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- Foundations of the world: "constructors" for creating life and "Velcro" for hydrogen
Foundations of the world: "constructors" for creating life and "Velcro" for hydrogen
Russian physicists have taught robots to "feel" the distance to objects with one camera, microbiologists have found out how "jumping genes" control the health of fruit flies, and materials scientists have created a "nanolipule" for hydrogen fuel. Australian biologists have warned of starvation due to a decrease in fish, and Japanese scientists have found a "constructor" for creating life on the asteroid Ryugu. The most interesting science and technology news of the past week can be found in the Izvestia article.
"Jumping genes" will help treat cancer and schizophrenia
Scientists at the V.A. Engelhardt Institute of Molecular Biology of the Russian Academy of Sciences and their colleagues have for the first time compiled a map of the distribution of mobile transposon elements, or "jumping genes," in the genomes of fruit flies. The study helped to understand how these elements affect the work of DNA.
It turned out that, moving through the genome, such elements can affect the activity of neighboring regions by spreading molecular tags that inhibit the work of genes. The analysis showed that up to 35% of the gene activity in certain areas of the drosophila genome may be associated with the presence of such elements. In addition, the researchers found that similar insect species are able to exchange mobile elements with each other.
Bioinformatician Alexander Rezvykh analyzes gene expression data from fruit flies
"Previously, it was believed that such DNA elements are a genetic ballast. However, using the example of fruit flies, we have shown that they are extremely important for regulating the work of genes," said Sergey Funikov, senior researcher at the Laboratory of Molecular Mechanisms of Biological Adaptation at the V.A. Engelhardt Institute of Molecular Biology of the Russian Academy of Sciences.
According to him, studies on flies, as well as work on the human genome, confirm that "jumping genes" play an important role in human health. In particular, their activity is associated with the development of oncology, neurodegenerative processes, schizophrenia, muscular dystrophy and other diseases.
In the future, the study of "jumping genes" may open the way to the creation of new methods of gene therapy and genome activity management. In addition, understanding the mechanisms of their regulation will allow for a deeper understanding of the processes of evolution of living organisms.
"Velcro" for hydrogen will help create airplanes without fuel tanks
Scientists from the National Research Nuclear University MEPhI have proposed a two—dimensional (one atom thick) material based on lithium and carbon as an effective hydrogen storage device, a promising fuel for automobile and air transport. The material is capable of binding up to 60-80 g of hydrogen per kilogram of its own mass, which indicates its high prospects.
— The development is a flat lattice of carbon atoms surrounded by lithium atoms. The material works on the principle of "Velcro": lithium ions create a local electric field that holds hydrogen molecules due to weak physical interaction without destroying them," Professor Konstantin Katin, head of the Laboratory of 2D Nanomaterials at the National Research Nuclear University MEPhI, explained to Izvestia.
At a pressure of 10-20 atmospheres and room temperature, the material retains almost all of the hydrogen, and when the pressure decreases (for example, when a valve is opened), the gas is quickly released, the specialist said.
According to the developers, such characteristics will make it possible to create technologies for storing hydrogen directly in the structural elements of vehicles. This will make it possible to eliminate bulky fuel tanks and significantly reduce the weight of the system, which is especially important for aviation, where every extra kilogram of take-off weight is important.
Robot couriers have learned to see the depth with one camera
MIPT specialists, together with foreign colleagues, have developed a neural network that will allow robot couriers to determine the distance to objects using a standard video camera. The main advantage of the system is working in difficult conditions (fog, dense foliage, etc.), where similar algorithms often fail.
For training, the scientists used an algorithm that takes into account shadows, perspective, and overlap, and based on these data, almost accurately determines which objects are closer and which are further away. The development will allow robots to do without special laser rangefinders (lidars) and other expensive equipment.
— The model constantly transmits hints to the stereo system. For example, "I do not know how many meters this car is closer than the tree, but it is definitely closer, and the border between them should be sharp." Or, "there is no contrast on this wall, which means the depth should change smoothly," explained Alexander Dvorkovich, project manager of the MIPT Scientific and Technical Telecommunications Center.
The development can be used in various types of autonomous vehicles: unmanned taxis, robot couriers, agricultural machinery. In the future, it will reduce the industry's dependence on a large number of sensors, which will reduce the cost of operating robots.
Global warming will make fish smaller and reduce catches.
Biologists from Monash University (Australia) and Jagiellonian University (Poland) have computationally modeled how global climate change will affect the evolution of fish and the volume of catch in the world. The model was tested on almost 3 thousand representatives of aquatic fauna. The results showed that in warmer water, fish will grow faster, but by adulthood they will reach a smaller size.
— This evolution is beneficial for fish, but harmful for fishing. It minimizes the impact of global warming on fish viability, but exacerbates its impact on the sustainability of fishing," said Craig White, the study's lead author and head of the Department of Biological Sciences at Monash University's Faculty of Natural Sciences.
According to him, with each degree of warming, the volume of fish catch will decrease. Losses can reach 50% compared to if fish had not evolved at all. This trend threatens the food security of mankind. However, an effective climate policy can prevent a negative scenario and save catches.
A complete set of life precursors found on the Ryugu asteroid
All five nucleic bases, which make up DNA and RNA molecules, were discovered by Japanese scientists in samples delivered from the asteroid Ryugu. These are adenine, guanine, cytosine, thymine and uracil. The discovery confirms that the components necessary for the origin of life were brought to Earth from space.
"The discovery of diverse nucleic bases in samples from asteroids and meteorites demonstrates their widespread distribution throughout the Solar System and confirms the hypothesis that carbonaceous asteroids contributed to the prebiotic chemical composition of the early Earth," the researchers said in an article on the results of the research.
The probe went to Ryugu in December 2014 and reached the asteroid in June 2018. Then, in December 2020, he delivered a capsule with 5.4 g of samples to Earth. The find was the second such confirmation. Previously, all five nucleic bases were found in samples from the asteroid Bennu, which were delivered by the OSIRIS-REx mission in 2023.
The researchers stressed that this discovery does not prove the existence of life beyond Earth, but indicates the widespread distribution of chemical compounds in the universe necessary for its origin.
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