Scientists have found a breakthrough in cancer treatment, and it is deep within the ocean
Tired of too many ads?
Remove Ads
What does the discovery say?
Tired of too many ads?
Remove Ads
Safe for human use
Lack of abundance
A team of scientists led by the University of Mississippi has discovered a rare sugar in sea cucumbers that may help stop cancer from spreading, without the dangerous side effects of traditional treatments.The study published in the journal Glycobiology reveals that a compound called fucosylated chondroitin sulfate, found in the sea cucumber Holothuria floridana, blocks Sulf-2, an enzyme that cancer cells use to grow and metastasize. The compound could become a critical tool in future cancer therapies.'Marine life produces compounds with unique structures that are often rare or not found in terrestrial vertebrates,' said Marwa Farrag, a fourth-year doctoral student and lead author of the study. 'The sugar compounds in sea cucumbers are unique. They aren't commonly seen in other organisms. That's why they're worth studying.'Sulf-2 plays a key role in altering glycans, sugar molecules that coat the surface of all human cells and regulate communication and immune responses. When this enzyme modifies glycans, it helps cancer cells break away and spread. Blocking Sulf-2 may stop tumors from invading healthy tissues.'This sugar essentially stops the pruning of the cellular 'forest,'' said Dr. Vitor Pomin, associate professor of pharmacognosy. 'If we can inhibit that enzyme, we are fighting against the spread of cancer.'The research team, which also included scientists from Georgetown University, used lab testing and computer modeling to confirm the sugar's effect. Both methods produced consistent results.Unlike some Sulf-2 inhibitors already known, this sea cucumber sugar does not affect blood clotting, making it safer for use in humans. 'If a molecule interferes with blood coagulation, you risk life-threatening bleeding,' said Dr. Joshua Sharp, associate professor of pharmacology. 'This one doesn't.'The team now faces a new challenge: sea cucumbers aren't abundant enough to harvest for mass production. 'One of the problems in developing this as a drug would be the low yield,' said Dr. Pomin. 'So, we have to develop a chemical route.'The scientists are currently working to synthesize the compound in the lab so it can be tested in animal models.If successful, this breakthrough could pave the way for cleaner, safer, and more sustainable cancer treatments, originating not from synthetic chemicals or land animals, but from the ocean floor.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
India Today
4 days ago
- India Today
China is working on merging humans and machines in secret AI project, says report
China is diving headfirst into the world of brain-computer fusion, and it's not just about smarter phones or robot assistants. The country is chasing a literal merger between humans and machines, and it hopes it will leapfrog its position in the global race for AI supremacy. While the finer details are yet to be known, fragments of this agenda have surfaced through academic papers, government strategy documents, and rumours from experts lured into China's growing tech fold, as reported by The Washington Times. The goal? Nothing short of blending the brain's power with machines to create a cognitive super-soldier of the heart of this effort is brain-computer interface (BCI) research, which involves the science of directly linking human brainwaves to computers. Imagine thinking about writing an email and having your computer do it instantly, without you actually typing on a keyboard. But China's ambitions go far beyond such party to insights shared by Georgetown University's Center for Security and Emerging Technology, Chinese scientists are developing BCIs across the full spectrum, invasive, semi-invasive, and non-invasive. The mission is to turbocharge the brain's capabilities by connecting it directly to advanced computational tools, forming seamless human-machine teams, as reported by The Washington Times. This isn't just a metaphorical melding where machines behave like humans. Chinese researchers are reportedly eyeing a very literal convergence, where brain and circuit operate as one, erasing the line between man and machine. And yes, it could mean humans becoming increasingly reliant on tech plugged straight into their US tech titans like OpenAI and Meta are busy building ever-larger language models, China is opting for a different approach. Faced with Western chip restrictions, its researchers are exploring brain-inspired systems that don't rely on brute-force computing. Early signs suggest these alternative strategies are showing of the more vocal champions of this approach is Professor Dong Ming of Tianjin University. Speaking to Chinese state media, he argued that the future isn't about AI replacing humans, it's about AI becoming part of us, physically and more to the evidence, back in 2018, two tech innovators, Bijan and Saied Tadayon of Z Advanced Computing, found themselves in China's crosshairs, but in a good way. The brothers had developed a brain-inspired algorithm for image recognition that turned heads in the AI world, and Beijing took officials reportedly offered them a staggering $30 million in exchange for a 20 per cent stake in their company. Unlike the dominant large-scale statistical models that require mountains of data and high-powered GPU servers, the Tadayon brothers' algorithm takes a different path. Described as cognitive-explainable AI, their method focuses on concept learning, mimicking how the human brain understands and categorises result? A more energy-efficient system that learns from fewer data samples and sidesteps the need for GPU hardware altogether, a key advantage, especially with Western export restrictions tightening on advanced computing components. China's interest didn't stop at the offer. The Tadayon brothers were also invited to present their technology at the InnoStars competition in Houston, a move that further signalled the country's eagerness to tap into unconventional AI this vision inspires awe or unease, one thing's certain that China is not just imagining a future with smarter machines; it's building one where the line between flesh and fibre might disappear entirely.- EndsTune In
NDTV
4 days ago
- NDTV
To Gatekeep Or Let Lose? Parents Face Tough Choices On AI
United States: When it comes to AI, many parents navigate between fear of the unknown and fear of their children missing out. "It's really hard to predict anything over five years," said Adam Tal, an Israeli marketing executive and father of two boys aged seven and nine, when describing the post-generative AI world. Tal is "very worried" about the future this technology holds for his children -- whether it's deepfakes, "the inability to distinguish between reality and AI," or "the thousands of possible new threats that I wasn't trained to detect." Mike Brooks, a psychologist from Austin, Texas, who specialises in parenting and technology, worries that parents are keeping their heads in the sand, refusing to grapple with AI. "They're already overwhelmed with parenting demands," he observed -- from online pornography and TikTok to video games and "just trying to get them out of their rooms and into the real world." For Marc Watkins, a professor at the University of Mississippi who focuses on AI in teaching, "we've already gone too far" to shield children from AI past a certain age. Yet some parents are still trying to remain gatekeepers to the technology. "In my circle of friends and family, I'm the only one exploring AI with my child," remarked Melissa Franklin, mother of a 7-year-old boy and law student in Kentucky. "I don't understand the technology behind AI," she said, "but I know it's inevitable, and I'd rather give my son a head start than leave him overwhelmed." Benefits and risks The path is all the more difficult for parents given the lack of scientific research on AI's effects on users. Several parents cite a study published in June by MIT, showing that brain activity and memory were more stimulated in individuals not using generative AI than in those who had access to it. "I'm afraid it will become a shortcut," explained a father of three who preferred to remain anonymous. "After this MIT study, I want them to use it only to deepen their knowledge." This caution shapes many parents' approaches. Tal prefers to wait before letting his sons use AI tools. Melissa Franklin only allows her son to use AI with her supervision to find information "we can't find in a book, through Google, or on YouTube." For her, children must be encouraged to "think for themselves," with or without AI. But one father -- a computer engineer with a 15-year-old -- doesn't believe kids will learn AI skills from their parents anyway. "That would be like claiming that kids learn how to use TikTok from their parents," he said. It's usually "the other way around." Watkins, himself a father, says he is "very concerned" about the new forms that generative AI is taking, but considers it necessary to read about the subject and "have in-depth conversations about it with our children." "They're going to use artificial intelligence," he said, "so I want them to know the potential benefits and risks." The CEO of AI chip giant Nvidia, Jensen Huang, often speaks of AI as "the greatest equalisation force that we have ever known," democratising learning and knowledge. But Watkins fears a different reality: "Parents will view this as a technology that will be used if you can afford it, to get your kid ahead of everyone else." The computer scientist father readily acknowledged this disparity, saying, "My son has an advantage because he has two parents with PhDs in computer science, but that's 90 percent due to the fact that we are more affluent than average" -- not their AI knowledge. "That does have some pretty big implications," Watkins said.
The Hindu
4 days ago
- The Hindu
Anxious parents face tough choices on AI
When it comes to AI, many parents navigate between fear of the unknown and fear of their children missing out. "It's really hard to predict anything over five years," said Adam Tal, an Israeli marketing executive and father of two boys aged seven and nine, when describing the post-generative AI world. Tal is "very worried" about the future this technology holds for his children, whether it's deepfakes, "the inability to distinguish between reality and AI," or "the thousands of possible new threats that I wasn't trained to detect." Mike Brooks, a psychologist from Austin, Texas, who specialises in parenting and technology, worries that parents are keeping their heads in the sand, refusing to grapple with AI. "They're already overwhelmed with parenting demands," he observed, from online pornography and TikTok to video games and "just trying to get them out of their rooms and into the real world." For Marc Watkins, a professor at the University of Mississippi who focuses on AI in teaching, "we've already gone too far" to shield children from AI past a certain age. Yet some parents are still trying to remain gatekeepers to the technology. "In my circle of friends and family, I'm the only one exploring AI with my child," remarked Melissa Franklin, mother of a 7-year-old boy and law student in Kentucky. "I don't understand the technology behind AI," she said, "but I know it's inevitable, and I'd rather give my son a head start than leave him overwhelmed." The path is all the more difficult for parents given the lack of scientific research on AI's effects on users. Several parents cite a study published in June by MIT, showing that brain activity and memory were more stimulated in individuals not using generative AI than in those who had access to it. "I'm afraid it will become a shortcut," explained a father of three who preferred to remain anonymous. "After this MIT study, I want them to use it only to deepen their knowledge." This caution shapes many parents' approaches. Tal prefers to wait before letting his sons use AI tools. Melissa Franklin only allows her son to use AI with her supervision to find information "we can't find in a book, through Google, or on YouTube." For her, children must be encouraged to "think for themselves," with or without AI. But one father, a computer engineer with a 15-year-old, doesn't believe kids will learn AI skills from their parents anyway. "That would be like claiming that kids learn how to use TikTok from their parents," he said. It's usually "the other way around." Watkins, himself a father, says he is "very concerned" about the new forms that generative AI is taking, but considers it necessary to read about the subject and "have in-depth conversations about it with our children." "They're going to use artificial intelligence," he said, "so I want them to know the potential benefits and risks." The CEO of AI chip giant Nvidia, Jensen Huang, often speaks of AI as "the greatest equalisation force that we have ever known," democratising learning and knowledge. But Watkins fears a different reality: "Parents will view this as a technology that will be used if you can afford it, to get your kid ahead of everyone else." The computer scientist father readily acknowledged this disparity, saying "My son has an advantage because he has two parents with PhDs in computer science, but that's 90 percent due to the fact that we are more affluent than average" -- not their AI knowledge. "That does have some pretty big implications," Watkins said.
