UNIVERSITY OF EDINBURGH

Resolution Therapeutics, co-founded by Syncona in 2020, raised £63.5 million in Series B financing to progress RTX001, an engineered autologous macrophage cell therapy for end stage liver disease. The company plans to start a phase 1/2 EMERALD trial in the UK and Spain by year-end, aiming to regenerate liver tissue and explore other regenerative therapies.

The AAAI-24 Workshop Program, sponsored by the Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence, features a series of workshops focusing on various AI topics. Key workshops include discussions on Large Language Models (LLMs) causality, AI for credible elections, digital human creation, AI in education, finance for social impact, AI in science and engineering, AI-based planning for cyber-physical systems, brain encoding and decoding with AI, cybersecurity, operations research, time series analysis, cognitive and mental health, neuro-symbolic learning, privacy-preserving AI, public sector LLMs, recommendation ecosystems, responsible language models, and scientific document understanding. Each workshop aims to bring together researchers and practitioners to discuss advancements, challenges, and applications in their respective fields.

CheekAge, a new test analyzing cheek cell DNA methylation, may predict life span. Developed by Tally Health, it identifies epigenetic markers linked to mortality, outperforming blood-based tests. A simple cheek swab could offer a noninvasive alternative for aging studies.

Charles Cockell proposes using bioengineered microbes to process organic materials on the moon, Mars, and beyond, turning them into industrial feedstocks for space colonies, potentially accelerating space exploration.

A study in PLOS Biology suggests that despite higher mutation rates and reduced natural selection in humans, the accumulation of damaging mutations is unlikely to significantly impact human fitness in the near future, with overexploitation of resources being a greater concern.

2008 saw the iLimb, the first multi-articulating prosthetic hand. In 2013, Edinburgh's Heriot-Watt University pioneered 3D printing of stem cell clusters for organ creation. 2014 featured rapid meningitis diagnosis via SERS and stem cell-derived human liver tissue. Scottish scientists contributed to COVID-19 vaccine development and Parkinson's research, with 2024 revealing a molecular switch's role in protecting against Parkinson's. Scotland's medical innovations span centuries, from the Monro dynasty to modern AI and stem cell research.

Kathryn, diagnosed with gestational diabetes and struggling with weight, took Ozempic and unexpectedly conceived. Ozempic, a type 2 diabetes medicine, is not a fertility treatment but weight loss from GLP-1 drugs can improve fertility by restoring hormonal balance. A registry monitors pregnancies in women taking Wegovy, another GLP-1 drug. While weight loss is the main driver, some theorize GLP-1 drugs may interfere with oral contraceptives. Clinical trials are testing semaglutide in PCOS patients, suggesting potential fertility benefits. However, GLP-1 drugs are not recommended for conception due to safety concerns, and access remains limited.

Ozempic and Wegovy, containing semaglutide, reduced heart health risk by 20% in overweight/obese individuals over 3 years, with greater benefits for those with kidney disease, according to a clinical trial.

UKRI India and the Government of India have jointly funded £19.4 million for research in farmed animal diseases, understanding geohazards, and sustainable materials. The collaboration includes projects led by UK and Indian researchers, focusing on improving farmed animal health, understanding geohazards, and developing sustainable industrial practices.

Nanorobots guided by magnetic fields could revolutionize stroke prevention by sealing off brain aneurysms more safely and precisely than traditional methods. These bots, which release a clotting agent when heated, have successfully blocked aneurysms in rabbit trials without obstructing overall blood supply. Future research aims to refine this technology for larger animals and deeper brain aneurysms.