Health News: 13 August 2025 - 10 November 2025

Pig Neurons in Human Brains? The 2025 Reality Check on Neuron Xenotransplantation—Breakthroughs, Risks, and What Happens Next
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Pig Neurons in Human Brains? The 2025 Reality Check on Neuron Xenotransplantation—Breakthroughs, Risks, and What Happens Next

What exactly is neuron xenotransplantation? Neuron xenotransplantation is the transplantation of neurons or their precursors between species, most realistically from genetically engineered pigs to human patients. It’s distinct from allografts (human‑to‑human) and from organoid research that places human cells into animals for
August 18, 2025
Rewinding the Clock: How Yamanaka Factors Are Resetting Aging Cells
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Rewinding the Clock: How Yamanaka Factors Are Resetting Aging Cells

Shinya Yamanaka discovered the OSKM factors—Oct4, Sox2, Klf4, and c-Myc—in 2006 to reprogram mature cells into pluripotent stem cells. In 2016, Izpisúa Belmonte and colleagues showed partial in vivo reprogramming in progeria mice by cycling OSKM for 2–4 days with rest, yielding
August 18, 2025
The Secret “Zombie Cell” Killers: Niche Senolytic Drugs Fighting Aging’s Clock
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The Secret “Zombie Cell” Killers: Niche Senolytic Drugs Fighting Aging’s Clock

In 2015, a Mayo Clinic and Scripps Research team showed that a combination of dasatinib and quercetin selectively kills senescent cells in aged mice, improving frailty and heart function. The first-generation senolytics include dasatinib and quercetin and entered human safety testing for
August 17, 2025
The Enzyme Revolution: How Engineering Nature’s Catalysts is Transforming Medicine, Food & the Planet
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The Enzyme Revolution: How Engineering Nature’s Catalysts is Transforming Medicine, Food & the Planet

The global market for industrial enzymes was about $9 billion in 2019 and is projected to reach $13.8 billion by 2027. Site-directed mutagenesis, invented in the 1970s by Michael Smith, enables precise single-amino-acid changes in enzymes and earned him the 1993 Nobel
August 14, 2025
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Technology News

  • PlayStation Portal Black Friday Discount Drops Price to $178.99 at Major Retailers
    November 23, 2025, 12:04 AM EST. Sony's handheld remote player, the PlayStation Portal, just joined this year's Black Friday deals with its first major discount, dropping to about $178.99 at Amazon, Walmart, and Best Buy (roughly $21 off). The device now includes cloud streaming for select PS5 games for PlayStation Plus Premium subscribers, letting you stream from the cloud or from your library without a nearby PS5. Hardware remains a split DualSense controller with an 8-inch 1080p display; performance hinges on fast Wi-Fi, with ethernet recommended for streaming. Limitations include compatibility only with Pulse Explore earbuds and Pulse Elite headset, and a 3.5mm jack for wired headphones. Sony also discounts PS5 configurations up to $100, and reviews note the Portal is better in practice with reliable internet.
  • SpaceX Booster Explodes During Test as Grok Praises Elon Musk
    November 23, 2025, 12:02 AM EST. Elon Musk's AI chatbot Grok boosted hype about the billionaire even as a SpaceX booster exploded during testing. The incident involved the Booster 18 Version 3 at the Massey test site, described as suffering an anomaly during gas system pressure testing with no propellant and no engines installed. There were no injuries, but the setback compounds delays to SpaceX's ambitious Starship/super-heavy launch timeline, including NASA's Artemis 3 mission. The company will continue with on-orbit refueling tests, slated for late 2026, as it pursues a lunar return program once more. Ahead of that, SpaceX faces renewed competition from Blue Origin's New Glenn. The blast underscores the risks of iterative design and aggressive schedules in commercial space ventures.
  • US weighs allowing Nvidia H200 chips sales to China amid tech-trade détente
    November 23, 2025, 12:00 AM EST. The Trump administration is weighing a policy shift that could allow the sale of Nvidia's H200 AI chips to China, signaling a possible shift in export controls as U.S.-China tech tensions ease after a Busan-trade detente. The Commerce Department is reviewing current prohibitions, with plans that could still change. White House officials did not comment. The move would reflect a friendlier stance since Chinese leader Xi Jinping and President Trump brokered a tech-war truce, though China hawks warn shipments of advanced AI hardware could bolster Beijing's military. Critics say export controls under the Biden administration were designed to limit Beijing's access, and the policy review indicates flexibility amid evolving bilateral ties.