A brief history of understanding our tiny building blocks. Some of the breakthroughs described in this series so far revealed a complex network of proteins working together in each cell to perform many activities. But, how does each protein know where should it be placed in the cell, and where…

A brief history of understanding our tiny building blocks. The rapid development of genetics was precisely what undermined Warburg’s “cellular-energy-and-metabolism-centred” theory of cancer. Important evidence began to emerge on the changes in the genetic code of the cell that could act as the most proximal event in cancer development. …

A brief history of understanding our tiny building blocks. A German physician Otto Heinrich Warburg was born in Freiburg, close to the Swiss border, in 1883. He was a very daring man. He served as an officer in the elite Prussian cavalry regiment during the First World War and received…

Human growth and development from a single cell to a finite organism over two decades is carefully programmed. Is human ageing also programmed? And if it is — can it be reprogrammed? It is clear that our body has a phase in which it grows and develops in a programmed…

Once we gain a good understanding of the genomes of all living beings on Earth, we should be able to design entirely new life forms and invent some new properties that do not exist today. …

Among the many ways in which we could learn more about the ageing process and improve our longevity, one helpful approach is to study species on Earth that have already managed, through their own evolution, to avert this process to a significant extent. Some of them are very successful indeed…

These scientists made breakthroughs that could eventually overcome the three key barriers to a much longer human lifespan. A certain indication that an important breakthrough has taken place in science is when something that was generally considered impossible by the entire scientific community suddenly proves possible. Among the many scientific…

There are three major barriers to a much longer human lifespan. Could science overcome some, or all of them, by the end of the 21st century? From a single cell, the human organism develops to its final size and shape in space, and to sexual and physical maturity; also, it…

There was a time when many Africans were helped by the western medicine to preserve their sight. But there was lot more to that story than meets the eye. If you happen to visit the beautiful building of the World Health Organisation in Geneva, you will notice an unusual sculpture…