https://video.igem.org/videos/watch/a7c6e9b7-bbcc-440e-84f5-bbdc5d7a0f5b Title: AstraEV: Immediate Rescue and Sustained Protection Description: UV exposure generates reactive oxygen species (ROS) in skin cells, triggering oxidative stress that drives up to 80% of visible skin aging, pigmentary disorders, and a 24% increase in deep facial wrinkling by age fifty. The body's own defense against this is the Keap1-Nrf2 pathway — a negative feedback loop where Keap1 normally keeps Nrf2 inactive, releasing it upon ROS signaling to switch on protective genes like HMOX1 and NQO1. But when ROS accumulates faster than the pathway can respond, this defense is overwhelmed, leading to lipid peroxidation, collagen degradation, and melanin dysregulation. Our solution combines two complementary therapies: Quercetin, a fast-acting antioxidant that immediately neutralizes existing ROS, and siKEAP1, a silencing RNA that removes the molecular "brakes" on Nrf2, unlocking sustained expression of antioxidant genes including HMOX1, NQO1, SOD, and catalase. Both are delivered via natural nanovesicles derived from Astragalus membranaceus, a plant long used in Traditional Chinese Medicine to promote tissue repair — one that also independently stabilizes Nrf2 by inhibiting Keap1 expression and promoting nuclear translocation. Together, this dual-action, plant-based delivery system offers both immediate rescue and sustained protection, addressing a gap most current solutions fail to cover. Wiki | Official Page Sat, 29 Aug 2026 17:16:03 GMT https://validator.w3.org/feed/docs/rss2.html PeerTube - https://video.igem.org https://video.igem.org/client/assets/images/icons/icon-1500x1500.png https://video.igem.org/videos/watch/a7c6e9b7-bbcc-440e-84f5-bbdc5d7a0f5b All rights reserved, unless otherwise specified in the terms specified at https://video.igem.org/about and potential licenses granted by each content's rightholder.