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Subject: Scientists just figured out how to strip superbugs of their drug resistance + 9 more stories of progress

Preview text: A CRISPR gene drive that could reverse the antibiotic resistance crisis, a blood test that spots cancer before scans...

🌟 Today's Lead

CRISPR Gene Drive Could Strip Superbugs of Their Drug Resistance

Antibiotic resistance is racing toward a crisis that could kill more than 10 million people a year by 2050. Now scientists at UC San Diego have developed a CRISPR-based tool that doesn't just fight resistant bacteria — it strips away their resistance entirely.

The system, called pPro-MobV, borrows the concept of gene drives from insect biology. It spreads through bacterial communities via plasmids and systematically disables antibiotic resistance genes. "We can take a few cells and let them go to neutralize antibiotic resistance in a large target population," said Professor Ethan Bier.

Instead of an endless arms race of new antibiotics, this approach could restore the effectiveness of drugs we already have.

Read the full story → · Source: ScienceDaily

In Brief

🏥 Blood Test Spots Cancer Before Scans — Using DNA, Lasers and Gene Editing

Researchers have built a sensor so sensitive it can detect vanishingly small cancer biomarkers in blood. The technology merges DNA nanotechnology, CRISPR, and quantum dots to spot cancer signatures that current tests miss entirely — potentially enabling routine screening at annual checkups.

Read the full story → · Source: Optica

🔬 Scientists Crack the Code to Read Quantum Computing's Most Stable Qubit

Spanish scientists have achieved the first real-time readout of Majorana qubits — ultra-stable quantum bits that store information non-locally and resist noise. This removes a major barrier to fault-tolerant quantum computers that practically debug themselves.

Read the full story → · Source: Quantum Computing Report

🔋 New Calcium Battery Lasts 1,000 Cycles — Challenging Lithium

HKUST researchers have built calcium-ion batteries that achieve 1,000+ charge cycles. Calcium is Earth's fifth most abundant element, vastly cheaper and more available than lithium — potentially democratising energy storage for renewable grids and EVs.

Read the full story → · Source: HKUST

🐟 China's Yangtze Fishing Ban Is Bringing a Devastated Ecosystem Back to Life

China's unprecedented 10-year fishing ban on the Yangtze — a basin the size of Mexico — is working. Researchers counted 47,000+ fish from 115 species, with significant biodiversity recovery in just a few years. If this ecosystem can bounce back, almost any can.

Read the full story → · Source: Science Advances

🇮🇪 Ireland Makes Basic Income for Artists Permanent — A World First

Ireland's pandemic-era basic income for artists generated €100 million in benefits from a €25 million investment. This week it became permanent — the world's first ongoing basic income programme. Artists who would have left Ireland stayed, produced more, and hired collaborators.

Read the full story → · Source: Irish Government

🌳 Colombia's Deforestation Falls 25% by Paying Families to Protect Forests

Colombia reported a 25% drop in deforestation, with its Conservar Paga programme paying 5,000 families up to $240/month to maintain forests. The Amazon region showed particular improvement.

Read the full story → · Source: Positive News

👩‍👧 FGM Rates Drop as Decades of Education Reach a Tipping Point

WHO reports FGM prevalence has fallen from 1 in 2 to 1 in 3 girls in affected countries. Half of all progress since 1990 was achieved in the last decade alone — proof that sustained community education works.

Read the full story → · Source: WHO / Positive News

💰 Clean Energy Investment Hit Record $2.3 Trillion in 2025

Global clean energy investment reached $2.3 trillion in 2025 while fossil fuel supply investment dropped. The money has spoken: the energy transition is now investor-driven, not just policy-driven.

Read the full story → · Source: Canary Media

💊 Imperial Gets £3.1M to Hunt New Antibiotics With AI

The Fleming Initiative at Imperial College London has been funded by the Gates Foundation, Novo Nordisk, and Wellcome to use AI and microbiology to find new antibiotics against Gram-negative bacteria — the first new class in over 50 years, if they succeed.

Read the full story → · Source: Imperial College

📊 Progress by Numbers

• 10 million — deaths per year from drug-resistant infections projected by 2050; CRISPR gene drives now offer a fundamentally new way to fight back
• €100 million — economic benefits generated by Ireland's €25 million artists' basic income scheme (4:1 return)
• 115 species — fish species detected recovering in the Yangtze River after China's fishing ban
• $2.3 trillion — record global investment in clean energy in 2025, as fossil fuel investment declined

💡 One Thing You Can Do

Ask your GP about cancer screening options at your next checkup. While the CRISPR quantum dot sensor is still in development, existing screening programmes catch cancers early and save lives every day. Many people are eligible for screening they've never requested.

The Bright Side — Positive news that matters. thebrightside.news