In emergency situations, broad-spectrum antibiotics have their place. But their indiscriminate use has led to a resistance crisis that already kills tens of thousands of people annually in the U.S. alone.

Investigators are working to develop electrogenetic devices that use remote-controlled electrical stimulation to elicit specific behaviors in engineered cells. They are following in the footsteps of optogenetics, which use specific wavelengths of light to control cell function remotely. A new study published in Science used such a device paired with encapsulated, engineered human pancreatic beta cells to express enough insulin to restore normal glycemic levels in mice models of diabetes.

Investigators are working to develop electrogenetic devices that use remote-controlled electrical stimulation to elicit specific behaviors in engineered cells.

LONDON – A vast new body of genomics research has identified thousands of rare genetic variants that are predicted to cause loss of function in protein coding genes, providing novel in vivo models of human gene inactivation.

BioWorld looks at translational medicine, including: iPSC microtissue gives clues to heart disease; Tumor types have distinct microbiomes; Kinase helps prepare pre-metastatic niche; EZH2 has dual role; New alcohol risk genes in Caucasians; Assay system identifies mitochondria-targeting drugs for PD; Imitating ticks to evade immunity; Ovarian organoids implicate oviducts.

Fidget spinners are hand-held toys based on a roller bearing and three weighted lobes, which can spin freely, creating centrifugal force when activated manually. Generating centrifugal force with a fidget spinner takes neither electricity nor trained staff. And that has suggested to several researchers that such spinners, under the right circumstances, could be used for centrifugation under circumstances where reliably operating a centrifuge, for  whatever reason, is a challenge.