logo
Chinese scientists turn tumours into ‘pork' in radical cancer treatment

Chinese scientists turn tumours into ‘pork' in radical cancer treatment

Scientists have turned the same immune response that rejects organ transplants to their advantage – to target
cancer
Advertisement
In a trailblazing fusion of immunology and ingenuity, a team of Chinese researchers have been engineering tumours to mimic pork, thereby triggering the body's
immune system to attack them with unprecedented precision.
Their pioneering study, published in the journal Cell on January 18, uses a genetically modified virus to 'disguise' cancer cells as foreign pig tissue, sparking a hyperacute immune rejection response that attacks the tumours while leaving healthy cells untouched.
Early clinical trials report staggering success: 90 per cent of patients with advanced, treatment-resistant cancers – such as liver, ovarian and lung – achieved halted tumour growth or shrinkage, with one cervical cancer patient declared clinically cured.
By repurposing a mechanism that is notorious for
organ transplant rejection, this 'tumour-to-pork' strategy has opened a new frontier in the fight against cancer, offering hope where conventional therapies have failed.
Advertisement
The study, led by Professor Zhao Yongxiang, director of the State Key Laboratory of Targeting Oncology, Guangxi Medical University, is now trending on China's social media.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Chinese scientists break design ‘curse' that killed US Navy's X-47B drone programme
Chinese scientists break design ‘curse' that killed US Navy's X-47B drone programme

South China Morning Post

time11 hours ago

  • South China Morning Post

Chinese scientists break design ‘curse' that killed US Navy's X-47B drone programme

Chinese aerospace engineers have a revolutionary software design, which they say will allow them to overcome a major barrier to stealth aircraft development The new platform allows plane designers to have as many design variables as they want without increasing computing load – a feat long deemed impossible in aviation circles. The researchers described their innovation as breaking the 'dimensionality curse' and used the US Navy's X-47B, a demonstration stealth drone, to illustrate how the system worked. Once celebrated for its carrier landings and autonomous aerial refuelling, the X-47B project was cancelled in 2015 because of unresolved trade-offs between stealth, aerodynamics and propulsion. However, the Chinese software design delivered dramatic improvements to the design with 740 variables, including measures to reduce flight drag and its radar signature, as well as improving engine thrust while maintaining airflow stability. 'Traditional global optimisation algorithms face the curse of dimensionality problem,' wrote the team led by Huang Jiangtao from the China Aerodynamics Research and Development Centre in a peer-reviewed paper published in Acta Aeronautica et Astronautica Sinica earlier this month. The shape of components such as wing leading edges and engine inlet ducts affects two crucial things: how smoothly the plane flies and how easily it can be detected by enemy radars.

China reloads railgun ambitions as Japan tests and US powers down
China reloads railgun ambitions as Japan tests and US powers down

AllAfrica

time2 days ago

  • AllAfrica

China reloads railgun ambitions as Japan tests and US powers down

China's radical new 'X-rail gun' aims to fire 60-kilo slugs at Mach 7 speeds, raising the stakes in a railgun race where Beijing doubles down, Tokyo hedges bets and Washington taps out. This month, the South China Morning Post (SCMP) reported that Chinese army scientists led by Professor Lyu Qingao of the People's Liberation Army's (PLA) Army Engineering University have proposed a novel electromagnetic weapon design that could significantly enhance rail gun performance. Their 'X-rail gun' concept cross-stacks two U-armatures vertically within a shared 200mm-square barrel, creating a dual-circuit system that harnesses 'vertical fields that ignore each other' to mitigate electromagnetic interference. Filed as a patent last year, the design aims to accelerate a 60kg shell to Mach 7—delivering impacts at over Mach 4—potentially striking targets 400km away within six minutes. While still untested in live-fire conditions and facing challenges from proximity effect complications in tight conductor paths, the concept builds upon proven tech to overcome limitations in shell weight, bore pressure and barrel erosion. Unlike the navy's earlier rail gun prototype spotted on a Type 072 destroyer in 2018—which struggled with extreme current damage and capped shell weights at 15 kilograms—the army's configuration represents a rare leap forward. It also contrasts sharply with the US decision to end its rail gun program in 2021 and Japan's cautious testing of 300-gram electromagnetic prototypes. Asia Times has previously noted that Japan deployed a prototype electromagnetic railgun aboard the test ship JS Asuka. Developed by the Japanese Ministry of Defense's Acquisition, Technology and Logistics Agency (ATLA), it fires projectiles at Mach 6.5 using electromagnetic energy, sidestepping the cost and magazine limitations of missile-based systems. The weapon offers high-volume, rapid-fire potential but still faces hurdles, including barrel erosion, power supply miniaturization and fire control integration. ATLA mentions that Japan envisions its railgun to counter hypersonic missiles as part of a multi-layered air defense suite. It also notes the system can mount hard-to-avoid strikes against ships or land targets, with its hypersonic muzzle velocity and extended range making it difficult to intercept. In contrast, the US halted its Electromagnetic Railgun (EMRG) project for multiple reasons. An April 2022 US Congressional Research Service (CRS) report mentions that it suffers from poor durability, with barrel lifespans rarely exceeding 100 rounds, in contrast to conventional artillery's thousands. The report notes that its large pulse power sources—up to ten times heavier than comparable cannons—render it incompatible with mobile platforms. It also states that it lacks rifling, reducing accuracy, and remains vulnerable to even near-miss attacks due to delicate electronics. The report adds that EMRG efficiency remains below 30%, demanding massive power supplies. Coupled with high costs and diminished artillery relevance in missile-dominated warfare, these factors ultimately undermined its viability. The diverging paths taken by China, Japan, and the US reflect broader uncertainty about railgun utility in modern combat. Whether next-gen railgun systems can provide missile-like firepower at artillery costs without turning vulnerable warships into prime targets remains in question. Stew Magnusson, in a June 2025 article in National Defense Magazine, notes that a railgun projectile, traveling at hypersonic speeds without any explosives, could cause severe damage. For instance, ATLA demonstrated how one could penetrate a ship's hull and exit the other side. Alan Kuperman, in an April 2021 working paper for the Nuclear Proliferation Prevention Project (NPPP), notes that railguns could significantly reduce ammunition costs, with a $25,000 projectile being vastly cheaper than multi-million-dollar interceptors or anti-ship missiles. In line with Kuperman's statements, Matt Bruzzese and Peter Singer state in a March 2024 Defense One article that these weapons aim to combine the extended range and precision of missiles and rockets with the affordability of traditional artillery. Bruzzese and Singer note that this could transform the cost dilemma faced by modern militaries, where even effective systems become prohibitively expensive or overwhelmed by large numbers of cheaper enemy weapons. They point out that US forces near Yemen use interceptor missiles that cost at least three orders of magnitude more than the drones they target. Still, Braden Allenby cautions in a January 2022 Stars and Stripes article that the technology is much less developed than conventional guns or missiles. While railguns can theoretically offer superior firepower, the technology is not yet mature. Allenby adds that it may be reasonable for major powers to rely on missiles in the short term while investing in railguns for the long term. Mounting them presents a logistical challenge. These weapons may require large warships like cruisers or destroyers capable of supporting their size, weight, cooling, and power needs, concentrating capability on a limited number of potentially vulnerable platforms. James Stavridis, in an October 2024 Washington Post article, highlights this vulnerability. He mentions that Ukraine's crippling of Russia's Black Sea Fleet—including the sinking of the cruiser Moskva by drones and missiles—underscores the growing susceptibility of large surface warships to cheap, precise unmanned systems. He points out that despite lacking a navy, Ukraine has knocked out a third of Russia's fleet, forcing it to retreat from coastal operations, with these attacks, echoed by Houthi strikes in the Red Sea, highlighting a paradigm shift in naval warfare. He adds that ships now face swarms of inexpensive drones, which deplete their missile stockpiles. While future defenses may rely on lasers or possibly railguns, he notes, warships remain exposed in an evolving battlefield dominated by asymmetric threats. Sidharth Kaushal, in a March 2023 European Security and Defense (ESD) article, acknowledges the rising threat from proliferating anti-ship missiles, including cruise, ballistic, and hypersonic types, but emphasizes that modern warships are not defenseless. While fast, long-range missiles strain reaction times and impose severe cost asymmetries, he argues that their effectiveness is limited by complex kill chains, targeting challenges, and physical constraints. He notes that cueing long-range weapons, such as China's DF-21D or Russia's Zircon, requires persistent intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR), real-time data relay, and multi-platform coordination—vulnerable to disruption. He adds that shipboard defenses like Aegis, layered interceptors, decoys, and electronic warfare—and railguns, should the technology mature—offer credible protection, though saturation attacks pose risks. Despite no promise of invulnerability, he points out, a missile has yet to sink any modern air defense warship on alert. Whether railguns revolutionize warfare or remain lab-bound curiosities, China, Japan and the US are gambling on very different answers to the same battlefield question.

CUHK start-ups eye silver economy's need for ‘wearable robotics'
CUHK start-ups eye silver economy's need for ‘wearable robotics'

South China Morning Post

time3 days ago

  • South China Morning Post

CUHK start-ups eye silver economy's need for ‘wearable robotics'

A couple of health and medical device start-ups that got their start at the Chinese University of Hong Kong are seeking to enter the growing markets for elderly care and rehabilitation by selling their 'wearable robotics' technologies. Established last year, RT HealthTech has developed several soft inflatable joint support products. It plans to start selling them in two months, targeting elderly people with weaker joints and those with minor injuries who want to keep exercising to maintain muscle strength. They feature a rechargeable battery-powered mobile air-pumping system that can generate adjustable levels of force, said co-founder Raymond Tong Kai-yu in an interview earlier this month. 'The devices can keep knee and elbow joints in position, while providing an extra pair of 'artificial muscles' to reduce joint impact during physical activities,' said Tong, a professor and founding chairman of the university's Department of Biomedical Engineering. 'We are addressing the needs of the fast-growing silver economy.' The proportion of Hong Kong people aged 65 and over was projected to rise to 36 per cent in 2046 from 22.4 per cent in 2023, according to government projections. RT HealthTech was seeking to sell 1,000 units in the first three months at around HK$1,200 (US$153) each, Tong said. It planned to appoint a separate distributor for mainland China.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store