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Specialized selenoproteins play critical role in regulating cellular health

A new review highlights the remarkable importance of selenoproteins, a specialized group of molecules that, despite their small size, play a decisive role in shaping cellular fate and maintaining biological balance.

5 Aug 2026

Intertwined cellular processes reshape understanding of diabetes

A deeper understanding of how key cellular processes interact is reshaping perspectives on diabetes and its wide-ranging complications.

5 Aug 2026

Novel drug puts cancer cells under extreme metabolic stress

Cancer cells have a voracious appetite for sugar-using it to fuel their rapid growth. This is why many scientists have tried to develop drugs that block cancer cells' metabolism by cutting off their sugar supply.

5 Aug 2026

Medical cannabis compound alleviates nightmares associated with PTSD

Nightmares are among the most agonizing symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) – a condition that can develop after exposure to severe traumatic experiences, such as disasters, serious accidents, acts of violence, or wartime experiences. Individuals affected relive the events intensely at night, as if they were real, time and time again.

5 Aug 2026

Air pollution may worsen rheumatoid arthritis symptoms and flare risk

A novel study shows that exposure to air pollution, especially fine particulate matter like dust, soot, and smoke (PM2.5), is associated with increased disease activity and flare risk in rheumatoid arthritis (RA).

5 Aug 2026

Study links better sleep with higher academic achievement

A study published in the Journal of Political Economy, one of the world's top economics journals, provides the first causal evidence that improving sleep can directly enhance academic performance.

4 Aug 2026

Study links AI companions to increased loneliness and lower well-being

AI companions are becoming increasingly popular, with millions of users forming deep connections with persona-based chatbots and simulated AI partners.

4 Aug 2026

Korean study finds no overall childhood cancer link with maternal diabetes

Researchers followed 549,851 Korean children and found no statistically significant association between maternal diabetes and overall childhood cancer. The analysis linked maternal diabetes to an 81% higher relative risk of urinary tract cancer, but the absolute difference was only 37 additional cases per 100,000 offspring.

4 Aug 2026

Comedy videos help people recognize subtle positive facial expressions

In everyday life, the ability to read facial expressions plays a vital role in social communication, as it reveals a speaker's underlying emotions, intentions, and psychological state.

4 Aug 2026

Daily social connections may improve long-term health and cognition

Calling a friend after a long day. Showing up to a neighbor's dinner when you'd rather stay home. Lingering a little longer in a conversation that didn't need to last.

3 Aug 2026

Cell village approach reveals genetic differences in cell fitness

How readily a cell divides and how well it survives is fundamental to life, shaping everything from organ size to the body's ability to withstand disease.

3 Aug 2026

Restricting select amino acids may mimic protein restriction’s healthy aging benefits

A review finds that restricting protein, particularly methionine, isoleucine, and valine, may improve metabolism and influence key aging pathways, largely in experimental models. Short human studies suggest metabolic benefits, but effects on lifespan remain unknown and restriction may harm people with unmet or increased protein needs.

3 Aug 2026

Perilla oil may curb platelet reactivity and inflammatory signaling in smokers

An eight-week randomized trial found that daily perilla oil increased plasma and red-cell ALA, plasma EPA, and platelet closure time in healthy smokers. Perilla oil also reduced TNF-α and TBX21 gene expression, but it did not improve broader coagulation, lipid, endothelial, or postprandial markers.

3 Aug 2026

Sensitive parenting buffers against child ADHD risks from pregnancy

Research from Oregon Health & Science University's Center for Mental Health Innovation provides new evidence that the way caregivers interact with children when they're very young can protect against the negative effects of inflammation during pregnancy, including increased attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, or ADHD, symptoms in children.

3 Aug 2026

Automated oxygen delivery system improves precision for hospitalized patients

A University of Colorado Anschutz-led clinical trial has found an automated oxygen delivery system helped hospitalized patients spend significantly more time in their target oxygen range compared with standard care, while also reducing exposure to both low and high oxygen levels.

3 Aug 2026

Digital twin of the gut-brain axis aims to advance neurostimulation therapies

The gut and brain are in constant conversation, exchanging signals that regulate hunger and digestion, as well as the body's response to stress.

3 Aug 2026

Gut microbiome shifts may begin before Alzheimer’s symptoms appear

A narrative review links reduced SCFA-producing gut bacteria and altered microbial metabolism with Alzheimer’s disease, while early evidence suggests similar changes may appear before cognitive symptoms. Mediterranean, DASH, MIND, and prudent diets are associated with beneficial microbial profiles, but direct evidence connecting diet, the microbiome, and amyloid pathology remains limited.

3 Aug 2026

Daily tomatoes lowered a key marker of liver fat in MASLD trial

An exploratory randomized trial found that 200 g of raw tomatoes plus 50 g of tomato sauce daily for six weeks produced a greater reduction in CAP-defined hepatic steatosis than a tomato-free diet in adults with MASLD. The improvement occurred without major weight or metabolic changes, but larger and longer trials are needed to confirm its clinical significance.

2 Aug 2026

Daytime cortisol patterns track cognitive decline but not Alzheimer’s disease risk

In 3,895 older adults, moderate daytime cortisol variability was associated with better cognition and slower decline, while the highest daily cortisol exposure was linked to poorer cognition and faster decline. Cortisol patterns differed between Black and White participants, but their relationships with cognition were similar, and none predicted incident Alzheimer’s disease.

2 Aug 2026

Study links higher body fat to lower sperm counts despite normal BMI

Among 1,058 Danish men, higher body fat percentage was associated with lower total sperm count and altered reproductive hormone levels, but not testicular volume. Body fat percentage showed stronger links with several semen measures than BMI or waist-to-height ratio, with the sperm-count association strengthening among men with normal BMI.

2 Aug 2026