Contaminating plasmid sequences and disrupted vector genomes in the liver following adeno-associated virus gene therapy - Nature Medicine Analyses of liver biopsies from a child with spinal muscular atrophy treated with adeno-associated virus gene therapy who developed hepatitis reveal contaminating manufacturing plasmids and disrupted ...

A valuable paper examining the presence of AAV manufacturing contaminants in a human patient’s liver. These results will hopefully be leveraged for improving the safety of gene therapies in the future. www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Amygdala Structure, Function, and Clinically Relevant Pathways PDF version: Amygdala Structure, Function, and Clinically Relevant Pathways – by Logan Thrasher Collins Anatomy The amygdala consists of nuclei which can be grouped into (i) the basolateral n…

I hope to at some point apply this knowledge towards gene therapy neurotech treatments for widespread mental illnesses. In the meantime, I hope you enjoy my writeup and the diagrams I made to illustrate it! logancollinsblog.com/2026/01/02/a...

Amygdala Structure, Function, and Clinically Relevant Pathways This content is also available on my website: https://logancollinsblog.com/2026/01/02/amygdala-structure-function-and-clinically-relevant-pathways/

I have been exploring neural circuits of emotion in the brain lately, which led me to write this primer on the amygdala over the holidays!

F. Scott Fitzgerald - Wikipedia

F. Scott Fitzgerald's life seems a turbulently intense, roller coaster ride of ups and downs. Though largely tragic, his story has a sort of colorful magnetism, embodying the wild human spirit that runs so strongly through his writings. Many lessons here.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/F._Scot...

Non-invasive ultrasonic neuromodulation of the human nucleus accumbens impacts reward sensitivity - Nature Communications This study shows that non-invasive ultrasound to the human nucleus accumbens can modulate deep brain activity and enhance reward-guided learning, offering a potential alternative to invasive neuromodu...

Yaakub et al. demonstrate that transcranial ultrasound (TUS) in the nucleus accumbens (part of the reward system) alters human decision making for a probabilistic learning task. Participants were more likely to adopt a “win-stay” strategy when exposed to TUS. www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Self-assembled cell-scale containers made from DNA origami membranes - Nature Materials Through the programmable self-assembly of lipid-inspired radially symmetric DNA, porous molecular membranes and cell-sized compartments are formed with applications in bottom-up biology and soft robot...

Karfusehr et al. created “Dipids”, DNA origami disks with slanted edges that can act as dynamic units for assembly of compartments the size of small cells. The Dipid design parameters can also be varied to achieve interesting emergent properties!
www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Ethics of neurotechnology: UNESCO adopts the first global standard in Today UNESCO’s Member States took the final step towards adopting the first global normative framework on the ethics of neurotechnology. The Recommendation, which will enter into force on November 12

UNESCO has put out the "first global normative framework on the ethics of neurotechnology". Hopefully this will stimulate governments to adopt appropriate regulations which help exciting new neurotechnologies move forward without causing harm!
www.unesco.org/en/articles/...

FLASH-AWAY: Intrabody-Directed Targeting of Optogenetic Tools for Protein Degradation Protein homeostasis, or proteostasis, is essential for cellular proteins to function properly. The buildup of abnormal proteins (such as damaged, misfolded, or aggregated proteins) is associated with ...

Cool paper on a light-activated (optogenetic) multimerizing intrabody system for targeted protein degradation via the ubiquitin-proteasome pathway. pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/...

Where are all the trillion dollar biotechs? — lada nuzhna Of the many trends people chase in biotech, the only one that proves sure and consistent is declining returns. Even after adjusting for inflation, the number of new drugs approved per $1 billion of R&...

Highly informative analysis of the challenges facing the biotech industry, some proposed solutions and their failings, and why aging treatments may revitalize biotech business if they can be developed successfully. www.ladanuzhna.xyz/writing/tril...

Spatial profiling of gene editing by in situ sequencing in mice and macaques - Nature Biomedical Engineering Targeted in situ sequencing directly maps editing rates at single-cell resolution in postmortem tissues to visualize base and prime editor delivery.

A solid paper on using in situ sequencing to spatially measure base editing and prime editing in mice and macaques. Spatial differences across liver were surprisingly minimal. www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Can We Build a Five Gigawatt Data Center?—Asterisk By 2030, leading AI labs will need data centers so massive they will require the power equivalent of some of America’s largest cities. Will they be able to find it?

An interesting article examining the resource and energy challenges facing those aiming to construct massive data centers. My hope is AI may drive more exploration of nuclear energy, though the article portrays the likelihood of this as fairly slim.
asteriskmag.com/issues/09/ca...

Roundup of Interesting Research Papers #7 My seventh installment of interesting research papers that I have read over the past few weeks and would like to share with my community.

My seventh installment of interesting research papers that I have read over the past few weeks and would like to share with my community. Substack link: substack.com/home/post/p-...

An Introduction to Ebolavirus Biology PDF version: An Introduction to Ebolavirus Biology – Logan Thrasher Collins  I wrote this educational primer as a fun exploration of a topic not related to my current research. While such kno…

It is also available on my website: logancollinsblog.com/2025/11/04/a...

An Introduction to Ebolavirus Biology Note: this content is also available on my website at https://logancollinsblog.com/2025/11/04/an-introduction-to-ebolavirus-biology/

I wrote this educational primer as a fun exploration of a topic not related to my current research. While such knowledge may be useful in the event of a future ebolavirus epidemic, it is mostly an exercise in curiosity and intellectual enrichment. loganthrashercollins.substack.com/p/an-introdu...

Roundup of Interesting Research Papers #6 My sixth installment of interesting research papers that I have read over the past few weeks and would like to share with my community.

My sixth installment of interesting research papers that I have read over the past few weeks and would like to share with my community. loganthrashercollins.substack.com/p/roundup-of...

The blood–brain barrier Here, Audrey Chagnot and Axel Montagne discuss the structural and functional features of the blood–brain barrier and the association of its disruption with various pathologies.

A nice primer article discussing the biology, structure, and dysfunction of the blood-brain-barrier. Quite useful for learning. #neurophysiology #biomedicine www.cell.com/current-biol...

Bioreducible Gene Delivery Platform that Promotes Intracellular Payload Release and Widespread Brain Dispersion We here introduce a novel bioreducible polymer-based gene delivery platform enabling widespread transgene expression in multiple brain regions with therapeutic relevance following intracranial convection-enhanced delivery. Our bioreducible nanoparticles provide markedly enhanced gene delivery efficacy in vitro and in vivo compared to nonbiodegradable nanoparticles primarily due to the ability to release gene payloads preferentially inside cells. Remarkably, our platform exhibits competitive gene delivery efficacy in a neuron-rich brain region compared to a viral vector under previous and current clinical investigations with demonstrated positive outcomes. Thus, our platform may serve as an attractive alternative for the intracranial gene therapy of neurological disorders.

Jung Soo Suk’s lab has developed nanoparticles consisting of DNA complexed with branched PEI and coated by PEG. Here, they show these nanoparticles diffuse widely into the mouse brain after intracranial injection as well as transduce neurons efficiently. pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/...

As a significant aside, these synthetic capsids can also transport nucleic acids (e.g. mRNAs) through lipid membranes, so they have great promise for gene therapy too (in my view)!

Antimicrobial peptide capsids of de novo design - Nature Communications With the growing threat of antibiotic resistance, unconventional approaches to antimicrobial discovery are needed. Here, the authors present a peptide topology that mimics virus architecture and assembles into antimicrobial capsids that disrupt bacterial membranes upon contact.

Remarkable paper where the authors design an antimicrobial peptide (AMP) triskelion which assembles into a capsid-like structure. On binding bacterial surfaces, the capsids fall apart, AMPs insert into the membrane, and pores form which kill the bacteria.

Notes on Ultrasound Physics and Instrumentation Note: this content is also available on my website at https://logancollinsblog.com/2025/05/16/notes-on-ultrasound-physics/

I've greatly expanded my 'Notes on Ultrasound Physics and Instrumentation' to include detailed discussion of transducers, transducer arrays, and ultrasound pulse parameters in practice. Enjoy!
Substack version: substack.com/home/post/p-...
My Website version: logancollinsblog.com/2025/05/16/n...

The multiomics blueprint of the individual with the most extreme lifespan In brief, Santos-Pujol and colleagues characterize the multiomics landscape of the human with the most extreme longevity. The study enables the association of advantageous genetic variants, an engaged...

Fascinating paper wherein the authors collect multiomics data (genome, epigenome, transcriptome, metabolome, proteome, and microbiome) from a 116-year-old woman who lived to 117, uncovering insights about the biology of her exceptional longevity. A great read!

www.cell.com/cell-reports...

Roundup of Interesting Research Papers #5 My fifth installment of interesting research papers that I have read over the past few weeks and would like to share with my community.

My fifth installment of interesting research papers that I have read over the past few weeks and would like to share with my community.
substack.com/home/post/p-...

Brain Nucleic Acid Delivery and Genome Editing via Focused Ultrasound-Mediated Blood–Brain Barrier Opening and Long-Circulating Nanoparticles We introduce a two-pronged strategy comprising focused ultrasound (FUS)-mediated blood–brain barrier (BBB) opening and long-circulating biodegradable nanoparticles (NPs) for systemic delivery of nucle...

Cool paper wherein Kwak et al. inject into mice nanoparticles consisting of polymer-condensed plasmid DNA or mRNA coated in PEG and then leverage ultrasound-induced blood-brain-barrier opening to deliver the nucleic acids to desired brain regions.

pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/...

Beyond mouse data, the study is supported by experiments on human biopsy samples as well as by human population data. All very impressive and has strong clinical potential. #alzheimersdisease #biochemistry

Lithium deficiency and the onset of Alzheimer’s disease - Nature Lithium has an essential role in the brain and is deficient early in Alzheimer’s disease, which can be recapitulated in mice and treated with a novel lithium salt that restores the physiological level.

A highly publicized paper providing solid evidence for the idea that lithium deficiency contributes centrally to Alzheimer's disease (AD) pathogenesis. Aron et al. also show in mice that lithium orotate supplementation might mitigate AD and brain aging. www.nature.com/articles/s41...

AI is helping to decode animals’ speech. Will it also let us talk with them? The complexity of vocal communication in some primates, whales and birds might approach that of human language.

Humans often underestimate cognitive abilities in animals. My guess is that we will find more complexity in their languages than we expect. Would be amazing if we could talk to them - lots of benefits in how it could change our society's attitudes. Link: www.nature.com/articles/d41...

Acetylcholine-linked LNPs crossed the mouse BBB 3.6x more efficiently than untargeted LNPs. Additionally, the results were compared to an AI model’s predictions, highlighting the strengths and weaknesses of the computational approach.

Highly informative paper! Various small molecules were linked to lipid nanoparticles (LNPs), improving the amounts of LNPs that crossed the blood-brain-barrier (BBB) in mice and in cell culture models of the BBB. Link: pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/...

Microendovascular Neural Recording from Cortical and Deep Vessels with High Precision and Minimal Invasiveness Intravascular electroencephalography (ivEEG) using micro-intravascular electrodes was developed. Cortical-vein ivEEG showed a higher signal-to-noise ratio and finer spatial resolution of somatosensor....

Interesting paper where microintravascular electrodes were inserted into cortical veins of pigs to record somatosensory and visual activity and to selectively stimulate motor areas. Compared to electrocorticography, this is a less invasive approach with similar capabilities. doi.org/10.1002/aisy...

Ångström-resolution imaging of cell-surface glycans - Nature Nanotechnology By combining bioorthogonal metabolic labelling and resolution enhancement through sequential imaging of DNA barcodes, the molecular organization of individual sugars in the native glycocalyx has been ...

An impressive achievement: Masullo et al. combine metabolic labeling and DNA-PAINT to image individual monosaccharide sugars in cell surface glycans at a resolution of 9 Å! That’s a resolution equivalent to 9 sulfur atoms in width! www.nature.com/articles/s41...