MOSCOW, December 19 – RIA Novosti, Olga Dobrovidova. The scientific journal Science named the 2013 breakthrough in the science of cancer immunotherapy methods – in the top 10 included, such as “genetic microsurgery”, solving the mystery of sleep and human cloned embryos.
most prestigious scientific journal in the world each year selects the ten most significant scientific achievements, as well as trying to predict next year’s breakthroughs. In 2012, it was the discovery of the Higgs boson, and the second most important event recognized genome sequencing denisovtsev previously unknown type of people who inhabited the south of Siberia and Central Asia about 50,000 years ago.
WhatScience thinks of ordinary spruce genome, chimpanzees in laboratories, Lake Vostok, “junk” science journals and Chelyabinsk meteorite – a review RIA Novosti.
“Last year became a turning point in the fight against cancer: tumor attempts to incite the immune system finally began to bear fruit – even if their future is in question,” – wrote in an editorial in Science.
Journal notes that in 2013 the scientific community saw “promising” results of clinical trials of technologies for controlling the disease, based on the effects on the immune system of the patient, not the tumor. Similar studies have appeared in the late 1980s, and today in the wake of new successes pharmaceutical companies, “which a few years ago would not have anything to do with immunotherapy,” investing money in it.
“While this strategy works only for some of its species and a small number of patients, so it is important not to exaggerate the short-term benefits from it. But many oncologists believe that watching the birth of a new and important paradigm in cancer treatment,” – said the chief Science news editor Tim Appenzeller, quoted magazine.
The editorial emphasizes that ad breakthrough of the year “approach, the total value of which remains unknown,” caused a heated debate inside the magazine, but eventually decided to support oncologists Science, “one hundred percent realists who say that the page has been turned and no turning back “.
“This area is full of stories about human lives, that could prolong. Here is a woman with melanoma and lung tumors the size of a grapefruit – is alive and well 13 years later.’s Six-Year on the verge of death from leukemia, which now goes to the third grade. Here is a man with metastatic kidney cancer, which has continued to recover even after treatment ended, “- said in the article.
From cells to the universe
Other breakthroughs tagged Science, technology got CRISPR – method “genetic microsurgery” with which scientists are able to very accurately “edit” gene. In 2013, there were more than 50 articles in which the authors used CRISPR for DNA manipulations in mice, rats, bacteria, yeast, fruit flies, plants and even human cells.
Furthermore, said magazine new materials for solar cells based perovskite which are easier and cheaper to produce, and the use of structural biology tools to develop a vaccine against respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) – due to a fall in hospitals each year, millions of infants . After 18 months, American scientists hope to get a good preparation for the test.
In ten also included technology CLARITY, which makes brain tissue transparent to researchers and growing “mini-organs” in the laboratory – such as liver, kidney and brain of the same, which may eventually prove to be more suitable objects of research and experimentation, than animals.
In space, scientists have found a “natural particle accelerators”, linking cosmic rays with supernovae, and on earth have studied in detail the trillions of bacteria that live in the human body, and found that the brain needs sleep mainly to “samoochistitsya” from waste life.
“After more than 10 years of failed attempts we finally succeeded. This year, scientists announced that they had cloned human embryos and use them as a source of embryonic stem cells,” – writes Science of the last paragraph in your list.
Scientific chart
magazine also chose several events, people and things in 2013. Thus, a well-preserved skull of a human ancestor found in Georgia, became a “fossil of the year”, a naked mole rat, which can live up to 30 years and is immune to cancer – “vertebrate” and grasshopper Issus coleoptratus natural “gears” – respectively, “invertebrates year “.
probe “Voyager”, who left the solar system, has become a “margin of the Year” and “explosion of the Year”, as it is easy to assume announced meteorite over Chelyabinsk. The decision, adopted the U.S. Supreme Court declared that human genes can not be patented, and “politician of the year” has become the new head of the Committee on Science of the lower house of Congress Lamar Smith, trying to reform the National Science Foundation (NSF).
“failure of the year” Science called excess levels of CO2 in the atmosphere “strips” of 400 parts per million, a breakdown of the telescope “Kepler”, the budget crisis in the U.S. and the “closing” of the government for 16 days, as well as a big scandal with nearly 160 scientific magazines, publication of knowingly took “defective” article – about this story Science wrote in October. Also in this category magazine noted Dutch psychologist Diederik forger Slipway, which by the end of this year, withdrew at least 54 scientific articles based on fictitious data.
Genome Science Year by the steel mitochondrial DNA human ancestor who lived 400,000 years ago, DNA from the horse’s hooves age of about 700,000 years, the genomes of tiny comb jellies and 10-meter whale – dwarf minke genomes tiger, lion and leopard, royal Cobra and Burmese python, four species of bats, three species of spruce and common pigeon. The magazine also notes decoding DNA “immortal” cells HeLa, publication of an article which first received the approval of the family of Henrietta Lacks – a woman that gave rise to this invaluable human cell line.
In “How we coped with the year 2013″ Science sets itself the “likes” and “dislayki” noting come true and do not come true estimates of expected events from last year. Guessed magazine with decoding the genome of an individual cell, the publication of the first data Human Connectome Project – A project to compile a complete description of the structure of relationships in the nervous system of the body, and not just with cancer immunotherapy.
On “so-so” Science praised publication record an accurate map of the cosmic microwave radiation, composed telescope “Plank” – it is “only” confirmed the standard notion of “life” of the universe, and genetic studies of plants that have not yet brought a truly serious practical results, which the magazine says algae-based fuel on an industrial scale and projections of how plants cope with climate change.
only “dislayk” on the list associated with the Antarctic Lake Vostok.
“In January, Russian scientists have received samples of ice from Lake Vostok, a reservoir hidden under 4 thousand meters of ice in Antarctica. Scientists hurry to see what microbes can” inhabit “the lake, millions of years in total isolation. But cells that they found could get into the lake contaminated drilling tools – may require additional samples, “- says Science.
In 2014, the magazine suggests paying attention to the neutrino astronomy, where the telescope IceCube is preparing for the first attempt to map the “neutrino” sky, and the widespread use of genome sequencing in the “everyday” medicine. In addition, there is marked “Plank”, which is now hunting for traces of gravitational waves in the “newborn” universe, and the disappearance of the U.S. laboratory chimpanzees – in June this year, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) has announced that not only a well-deserved retirement 310 of 360 of his laboratory chimpanzees, but will be phased out support for research with experiments on these animals.
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