewer than 8% of global clinical trials. By 2020, it had surpassed both US & Europe in registered trials. By 2024, China was initiating more than 5,000 clinical trials a year — a more than...
Injectable Satellite Livers May Replace Transplants
Injectable “satellite livers” could offer an alternative to liver transplantation by Anne Trafton @MIT Learn more: https://t.co/HZg5qoXutb #HealthTech #ArtificialIntelligence #MachineLearning https://t.co/V4W3VUpDbw
New FDA‑approved Oral Weight‑loss Pill Expands Patient Options
So… hot off the press: a NEW weight loss PILL just got FDA approved. We’ve had oral (non-injectable) GLP-1s before — but this is one of the first specifically for weight management. When it reaches Malaysia, it could significantly increase demand...
Nasal Dantrolene Nanoparticles Curb Inflammation‑induced Depression, Anxiety
Intranasal dantrolene nanoparticles inhibit lipopolysaccharide-induced depression and anxiety behavior in mice [Context: Dantrolene is a skeletal muscle relaxant used for malignant hyperthermia and chronic spasticity from spinal cord injuries, MS, or stroke. It inhibitings calcium release in muscle cells. Common side...
Vibecoding Streamlines Transcriptome to Pfam to NCBI Workflow
Amazing how far you can push vibecoding if you know what you need and the general theory behind the tool chains needed to get your result. I can now load a transcriptome dataset, find the pfam associated with that transcript,...
Bioelectric Reprogramming Repairs Birth Defects, Sparks Rejuvenation Hope
Fixing Birth Defects With Bioelectrical Reprogramming (Featuring Michael Levin, PhD) Aging and rejuvenation next? https://t.co/CHaRqozCph
NEJM Review Overlooks Inflammation in GLP‑1 Drugs
A new review of the GLP-1 receptor drugs @NEJM https://t.co/PK03jApZWB surprisingly, the word inflammation only appears once, in this diagram https://t.co/1PeBakBAQb
CBP and FDA Seize 5,000 Peptide Packages, Including GLP‑1 Drugs
5000 packages of peptides seized by CBP and FDA “The seized materials included several GLP-one medications such as retatrutide, semaglutide, and tirzepatide. Officers also found various other peptides prohibited by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, including MOTS-C, TB10, semax, and...
Vitamin B3 May Undermine Pancreatic Cancer Chemotherapy
Title and header via the @cwru press release: New research reveals dangers of ‘anti-aging’ supplements in cancer protection Vitamin B3 could be making chemotherapy less effective in pancreatic cancer patients https://t.co/vIfcvuiS6P Discussion + thoughtful debate welcome👇👨⚕️ https://t.co/aHewoWeIle
AI-Driven Biology Could Slash Drug Trial Failures Dramatically
AI for biology will have bigger near term wins. The ability for AI to learn from experiments and predict human biology will have very broad impacts in predicting targets, clinical trials, and precision medicine. Tackling the biggest challenge in Pharma (80%...
Genome Editing Shows Promise for Sickle Cell, Β‑Thalassemia
3 new trial results for genome editing of sickle cell disease and β-thalassemia @NEJM https://t.co/qGGdjgKqP5 (with summary Table below) https://t.co/RdiM3urCKJ https://t.co/W15cPAfMoS https://t.co/F3PHKuktPx https://t.co/t6Z35S8L7h
New Early-Stage Cancer Drugs Emerge at AACR26
A look at some promising early stage drug developments coming down the pike at #AACR26. A few of these concepts were not on the radar a couple of years ago: https://t.co/w6oD4CEckq https://t.co/kfR1AXG41K
NAD+ Decline Drives Cardiac Aging; NR Restores Rhythm
NAD+ controls circadian rhythmicity during cardiac aging https://t.co/NNVx94IIC8 Fig. 2: Cardiac NAD+ decreases with aging, with restoration by supplementation with nicotinamide riboside. https://t.co/z4uSqKrYjR
IVNS1ABP Mutation Triggers Premature Aging and Neurodegeneration
A mutation in the IVNS1ABP gene causes a new disease combining premature aging and severe neurological decline by disrupting cell scaffolding, leading to DNA damage and “zombie-like” senescent cells. https://t.co/xtDrjy72h4