- Experimental Pain Drug May Offer Alternative to Opioids for Acute Pain, Study Suggests
- More People Need Transplants Than There Are Organ Donors. Pigs Might Be a Solution
- These Furry-clawed Crabs Are Causing Havoc in Europe’s Rivers. Scientists Believe They Have a Solution
- Say Cheese: Rats Like Taking Selfies Too
- Near Death Experience — Japan’s Moon Lander Makes a Comeback
- Obesity Drugs Have Another Superpower: Taming Inflammation
Experimental Pain Drug May Offer Alternative to Opioids for Acute Pain, Study Suggests
研究表明，實驗性止痛藥可以取代鴉片類藥物來治療急性疼痛
Health
An experimental pain medicine met the primary goal of a late-stage clinical trial, the drug’s maker said Tuesday, setting the stage for it to seek approval from the US Food and Drug Administration this year and potentially providing an alternative to opioids that doesn’t carry the same safety risks. The medicine from Vertex Pharmaceuticals, dubbed VX-548, was superior to a placebo in relieving pain after two kinds of surgery: abdominoplasty – also known as a tummy tuck – and bunionectomy, with a similar safety profile, Vertex said in a news release. A smaller Phase 3 study of acute pain relief for a broader range of conditions also demonstrated the drug’s safety and efficacy. Vertex said its drug was generally well-tolerated, and common adverse events like nausea, headache, constipation and dizziness occurred less on the drug than in either the placebo or opioid groups.
--from CNN
Vertex 製藥商週二表示，一種實驗性止痛藥達到了後期臨床試驗的主要目標，為其今年尋求美國食品和藥物管理局(FDA)的批准奠定了基礎，並有可能提供一種鴉片類藥物的替代品，但更為安全。 Vertex 製藥商在新聞稿中表示，這款名為VX-548 的藥物在緩解兩種手術後的疼痛方面優於安慰劑：腹部整形術（也稱為腹部除皺術）和拇囊炎切除術，安全性也相似。一項針對更廣泛病症緩解急性疼痛的小型第三期研究也證明了該藥物的安全性和有效性。 Vertex 表示，該藥物整體耐受性良好，噁心、頭痛、便秘和頭暈等常見不良狀況發生率低於安慰劑組或鴉片類藥物組。
-- 摘錄翻譯自 CNN
More People Need Transplants Than There Are Organ Donors. Pigs Might Be a Solution
需要移植的人比器官捐贈者還多。 豬可能是個解決方案
Health
The need for more transplant organs is immense and growing. Some scientists think animal organs might be a good way to increase the supply, but the science has been stalled as researchers tried to figure out how to prevent organ rejection and avoid dangerous infections. They also have to untangle complicated ethical questions, including how to test such organs. But recent advances in cloning and gene editing, along with better understanding of infection control, have led a handful of institutions to breakthroughs — key steps that could allow the US Food and Drug Administration, one day soon, to sign off on a clinical trial. Researchers have transplanted genetically modified pig kidneys and hearts into people who were brain-dead to test whether they work in humans. This month, doctors showed that a pig liver could filter blood when attached to a recently deceased person. Just last week, doctors said they had identified the mix of immunosuppressants needed to prevent pig kidneys from being rejected by human bodies.
--from CNN
對移植器官的需求量大且不斷增加。科學家認為動物器官可能是增加供應的好方法，但隨著研究人員試圖找出如何防止器官排斥和避免危險感染，這些問題讓移植陷入停滯。他們還必須解決複雜的倫理問題，包括如何測試這些器官。 但最近在基因複製和基因編輯方面取得的進展，伴隨著對感染控制的更好理解，已經導致一些機構取得了突破——這些關鍵步驟可能會讓美國食品和藥物管理局在不久的將來批准臨床試驗。 研究人員將經基因改造的豬腎和心臟移植到腦死的人體內，以測試它們是否對人類有效。本月，醫生證明，將豬肝附著在剛過世的人身上可以過濾血液。就在上週，醫生表示，他們已經確定了防止豬腎被人體排斥所需的免疫抑制劑組合。
--摘錄翻譯自CNN
These Furry-clawed Crabs Are Causing Havoc in Europe’s Rivers. Scientists Believe They Have a Solution
這些毛茸茸的爪蟹正在對歐洲的河流造成嚴重損害。科學家相信他們有解決方案
Culture
Named after the dense mats of hair on their front claws, Chinese mitten crabs are intimidating creatures. Their dark brown bodies can grow as big as three inches (eight centimeters) and with claws outstretched, they can span 10 inches (25 centimeters) – roughly the size of a dinner plate. Classified as one of the world’s 100 worst invasive alien species, the crabs are near indestructible: they feed on almost anything, can survive on land as well as in fresh and saltwater, and they have a rapid reproductive rate – with females producing between 250,000 and 1 million eggs per spawning. So far, the most successful strategy has been a trap developed by the University of Antwerp and the Flanders Environment Agency in Belgium. Three such traps have been installed in the country since 2018, catching an estimated 3 million crabs, according to Jonas Schoelynck, professor of aquatic ecology at the University of Antwerp. A metal channel is installed across a river, which the crabs fall into as they sidle along the riverbed. Unable to swim out like other aquatic species, they are forced to crawl along pipes leading to cages on either shore, where they can be collected in their masses and disposed of.
-- from CNN
中華絨螯蟹因其前爪上長有濃毛而得名，是一種令人生畏的生物。它們深棕色的身體可以長到3英寸（8公分）長，爪子伸出時，它們的寬度可以達到 10 英寸（25公分）——大約相當於餐盤的大小。 這些螃蟹被列為世界上100 種最嚴重的外來入侵物種之一，它們幾乎堅不可摧：它們幾乎以任何東西為食，可以在陸地、淡水及鹹水中生存，而且它們的繁殖速度很快- 雌性螃蟹的產卵量在25萬 到100萬顆之間。 到目前為止，最成功的策略是Antwerp大學和比利時Flanders環境局所發展的陷阱。Antwerp大學水生生態學教授Jonas Schoelynck 表示，該國安裝了3個此類陷阱，估計自2018 年開始，已經捕獲了 300 萬隻螃蟹。他們在河流上安裝了一條金屬通道，螃蟹沿著河床側行時會掉到裡面去。它們無法像其他水生物種一樣游出來，而被迫沿著通往兩側岸上的籠子的管道爬行，在那裡它們成群地被收集起來並被處理掉。
--摘錄翻譯自CNN
Say Cheese: Rats Like Taking Selfies Too
「笑一個！」：老鼠也喜歡自拍
Culture
When two rats began taking their own photos with a camera attached to their cage, artist Augustin Lignier said he felt “super powerful.” Intentionally mirroring funny animal photos and videos found across social media, the rats’ self-portraits are “a nice way to attract the gaze,” Lignier said, adding that they offered a “playful” way to explore topics like reduced attention spans and the impact of social media algorithms. “Every time they (the rats) push the button, they have dopamine in their brain and then it records the exact moment they were touching it,” Lignier said. “I was fascinated by this.” After spending a few days taking selfies, the pet rats went to live with Lignier’s mother in Arles, southern France, until they died and were buried in her back garden.
--from CNN
當兩隻老鼠開始用連接在籠子上的相機拍攝自己的照片時，藝術家Augustin Lignier表示，他感到「超級強大」。 Lignier說，故意模仿在社交媒體上發現的有趣的動物照片和影片，老鼠的自拍照片是「吸引目光的好方法」。他並補充說，它們提供了一種「有趣」的方式來探索諸如注意力持續時間減少和社交媒體演算法的影響。「每次他們（老鼠）按下按鈕時，他們的大腦中就會產生多巴胺，然後它會記錄他們觸摸按鈕的確切時刻，」Lignier說。「我對此很著迷。」 在花了幾天的時間自拍後，這些寵物鼠去了法國南部阿爾勒的Lignier母親那裡生活，直到它們死後被埋在她的後花園裡。
--摘錄翻譯自CNN
Near Death Experience — Japan’s Moon Lander Makes a Comeback
瀕死經驗－日本登月探測器復活了
Sciences
After being stuck without power for more than a week, Japan’s Moon lander has woken up and started snapping images of the lunar surface. On 28 January, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) re-established contact with the Smart Lander for Investigating Moon (SLIM), which touched down on the slope of a crater near the Moon’s equator on 20 January. “Communication with SLIM was successfully established last night, and operations resumed,” JAXA announced in a post on X (formerly Twitter). But the landing wasn’t entirely smooth sailing, with one of the probe’s two engines probably losing thrust at just 50 metres above the surface, Jonathan McDowell, an astrophysicist at the Harvard–Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics in Cambridge, Massachusetts, says. “It started going sideways because the two engines were unbalanced."
--from Nature
在斷電一個多星期後，日本的登月探測器已經甦醒並開始拍攝月球表面的影像。 1 月 28 日，日本宇宙航空研究開發機構 (JAXA) 與月球勘測智慧登陸器 (SLIM) 重新建立了聯繫，該登陸器於 1 月 20 日降落在月球赤道附近的隕石坑斜坡上。JAXA 在 X上發布的貼文中宣布「昨晚與 SLIM 的通訊成功連結，並恢復了運作」。 但麻薩諸塞州劍橋市的哈佛-史密森天文物理中心天體物理學家Jonathan McDowell 表示，著陸過程並不完全順利，探測器兩個發動機的其中一個可能在離地表50 米處失去動力。「它開始橫向移動，因為兩個引擎失去平衡。」
--摘錄翻譯自Nature
Obesity Drugs Have Another Superpower: Taming Inflammation
減肥藥還有另一個超能力：抑制發炎
Sciences
The latest generation of anti-obesity drugs has taken the world by storm, thanks to their effectiveness at treating diabetes and reducing weight. But these drugs also have a less well-known superpower: the ability to suppress inflammation. Evidence suggest that the drugs classified as GLP-1 receptor agonists — a category that includes brand names such as Mounjaro and Wegovy — can reduce inflammation in the liver, kidneys and heart. The drugs even seem to dial down inflammation in the brain, leading scientists to hope that the compounds could be used to treat Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s diseases, both of which are characterized by brain inflammation. A recent review listed more than 20 clinical trials that are exploring the drugs as therapies for the two conditions. “The next generation of drugs could be even more targeted to reduce these new inflammation pathways that we’ve identified,” says Daniel Drucker, an endocrinologist at the University of Toronto in Canada who co-authored a study investigating how the drugs dampen inflammation that was published last month. “Maybe they would be more effective.”
--from Nature
最新一代的抗肥胖藥物因其在治療糖尿病和減肥方面的功效而席捲全球。但這些藥物還有一個鮮為人知的超能力：抑制發炎。 證據顯示，GLP-1 受體激動劑藥物（包括 Mounjaro 和 Wegovy 等品牌）可以減少肝臟、腎臟和心臟的發炎。 這些藥物甚至似乎可以減輕腦部發炎，這使得科學家希望這些化合物可以用於治療帕金森氏症和阿茲海默症，這兩種疾病的特徵都是腦部發炎。最近的一篇評論列出了 20 多項臨床試驗，這些試驗正在探索這些藥物作為這兩種疾病的治療方法。 加拿大多倫多大學內分泌學家 Daniel Drucker 表示：「下一代藥物可能更有針對性地減少我們已經發現的這些新的發炎途徑。」他合著了一項研究，調查這些藥物如何抑制發炎，已於上個月出刊。「也許他們會更有效。」
--摘錄翻譯自Nature