🫁 New lung cancer drug shows 'unprecedented' results, Tibetan lakes to swell 50% by 2100, worms could be behind biodiversity boom that happened 480 mya

A recent clinical trial of a drug used for treating lung cancer has heralded “a remarkable advancement.” Lung cancer is one of the most dire causes of death relating to cancer across the globe.

A recent trial of the new anti-cancer drug has revealed that 60% of patients are still alive, and the cancer also didn’t spread to any other part of the body.

The protein anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) plays a crucial role in regulating cell growth. It is produced by the ALK gene. In certain cancers, including non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), this gene can be rearranged. For more on this development, check out today’s Must-Read.

🔥Today’s job of the day as featured on jobs.interestingengineering.com:

> Compute Windows Engineer
> Senior Software Engineer

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MUST READ

🫁 Trials show ‘unprecedented’ pill slowing lung cancer in 60% of patients

Lorlatinib is a third-generation ALK inhibitor. It is the latest in a class of drugs used as the standard first-line treatment for patients with ALK-positive NSCLC.

A recent international clinical trial, led by the Peter MacCallum Cancer Center (Peter Mac) in Melbourne, Australia, evaluated the drug’s impact on long-term disease progression in patients with advanced ALK-positive NSCLC. The results were remarkable.

In an interview with The Guardian, Peter Mac’s Professor Ben Solomon, the study’s lead and corresponding author, said, “To our knowledge, these results are unprecedented.”

🐟 Tibet lakes to swell by 600 billion tons, cost China almost $7 billion

A recent study has found that by the end of the century, the surface area of some lakes on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau could expand by over 50%, while other lakes around the world are expected to shrink.

Researchers estimate that the water volume of lakes in this region of southwest China will increase by more than 600 billion tons. This surge is attributed primarily to increased rainfall caused by climate change, as well as the melting of glaciers.

Without mitigation efforts, this expansion could submerge over 1,000 km of roads, around 500 settlements, and approximately 10,000 sq km of ecological areas, including grasslands, wetlands, and croplands.

🪱 Worms could be behind biodiversity burst that happened 480 million years ago

Inspired by the early life forms of prehistoric worms and other invertebrates that triggered the Great Ordovician Biodiversification Event nearly 480 million years ago, scientists from Johns Hopkins University studied how these organisms influenced geochemical cycles.

Their research revealed how these early life forms contributed to the transition from the Proterozoic to the Phanerozoic eon.

“It’s really incredible to think how such small animals, ones that don’t even exist today, could alter the course of evolutionary history in such a profound way,” stated senior author Maya Gomes, an assistant professor in the Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences.

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IE QUIZ: THE RESULTS

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