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Poland’s economy is thriving, but its science is dying
Author Correction: In vitro characterization of the human segmentation clock
USC scientists discover a hidden Alzheimer’s trigger and a possible way to shut it down
USC researchers have identified potential new drug compounds that may reduce the brain inflammation linked to Alzheimer’s disease, especially in people with the high-risk APOE4 gene. The compounds target cPLA2, an enzyme that seems to fuel harmful inflammation while also being important for normal brain activity.
Outdoor lights may be making mosquito season longer
Artificial light at night delays winter “shutdown” of mosquitoes carrying disease
Eating more beans and soy could slash high blood pressure risk by nearly 30%
Eating more beans, lentils, chickpeas, tofu, and other soy foods could be a surprisingly powerful way to fight high blood pressure. A major analysis of studies from around the world found that people with the highest intake of legumes were 16% less likely to develop hypertension, while those eating the most soy foods had a 19% lower risk.
Can fast, nimble clinical trials deliver a drug for the new Ebola outbreak?
Past outbreaks spawned clever strategies for testing antivirals and antibodies, but researchers will still face major challenges on the ground
Scientists discover why Ozempic and Wegovy weight loss eventually plateaus
New NIH research reveals that semaglutide sparks different responses inside appetite-controlling brain cells, offering fresh insight into why GLP-1 weight-loss drugs don’t work the same for everyone. Scientists also found a possible way to extend the drugs’ effects, potentially helping patients push past weight-loss plateaus.
Common heart drug taken by millions found useless — and possibly dangerous
A massive international study could upend 40 years of heart attack treatment. Researchers found that beta blockers—routinely prescribed after uncomplicated heart attacks—offered no real benefit for patients whose heart function remained normal, despite being given to millions worldwide. Even more surprising, women taking the drugs faced a higher risk of death, repeat heart attack, or hospitalization for heart failure compared to women who didn’t receive them.
Scientists discover why some DNA-doubled cells refuse to die
Scientists have uncovered a surprising twist in how cells behave when division goes wrong. Sometimes a cell successfully copies its DNA but fails to split into two, leaving it with double the genetic material — a mistake linked to aging, cancer, and other major diseases. Researchers discovered that not all of these failures are equal.
SOFisher: reinforcement learning-guided experiment designs for spatial omics
Spatial omics technologies enable the precise detection of proteins and RNAs at high spatial resolution. Designing spatial omics experiments requires careful consideration of "what" targets to measure and "where" to position the field of views (FOVs). Current FOV sampling strategies often involve acquiring densely sampled FOVs and stitching them together, which is time-consuming, resource-intensive, and sometimes impossible. To optimize FOV sampling strategies, we propose SOFisher, a...
Phenylalanyl-tRNA synthetase FARS-1/FARSA balances longevity and immunity by downregulating endogenous mitochondrial double-stranded RNAs
Endogenous double-stranded RNAs (dsRNAs) are immunogenic self-molecules that drive aberrant immune activation under pathological conditions. Here, we show that dsRNAs and their regulation by RNA-binding proteins are key determinants of the fine balance between aging and immunity in Caenorhabditis elegans and cultured human cells. We find elevated levels of dsRNAs with organismal aging and cellular senescence. We identify a moonlighting function for phenylalanyl-tRNA synthetase, FARS-1/FARSA, as...
Time-restricted feeding improves functional capacity of adipose-derived stem cells with activation of OSK-associated transcriptional programs
Time-restricted feeding (TRF), a circadian-based dietary intervention, has emerged as a promising strategy to counteract metabolic and age-related dysfunctions. However, how TRF can reverse stem cell aging and restore tissue regenerative potential remains unclear. In this study, we investigated the effects of long-term TRF on senescent adipose-derived stem cells (ADSCs) in a high-fat diet (HFD) induced aged mice model. Mice were assigned to standard or HFD diets under ad libitum or TRF (8 h/day)...
Transglutaminase and its role in Alzheimer's disease: focus on mitochondria, aging, defective mitophagy, synaptic degeneration, and metabolomics
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a multifactorial neurodegenerative disorder characterized by progressive cognitive decline driven by amyloid-β plaques, tau neurofibrillary tangles, and extensive neuronal loss. Emerging evidence highlights mitochondrial dysfunction, defective mitophagy, and disrupted proteostasis as pivotal events in disease progression. Transglutaminase TG2, a multifunctional calcium-dependent enzyme, has gained attention for its capacity to link these pathological processes. Beyond...
Age- and sex-dependent transcriptomic network alterations in sepsis
Sepsis arises from a dysregulated immune response to infection, causing systemic inflammation and high mortality. Its nonspecific symptoms and complex molecular mechanisms make early diagnosis and therapeutic development challenging. The contribution of host factors to this heterogeneity is not fully understood. We investigated whether baseline gene co-expression networks are preserved or reorganized in sepsis and whether age and sex influence these networks by analyzing RNA-seq data from...
Directing intermediate phase crystallographic orientation promotes carbon-based CsPbI<sub>3</sub> perovskite solar cells to beyond 20% efficiency
Inorganic CsPbI(3) perovskite, known for its high chemical stability and near-ideal bandgap, offers a promising solution to the instability of organic-inorganic hybrid perovskites that limit perovskite solar cells (PSCs) longevity. However, the conventional intermediate phase (dimethylammonium lead iodide, DMAPbI(3)) templating method suffers from inefficient phase conversion, hindering high-performance PSC development. To overcome this limitation, we engineered the crystallographic orientation...
Life's essential 8 and longevity: the sustained impact of cardiovascular health on mortality from middle age to centenarians
While Life's Essential 8 (LE8) provides a comprehensive measure of cardiovascular health (CVH), its association with mortality among the oldest-old, including centenarians, remains unclear. This study evaluated the relationship between LE8-defined CVH and all-cause mortality across adulthood using data from the China Kadoorie Biobank (Hainan cohort) and the China Hainan Centenarian Cohort Study, including 31,473 individuals aged 30-116. Participants were categorized by life stage and CVH score...
Deprotonation suppressing via competitive proton transfer control for efficient perovskite solar cells
Despite the efficacy of the methylammonium chloride (MACl) additive strategy in stabilizing the α-phase of formamidine-based perovskite materials, a persistent and formidable challenge from the irreversible deprotonation of MA^(+) cation still bothers the fabrication of satisfactory formamidine (FA)-based perovskite photosensitive layers, thereby hindering the performance improvement of resultant perovskite solar cells. To confront this obstacle, numerous methodologies have been proposed and...
Single-cell eQTL-based Mendelian randomization identifies immune cell subtype-specific regulators of epigenetic aging and prioritizes candidate therapeutic targets
Epigenetic aging clocks offer precise measures of biological age, yet the causal contributions of immune gene expression within specific cell subtypes to epigenetic aging remain poorly understood. By integrating single-cell eQTL data from the OneK1K cohort with GWAS summary statistics for four epigenetic clocks (HannumAge Acceleration, IEAA, PhenoAge Acceleration, and GrimAge Acceleration), we performed two-sample Mendelian randomization across diverse immune cell subtypes, followed by...
Differential associations of active and passive digital modalities with health perception biases among older adults
CONCLUSIONS: The empirical correlates of the digital environment vary significantly by specific usage patterns and socioeconomic backgrounds. The digital divide extends beyond basic connectivity to include how different digital activities associate with subjective health evaluations. Recognizing that these observational correlations intertwine with lifelong personal trajectories policymakers should focus on fostering content-specific digital literacy and designing tailored digital environments...
CHCHD2 and CHCHD10 promoted autophagic clearance of protein aggregates via GABARAPs
Mutations in mitochondrial protein CHCHD2 and its paralog CHCHD10 were identified in patients with Parkinson disease (PD), amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), frontotemporal dementia (FTD) or Alzheimer disease (AD). CHCHD2 and CHCHD10 mutations caused neurodegeneration in model animals as seen in patients, but their pathophysiological roles remain elusive. Here we reported a direct role of CHCHD2 and CHCHD10 in autophagy. We identified a protein complex composing of...