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 ...

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…

This content is also available on my website: https://logancollinsblog.com/2026/01/02/amygdala-structure-function-and-clinically-relevant-pathways/

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...

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...

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

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 ...

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&...

Targeted in situ sequencing directly maps editing rates at single-cell resolution in postmortem tissues to visualize base and prime editor delivery.

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?

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

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…

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

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

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.

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.

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.

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

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...

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

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...

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.