BioQuakes

AP Biology class blog for discussing current research in Biology

Tag: Biomedical

The Chemotherapy-Free Way Of Curing Cancer

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On March 15, 2023

In Student Post

Introduction 

Chemotherapy has been one of the only ways to cure cancer for a long time, but this is not the case anymore. According to a report in the journal Nature, CAR-T cell therapy has shown long-lasting success in treating blood cancer, with two patients remaining cancer-free over a decade later. This can be a new efficient way to cure cancer and it will also allow for less severe side effects like our fast-growing cells to still function properly. 

Life of a Cancer Cell

How it works 

The treatment uses genetically engineered immune cells to target and kill cancerous cells. CAR-T cells are a type of immune cell that is engineered in a laboratory to recognize and attack cancerous cells. The process of creating CAR-T cells involves extracting T-cells, from blood. These T-cells are then genetically modified in the laboratory to produce antigen receptors. These are engineered to recognize and bind to cancer cells. After CAR-T cells binds it triggers death to the cancer cell, ultimately getting rid of the cancer.

 

Connection to AP Biology

CAR-T cell therapy reflects what we learned in AP Biology. Unlike chemotherapy which kills fast-growing cells. CAR-T cell therapy selectively targets cancerous cells which eliminates possible symptoms. This is also similar to the topic of the immune system in AP Bio. For example, we learned that Cytotoxic T cells are part of the adaptive group of the immune system. When the Cytotoxic T cell sees an infected cell it binds to it and causes apoptosis (self destruction of cell )to occur.

How a killer T cell destroys a cell infected with viruses

Potential Drawbacks

Though the treatment seems ideal, there are still drawbacks. The treatment does not work for everyone and can have dangerous side effects. Researchers are working on expanding the therapy’s effectiveness by understanding how and why it works. CAR-T cell therapy is still new but has potential in the near future for curing cancer. 

Side effects listed:

  • High fever and chills.
  • Trouble breathing.
  • Severe nausea, vomiting, and/or diarrhea.
  • Feeling dizzy or lightheaded.
  • Headaches.
  • Fast heartbeat.
  • Feeling very tired.
  • Muscle and/or joint pain.

 

 

Ever wonder if you were exposed to COVID-19? This new device may be able to help.

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On December 8, 2022

In Student Post

Riding a public train. Traveling on an airplane. Or just shopping in a public mall. These are all ways someone may contract COVID-19 without realizing that a stranger around them is infected. Traveling via public transport can expose you to unwanted germs, especially when travel times exceed 15 minutes resulting in longer exposure to a possible carrier of the virus. According to the CDC, being exposed to someone with COVID-19 for more than 15 mins results in a “Higher Risk” scenario of contracting the virus. According to Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Center, there have been over 600 million cases of COVID-19 across the globe. What if you could detect COVID-19 particles around you and then change your seat accordingly to reduce exposure?

Well, scientists out of Tohoku University have created a battery-less device which can detect COVID-19 particles in the air, causing a signal response on the device telling you of the virus’s presence. The device generates power via “alternative magnetization caused by vibration” which can detect “bending vibration energy” and transmit the detection wirelessly. The scientists first objective was to modify a “0.2mm thick Fe-Co/Ni plate with a rectifier/storage circuit”. This unit can detect substances that adhere to the clad plate through the change in vibration and resonance frequency. The ability to use this device without power as well as the ability to adjust triggers for its response are the key reasons it was chosen. 

The next task for the scientists was to adjust the transmission device to detect type “229E (HCoV-229E)”, one of seven strains of human coronavirus. Coating the clad surface of the plate using targeted proteins, in this case a CD13 protein caused the resonance frequency or vibrations of the device to decrease when exposed to this certain COVID-19 strain. Through repeated tests, they were able to verify that these coated plates could transmit the detection of the type “229E (HCoV-229E)”virus without needing an external power source, “something not capable with current biosensors“.

Proteins stimulating responses in our cells when fighting a virus like COVID-19 occur during the Cell Signaling process that we are studying in AP Biology. Through the process of an Immune Response to a virus, after the virus is broken down inside a macrophage, a MHC2 protein will bring part of that virus to the outside of the macrophage to signal a helper cell. The Helper T Cell then has a protein of its own called a CD4 protein which will pair with the MHC2 protein to identify the shape of the virus. In this part of the Immune response to a virus, we see a protein transferring information to a helper t cell, similarly we see a protein on the surface of these coated clads identify a strain of COVID-19 and then send a signal.

As the scientists continue their research on batteryless biomedical devices, they hope to further “develop our device and see if it applies to other viruses, such as MERS, SARS and COVID-19“.

Know Someone addicted to Opioids or Painkiller? This Biomedical Advancement May Be Able to Help.

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On October 24, 2022

In Student Post

First and foremost, the opioid crisis effects Americans nationwide. The United States is facing a major health crisis that rarely is even mentioned on the news. In the last 20 years(1999-2020) National overdose deaths involving any opioid have risen by more than a factor of six. Nearly 70,000 Americans died in 2020 rising by over 44% since just 2017. Whether given after a major surgery or sports injury, the addictive nature of opioids combined with the difficult side effects have left researchers looking for a better solution.

The general goal for this research was to target different receptors in the cell to do away with the harmful side effects of opioids. An international team of researchers led by the Chair of Pharmaceutical Chemistry at Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg (FAU) are “focusing particularly on the molecular structures of the receptors that dock onto the pharmaceutical substances”. In short, they are looking to activate adrenaline receptors instead of opioid receptors.

Researchers looked at the central nervous system to discover receptors in cells that lacked the sedative effect. While many of these adrenaline receptors are involved in pain processing, few have been cleared for use in therapies. This is where a team of researchers from Erlangen, China turned their attention to the adrenaline producing alpha 2A adrenergic receptor. One problem is that the analgesics that target the alpha 2A receptor produce a strong sedative effect. Gmeiner, one of the researchers, quotes “Dexmedetomidine(an analgesic) relieves pain, but has a strong sedative effect, which means its use is restricted to intensive care in hospital settings and is not suitable for broader patient groups”.

The goal for the researchers was to separate the sedative effect from the adrenaline receptors to ensure that this therapy could be used on a wider scale. Through the use of extremely high-resolution cryo-electron microscopic imaging, researchers were able to develop agonists that like Dexmedetomidine send large amounts of adrenaline to the brain thus, revealing  the sensation of pain very well. But, the real development was the “fact that none of the new compounds caused sedation, even at considerably higher doses than those that would be required for pain relief.”

In AP Biology, we have looked at the active transport of molecules through the phospholipid bilayer of the cell. Using ATP energy, cells in your body are able to move particles from a high concentration outside the cell to a lower concentration inside the cell. One process cells use to move these particles is Receptor Mediated Endocytosis. Specific ligands (ions, small molecules, or proteins) bind to a coated pit in the receptor while the receptor matches the ligands shape. Next, the ligands pass through the phospholipid bilayer and are put into a coated vesicle to be transported around the cell. A similar process takes place when receptors receive pain relieving drugs.

The prospect of removing the addictive and violent side effects of opioid use through the use of adrenaline receptors sounds promising, but it is important to keep in mind that this is still just research in the lab. With enough funding and time, the possibility of saving thousands of lives by developing non-opioid pain medication is a very exciting advancement and worth the investment.

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