Kalakshar US

An international team of scientists has developed a new technology that can help detect (or even treat) cancer in hard-to-reach places, such as the colon. The team has published a paper in Science for the technique dubbed CATCH, or cellular assay for targeted, CRISPR-discriminated horizontal gene transfer. For their lab experiments, the scientists used a species of bacterium called Acinetobacter baylyi. This bacterium has the ability to naturally take up free-floating DNA from its surroundings and then integrate it into its own genome, allowing it to produce new protein for growth.  

What the scientists did was engineer A. baylyi bacteria so that they’d contain long sequences of DNA mirroring the DNA found in human cancer cells. These sequences serve as some sort of one-half of a zipper that locks on to captured cancer DNA. For their tests, the scientists focus on the mutated KRAS gene that’s commonly found in colorectal tumors. If an A. baylyi bacterium finds a mutated DNA and integrates it into its genome, a linked antibiotic resistance gene also gets activated. That’s what the team used to confirm the presence of cancer cells: After all, only bacteria with active antibiotic resistance could grow on culture plates filled with antibiotics. 

While the scientists were successfully able to detect tumor DNA in mice injected with colorectal cancer cells in the lab, the technology is still not ready to be used for actual diagnosis. The team said it’s still working on the next steps, including improving the technique’s efficiency and evaluating how it performs compared to other diagnostic tests. “The most exciting aspect of cellular healthcare, however, is not in the mere detection of disease. A laboratory can do that,” Dan Worthley, one of the study’s authors, wrote in The Conversation. In the future, the technology could also be used for targeted biological therapy that can deploy treatment to specific parts of the body based on the presence of certain DNA sequences. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/scientists-genetically-engineer-bacteria-to-detect-cancer-cells-114511365.html?src=rss 

This week, Cherlynn and Sam are joined by noted foldables lover Michael Fisher (aka Mr Mobile) to talk all about their respective reviews of Samsung’s latest products. Why are our hosts more excited for the Galaxy Z Flip 5 than the Z Fold 5? Is Samsung coasting? Then, we discuss the latest happenings in X vs Threads, as well as a bunch of lighthearted news in tech this week.

Listen below or subscribe on your podcast app of choice. If you’ve got suggestions or topics you’d like covered on the show, be sure to email us or drop a note in the comments! And be sure to check out our other podcasts, the Morning After and Engadget News!

Subscribe!

iTunes

Spotify

Pocket Casts

Stitcher

Google Podcasts

Topics

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5 and Fold 5 reviews with Mr Mobile – 1:22

Will Elon actually pay for lawsuits related to posts on X? – 41:32

Threads is getting a website and search – 49:16

Slack UI changes are coming to your workspace soon – 54:31

MrBeast is getting countersued for $100m – 1:03:21

Working on – 1:13:55

Pop culture picks – 1:19:52

Credits
Hosts: Cherlynn Low and Sam Rutherford
Guest: Michael Fisher (aka TheMrMobile)
Producer: Ben Ellman
Music: Dale North and Terrence O’Brien

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/engadget-podcast-are-samsungs-foldables-getting-stale-123037554.html?src=rss 

Google has introduced a new tool for Slides that can help you make your presentations more interactive and keep your audience’s attention. The new feature, a pen tool, lets you write on a slide in real time, so you can encircle key figures, draw arrows, underline important information and just generally scribble anything you want on the presentation while in the middle of a meeting or a report. While Slides has long had the ability to turn your mouse arrow into a laser pointer, you had to download a third-party tool to be able to actually write annotations in the middle of a presentation. 

Slides’ new pen tool is built into the program, and there’s no need to download anything extra. To access it, you have to open your file in slideshow mode and then mouse over the bottom left side to see the three-dot menu. From that menu, you’ll find an option that reads “Turn on the pen.” You can choose the pen color you want to use — black, red, blue or green — from the panel that shows up, and you can also easily switch it off from the same location. If you want to erase what you’ve written, you just need to switch from the pen to the eraser tool in the bottom left corner. 

Google says the feature will be available to all Workspace customers and users with a personal account, but it may take 15 days before it’s done rolling out the pen tool to everyone. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/google-slides-new-tool-lets-you-annotate-your-presentations-095524960.html?src=rss