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Blood-brain barrier-crossing blood pressure drugs linked to lower dementia risk

In a large Australian cohort of adults with hypertension, use of blood-brain barrier-crossing antihypertensive medications was associated with a lower risk of dementia and mortality than use of non-crossing drugs. The association was strongest for beta-blockers and angiotensin II receptor blockers, although the observational design means the findings cannot establish causality.

27 Aug 2026

The US switch in shingles vaccines revealed an unexpected heart health pattern

In a natural experiment involving 72,920 propensity-matched US adults aged 60 years and older, recombinant shingles vaccination was associated with a 9% lower cardiovascular disease burden over seven years compared with the live attenuated vaccine. Lower burdens of ischemic heart disease and heart failure were seen in both sexes, while ischemic stroke was significantly lower only among men, supporting further clinical trials and mechanistic studies

27 Aug 2026

CAR T-cell therapy successfully reverses severe rheumatoid arthritis

Immunotherapies such as CAR T-cell therapy are used primarily to treat cancer. In the future, these patient-specific therapies, manufactured from patients' own immune cells, could also help cure autoimmune diseases.

27 Aug 2026

Scalable stem cell method advances off-the-shelf CAR-T therapies

Researchers at the Center for Regenerative Medicine (CReM) at Boston Medical Center (BMC) and Boston University (BU) have developed a scalable method for generating CD4+ helper T cells from induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs), overcoming a longstanding challenge in the development of stem cell-based immunotherapies.

27 Aug 2026

Fleeting interactions between membrane sugar chains control cell division

Acting as an armor, a scaffold, and a communication platform in one, our cells' plasma membrane lies at the heart of many crucial cellular processes.

27 Aug 2026

Study challenges traditional breast cancer classification methods

Breast cancer is often classified as either estrogen receptor-positive (hormone-sensitive) or not. However, a new study from Karolinska Institutet suggests that this simplified classification may overlook important biological differences between patients that could affect treatment decisions.

27 Aug 2026

Molecular switch ERBB4 linked to broad range of Alzheimer's pathologies

What if amyloid plaques are not the whole story of Alzheimer's disease? New research suggests that a broad range of Alzheimer's pathologies may be orchestrated by a molecular switch called ERBB4 when it turns on in the wrong neurons.

26 Aug 2026

GLP-1 drugs may reshape obesity care, but clinicians still have questions

Interviews with 11 healthcare professionals in a UK specialist weight management service found generally positive attitudes toward injectable GLP-1 drugs, alongside limited formal training and uncertainty about how the medications should be integrated with behavioral care. Participants anticipated potential benefits for confidence and weight management but also raised concerns about treatment discontinuation, behavioral engagement, and evolving professional responsibilities.

26 Aug 2026

Researchers traced lifelong obesity resistance in mice back to an early microbial encounter

Natural wild-derived microbiota protected mice against diet-induced obesity across sexes, genetic backgrounds, and age by increasing energy expenditure and promoting a thermogenic program in brown adipose tissue. The effect depended on the immune system’s initial encounter with the microbiota and required CCR2-associated myeloid activity, revealing a long-lasting microbiota-immune-brown fat pathway.

25 Aug 2026

Scientists discover how neutrophils travel to infection sites without damaging healthy tissue

UMass Chan Medical School scientist Beth McCormick, PhD, and her team collaborated with researchers at the University of Bath to discover how neutrophils, the body's most abundant type of white blood cells, travel to infection sites without damaging healthy tissue.

25 Aug 2026

Gene removal makes engineered immune cells more effective against osteosarcoma

Scientists at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital have discovered that removing the gene for Regnase-1 from engineered immune cells makes them more effective at treating relapsed osteosarcoma.

25 Aug 2026

Consistent meal logging drives major weight loss in app users

The people who log their meals most days of the week lose the most weight. This is the central finding of a peer-reviewed study of 5132 MyNetDiary users, published on August 13, 2026, in the Journal of Medical Internet Research.

25 Aug 2026

Study finds distinct patterns of innate immune activity in mental disorders

The immune system may also play a role in mental disorders. Scientists are investigating these links with brain function in greater detail, and new findings show that immune changes may differ by disorder type.

25 Aug 2026

New review challenges the eight-hour ancestral sleep myth

Everyone knows the number. Eight hours. It sits on wellness dashboards, on pediatric handouts, on the label of the melatonin bottle in the medicine cabinet.

25 Aug 2026

The diet-Alzheimer’s connection is more complicated than “eat this, avoid that”

A mini-review finds that dietary patterns may influence Alzheimer’s disease through interconnected pathways involving neuroinflammation, insulin resistance, oxidative stress, blood-brain barrier dysfunction, homocysteine, and the gut-brain axis. The authors argue that genetics, sex, age, physical activity, and socioeconomic context may modify these relationships, supporting more individualized approaches to nutrition research and dementia prevention.

25 Aug 2026

Researchers link GLP-1 drugs to lower tuberculosis risk in type 2 diabetes

A large retrospective cohort study found that GLP-1 receptor agonist use was associated with a lower risk of tuberculosis in people with type 2 diabetes compared with sulfonylureas, metformin, DPP-4 inhibitors, and SGLT2 inhibitors. The observational findings suggest a possible benefit beyond metabolic control, but the authors emphasize that prospective and mechanistic studies are needed to determine whether GLP-1 therapies themselves reduce TB risk.

24 Aug 2026

Semaglutide’s heart benefits may partly involve reduced inflammation

A prespecified analysis of 17,604 SELECT participants found that higher baseline hsCRP was associated with greater risks of major cardiovascular events and death in people with overweight or obesity and established cardiovascular disease. Semaglutide produced rapid and sustained reductions in hsCRP, with changes emerging before substantial weight loss, although the study could not establish whether reduced inflammation directly mediated its cardiovascular benefits.

24 Aug 2026

A striking immune cell pattern emerges around a person’s 100th birthday

Single-cell immune profiling found that CD4 cytotoxic T lymphocytes become more abundant around age 100, showing stepwise differentiation and substantial clonal expansion. Ex vivo experiments also revealed cytokine plasticity within individual clones, supporting the hypothesis that these cells adapt to persistent antigens during healthy aging, although their direct role in longevity remains unproven.

23 Aug 2026

Study provides a more nuanced picture of biological mechanisms linked to autism

How does autism manifest in the brain? Researchers from the University of Southern Denmark and Odense University Hospital have investigated this question in a new study involving 60 adults.

21 Aug 2026

Australian researchers uncover a promising new way to tackle triple-negative breast cancer

Australian researchers have uncovered a promising new way to tackle one of the most aggressive forms of breast cancer, raising hopes for more effective treatments to stop the disease from spreading.

21 Aug 2026