Welcome to The Week of Technology. This week you'll see: the first steps in the non-allergenic cat manufacturing program; see how pythons breathe; grow up in the city even more disobedient; Great Barrier Reef corals in distress again; and apply gene therapy to alleviate genetic skin diseases.
Insensitive to cats
A company called InBio is planning to use gene editing to make non-allergic pet cats, and has completed the initial research steps – but all they can do now is edit domestic cat cells in vitro, which is still quite far from eventual success.[1]
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The goal of gene editing is to eliminate a protein called "Fel d 1" from cats, which is secreted by the cat's salivary glands and sebaceous glands, which is the main cause of allergies. Previously, people also tried to reduce the content of the Fel d 1 protein through methods such as variety breeding, but it was still impossible to completely eliminate the allergen. Using CRISPR gene editing to inactivate the genes that produce this protein will hopefully completely eliminate Fel d 1 and create a pet cat that is truly non-allergic.
If it is ultimately successful, will this cat survive healthily? The company's researchers think it should be possible: They compared genes associated with other wild cats in domestic cats and found that there were large differences in gene sequences, suggesting that the gene did not have a key physiological role. However, the actual situation needs to be further studied and verified.
Switch breathing
Animal video of the week: X-rays to see how a python breathes.
Video: Boa constrictor breathing in an x-ray. The researchers wrapped blood pressure cuffs around the snake to simulate a condition where some ribs were restricted in movement | John Capano
The researchers made the video because they wanted to know why pythons don't strangle themselves when strangling their prey — or rather, how they keep their breathing well while their bodies are squeezed. These snakes don't have diaphragm, and they rely entirely on rib movements to help air get into the lungs. This study showed that pythons are able to precisely control the movement of ribs in different parts of the body, and can freely switch breathing movements between ribs. When they squeeze their prey so hard that part of their ribs can't move, their long lungs are always well supplied with oxygen by switching their breathing movements to other areas[2].
Environmental impact
Always unable to find your way? You may have to blame for the circumstances of your childhood. A study published this week in Nature found that people who grew up in a regular urban environment have weaker spatial navigation [3].
For mobile games to test spatial abilities, subjects are required to first memorize the map and then control the boat to reach a specific marker point | Glitchers LTD
The study included 397162 subjects from 38 countries who tested their spatial navigation skills through a game designed for cognitive research. After correcting for factors such as age and education, the study found that people who grew up in the city were generally more likely to be out of the way: they performed worse in navigation tasks than those who grew up outside the city. The degree of this effect is related to the layout of the city: the more horizontal and vertical the city is very regular, the greater the negative impact on people's spatial navigation ability.
Chicago is a very well-laid-out city, and people who grow up here are even less adept at complex spatial navigation tasks | Ed Manley
Of course, the growth environment is only one of the many factors that affect the ability to recognize the way. Researchers also emphasize that after growing up, people can still continue to develop their spatial navigation capabilities.
Sixth bleaching
Corals on the Great Barrier Reef are undergoing their sixth mass bleaching, which is particularly critical during La Niña's year.
Massive coral bleaching in 2016 | Oregon State University
Algae that symbiosis with polyps bring them brilliant colors. However, corals are very sensitive, and once the water temperature rises and the water quality deteriorates, they may lose algae and bleach. The first two large-scale bleaching of corals occurred in 1998 and 2002; but since 2016, there have been 4 large-scale bleaching events in just 6 years. If ingestion continues, corals will die.
This year's La Niña phenomenon, which is expected to bring more rainfall and lower temperatures, would have been a good time for coral recovery. However, when the Australian government surveyed 750 separate reefs in the Great Barrier Reef, it was found that 60% of the reefs were undergoing severe bleaching [4]. At the same time, temperatures in most areas are 0.5 degrees Celsius higher than average, and in some areas it is even 4 degrees Celsius higher. If bleaching is not alleviated, not only will the planet lose a spectacle, but many marine life will also lose their homes.
Apply gene therapy
A topical application of gene therapy offers new hope for patients with inherited skin diseases: it can correct genetic defects in skin cells and help patients with epidermolysis bullosa heal wounds.
Epidermolysis bullosa can make a patient's skin unusually fragile | Mostafameraji
Due to a defect in a collagen gene, the skin of patients with malnourished epidermolysis bullosa becomes unusually fragile, often with repeated ruptures. The new gel, on the other hand, feeds the correct version of the gene into the patient's skin cells through a viral vector, allowing them to produce properly functioning collagen. Preliminary clinical trials have shown that this gel is effective in promoting the healing of patients' skin wounds compared to placebo controls, while being safe. The study was published this week in Nature Medicine [5].
This is not a once-and-for-all treatment: it can only touch superficial skin cells, which gradually die and fall off as the skin renews. However, it is very easy to use, so it has the potential to reach more patients and significantly improve their quality of life.
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Author: Mai Mai, window knocking rain
EDIT: Window knocking rain
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