If I was in an environment where such strong mutations can happen in a single generation of non-reproducing cells, I'd ve very worried about the health of my original cells.
What about the heterogeneity of the original cells?
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toufka commented on Scientists create a cell that precludes malignant growth phys.org/news/2024-07-sci... · Posted by u/alexahn
toufka commented on Scientists create a cell that precludes malignant growth phys.org/news/2024-07-sci... · Posted by u/alexahn
I expect that, yes. The cell might die if the DNA damage occurred in a critical position.
Yep - cells would die. ...UNTIL they accrue enough dna damage to accidentally either:
- create a new way to generate thymidine
- fall into a proliferation strategy that no longer needs thymidine
Human cells did the same thing and created checkpoints to preclude malignant growth. There are a number of checkpoints already employed in your own bodies. But if you accrue enough DNA damage, you can get around each of those checkpoints (and get cancer):
- IF too much DNA damage, then die
- IF divided too many times, then die
- IF committed to die, actually die
But if a cell collects enough damage, it can get around ALL of the checkpoints. And evolution has shown us that there is no perfect watcher of the watchmen. Still pretty cool to create a new checkpoint this way.
toufka commented on Gene therapy restores hearing to children with inherited deafness cosmosmagazine.com/scienc... · Posted by u/keploy
This is actually not totally correct. AAV’s form episomes, which are circular DNA structures that are basically extra chromosomes. The fact that AAV’s don’t randomly insert themselves into DNA makes them safer for clinical uses like this.
And that’s why replies are helpful in these kind of explanations. My over-edits became wrong, and then an hour later, unfixable. bglazer is correct.
AAVs, unlike Lentiviruses, do NOT integrate.
toufka commented on Gene therapy restores hearing to children with inherited deafness cosmosmagazine.com/scienc... · Posted by u/keploy
I thought you can’t just inject genes and then the body will start replicate it. Does it need periodic injections?
If the DNA is in the cell's nucleus, the DNA will be utilized to produce whatever gene is encoded in the DNA. But if the DNA is just floating around on its own it will not survive a cell division event and the material would need to be periodically reinjected to keep working. However, if the injected DNA is part of a full chromosome, it will be replicated when the cell divides - and will be permanent as long as the cell or its progeny survive.
Some viruses will just inject the DNA into cells, but will not become part of the cell's genome ("transient" transduction). Other viruses (like lentiviruses and these adeno-associated viruses [AAVs]) inject their DNA not just into the cells, but also have machinery that splices their payload DNA directly into the cell's chromosomes ("integrated"). The location in the genome of the splicing event is relatively random. Random is not necessarily great as it could interrupt other genes already in the chromosome. CRISPR is a now-famous tool that helps "integrate" DNA into a specific spot in the genome by being guided to a specific location with a small piece of a specific sequence.
Once the DNA is integrated, any cell, and any of the cell's progeny, will produce or "express" the gene on the delivered DNA. In this case, they delivered the 5991 characters of DNA associated with the OROF gene [1].
toufka commented on The U.S. just sold its helium stockpile nbcnews.com/health/health... · Posted by u/dataflow
"doesn't make sense".
What doesn't make sense is overthinking it. If the price of Helium went up over the years, the price of Helium is going to keep going up over the next years. When everyone tells you that we're going to run out, then the value is simply going to go up.
What people say about profitability is irrelevant. What matters is the price trend, not their opinions.
Now go take a look at charts. You're not going to like it. :)
There’s one law of physics difference here: (with a few exceptions) helium, because it’s lighter than air, will never replenish on our planet. There is currently most of what there ever will be. Unlike (almost?) every other object of commerce, there is an almost completely inelastic total supply. It is the ultimate non-renewable resource.
and youtube video of the 'reveal':
toufka commented on Formula 1 didn't realize Las Vegas would be cold in November jalopnik.com/formula-1-di... · Posted by u/geox
I'm going to be honest, none of the US tracks have been great. Miami's asphalt was too rough, Austin's was a quintessential Hermann Tilke design (read: boring).
Hope Las Vegas is different, otherwise it really isn't a good way to attract that market.
Indianapolis was too fast and hot that one year, one of the (two) tire manufactures disqualified their tires (and teams). So not even half the field ran the race. The Indy 500 course has a half-mile straightaway which allowed the F1 cars to build up unprecedented speed - all in hot midwestern summer heat.
Seems the diligence on local weather is not so good with these folks...
[*] "Michelin's tyre mistake sends US Formula One Grand Prix into farce" https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/Michelin%27s_tyre_mistake_sends...
And if you gather food like berries and fruits - you (at least sometimes) get to eat foods ripened that day in the field. How many today get that luxury?
And if one of the things that provides joy to humans is to prepare their family’s food - many folks today would be disqualified.