Category Archives: Transhuman News

LAWRENCE, KANSAS A University of Kansas researcher is taking a novel approach to the prolific problem of opioid addiction in America. With a $2.3 million grant from the National Institute on Drug Abuse, Zijun Wangwill research the implications of the DNA break-and-repair process in opioid use disorder.

Wangs work is based on the premise that opioid addiction is a psychiatric disorder caused by molecular changes in the brain that alter behavior.

Drug addiction is not a moral failing, said Wang, assistant professor of pharmacology & toxicology. In terms of addiction, the reward pathway in the brain is hijacked by repeated drug exposure. Drug-induced structural changes result in many abnormal behaviors, including reduced inhibitory control that prevents someone from avoiding behaviors with negative consequences.

The human genome consists of more than 3 billion base pairs of DNA, which contain more than 20,000 genes. This genetic material is used in complex biochemical processes in human cell function, development and replication. Wang said the genome is under attack from a variety of sources. Normally, the DNA repair process can overcome these attacks, but repeated drug exposure can disrupt this process, changing gene expression, cell function and leading to abnormal drug addiction-related behaviors.

Wangs research focuses on the DNA break-and-repair processes disrupted by addiction. Ultimately, Wang said she aims to help the genome maintain a normal or healthy environment in the cell and identify a potential therapy for these patients to prevent them from relapsing to drug use.

The therapeutic approach needed to target DNA breaks has yet to be developed but could come in the form of a drug or gene therapy. Right now, we are still at the initial step, but eventually we want to provide novel insight for the development of future therapies, Wang said. The first thing we want to do is have a clearer idea of the neurobiology underlying this opioid addiction.

The work on this grant addresses a critical issue: what causes drug users to relapse to using drugs after they manage to quit drug use, said Nancy Muma, chair of the Department of Pharmacology & Toxicology. Zijun has developed a novel approach to determine if the problem is damage to the persons genes. If this is the case, then future research can begin to address ways to mitigate the damage to the genes to prevent or reduce relapse.

This is novel research that no one else has done before, Wang said. How does DNA damage contribute to opioid addiction? We're trying to make a link between those. At the end of the day, we want to find a treatment that can reduce drug-seeking behavior.

This grant is funded through the Genetics or Epigenetics of Substance Use Disorders Avenir Award program that supports highly creative early-stage investigators proposing innovative studies that open new areas of research for the genetics or epigenetics of addiction.

Disclaimer: AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert system.

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Pharmacy researcher earns $2.3 million NIH award to study opioid addiction - EurekAlert

Our genetics, the environment and our age all play important roles in our health, but which of these is the most important? A new UC Berkeley study suggests that in many cases, age plays a more important role than genetics in determining which genes in our bodies are turned on or off, influencing our susceptibility to disease.

Amid much speculation and research about how our genetics affect the way we age, a University of California, Berkeley, study now shows that individual differences in our DNA matter less as we get older and become prone to diseases of aging, such as diabetes and cancer.

In a study of the relative effects of genetics, aging and the environment on how some 20,000 human genes are expressed, the researchers found that aging and environment are far more important than genetic variation in affecting the expression profiles of many of our genes as we get older. The level at which genes are expressed -- that is, ratcheted up or down in activity -- determines everything from our hormone levels and metabolism to the mobilization of enzymes that repair the body.

"How do your genetics -- what you got from your sperm donor and your egg donor and your evolutionary history -- influence who you are, your phenotype, such as your height, your weight, whether or not you have heart disease?" said Peter Sudmant, UC Berkeley assistant professor of integrative biology and a member of the campus's Center for Computational Biology. "There's been a huge amount of work done in human genetics to understand how genes are turned on and off by human genetic variation. Our project came about by asking, 'How is that influenced by an individual's age?' And the first result we found was that your genetics actually matter less the older you get."

In other words, while our individual genetic makeup can help predict gene expression when we are younger, it is less useful in predicting which genes are ramped up or down when we're older -- in this study, older than 55 years. Identical twins, for example, have the same set of genes, but as they age, their gene expression profiles diverge, meaning that twins can age much differently from each other.

The findings have implications for efforts to correlate diseases of aging with genetic variation in humans, Sudmant said. Such studies should perhaps focus less on genetic variants that impact gene expression when pursuing drug targets.

"Almost all human common diseases are diseases of aging: Alzheimer's, cancers, heart disease, diabetes. All of these diseases increase their prevalence with age," he said. "Massive amounts of public resources have gone into identifying genetic variants that predispose you to these diseases. What our study is showing is that, well, actually, as you get older, genes kind of matter less for your gene expression. And so, perhaps, we need to be mindful of that when we're trying to identify the causes of these diseases of aging."

Sudmant and his colleagues reported their results this week in the journal Nature Communications.

Medawar's hypothesis

The findings are in line with Medawar's hypothesis: Genes that are turned on when we are young are more constrained by evolution because they are critical to making sure we survive to reproduce, while genes expressed after we reach reproductive age are under less evolutionary pressure. So, one would expect a lot more variation in how genes are expressed later in life.

"We're all aging in different ways," Sudmant said. "While young individuals are closer together in terms of gene expression patterns, older individuals are further apart. It's like a drift through time as gene expression patterns become more and more erratic."

This study is the first to look at both aging and gene expression across such a wide variety of tissues and individuals, Sudmant said. He and his colleagues built a statistical model to assess the relative roles of genetics and aging in 27 different human tissues from nearly 1,000 individuals and found that the impact of aging varies widely -- more than twentyfold -- among tissues.

"Across all the tissues in your body, genetics matters about the same amount. It doesn't seem like it plays more of a role in one tissue or another tissue," he said. "But aging is vastly different between different tissues. In your blood, colon, arteries, esophagus, fat tissue, age plays a much stronger role than your genetics in driving your gene expression patterns."

Sudmant and colleagues also found that Medawar's hypothesis does not hold true for all tissues. Surprisingly, in five types of tissues, evolutionary important genes were expressed at higher levels in older individuals.

"From an evolutionary perspective, it is counterintuitive that these genes should be getting turned on, until you take a close look at these tissues," Sudmant said. These five tissues happen to be the ones that constantly turn over throughout our lifespan and also produce the most cancers. Every time these tissues replace themselves, they risk creating a genetic mutation that can lead to disease.

"I guess this tells us a little bit about the limits of evolution," he said. "Your blood, for instance, always has to proliferate for you to live, and so these super-conserved, very important genes have to be turned on late in life. This is problematic because it means that those genes are going to be susceptible to getting somatic mutations and getting turned on forever in a bad, cancerous way. So, it kind of gives us a little bit of a perspective on what the limitations of living are like. It puts bounds on our ability to keep living."

Sudmant noted that the study indirectly indicates the effect on aging of one's environment, which is the impact of everything other than age and genetics: the air we breathe, the water we drink, the food we eat, but also our levels of physical exercise. Environment amounts to up to a third of gene expression changes with age.

Sudmant is conducting similar analyses of the expressed genes in several other organisms -- bats and mice -- to see how they differ and whether the differences are related to these animals' different lifespans.

UC Berkeley graduate students Ryo Yamamoto and Ryan Chung are co-first authors of the paper. Other co-authors are Juan Manuel Vazquez, Huanjie Sheng, Philippa Steinberg and Nilah Ioannidis. The work was supported by the National Institute of General Medical Sciences (R35GM142916) of the National Institutes of Health.

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Study shows age often plays a bigger role than genetics in gene expression and susceptibility to disease - Anti Aging News

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Submitted by Direct Relief

Direct Relief today announced the launch of a joint, multi-year initiative with Amgen and the City Cancer Challenge (C/Can) to support breast cancer patients in Paraguay.

In coordination with C/Can, which has worked to advance equitable access to cancer diagnostics and treatment in Paraguay since 2017, Direct Relief will deliver Amgen-donated medications to specialized cancer treatment centers in Asuncion.

"Direct Relief is deeply appreciative to Amgen and C/Can for their leadership and initiative in providing equitable and quality access to these critical treatments," said Damon Taugher, VP of global programs at Direct Relief. "Thanks to this collaboration, people who would otherwise be unable to access cancer therapies will be able to receive the treatments they need."

In the short term, the initiative aims to establish a standardized methodology for achieving in-country readiness to support equitable and quality access to breast cancer diagnostics and medicines. It will also be reinforced with ongoing efforts to strengthen local infrastructure and the healthcare workforce in Paraguay's leading cancer treatment institutions.

With support from Amgen, Direct Relief and C/Can will engage local stakeholders in bolstering Paraguay's cancer care infrastructure and healthcare workforce, covering the areas of diagnosis, treatment, and palliative and supportive care.

"Our initiative with C/Can and Direct Relief can bring much-needed medicines to people suffering with cancer," said Dr. Victoria Elegant, Global Lead, Access to Healthcare, at Amgen. "This will help achieve a sustainable improvement in the provision of cancer services and make an enduring difference."

In short, the provision of donated medicines will be matched with quality improvements in the building blocks of Paraguay's cancer-care health system, continuing C/Can's work with local stakeholders to improve and sustain standards of care for breast cancer patients overall.

"By partnering with a global leader in cancer medicines like Amgen along with Direct Relief's experience in cold chain logistics, we can ensure that the efforts that the city of Asuncin has led through the C/Can initiative have strengthened the critical path to ensure that access to medicines is a sustainable, structures and measurable process and not limited to the delivery of donated medicines," said C/Can CEO, Isabel Mestres.

About City Cancer Challenge Foundation (C/Can)C/Can supports cities around the world as they work to improve access to equitable, quality cancer care. Since its launch in 2017 by the Union for International Cancer Control (UICC), C/Can has developed a new model of addressing access to cancer care that, for the first time, leverages the city as a key enabler in a health system's response to cancer.

About Direct ReliefAs a humanitarian organization committed to improving the health and lives of people affected by poverty and emergencies, Direct Relief delivers lifesaving medical resources throughout the US and the world to communities in needwithout regard to politics, religion, or the ability to pay. For more information, visit https://www.DirectRelief.org.

About AmgenAmgen is committed to unlocking the potential of biology for patients suffering from serious illnesses by discovering, developing, manufacturing, and delivering innovative human therapeutics. This approach begins by using tools like advanced human genetics to unravel the complexities of disease and understand the fundamentals of human biology.

Amgen focuses on areas of high unmet medical need and leverages its expertise to strive for solutions that improve health outcomes and dramatically improve people's lives. A biotechnology pioneer since 1980, Amgen has grown to be one of the world's leading independent biotechnology companies, has reached millions of patients around the world and is developing a pipeline of medicines with breakaway potential.

Amgen is one of the 30 companies that comprise the Dow Jones Industrial Average and is also part of the Nasdaq-100 index. In 2021, Amgen was named one of the 25 World's Best Workplaces by Fortune and Great Place to Work and one of the 100 most sustainable companies in the world by Barron's.

A humanitarian organization committed to improving the health and lives of people affected by poverty and emergencies, Direct Relief delivers lifesaving medical resources throughout the U.S. and world to communities in needwithout regard to politics, religion, or ability to pay. For more information, visithttps://www.DirectRelief.org.

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CSRWire - Direct Relief, Amgen and C/Can Team Up To Improve Access to Breast Cancer Diagnostics and Treatment in Paraguay - CSRwire.com

SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Maze Therapeutics, a company translating genetic insights into new precision medicines, today announced that Harold Bernstein, M.D., Ph.D., a 30-year industry veteran, has been appointed as president, head of research and development (R&D) and chief medical officer. In addition, Eric Green, M.D., Ph.D., who has served as Mazes senior vice president, research and translational sciences, has been promoted to chief scientific officer.

Harold brings an impressive combination of industry and academic experience, as well as the unique perspective of a practicing physician, to the Maze team at an important stage of our development. Further, with much of Harolds experience having focused on human genetics, he is a natural candidate for this position, and Im thrilled to welcome him to our team and mission, said Jason Coloma, Ph.D., chief executive officer of Maze. I am also pleased to announce the promotion of Eric to CSO, who has been a true leader and driving force behind much of Mazes platform and pipeline advancement since our founding. Eric and Harold will be instrumental in executing the advancement of our diverse pipeline, which spans monogenic diseases like Pompe disease, and more complex diseases, like chronic kidney disease. I look forward to partnering with these two experts as we deliver on our vision of harnessing the power of human genetics to transform the lives of patients.

Maze has attracted some of the best minds in biotech and has proven itself through impressive progress since its founding, including the build-out of its Compass platform and rapid advancement into the clinic, said Dr. Bernstein. I was drawn to the Maze teams lofty goal of shifting the paradigm in medicine, in particular for more complex diseases such as chronic kidney disease, during an unprecedented time for the field of genetics and precision medicine. As head of R&D, I look forward to shaping and contributing to a creative strategy and thorough scientific process aimed at delivering new, genetic-based medicines. I am thrilled to join the Maze team as we urgently work to create and advance therapeutically meaningful treatments to help patients in need.

Dr. Bernstein brings more than three decades of experience in basic scientific research, translational medicine and clinical development both in industry and academia. He joins Maze from BioMarin, where he served as senior vice president, chief medical officer and head of global clinical development. In this role, he was responsible for fortifying clinical development from early to late stages, working seamlessly with research discovery and overseeing the late-stage and lifecycle products. Prior to BioMarin, he was head of translational medicine and vice president of global medicines development and medical affairs at Vertex, and earlier held roles at Merck, including head of early development for cardiometabolic diseases. Dr. Bernstein was professor of pediatrics and a senior investigator at the Cardiovascular Research Institute and the Broad Center of Regeneration Medicine and Stem Cell Research at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF). He also served as attending physician at UCSF Benioff Childrens Hospital in pediatric cardiology, and at the Mount Sinai Kravis Childrens Hospital in cardiovascular genetics. Dr. Bernstein currently holds an appointment as adjunct professor of pediatrics and the Mindich Child Health and Development Institute at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. He studied biomedical science, human genetics and medicine at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine, earning an M.Phil., Ph.D. and M.D. He completed a pediatric residency, cardiology fellowship and postdoctoral fellowship at UCSF and earned an A.B. in biological sciences from Harvard College.

Dr. Green is a physician-scientist and entrepreneur with more than 15 years of experience building and operating innovative scientific organizations. Prior to Maze, Dr. Green was an entrepreneur-in-residence at Third Rock Ventures, where he was involved in launching and building multiple Third Rock portfolio companies, including MyoKardia where he led the translational research group working on mavacamten, which was eventually acquired by Bristol Myers Squibb. Dr. Green is a board-certified physician with training in internal medicine and cardiovascular medicine from Brigham and Womens Hospital. He holds an M.D. and Ph.D. in chemical and systems biology from Stanford University and an A.B. in history and science from Harvard College.

About Maze Therapeutics

Maze Therapeutics is a biopharmaceutical company applying advanced data science methods in tandem with a robust suite of research and development capabilities to advance a pipeline of novel precision medicines for patients with genetically defined diseases. Maze has developed the Maze CompassTM platform, a proprietary, purpose-built platform that combines human genetic data, functional genomic tools and data science technology to map novel connections between known genes and their influence on susceptibility, timing of onset and rate of disease progression. Using Compass, Maze is building a broad portfolio of wholly owned and partnered programs. Maze is based in South San Francisco. For more information, please visit mazetx.com, or follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter.

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Maze Therapeutics Appoints Harold Bernstein, M.D., Ph.D., as President, Research and Development and Chief Medical Officer - Business Wire

Top-line phase 2 data evaluating drug candidates for treating the rare disease phenylketonuria (PKU) was announced this morning. The study compared the efficacy of 2 strains of a non-systemically absorbed drug candidate in patients with the diagnosis.

While both strains, SYNB1618 and SYNB1934, demonstrated clinically meaningful reductions in fasting plasma phenylalanine (Phe) levels, SYNB1934 will be the candidate investigated in the anticipated 2023 phase 3 clinical trial.

The rare inherited disorder is caused by a disruption in the phenylalanine hydroxylase (PAH) gene, which helps create the enzyme necessary to break down phenylalanine. As a result the phenylalanine amino acid accumulates in the body which can be dangerous and lead to serious health problems.

These patients can experience intellectual limitations in areas of thinking, understanding and communicating as well as other major health problems.Early intervention is crucialscreening for this disease is typically done at birth.

At this time there's no cure, so patients with the condition are instructed to restrict their diet to avoid foods that can increase the phenylalanine build up, typically found in high-protein foods. However, some individuals can be less restrictive if they're taking medications that are effective for them.

PKU continues to be a very challenging disease for patients, with many in need of new treatment options, Jerry Vockley, MD, PhD, Professor of Human Genetics,University of Pittsburgh, and lead investigator on the phase 2 Synpheny-1 study said in a statement. It is very promising to see these results and the potential benefits of a new, orally administered investigational product that can meaningfully lower Phe in patients with PKU.

The Synpheny-1 study was a phase 2, open-label, 28-day clinical trial that assessed the safety, tolerability and efficacy of SYNB1618 and SYNB1934 in 20 adult patients with phenylketonuria. The primary endpoint was the change in area under the curve (AUC) of plasma levels of labeled D5-phenylalanine (D5-Phe) following a meal challenge before and after the treatment period. Investigators carefully managed the patients' dietary intake to replicate their routine protein and Phe consumption.

Each candidate's ability to mitigate Phe properly was examined as the administered dose regimen was increased over 15 days of treatment and then stayed consistent at a dose of 1x1012live cells for the second half of the treatment period. Secondary endpoints included change in fasting levels of plasma Phe from baseline, incidence of treatment-emergent adverse events (TEAEs), and the levels of additional strain-specific metabolites plasma D5-TCA and urinary D5-5A.

Patients enrolled in the study had a Phe level above 600 mol/L at screening despite treatment with diet and/or sapropterin. A total of 11 patients were included in the SYNB1618 arm and with 9 in the SYNB1934 arm. At the conclusion of the investigation, 10 patients completed the SYNB1618 arm and 5 patients completed the SYNB1934 arm.

The mean change from baseline at day 14 in fasting plasma Phe was -20% for those in SYNB1618 treatment and -34% for SYNB1934. Of the patients who completed the trial, 60% had a response greater than 20% Phe reduction by day 7 or day 14, with 6 of the 10 patients dosed with SYNB1618 and 3 of the 5 dosed with SYNB1934 meeting the criteria.

No serious adverse events were reported and the mild-moderate adverse events were predominantly gastrointestinal.

The robust plasma Phe reduction demonstrated by SYNB1934 indicates that it has potential to be a transformative treatment for patients with PKU,Aoife Brennan, MB, ChB,Synlogic President, Chief Executive Officer stated. I would like to thank the patients, clinicians and staff of our investigational sites who made this study possible. We look forward to further collaboration as we initiate our Phase 3 pivotal study, with the goal of bringing this potentially life-changing innovation in the treatment of PKU to patients.

Developing company Synlogichas confirmed these data supported the decision to continue with SYNB1934 as the drug candidate advancing to a phase 3 pivotal study which is expected to begin in the first half of 2023.

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New Rare Disease Therapy Effectively Lowers Plasma Phe in Patients with PKU - MD Magazine

GSK plc (LSE/NYSE: GSK) and Tempus, a US-based precision medicine company, have entered into a three-year collaboration agreement that provides GSK with access to Tempus' AI-enabled platform, including its library of de-identified patient data. Through its leading Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning (AI/ML) capability, GSK will work together with Tempus to improve clinical trial design, speed up enrolment and identify drug targets. This will contribute to GSK's R&D success rate and provide patients with more personalised treatment faster.

The new collaboration builds from the existing relationship between the companies that began in 2020 on clinical trial enrolment of patients with certain types of cancer. It will now expand GSK's access to de-identified patient data bringing greater scale and detail. Tempus' dataset draws from its work with over 40% of oncologists in the U.S. at academic medical centres and community hospitals.

Tony Wood, Chief Scientific Officer, GSK, said: "This collaboration will provide GSK with unique insights to discover better medicines and transform drug discovery. Tempus complements the work our team is already doing at the intersection of genomics and machine learning across both early discovery and clinical trials."

GSK's investments in human genetics, functional genomics and AI/ML have enabled the company to more than double the number of targets in the early portfolio since 2017 and have increased the proportion of those with genetic support beyond 70%. Medicines with genetic validation are twice as likely to become registered medicines. As a leader in AI-enabled precision medicine, Tempus has developed a platform that provides a rapid way of testing complex biomarker hypotheses. Powered by machine learning, this is an important component of selecting patients who could benefit from candidate medicines in GSK's portfolio in the future.

Eric Lefkofsky, Founder and CEO, Tempus, said: "GSK's data-first approach to therapeutic research aligns with our own, and we believe that Tempus has the resources and capabilities to complement GSK's dedication to data science, in a way others can't given the breadth and depth of our platform. We both share a commitment to providing patients with more personalised therapeutic options to help them live longer and healthier lives."

GSK and Tempus currently collaborate on an open label phase II study, which applies an innovative, data-driven approach designed to accelerate and streamline study timelines. This includes expediting the protocol development and intelligent site selection in under 60 days and enrolling its initial patients within three months of the study launch.

The expanded collaboration has a minimum financial commitment over three years, for which GSK made a $70 million initial payment. GSK then has an option to extend for two additional years.

About Tempus

Tempus is a technology company advancing precision medicine through the practical application of artificial intelligence in healthcare. With one of the world's largest libraries of clinical and molecular data, and an operating system to make that data accessible and useful, Tempus enables physicians to make real-time, data-driven decisions to deliver personalized patient care and in parallel facilitates discovery, development and delivery of optimal therapeutics. The goal is for each patient to benefit from the treatment of others who came before by providing physicians with tools that learn as the company gathers more data. For more information, visit tempus.com.

About GSK.ai

With more than 120 AI/ML experts, GSK's dedicated AI /ML team is the largest in-house strategic function in the biopharma industry and it is delivering a step-change in increasing R&D productivity, working closely with GSK's Research division. GSK teams are generating more data every quarter than in the company's entire history. At GSK, we believe AI has the potential to transform R&D because it enables our scientists to work better, faster and smarter so data helps us find the right medicine, using the right modality, for the right patient.

About GSK

GSK is a global biopharma company with a purpose to unite science, technology, and talent to get ahead of disease together. Find out more at gsk.com/company

Cautionary statement regarding forward-looking statements

GSK cautions investors that any forward-looking statements or projections made by GSK, including those made in this announcement, are subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially from those projected. Such factors include, but are not limited to, those described in the Company's Annual Report on Form 20-F for 2021, GSK's Q2 Results for 2022 and any impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.

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GSK : announces expanded collaboration with Tempus in precision medicine to accelerate R&D - Marketscreener.com

In 2022, Alain Aspect, John Clauser, and Anton Zeilinger were awarded the Nobel Prize for the first proof of quantum entanglement, a notion that Albert Einstein referred to as spooky action at a distance. This science first could massively impact the field of quantum computing, which uses quantum mechanics to solve problems that traditional computers cant handle.

Many scientific discoveries other than this one have or have had the capacity to change the course of history. Among other things, they have extended human life, harnessed energy, and provided an understanding of the evolution of the universe. (Read about some accidental discoveries that have changed the world.)

To assemble a list of discoveries that changed the course of history, 24/7 Tempo drew on a variety of scientific and general interest sources, including The Science Times, Famous Scientists, NASA, Discover Magazine, Smithsonian Magazine, Britannica, and PBS. This is not intended to be a comprehensive list, but a snapshot of discoveries or breakthroughs that we determined by editorial discretion, informed by the sources we consulted, to be of particular importance. We limited the number of discoveries concerning outer space because they have been covered in more detail in previous lists.

From revelations that influenced human health to technological advances to such universal basics as gravity and electricity, the discoveries on our list occurred across a variety of scientific fields. Some involved medicine and well-being, such as the discovery of penicillin. Others were biology-focused, while a number were made within the fields of physics and space. (These are the most important events in NASAs history.)

The 1800s saw nine key discoveries, among them the principles behind the battery and the electric generator. Another 11 occurred during the 20th century, including nuclear fission and continental drift.

Click here to see famous scientific discoveries that changed history forever

The scientific method encourages continual experimentation on existing theories, which sometimes disproves or alters our understanding of earlier results. For example, Albert Einsteins work on the theory of relativity challenged Isaac Newtons earlier understanding of physics.

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Famous Scientific Discoveries That Changed the Course of History - 24/7 Wall St.

Mysore/Mysuru: Karnataka State Construction Workers and Quarry Workers Association (AIUTUC) staged a protest on Monday against the Governments decision to release Rs. 433 crore from Karnataka State Building and Other Construction Workers Welfare Fund to Slum Clearance Board. They demanded its withdrawal and also urged to fulfill their other demands.

The protestors, who gathered in front of Deputy Commissioners Office, also demanded that Rs. 2 lakh be paid directly to the Bank Accounts of construction workers who have applied for subsidy to construct their houses, as per rules.

Alleging irregularities by the Labour Welfare Board in the procurement of food kit, booster kit and tools kit, provided during COVID-19 pandemic were of poor quality, they demanded a judicial probe into it. They also urged that the present Centre for Human Genetics (CHG) scheme be scrapped and instead, the registered construction workers and their families be provided with State Government Arogya Sanjeevani-2021 as a cashless service or Employees State Insurance (ESI) as a cashless facility. District General Secretary of the Association K.G. Somaraje Urs, District Secretary Mujahid Pasha, Vice-President Shivanna and others took part.

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Construction workers seek fulfilment of their demands - Star of Mysore