In 1882, Heinrich Hertz devoted himself to the study of electromagnetism, including the recent and still generally unappreciated work of Maxwell. Two years later he began his famous series of experiments with electromagnetic waves. During the course of this work, Hertz discovered the photoelectric effect, which has had a profound influence on modern physics. The […]
Recently a deal between the biopharmaceutical companies Gilead and Kite Pharma was announced. Under the agreement, Gilead will buy Kite for a stunning USD 11 billion, shifting the focus of Gilead from infectious diseases to the field of oncology, just like that. But why write a post on MI about such apparently business-related issue? Kite […]
Chemistry • Condensed matter • DIPC Biochemistry • DIPC Photochemistry • Pharmacy
The combination of catalysis and bioorthogonality promises have an impact on drug discovery and bioimaging. Bioorthogonality, a term coined by Carolyn R. Bertozzi in 2003, refers to any chemical reaction that can occur inside of living systems without interfering with native biochemical processes. Hence, catalytic turnover can boost the efficiency of bioorthogonal chemical reactions, unveiling […]
Interior of a human blood vessel. Something looks wrong, very wrong. Bacteria have entered the circulation, and the immunological system is reacting. All the alarms are on fire, while an army of white blood cells comes by, getting ready to unleash hell on the invaders. Suddenly, among these security agents, a neutrophil stands out. It […]
Major technological revolutions have occurred when the humankind has been able to harness natural resources, such as fire, electricity or nuclear energy. We are now in the verge of the so called second quantum revolution, that aims to harness two of the weirdest natural resources, coherence and entanglement. This is a tall order that calls […]
Diagnosis is one of the trickiest steps in disease management for many diseases, ranging from some types of cancer to rare diseases or neurodegenerative disorders, like Alzheimer’s for instance. Even though we have been hearing long about the disease, to date the only reliable diagnosis comes from a postmortem brain analysis and the finding of […]
The immune system is composed of a considerable variety of cell types with different functions. One of the most important cells involved in the innate immunity are the macrophages . These cells have a wide spectrum of functions: from bacteria-killing function to wound healing properties. Classically the macrophages according to their functions have been classified […]
I am sure that all of you have had table conversations about the flavour of tomato fruits: “These tomatoes have no taste” complained the little boy; “When I was a child tomatoes were much better, now they are tasteless” said the grandmother; “The ones I grow in my backyard are hundred times better” stated the […]
Do you remember the “Little Red Riding Hood” story – the beloved fairy tale that your parents used to read to you before bed? Besides putting you and many other children across the globe to sleep, this story is a great “spontaneous speech” resource to assess language impairments in people with neurological disorders. An interesting […]
In science, for a phenomenon to be reliable, it needs to be validated by a certain statistical value, the p-value, which by giving an estimate of the probability that the result would be the product of chance, serves as a measure of the probability that a certain event happening is true. So far, the convention […]