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Footprints may reveal biggest known mammal from age of the dinosaurs
Beefy tracks point to a Cretaceous critter as big as a large dog or mountain lion
Knee osteoarthritis isn’t inevitable — here’s what you can do
Knee osteoarthritis can seriously affect mobility and quality of life, but its progression isn’t completely out of your control. Exercise, stronger leg muscles, a healthier diet, and even modest weight loss can dramatically reduce stress on the knees and help keep pain in check.
Schizophrenia’s lost brain connections follow a surprising pattern
Specialized brain scans reveal that schizophrenia is linked to widespread loss of the synapses that connect brain cells, with the left side of the brain hit especially hard. The damage follows a surprisingly organized pattern tied to the brain’s chemistry and wiring. Researchers also identified a left frontal region that may serve as a starting point for the loss.
Scientific spat erupts over claim that bones have key immune vessels
Discovery of lymphatic tubes suggested new possibilities for bone healing, but challenge has prompted dueling papers and publication delay in prominent journal
NASA abandons orbit-boosting rescue mission for space observatory
Novel rescue craft unable to connect with doomed Swift Observatory
The role of tendon and ligament vasculature in ageing and injury
Ageing is a fundamental biological process marked by declining physiological function and the accumulation of stress-induced damage. It contributes to chronic disease and drives widespread alterations across organ systems, including the vasculature. Ageing of the macro- and microvasculature impairs nutrient delivery, promotes tissue degeneration, and reduces repair capacity in many tissues, including those of the musculoskeletal system. Tendons and ligaments become increasingly injury-prone with...
Endothelial IGF-1/IGF-1R signaling supports young-blood-induced restoration of blood-brain barrier integrity and microvascular architecture in aged mice: evidence from the heterochronic parabiosis model
Aging is associated with blood-brain barrier (BBB) breakdown and microvascular rarefaction, key contributors to cerebral neuroinflammation, hypoperfusion, and vascular cognitive impairment and dementia (VCID). Exposure to a young systemic milieu through heterochronic parabiosis has been shown to restore BBB integrity and enhance cerebrovascular function in aged mice, suggesting that circulating factors can rejuvenate the aging brain. However, the molecular mediators responsible for these effects...
Multiple molecular pathways to longevity with opposing gene expression programs defining distinct aging strategies in Caenorhabditis elegans
While aging is the greatest risk factor for the development of neurodegenerative disease, the role of aging in these diseases is poorly understood. Our previous work has shown that targeting aging pathways can be neuroprotective in animal models of neurodegenerative disease. Based on these findings, we believe that by gaining insight into the aging process that knowledge can be applied to identify novel therapeutic targets for neurodegenerative disease. To advance our understanding of aging, we...
Impact of exercise on cognitive efficiency in older adults with subjective memory complaints: a randomized clinical trial
CONCLUSION: Improvements in neuropsychological status and subjective memory were associated with reduced resting MCAv following exercise training. These exploratory associations suggest that variability in cerebrovascular responses may relate to cognitive responses; however, without consistent group-level effects, findings should be interpreted cautiously and do not imply causality.
Alzheimer's disease polygenic risk score associates with hippocampal subfield atrophy and immune-related genetic mechanism
INTRODUCTION: Hippocampal atrophy is frequently observed in neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's disease (AD) or hippocampal sclerosis of aging (HS-aging). Volume loss in the hippocampus is described as prodromal stage of dementia and has been associated with AD polygenic risk score (PRS). CA1 and subiculum atrophy have been suggested to be a promising in vivo biomarker for HS-aging. Recent studies suggest that some loci associated with AD may be more related to other brain diseases...
Artificial intelligence and machine learning for precision prevention of cognitive decline: integrating multimodal biomarkers, lifestyle interventions, and natural medicines from prediction to clinical practice
Cognitive decline and neurodegenerative diseases are progressive, multifactorial conditions that may begin years before overt clinical diagnosis and reflect interactions among biological vulnerability, modifiable exposures, environmental determinants, and reduced brain resilience. This structured narrative review examines how artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) can integrate clinical, biological, behavioral, and digital data to support earlier, personalized, and clinically...
Cortical thickness changes precede high levels of amyloid by at least 7 years
Alzheimer's disease is now defined by underlying pathology, with elevated amyloid-beta (Aβ) sufficient for diagnosis in the absence of cognitive symptoms. We combined longitudinal magnetic resonance imaging and Aβ positron emission tomography data from three cognitively healthy cohorts to examine cortical thickness trajectories in individuals who later converted to Aβ-positive status, using magnetic resonance images acquired years before conversion. Individuals who subsequently developed...
An Icelandic pangenome reference
Reference bias is an issue that affects most genomic studies analysing short reads mapped to a reference genome^(1,2). It can be mitigated by mapping to multiple haplotypes represented in a pangenome^(3-5). Here we introduce two new methods to address reference bias: Emblask for pangenome construction and Weaver for mapping to pangenomes at scale. Emblask is a hybrid long- and short-read haplotype-resolved dual assembly pipeline for parent-offspring trio data. Using Emblask, we assembled 698...
Noncircadian BMAL1-YAP activity amplifies persistent inflammation in aged epidermis
Aging is characterized by persistent low-grade inflammation linked to impaired tissue homeostasis, yet the underlying molecular mechanisms remain poorly understood. The mammalian skin is a clinically relevant site of aging-driven inflammation associated with compromised barrier function, inefficient wound healing, elevated oxidative stress and DNA damage accumulation. Here we show that, in the murine epidermis, aging engages a previously uncharacterized BMAL1-YAP functional cooperation with...
Human brain organoids record the passage of time over multiple years
The human brain develops and matures over an exceptionally prolonged period of time that spans nearly two decades of life. Processes that govern species-specific aspects of human postnatal brain development are difficult to study in animal models¹. While human brain organoids offer a promising in vitro model, they have thus far been shown to largely mimic early stages of brain development. Here we develop human brain organoids for 5 years in culture, optimizing growth conditions to extend...
The impact of cumulative obesity and genetic susceptibility on biological aging in Chinese older adults
The detrimental impacts of cumulative obesity exposures and their interactions with genetics on biological aging remain poorly understood. We included 687 older adults (median age: 79.6 years) from the Rugao Longitudinal Ageing Study (RLAS), a community-based cohort study conducted in Rugao, Jiangsu, China. The cumulative exposures of body mass index (cBMI) and waist circumference (cWC) were calculated as the excessive exposure of BMI and WC relative to their reference values (BMI ≥ 24 kg/m²; WC...
Stakeholder perspectives informing the design and development of a digital self-help intervention for healthy aging and mental well-being among older adults in urban India: a qualitative study
CONCLUSIONS: The findings suggest that digital interventions tailored to the sociocultural needs of older adults may play an important role in promoting healthy aging and supporting mental well-being in India. Stakeholder-informed digital modules addressing physical health, sleep, emotional well-being, social connectedness, and self-care practices may enhance engagement, accessibility, and preventive mental healthcare among older adults. Future research should evaluate the effectiveness,...