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IL-12 cytokine factory demonstrates success in targeting hard-to-treat cancers

A team of researchers from the Rice Biotech Launch Pad at Rice University has developed an implantable "cytokine factory" that safely triggers potent immune responses against hard-to-treat cancers, including metastatic melanoma, pancreatic and colorectal tumors.

8 Apr 2025

Food-as-medicine could save billions in healthcare costs—here’s what’s standing in its way

Researchers review how Food-as-Medicine (FAM) interventions can improve health, reduce healthcare costs, and reshape food production systems. They emphasize the urgent need for clinical validation before scaling individualized nutrition solutions.

8 Apr 2025

New drug compound prevents long COVID symptoms in mice

Researchers have shown a new drug compound can prevent long COVID symptoms in mice – a landmark finding that could lead to a future treatment for the debilitating condition.

8 Apr 2025

New discovery promises to revolutionize liver organoid development

Organoids are small-scale models that mimic human organs. These models could help scientists understand diseases and test treatments, and potentially aid in regenerative therapeutic methods.

8 Apr 2025

Anxiety fuels emotional eating and weight gain, study finds

Emotional eating and body dissatisfaction mediate links between BMI changes and mental health. These psychosocial factors explain how anxiety, depression, and weight gain interrelate over time.

8 Apr 2025

Experimental drug NU-9 shows promise for Alzheimer's and ALS treatment

Experimental drug NU-9 - a small molecule compound approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for clinical trials for the treatment of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) - improves neuron health in animal models of Alzheimer's disease, according to a new Northwestern University study.

8 Apr 2025

Cutting carbs, not calories, may be key to better metabolic health

The intermittent fasting diet, which involves periods of severe calorie restriction, may be on the way out, as new research from the University of Surrey is suggesting that rather than drastically reducing calories, people can achieve similar metabolic benefits by cutting back on carbs.

8 Apr 2025

Daytime eating could mitigate health risks of night shift work

A study led by researchers at Mass General Brigham suggests that, when it comes to cardiovascular health, food timing could be a bigger risk factor than sleep timing.

8 Apr 2025

Your season of conception could shape your body’s calorie-burning ability

Being conceived in colder months may enhance your body’s ability to burn calories throughout life. A new study shows cold-season conception is linked to more active brown fat and greater energy expenditure in adulthood.

8 Apr 2025

Marathon running alters brain myelin for energy use

According to a study published by Nature Metabolism, marathon runners experience reversible changes in their brain myelin.

8 Apr 2025

Single dose of osanetant reduces fear response in female mice after trauma

A new Brevia (peer-reviewed research report) published in Brain Medicine reveals that a single dose of the drug Osanetant, administered shortly after a traumatic event, significantly dampens fear expression in female mice.

8 Apr 2025

GP38 identified as key viral toxin and vaccine target in Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever virus research

A recent study published in Science Translational Medicine involving scientists from the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases in collaboration with scientists from the Albert Einstein College of Medicine and the University of California-Berkeley have advanced discoveries surrounding the viral glycoprotein GP38 expressed by the Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever virus (CCHFV).

8 Apr 2025

Unexpected function of gene network in gut microbes revealed

Could a gene regulatory network in gut microbes have evolved its elaborate and tightly regulated molecular machinery only to pump out antibiotics indiscriminately? Researchers from the Institute of Science and Technology Austria (ISTA) show this is an auxiliary function.

8 Apr 2025

Study links gut microbe shifts in migrants to cardiovascular risk

An Amsterdam UMC-led study has found that migrants, this case from West Africa to Europe, experience a 'clear change' in their microbiome composition as compared to their non-migrant peers in West Africa, which expose them to an increase of cardiovascular disease.

8 Apr 2025

Babies as young as three months can sense their own heartbeat

Body signals such as heartbeat and breathing accompany us constantly, often unnoticed as background noise of our perception. Even in the earliest years of life, these signals are important as they contribute to the development of self-awareness and identity. However, until know little has been known about whether and how babies can perceive their own body signals. A recent study from Wiener Kinderstudien Lab at the University of Vienna demonstrates for the first time that babies as young as 3 months can perceive their own heartbeat. In addition, the team, headed by researchers from the University of Vienna, together with colleagues from the University of Potsdam and Royal Holloway University of London, also investigated for the first-time infants' perception of their own breathing and found developments during the first two years of life. The results are now published in the prestigious journal eLife. The perception of internal body signals is closely linked to emotional awareness, mental health, and self-perception. Early in life the ability to perceive one's own body signals may be particularly important, as it often forms the basis for interactions with caregivers - for example babies rely on their caregivers to respond appropriately to signs of hunger or discomfort. Moreover, the development of self-awareness and identity partly depends on the perception and experience of one's own body. The study shows that even 3-month-old babies can perceive their own heartbeat and that this ability remains relatively stable during the first two years of life. At the same time, the findings indicate that the perception of breathing improves significantly during the second year. Interestingly, the ability to perceive the heartbeat and breathing does not appear to be related - much like in adults. Measuring body awareness in babies is challenging, as, unlike adults, you cannot simply rely on verbal report. Therefore, the research team used innovative methods by tracking the infants' eye movements as they watched child-friendly figures. These figures moved either in synchrony with the child's heartbeat or breathing, or with a slight time delay. Results showed that even at an early age, babies recognize the correspondence between their own heartbeat or breathing rhythm and the animated figures. They looked longer at the screen when the figures were in synchrony than when they were delayed. "The babies must have recognized that the figures moved simultaneously with their heartbeat or breathing, and then they paid more attention," said the study's lead author, Markus Tünte from the University of Vienna. These findings open up exciting perspectives for future developmental psychology research. In particular, it is important to explore how early body awareness relates to the development of emotional and social skills, as well as the role parents play in shaping early body perception. In the long term, such research could be used to promote healthy body awareness and, consequently, the mental health of children.

8 Apr 2025

New drug compound offers pain relief without opioid side effects

University of Florida scientists have helped identify a novel drug compound that selectively activates pain-altering receptors in the body, offering a potentially safer alternative to conventional pain medications.

8 Apr 2025

Scientists find early signs of T cell exhaustion in early infection stages

Even in the case of uncomplicated infections, the body prepares itself early on for the possibility of a more severe course. A research team from the Technical University of Munich (TUM) and Helmholtz Munich has now uncovered this mechanism.

8 Apr 2025

How air pollution may be undermining your brain—one breath at a time

Research reveals air pollution, particularly from industry and fuels, negatively affects cognitive function in older adults, with language skills most impacted.

8 Apr 2025

Powerful new tool promises major advances in cancer treatment

New Australian technology is set to transform the way that gastrointestinal cancers are detected and treated with precise, minimally invasive surgery.

8 Apr 2025

Understanding the origins of health disparities through historical data

Over the past century, health inequalities have shifted from being driven mainly by infectious diseases, poor sanitation, and hazardous working conditions to being shaped by chronic diseases, lifestyle factors, and unequal access to modern healthcare.

7 Apr 2025