Artificial Platelets and Auto-Insulin Diabetes Tech: Naked Scientists Review Plus Bonobo Aggression and Moon Mantle Overturn

Podcast snapshot

The Naked Scientists episode surveys four science stories spanning biomedicine, medical devices, primatology and planetary science. It features a synthetic platelet technology that mimics natural platelets, an artificial pancreas for type 1 diabetes, new insights into bonobo aggression, and a mantle overturn model for the Moon, followed by a question of the week on electron-nucleus distance and a teaser for the next show.

• Artificial platelets deployed in animal models accelerate hemostasis and may bypass blood type matching
• Cambridge’s automated diabetes management device aims to improve long-term glucose control
• Bonobos show higher male aggression in some contexts, challenging the pacifist stereotype
• Mantle overturn in the Moon is explored with gravity data and geodynamic modeling

Overview

The podcast presents four distinct science stories, each unpacking recent research and its implications for medicine, animal behavior and planetary science, with expert interviews and real-world context. The first two segments focus on human health technologies, while the remaining segments explore primatology and Moon geology. The show closes with a question of the week and listener engagement opportunities.

Artificial Platelets

Researchers from North Carolina State University have developed a synthetic platelet mimic built from a polymer hydrogel decorated with antibody fragments. These nanoparticles, the size of platelets and designed to target wound sites, circulate until they encounter bleeding and then bind to injury regions to accelerate clot formation while avoiding off-target clots. In several animal models including mice, rats, and large pigs with traumatic liver injuries, the particles stop bleeding within minutes and improve survival compared with saline. The particles may also avoid issues of donor platelet supply, compatibility and infection, and are excreted safely. The team plans additional preclinical toxicology studies before advancing to human trials, and the paper appears in Science Translational Medicine. Key insights: - Synthetic platelets can mimic sizes and targeting to wound sites - Animal models show rapid hemostasis and potential survival benefits - Safety profile appears favorable with excretion through normal routes

Artificial Pancreas

Cambridge University’s Professor Roman Hovorka discusses a fully automated artificial pancreas approved by NICE. The system uses a continuous glucose monitor and a smartphone app to interpret glucose data and control an insulin pump via Bluetooth. It aims to reduce the cognitive and sleep burden of diabetes management by delivering insulin automatically, adjusted in real time to individual needs. NICE considers it cost-effective at about £5,000 per year, factoring in improved quality of life and reduced complications, and safety features include a fail-safe programmed rate for insulin delivery.

Bonobos and Peaceful Myths

Will Tingle interviews Maud Mouginot on bonobo behavior and aggression. Contrary to the long-held view of bonobos as inherently peaceful, the study finds higher rates of male aggression in bonobos compared with chimpanzees, albeit channeled differently due to coalition structures and female-dominated alliances. The discussion situates aggression as an evolutionarily advantageous trait in some contexts for chimpanzees and bonobos, and touches on the self domestication hypothesis in humans, contrasting reactive and proactive aggression.

Moon Mantle Overturn

Geoscientists Jeff Andrews Hannah and colleagues discuss Nature Geoscience findings on the Moon's magma ocean and later mantle overturn. The magma ocean crystallized with plagioclase forming a bright crust, while titanium- and iron-rich material became distributed within the mantle. The proposed overturn would move dense material upward and light material downward, potentially creating sheet-like downwellings and persistent near-side gravity signatures. Gravity data from NASA’s GRAIL mission provide supporting patterns that align with the models, and the near side/far side asymmetry (crustal thickness and titanium abundance) ties into the proposed mechanisms for mantle evolution.

Question of the Week and Closing

A question about the law governing the distance of an electron from a nucleus is explored via quantum states and probability distributions, followed by a teaser for the next episode on Peter Higgs’ legacy. The podcast concludes with contact information and acknowledgments.