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14 results for “cykonot”

  1. Cykonot @cykonot

    Just learned Erika Kirk used to be a country music video vixen

  2. Cykonot @cykonot

    Either I'm middle aged, or we've lost sight of the "rule of cool" smh

  3. Cykonot @cykonot

    What made me yap about mushrooms, you ask? I just want an economical source of chitin-goethite composites, sheesh

  4. Cykonot @cykonot

    So much of the damage he's done has yet to be felt

  5. Cykonot @cykonot

    This 2026 preprint reports the observation of mycoviruses spreading between fungi from distinct genera via Extracellular Vesicles (EVs) — something which would not be possible using any of the mechanisms we previously knew about!

    biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2

    EVs are used across the tree of life. They enable intercellular signaling within organisms. They're an important way pathogenic bacteria share drug-resistance genes. They're even used by some pathogenic fungi to deliver toxins, share genes (generally transposable elements), and manipulate the host immune system! Conversely, hosts (potentially humans, like you) frequently use EVs to deliver molecules to help limit/fight the infection. They have many other potential uses, as they're generally used as a vehicle for a variety of effective chemicals.

    Knowing (preprint, but it's hardly a leap) that mycoviruses can spread amongst fungi via EV is useful, as it could conceivably inspire human-made treatments using encapsulated RNA.

  6. Cykonot @cykonot

    Extracellular Vesicles (EVs) are used widely across nature, enabling various intercellular signals within organisms, functioning as one of many mechanisms used by pathogens (like bacteria) to laterally share drug-resistance genes, and are even used by some pathogenic fungi to deliver toxins & manipulate their host's immune system — just as hosts frequently use EVs to deliver molecules to pathogens which may limit the infection. This 2026 preprint reports the observation of EV-mediated spread of mycoviruses between fungi from distinct genera — something which would not be possible using any of the mechanisms observed prior to this study.

    biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2

  7. Cykonot @cykonot

    We still know shockingly little about mycoviruses. One contributing factor may be how we screen and continuously select lab cultures:
    "Unknowingly, the natural viral load of the fungus might either be lost or limited to only beneficial or weak viruses by our screening for healthy individual fungal cultures and subculturing the fungi through several generations of growth in the laboratory."
    frontiersin.org/journals/micro

    It is critical that we invest more into the study of mycoviruses, as global warming forces fungi to adapt to living at temperatures closer to that of the human body. On top of that, treating fungal infections using small-molecule therapeutics is risky, as their biology is relatively similar to ours: treatments can be harsh and damaging to the patient's body, and pathogen elimination is not always guaranteed. Kinda like chemo (side effects are generally not gonna be near as bad lol), except global warming is expected to make fungal infections more common.

  8. Cykonot @cykonot

    Fungi appear to be capable of sharing, or horizontally transferring, not just genes but ENTIRE (accessory) CHROMOSOMES.
    "Horizontal transfer of accessory chromosomes in fungi – a regulated process for exchange of genetic material?"
    nature.com/articles/s41437-025

  9. Cykonot @cykonot

    "Entomopathogenic fungi (EPF) are eco-friendly alternatives to chemical pesticides."
    link.springer.com/article/10.1

  10. Cykonot @cykonot

    Looking forward to this upcoming issue of Nature:
    nature.com/collections/geegcji

    Hopefully it features bioprocess advancements that can improve the economics of employing complex cultures & multicellular specimens to biomanufacture increasingly advanced structures/materials, or even research to enable safe & performant biomining/bioremediation at scale with all the ruggedness and control mechanisms needed to limit potential risks posed by escaping organisms or undesirable gene flows.

  11. Cykonot @cykonot

    is "doomscrolling" a valid hobby?

  12. Cykonot @cykonot

    Patrimonialiasm is Donald Trump's governing philosophy and guiding light.
    en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patrimon

  13. Cykonot @cykonot

    Corporations are a legal fiction created by the government to enable business by limiting legal risks for their owners (among other things). Corporations are not people, and there is NO REASON they should be entitled to free speech or any of our other "inalienable" rights. In fact, the legal insulation provided by such an entity MUST come with a great deal of stipulations, lest our nation be overrun by immortal & soulless entities destroying society with near-absolute impunity, killing people by the thousands while those who profit from that social murder face no consequences. Just IMAGINE what that would do to a country over time 🫩🤡

  14. Cykonot @cykonot

    Trying to only learn from someone's successes or failures will never be as effective as holistically understanding the processes & beliefs/values/concers which lead them to make those trade-offs.

    Saying this in reference to people weirdly attacking random stuff about china whenever someone asks why we can't have a real industrial policy or like social infrastructure that isn't run by rent-seeking vampires who're making social reproduction impossible by taking all your money (for necessities like food & housing) and using it to bribe politicians thereby solidifying their monopoly power

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