China Science & Technology Forum

[JSCh]

Satellite radar system used to help preserve Angkor Wat temple
March 2, 2017 by Bob Yirka

Monument collapsing in Angkor due to decay. Credit: F.Chen from the Institute of Remote Sensing and Digital Earth, Chinese Academy of Sciences

(Tech Xplore)—A team of researchers from several institutions in China and one in Cambodia has used a new type of satellite radar system to assess the likelihood of damage to the iconic Angkor Wat temple from higher amounts of water being extracted from the ground in the area. In their paper published in the journal Science Advances, the team describes the new technology, how it was used and offers opinions on how best to protect the ancient stone structure and those around it.

The Angkor Wat temple in Cambodia (built during the Khmer Empire between the 9th and 15th centuries) and other ancient stone buildings around it have been designated as a World Heritage site by Unesco—unfortunately, the buildings are all suffering from varying amounts of decay causing officials to worry that some are close to collapsing. Adding to the fears are worries that increased water extraction from the ground from nearby areas in recent years might be causing the ground beneath the buildings to shift more, causing even more problems. To find out if this is the case, the researchers turned to a new type of satellite radar system called synthetic aperture radar interferometry (InSAR).

With InSAR, two satellites are used to make very precise measurements of the same ground location over time using advanced radar techniques. The spacing of the satellites allows for tracking ground movement—in this new effort, measurements were made over the period 2011 through 2013. The researchers calculated that the ground around the Angkor monuments shifted less than 3 millimeters—which they suggest indicates that it is unlikely that increased water extraction has sped up the decay of the stone buildings. Instead, they note, the steady decline of the structures is due almost entirely to erosion, temperature fluctuations and seasonal changes to the water table due to cyclical dry and wet seasons. They suggest officials instead focus their efforts on mitigating damage due to climate change as some models have suggested the area might experience longer dry periods as the planet heats up.

Annual deformation rates (millimeters per year) on the Angkor Wat Temple. The pink arrows mark vulnerable monuments. Credit: Chen et al. Sci. Adv. 2017;3:e1601284

The researchers note that InSAR could be used to help understand conditions around other important ancient structures, offering those charged with protecting them a new tool as well.

​

Cracks and countermeasures on the second gallery of the Angkor Wat Temple. Credit: F.Chen from the Institute of Remote Sensing and Digital Earth, Chinese Academy of Sciences

More information: Fulong Chen et al. Radar interferometry offers new insights into threats to the Angkor site, Science Advances (2017). DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.1601284

Abstract
The conservation of World Heritage is critical to the cultural and social sustainability of regions and nations. Risk monitoring and preventive diagnosis of threats to heritage sites in any given ecosystem are a complex and challenging task. Taking advantage of the performance of Earth Observation technologies, we measured the impacts of hitherto imperceptible and poorly understood factors of groundwater and temperature variations on the monuments in the Angkor World Heritage site (400 km2). We developed a two-scale synthetic aperture radar interferometry (InSAR) approach. We describe spatial-temporal displacements (at millimeter-level accuracy), as measured by high-resolution TerraSAR/TanDEM-X satellite images, to provide a new solution to resolve the current controversy surrounding the potential structural collapse of monuments in Angkor. Multidisciplinary analysis in conjunction with a deterioration kinetics model offers new insights into the causes that trigger the potential decline of Angkor monuments. Our results show that pumping groundwater for residential and touristic establishments did not threaten the sustainability of monuments during 2011 to 2013; however, seasonal variations of the groundwater table and the thermodynamics of stone materials are factors that could trigger and/or aggravate the deterioration of monuments. These factors amplify known impacts of chemical weathering and biological alteration of temple materials. The InSAR solution reported in this study could have implications for monitoring and sustainable conservation of monuments in World Heritage sites elsewhere.

​

Satellite radar system used to help preserve Angkor Wat temple | Tech Xplore

 

[JSCh]

China's deep-sea robot sets new underwater gliding depth record
Source: Xinhua 2017-03-06 15:51:00

BEIJING, March 6 (Xinhua) -- China's domestic underwater glider reached a depth of 6,329 meters during a mission in the Mariana Trench, breaking the previous record of 6,000 meters held by a U.S. vessel, according to the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS).

Codenamed Haiyi, which means sea wings in Chinese, the underwater glider was developed by the Shenyang Institute of Automation under CAS, and is used to monitor the deep-sea environment in vast areas.

The Haiyi, carried by deep-sea submersible mother ship Tansuo-1, dived down 12 times and traveled over 130 kilometers during its four-day mission, collecting high-resolution data for scientific research.

 

[JSCh]

China's deep-sea robot sets new underwater gliding depth record
Source: Xinhua 2017-03-06 15:51:00

BEIJING, March 6 (Xinhua) -- China's domestic underwater glider reached a depth of 6,329 meters during a mission in the Mariana Trench, breaking the previous record of 6,000 meters held by a U.S. vessel, according to the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS).

Codenamed Haiyi, which means sea wings in Chinese, the underwater glider was developed by the Shenyang Institute of Automation under CAS, and is used to monitor the deep-sea environment in vast areas.

The Haiyi, carried by deep-sea submersible mother ship Tansuo-1, dived down 12 times and traveled over 130 kilometers during its four-day mission, collecting high-resolution data for scientific research.

Records broken at ocean's lowest depth
By Zhang Zhihao | China Daily | Updated: 2017-03-07 07:59

Amid deputies attending the annual meetings of the top legislature and the top political advisory body, Chinese scientists have broken two world records at the ocean's lowest depth - the Mariana Trench, a scythe-shaped clef in the western Pacific Ocean seafloor that plunges nearly 11 kilometers deep.

China became the first country to collect the artificial seismic stratigraphy of the Challenger Deep, the deepest section of the trench measured at more than 10 kilometers, the Chinese Academy of Sciences' Institute of Geology and Geophysics said on Friday. The stratigraphy is used to study the Earth's movement, layers and geologic history.

China also set a new world diving record for underwater gliders at 6,329 meters with Hai Yi, a glider designed by the academy's Institute of Automation in Shenyang, Liaoning province, the academy said on Sunday. The previous recorder holder was a US glider at 6,000 meters.

"These experiments prove that China's deep-sea exploration technologies have reached an advanced level," the academy said in a statement.

"Data collected from these experiments are invaluable to the study of continental movement and its transformation," said Qiu Xuelin, a researcher at the academy's South China Sea Institute of Oceanology.

Both experiments were carried out by Chinese scientists onboard the academy's Explorer-I TS03 scientific surveying ship. They departed Sanya, Hainan province, en route to the Mariana Trench on Jan 15.

Upon arrival, they deployed 60 ocean-bottom seismometers to collect data for the stratigraphy on Jan 25. Some seismometers had sunk to 10,027 meters, the academy said, which is enough to submerge Qomolangma (8,850 meters), known as Mount Everest in the West.

These instruments can capture sound waves generated by earthquakes or human activities. These waves, combined with the motions of the Earth, can provide details about the geometry of the Earth's structure, said Wang Yuan, an engineer at the academy's Institute of Geology and Geophysics.

The glider is an autonomous underwater vehicle designed to survey marine conditions, such as temperature, salinity and currents, across large bodies of water.

Apart from breaking the world record, Hai Yi also completed 12 observation missions across 130 kilometers of water. The data it collected from the abyssal sea is "valuable for oceanologists studying the region", the academy said.

It took Chinese scientists 13 years to design and build the Hai Yi and its variants, it said, adding that there are more than two-dozen types, covering use in shallow sea, deep sea and abyssal sea.

 

[JSCh]

China aims to take lead in brain science by 2030
(People's Daily Online) 16:58, March 07, 2017

China hopes to become a leading power in brain science by the end of 2030, with a primary focus on brain disease prevention and treatment, as well as artificial intelligence.

“The research on brain science and artificial intelligence is at a crucial stage. Chinese scientists should seize the opportunity to make substantial contributions,” Zhang Xu, an academician with the Chinese Academy of Sciences, told Science and Technology Daily.

According to Zhang, China’s brain project will integrate brain science and brain-inspired intelligence technology, focusing mainly on diagnosis and intervention for brain diseases, as well as on the development of new AI computation methods and devices.

“Neuroscience and artificial intelligence should not be separated. The country that can boost the integrated development of the two fields will be the true winner in future brain science,” said Zhang.

There is now clear recognition by the international scientific community that brain science is an important frontier. The U.S., Europe and Japan have all announced massive projects to map the brain, giving them a potential advantage over China.

According to statistics from Science and Technology Daily, the U.S. and Germany have 24,624 and 7,328 neuroscience research groups respectively, while China has only 4,938. Though government investment in brain science increased from 348 million RMB in 2010 to 500 million RMB in 2013, financial constraints still hinder the development of brain science in China.

In response to the current problems, Zhang suggested that the country attract more scientists and experts from abroad to come work in China. He also hopes to see more efficient cooperation between scientists with different backgrounds to promote interdisciplinary research.

 

[JSCh]

Mar. 09 2017
Chinese Famine Data Show No Long-term Health Effects Except for Schizophrenia

Meta-analysis raises questions about the design and analysis of current studies
A new systematic re-analysis of all previous studies of long-term health effects of prenatal exposure to the Chinese Famine of 1959-61 by researchers at Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health shows no increases in diabetes, high blood pressure and other chronic conditions among famine births except for schizophrenia. The analyzed studies reported that these conditions were more common among famine births compared to control groups born after the famine. In the re-analysis, the Columbia researchers compared outcomes in famine births to control groups combining births from before and after the famine. The findings raise fundamental questions about the design of existing Chinese famine studies.

“Significant improvements are needed in the design and analysis of these studies for more reliable estimates of the long-term impact of the famine,” said L. H. Lumey, MD, PhD, professor of Epidemiology at the Mailman School and senior author. This is the first systematic review and meta-analysis of available studies, including different designs and analytical methods. Findings are published online in the International Journal of Epidemiology.

“The results of our analysis were unexpected and point to an unrecognized flaw in common famine reports. Using only controls born after the famine, famine births will be older than controls and this will make them less healthy than controls,” said Dr. Lumey. To neutralize the age effect, control groups born before the famine were therefore added from each study by the Columbia researchers.

Earlier studies showed that overweight, type 2 diabetes, hyperglycemia, the metabolic syndrome and schizophrenia were more elevated in adults born in China who were exposed to the Forward Famine of 1959-1961 during early life. Because many studies differed in study design and analytical methods and were carried out in different regions in China, the Columbia researchers undertook a systematic review and meta-analysis of available reports to summarize the data, generate estimates of homogeneity of reported famine effects, consider possible implications for public health, and formulate suggestions for future studies.

The researchers used several databases including PubMed, Embase, Chinese Wanfang Data, and Chinese National Knowledge Infrastructure to conduct the review. More than 13,000 records of long-term health conditions were initially reviewed for those exposed and unexposed to the Famine. The number of events that were analyzed ranged from 1029 for hyperglycemia to 8973 for hypertension. Most Chinese over age 55 today have been exposed to the famine at some point of their early life.

“Beyond age effects, we were also interested in health outcomes comparing births in rural and urban areas and in regions with extreme and less severe famine -- whichsome studies had reported – and we did not find any systematic differences. We think that better indicators of famine exposure are needed,” noted Chihua Li, doctoral candidate in the Department of Epidemiology and the study’s first author.

Reliable estimates of the long-term impact of the Chinese famine are important because the famine experience could have substantially increased the risk of major chronic diseases in later life among the Chinese population. “As a next step, we will therefore continue with systematic analyses of study results from ongoing health surveys in China for more reliable estimates of long term famine effects” says Dr. Lumey.



Chinese Famine Data Show No Long-term Health Effects Except for Schizophrenia | Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health

 

[JSCh]

Researchers Assemble Five New Synthetic Yeast Chromosomes
March 9, 2017 (2:00PM)

A global research team has built five new synthetic yeast chromosomes, meaning that 30 percent of a key organism’s genetic material has now been swapped out for engineered replacements. This is one of several findings of a package of seven papers published March 10 as the cover story for Science.

Led by NYU Langone geneticist Jef Boeke, PhD, and a team of more than 200 authors, the publications are the latest from the Synthetic Yeast Project (Sc2.0). By the end of this year, this international consortium hopes to have designed and built synthetic versions of all 16 chromosomes—the structures that contain DNA—for the one-celled microorganism Baker’s yeast, known as S. cerevisiae.

Like computer programmers, scientists add swaths of synthetic DNA to—or remove stretches from—human, plant, bacterial, or yeast chromosomes in hopes of averting disease, manufacturing medicines, or making food more nutritious. Baker’s yeast have long served as an important research model because their cells share many features with human cells, but are simpler and easier to study.

“This work sets the stage for completion of designer, synthetic genomes to address unmet needs in medicine and industry,” says Dr. Boeke, director of NYU Langone’s Institute for Systems Genetics. “Beyond any one application, the papers confirm that newly created systems and software can answer basic questions about the nature of genetic machinery by reprogramming chromosomes in living cells.”

In March 2014, Sc2.0 successfully assembled the first synthetic yeast chromosome (synthetic chromosome 3, or synIII) comprising 272,871 base pairs, the chemical units that make up the DNA code. The new round of papers consists of an overview and five papers describing the first assembly of synthetic yeast chromosomes synII, synV, synVI, synX, and synXII. A seventh paper provides a first look at the three-dimensional structures of synthetic chromosomes in the cell nucleus.

Many technologies developed in Sc2.0 serve as the foundation for the Genome Project-write (GP-write), a related initiative aiming to synthesize complete sets of human and plant chromosomes (genomes) in the next 10 years. GP-write will hold its next meeting in New York City on May 9-10, 2017.

Global Production
To begin synthesizing a yeast chromosome, researchers must first plan thousands of changes, some of which empower them to move around pieces of chromosomes in a kind of fast, high-powered evolution. Other changes remove stretches of DNA code found to be unlikely to have a functional role by past efforts. Libraries of altered yeast strains can then be screened to see which have the most useful features.

With the edits made, the team starts to assemble edited, synthetic DNA sequences into ever larger chunks, which are finally introduced into yeast cells, where cellular machinery finishes building the chromosome. A major innovation captured in the current round of papers involves this last step.

Previously, researchers were required to finish building one piece of a chromosome before they could start work on the next. Sequential requirements are bottlenecks, says Boeke, which slow processes and increase cost. The current round of papers features several efforts to “parallelize” the assembly of synthetic chromosomes.

Labs around the globe each synthesized different pieces in strains of yeast that were then mated, or crossed, to quickly yield thriving yeast, not just with an entire synthetic chromosome, but in some instances with more than one. Specifically, a paper led by author Leslie Mitchell, PhD, a postdoctoral fellow from Dr. Boeke’s lab at NYU Langone, described the construction of a strain containing three synthetic chromosomes.

“Steps can be accomplished at the same time in many locales and then assembled at the end, like networking laptops to create a global super computer,” says Mitchell.

Along the way, the global team honed a number of innovations and came to understand yeast biology better. A team at Tsinghua University, for instance, led an effort where six teams built in pieces synthetic chromosome XII (synXII), which was then assembled into a final molecule more than a million base pairs, called a megabase, in length. This largest synthetic chromosome to date is still 1/3,000 of what would be needed to build a human genome molecule, so new techniques will be needed.

In addition, experiments demonstrated that drastic changes can be made to the genomes of yeast without killing them, says Dr. Boeke. Yeast strains, for instance, survived experiments where sections of DNA code were moved from one chromosome to another, or even swapped between yeast species, with little effect. Genetically pliable, or plastic, organisms make good platforms for the dramatic engineering that may be needed for future applications.

The package of 7 newly published papers had authors from 10 universities in several countries, including NYU Langone and Johns Hopkins University; Tianjin University and Tsinghua University in China; the Institut Pasteur and Sorbonne Universités in France; and the University of Edinburgh in Scotland. Other authors were from key industry partners that included BGI, the leading Chinese genomics organization; the U.S.–China-based Genescript; and WuXi Qinglan Biotechnology, Inc.

Led by the School of Chemical Engineering and Technology at Tianjin University, the paper describing the synthesis of synV is noteworthy in that it was done by undergraduate students as part of “Build-a-Genome China,” a class first taught in the U.S. at Johns Hopkins, where Dr. Boeke worked before coming to NYU Langone. This is part of an emerging global network of “chromosome foundries,” says Dr. Boeke, “which is building the next generation of synthetic biologists along with chromosomes.”

In addition to Dr. Boeke and Dr. Mitchell, lead organizers for the current studies included Ying-Jin Yuan of Tianjin University and Junbiao Dai of Tsinghua University; Joel Bader from Johns Hopkins; Romain Koszul at the Institut Pasteur; Yizhi Cai at the University of Edinburgh; and Huanming Yang at BGI. The U.S. studies were supported principally by the National Science Foundation. Other key funding sources were the China National High Technology Research and Development Program, Ministry of Science and Technology of the People’s Republic of China, National Natural Science Foundation of China, UK Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council, and ERASynBio.


Researchers Assemble Five New Synthetic Yeast Chromosomes | NYU Langone Medical Center

*****###*****​

Biology team makes breakthrough in synthetic yeast project
March 9, 2017

Led by Tianjin University Professor Ying-Jin Yuan, TJU's synthetic biology team has completed the synthesis of redesigned yeast chromosomes synV and synX with the two studies published in Science on March 10, 2017.

The publications are part of the effort to chemically synthesize the designer yeast genome (Sc 2.0), in collaboration with NYU and John Hopkins in the US, Tsinghua University, BGI-Shenzhen in China, the University of Edinburgh in the UK, and the Institut Pasteur and Sorbonne Universités in France, as well as industry partners.

--> Biology team makes breakthrough in synthetic yeast project | phys.org


Paper:

1. "Bug mapping and fitness testing of chemically synthesized chromosome X," Science (2017). DOI: 10.1126/science.aaf4706
2. "'Perfect' designer chromosome V and behavior of a ring derivative," Science (2017). DOI: 10.1126/science.aaf4704

 

[JSCh]

China becomes first nation to acquire world’s deepest seismic profile data
March 10, 2017
By Liu Junguo from People's Daily

China has become the world’s first country to acquire 10,000-meter-deep marine artificial seismic profile data.

The Chinese-made Ocean Bottom Seismometers (OBS) self-developed by Institute of Geology and Geophysics under the Chinese Academy of Sciences (IGGCAS) has been successfully applied for the Challenger Deep, the deepest section of the Mariana Trench measured at more than 10 kilometers, according to IGGCAS.

China has also completed the task of probing the underwater electromagnetic waves with a domestically-developed instrument, proving the country's deep-sea exploration technologies have reached a 10,000-meter-deep level.

On January 15, 2017, the Shenyuan deep-sea expedition team of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), on board the Tansuo-1 scientific research ship, set sail from Sanya in Hainan Province for the Mariana Trench and Yap Trench, aiming at carrying out deep-sea scientific exploration and testing of high-tech equipment.

The expedition team reportedly placed 60 OBS in the Trench area with 56 of them successfully retrieved on February 28. The maximum depth reached by the 56 reclaimed OBS was said to be 10,027 meters and 10,026 meters, with actual operation length of the profile reaching 669 kilometers.

Experts noted that data collected from these experiments are invaluable. According to experts, OBS plays a vital role in oceanic survey. The devices record the earth's motion under oceans thus providing information for the deep structure of the earth's crust and upper mantle in offshore areas.

 

[JSCh]

Researchers Assemble Five New Synthetic Yeast Chromosomes
March 9, 2017 (2:00PM)

A global research team has built five new synthetic yeast chromosomes, meaning that 30 percent of a key organism’s genetic material has now been swapped out for engineered replacements. This is one of several findings of a package of seven papers published March 10 as the cover story for Science.

Led by NYU Langone geneticist Jef Boeke, PhD, and a team of more than 200 authors, the publications are the latest from the Synthetic Yeast Project (Sc2.0). By the end of this year, this international consortium hopes to have designed and built synthetic versions of all 16 chromosomes—the structures that contain DNA—for the one-celled microorganism Baker’s yeast, known as S. cerevisiae.

Like computer programmers, scientists add swaths of synthetic DNA to—or remove stretches from—human, plant, bacterial, or yeast chromosomes in hopes of averting disease, manufacturing medicines, or making food more nutritious. Baker’s yeast have long served as an important research model because their cells share many features with human cells, but are simpler and easier to study.

“This work sets the stage for completion of designer, synthetic genomes to address unmet needs in medicine and industry,” says Dr. Boeke, director of NYU Langone’s Institute for Systems Genetics. “Beyond any one application, the papers confirm that newly created systems and software can answer basic questions about the nature of genetic machinery by reprogramming chromosomes in living cells.”

In March 2014, Sc2.0 successfully assembled the first synthetic yeast chromosome (synthetic chromosome 3, or synIII) comprising 272,871 base pairs, the chemical units that make up the DNA code. The new round of papers consists of an overview and five papers describing the first assembly of synthetic yeast chromosomes synII, synV, synVI, synX, and synXII. A seventh paper provides a first look at the three-dimensional structures of synthetic chromosomes in the cell nucleus.

Many technologies developed in Sc2.0 serve as the foundation for the Genome Project-write (GP-write), a related initiative aiming to synthesize complete sets of human and plant chromosomes (genomes) in the next 10 years. GP-write will hold its next meeting in New York City on May 9-10, 2017.

Global Production
To begin synthesizing a yeast chromosome, researchers must first plan thousands of changes, some of which empower them to move around pieces of chromosomes in a kind of fast, high-powered evolution. Other changes remove stretches of DNA code found to be unlikely to have a functional role by past efforts. Libraries of altered yeast strains can then be screened to see which have the most useful features.

With the edits made, the team starts to assemble edited, synthetic DNA sequences into ever larger chunks, which are finally introduced into yeast cells, where cellular machinery finishes building the chromosome. A major innovation captured in the current round of papers involves this last step.

Previously, researchers were required to finish building one piece of a chromosome before they could start work on the next. Sequential requirements are bottlenecks, says Boeke, which slow processes and increase cost. The current round of papers features several efforts to “parallelize” the assembly of synthetic chromosomes.

Labs around the globe each synthesized different pieces in strains of yeast that were then mated, or crossed, to quickly yield thriving yeast, not just with an entire synthetic chromosome, but in some instances with more than one. Specifically, a paper led by author Leslie Mitchell, PhD, a postdoctoral fellow from Dr. Boeke’s lab at NYU Langone, described the construction of a strain containing three synthetic chromosomes.

“Steps can be accomplished at the same time in many locales and then assembled at the end, like networking laptops to create a global super computer,” says Mitchell.

Along the way, the global team honed a number of innovations and came to understand yeast biology better. A team at Tsinghua University, for instance, led an effort where six teams built in pieces synthetic chromosome XII (synXII), which was then assembled into a final molecule more than a million base pairs, called a megabase, in length. This largest synthetic chromosome to date is still 1/3,000 of what would be needed to build a human genome molecule, so new techniques will be needed.

In addition, experiments demonstrated that drastic changes can be made to the genomes of yeast without killing them, says Dr. Boeke. Yeast strains, for instance, survived experiments where sections of DNA code were moved from one chromosome to another, or even swapped between yeast species, with little effect. Genetically pliable, or plastic, organisms make good platforms for the dramatic engineering that may be needed for future applications.

The package of 7 newly published papers had authors from 10 universities in several countries, including NYU Langone and Johns Hopkins University; Tianjin University and Tsinghua University in China; the Institut Pasteur and Sorbonne Universités in France; and the University of Edinburgh in Scotland. Other authors were from key industry partners that included BGI, the leading Chinese genomics organization; the U.S.–China-based Genescript; and WuXi Qinglan Biotechnology, Inc.

Led by the School of Chemical Engineering and Technology at Tianjin University, the paper describing the synthesis of synV is noteworthy in that it was done by undergraduate students as part of “Build-a-Genome China,” a class first taught in the U.S. at Johns Hopkins, where Dr. Boeke worked before coming to NYU Langone. This is part of an emerging global network of “chromosome foundries,” says Dr. Boeke, “which is building the next generation of synthetic biologists along with chromosomes.”

In addition to Dr. Boeke and Dr. Mitchell, lead organizers for the current studies included Ying-Jin Yuan of Tianjin University and Junbiao Dai of Tsinghua University; Joel Bader from Johns Hopkins; Romain Koszul at the Institut Pasteur; Yizhi Cai at the University of Edinburgh; and Huanming Yang at BGI. The U.S. studies were supported principally by the National Science Foundation. Other key funding sources were the China National High Technology Research and Development Program, Ministry of Science and Technology of the People’s Republic of China, National Natural Science Foundation of China, UK Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council, and ERASynBio.


Researchers Assemble Five New Synthetic Yeast Chromosomes | NYU Langone Medical Center

*****###*****​

Biology team makes breakthrough in synthetic yeast project
March 9, 2017

Led by Tianjin University Professor Ying-Jin Yuan, TJU's synthetic biology team has completed the synthesis of redesigned yeast chromosomes synV and synX with the two studies published in Science on March 10, 2017.

The publications are part of the effort to chemically synthesize the designer yeast genome (Sc 2.0), in collaboration with NYU and John Hopkins in the US, Tsinghua University, BGI-Shenzhen in China, the University of Edinburgh in the UK, and the Institut Pasteur and Sorbonne Universités in France, as well as industry partners.

--> Biology team makes breakthrough in synthetic yeast project | phys.org


Paper:

1. "Bug mapping and fitness testing of chemically synthesized chromosome X," Science (2017). DOI: 10.1126/science.aaf4706
2. "'Perfect' designer chromosome V and behavior of a ring derivative," Science (2017). DOI: 10.1126/science.aaf4704

Chinese scientists create 4 synthetic yeast chromosomes
Source: Xinhua 2017-03-10 13:02:41

Chinese scientists have assembled four synthetic yeast chromosomes, making China the second country capable of designing and building eukaryotic genomes following the United States.

The findings were published in Friday's edition of journal Science, marking a step closer to building synthetic life.

In the study, researchers with Tianjin University, Tsinghua University and BGI-Shenzhen construct the synthetic active eukaryotic chromosomes through exactly matching the synthetic genome with the designed sequence for the first time.

"If genome sequencing is reading the code of life, then genome synthesizing is writing the code of life. From reading to writing, it is a breakthrough," said Yang Huanming, an academic with the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

In 2010, U.S. scientists succeeded in implanting a synthetic genome in a prokaryotic bacterium, marking the first step in chemical synthesis of live organisms.

"The latest study has addressed fundamental problems in synthesizing unicelluar eukaryotic organisms, laying a foundation for future design and building of more complex cells of multicelluar organisms, including animals, plants and fungi," said Yuan Yingjin, a professor with Tianjin University.

The new effort is part of a larger project to redesign and reengineer yeast chromosomes, called the Synthetic Yeast Genome Project, which several research institutes participated in, including those in China and the United States.

Brewer's yeast has long served as an important research model because their cells share many features with human cells, but are simpler and easier to study.

"Synthetic yeast chromosomes will facilitate studies on chromosome abnormity and repair of the genome, providing models for research and treatment of present medical challenges such as epilepsy, cancer, mental disability and aging," Yuan said.

According to the researchers, synthetic biology will provide solutions to global problems, including energy shortages and pollution.

For example, with development in technology, modified brewer's yeast with synthetic chromosomes will help produce food and energy of various kinds and lower cost through fermentation one day, Yang said. (Updated)

 

[cirr]

CCTV2: China to mass-produce 5nm plasma etching machine by the end of this year, among many other things:

http://tv.cctv.com/2017/03/11/VIDE7vfLJyz6TTUWvI4woZt4170311.shtml



@Bussard Ramjet

 

[Bussard Ramjet]

CCTV2: China to mass-produce 5nm plasma etching machine by the end of this year, among many other things:

http://tv.cctv.com/2017/03/11/VIDE7vfLJyz6TTUWvI4woZt4170311.shtml



@Bussard Ramjet

Forgive me, but what does this mean?

 

[cirr]

China builds Big data centre for children's health

PTI

PublishedMar 13, 2017, 8:12 am IST
UpdatedMar 13, 2017, 8:13 am IST

The collection will expand to 300 hospitals by 2017 and 1,000 by 2020.

(Representational image)

China's first big data research centre for children, which has already collected information on over 200,000 children, has been set up in the central Hubei Province to improve their health.

The centre, established by Wuhan University and a Beijing-based paediatric technology firm in Wuhan, capital of Hubei, aims to develop a more complete medical care system for children in disease prevention, diagnosis and personalised treatment, state-run Xinhua news agency reported.

It has collected information on more than 200,000 children in 70 hospitals across the seven provinces of Shandong, Henan, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangsu, Anhui and Sichuan.

The collection will expand to 300 hospitals by 2017 and 1,000 by 2020.

The research centre said it will develop into a national cloud platform for children's health information, offering standards on personalised medical care and clinical treatment.

http://www.deccanchronicle.com/tech...lds-big-data-centre-for-childrens-health.html

 

[JSCh]

Premier Li calls for more research efforts on smog formation
Updated: Mar 10,2017 9:26 AM english.gov.cn

Premier Li Keqiang called for all out efforts to overcome challenges and find out how smog is formed during a meeting with delegation from Shaanxi province on March 9.

Zhou Weijian, an academician and head of the Institute of Earth Environment of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, presented her statement and suggested muti-disciplinary efforts to research the causes, development trends, impact on the environment, and control of smog that has become a major problem in north China.

In the Government Work Report delivered by Premier Li on March 5, he stressed efforts to make skies blue again, strengthen scientific studies on the formation of smog, thus producing accurate scientific targeted measures to deal with the problem, Zhou said.

“We have sent a letter on this issue to Premier Li,” she added.

“Here is the letter which I have approved!” said the Premier holding the letter high in his hand.

Zhou said that although many studies have been conducted on air pollution and general haze phenomenon, no specific study team for China’s haze pollution has been set up.

China’s haze pollution incident covers more areas and it is different from the haze pollution historically seen in London or Los Angeles, she said, adding that the composition of China’s haze is also complicated. The pollution problem in China has seasonal characteristics, meaning its intensity varies season to season.

She said their research has shown that besides coal consumption, automobile exhaust and burning of biomasses, the use of nitrogen fertilizer in North China Plain should also be controlled to decrease PM 2.5.

“You mentioned an important, but seldom raised point. The form of haze is not only affected by coal consumption, automobile exhaust and dust, but also related to agricultural pollutants, such as the overuse of nitrogen fertilizer. Is there any proof for the claim?” the Premier asked.

“We have conducted simulation experiments, proving that ammonia released by nitrogen fertilizer contributes 20 percent or more to the smog pollution,” said Zhou.

”Great importance should be attached to the study,” said Premier Li. “We have taken many measures to fight smog in the past years, mainly concerning fire coal, automobile exhaust and dust, but did not pay equal attention to the usage of nitrogen fertilizer,” he added.

We need to carry out more in-depth study on the formation of haze. Only then, smog can be more effectively controlled, said the Premier.

The ultimate goal of our development is to ensure people’s livelihood, which needs not only more efforts from medical and educational sectors but also coordinated progress of ecological construction as well as social and economic development, he said.

“Now we have got enough to eat and we hope to live well,” said the Premier. “It means we not only need to improve our food quality but also breathe good air,” he added.

“I have said at the executive meetings of the State Council a few times that if any research and development teams can study and clearly analyze the formation and harm of smog and offer effective targeted measures, we are willing to reward them with the Premier reserve fund. This is an urgent problem concerning people’s livelihood. We must thoroughly study this issue at any costs.”

Following his words, the meeting room resounded with applause. Academician Zhou nodded her head and raised her two thumbs to the Premier.

Premier Li said that the public is looking forward to tackling the smog issue and seeing more blue sky days, which needs the concerted efforts of the whole society.

 

[JSCh]

Chinese mountain observatory to probe cosmic-ray origins
The massive project will intercept γ-ray showers in an unexplored energy band.

David Cyranoski
15 March 2017

Haizi mountain, near Daocheng in the Sichuan province of China, will host an observatory designed to detect ultra-high-energy γ-rays.

Set high on a mountain plain in China, an ambitious observatory will offer a unique perspective on the origins of cosmic rays, high-energy particles that rain down on Earth. Construction has started on the project, which will probe, for the first time, ultra-high-energy γ-rays — bursts of radiation thought to be produced alongside cosmic rays in our Galaxy, but whose origins are easier to track.

The 1.3-square-kilometre site near Daocheng in Sichuan, close to Tibet, received the go-ahead in January, after an environmental report convinced the government that construction would not harm the threatened white-lipped deer (Cervus albirostris) and other animals in a nearby nature reserve. Now, contractors are installing infrastructure for the 1.2-billion-yuan (US$174-million) Large High Altitude Air Shower Observatory (LHAASO).

“This will be the leading project to clarify questions of cosmic-ray physics,” says Giuseppe Di Sciascio, a particle physicist at the National Institute for Nuclear Physics (INFN) in Rome. Di Sciascio, along with researchers from a number of countries, including Switzerland, Russia and Thailand, hopes to collaborate on the project. Chief among the physics questions that LHAASO will investigate is what accelerates cosmic rays — charged particles such as protons or atomic nuclei — to such high energies. Some cosmic rays that hit Earth have energies millions of times greater than the energies produced by the most powerful human-made particle accelerator, the Large Hadron Collider near Geneva, Switzerland. Scientists have proposed certain celestial phenomena, such as black holes or supernovae, as origins, but no one has confirmed this conclusively.

IHEP
China's high altitude observatory will have four different arrays to detect γ- and cosmic rays.



--> Chinese mountain observatory to probe cosmic-ray origins : Nature News & Comment

 

[JSCh]

Paper test determines blood type in 30 seconds: study
Source: Xinhua | 2017-03-16 08:11:07 | Editor: huaxia

Image of a new paper blood test that determines both forward (F) and reverse (R) blood types at the same time. (Xinhua/Credit: H. Zhang et al., Science Translational Medicine)

WASHINGTON, March 15 (Xinhua) -- Chinese researchers said Wednesday they have developed a cheap but accurate and easy-to-use paper test that can determine a patient's blood type in as fast as 30 seconds.

In a study published in the U.S. journal Science Translational Medicine, Hong Zhang and his colleagues from China's Third Military Medical University said there is a need to develop "a simple and economical strategy" for fast blood grouping.

That's because conventional approaches, dominated by microplate or gel-column tests, are "encumbered by long turnaround times, labor-intensive operation, and technical training requirements."

Unlike conventional methods, the new paper-based test, however, classified samples into the common ABO and Rh blood groups in less than 30 seconds, Zhang said.

To create the test, the researchers took advantage of chemical reactions between blood serum proteins and a widely-available dye called bromocreosol green.

Each test paper strip was also equipped with antibodies that recognized different blood type markers, such as A or B antigens, which can be found on the surface of red blood cells.

When a drop of blood was applied, the results appeared as visual color changes in the observation window of the paper strip: teal if a blood group antigen was present in a sample and brown if not.

The presence of A or B antigens or both indicates a patient's blood type is A, or B, or AB, while the absence of both A and B antigens indicates blood type O, Zhang said.

The paper-based test was also able to detect antibodies in blood plasma, which can help determine a patient's blood type in full details and only took about two minutes to complete.

After analyzing 3,550 clinical blood samples, the test demonstrated more than a 99.9 percent accuracy rate, and the only inconsistencies occurred in trials with highly uncommon blood types.

"This assay not only provides a new strategy for blood grouping but can also be used in time- and resource-limited situations, such as war zones, in remote areas, and during emergencies," said the study,

"Characterized by an intensified and streamlined workflow capability, the proposed blood-grouping assay may be further developed into highly compact and fully automatic platforms that are highly efficient and economical, making large-scale manufacturing possible."

 

[Dungeness]

Paper test determines blood type in 30 seconds: study
Source: Xinhua | 2017-03-16 08:11:07 | Editor: huaxia

Image of a new paper blood test that determines both forward (F) and reverse (R) blood types at the same time. (Xinhua/Credit: H. Zhang et al., Science Translational Medicine)

WASHINGTON, March 15 (Xinhua) -- Chinese researchers said Wednesday they have developed a cheap but accurate and easy-to-use paper test that can determine a patient's blood type in as fast as 30 seconds.

In a study published in the U.S. journal Science Translational Medicine, Hong Zhang and his colleagues from China's Third Military Medical University said there is a need to develop "a simple and economical strategy" for fast blood grouping.

That's because conventional approaches, dominated by microplate or gel-column tests, are "encumbered by long turnaround times, labor-intensive operation, and technical training requirements."

Unlike conventional methods, the new paper-based test, however, classified samples into the common ABO and Rh blood groups in less than 30 seconds, Zhang said.

To create the test, the researchers took advantage of chemical reactions between blood serum proteins and a widely-available dye called bromocreosol green.

Each test paper strip was also equipped with antibodies that recognized different blood type markers, such as A or B antigens, which can be found on the surface of red blood cells.

When a drop of blood was applied, the results appeared as visual color changes in the observation window of the paper strip: teal if a blood group antigen was present in a sample and brown if not.

The presence of A or B antigens or both indicates a patient's blood type is A, or B, or AB, while the absence of both A and B antigens indicates blood type O, Zhang said.

The paper-based test was also able to detect antibodies in blood plasma, which can help determine a patient's blood type in full details and only took about two minutes to complete.

After analyzing 3,550 clinical blood samples, the test demonstrated more than a 99.9 percent accuracy rate, and the only inconsistencies occurred in trials with highly uncommon blood types.

"This assay not only provides a new strategy for blood grouping but can also be used in time- and resource-limited situations, such as war zones, in remote areas, and during emergencies," said the study,

"Characterized by an intensified and streamlined workflow capability, the proposed blood-grouping assay may be further developed into highly compact and fully automatic platforms that are highly efficient and economical, making large-scale manufacturing possible."

Are they the first to come up with this idea?