Aggregator

Unlike other poisonous animals, bees use a strange set of pistons to pump toxin

Algorithm looks for clues about a paper’s origin that text-based detectors miss

Getting better sleep might be as simple as moving a little more every day. Researchers at The University of Texas at Austin found that people who exercised more frequently experienced more deep, restorative sleep, which is essential for brain recovery, memory, and emotional well-being. Surprisingly, just 10 minutes of moderate to vigorous exercise per day was associated with measurable benefits, while even light activities like walking and standing breaks were linked to better sleep and mood.

Mathematics may hold unexpected clues to understanding Alzheimer’s disease. Scientists have developed a model showing how common metals like copper and zinc may influence the buildup of proteins associated with the disease, while also exploring possible ways to stop the process. The findings could help researchers identify promising strategies for preventing harmful plaque formation.

Scientists have developed an experimental injection that destroys fat cells and significantly reduces dangerous belly fat, potentially opening a new path to treating obesity. Early research also suggests it could help prevent the weight regain that often follows stopping popular weight loss drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy.

Organ-level investigations provide insights into inter-individual heterogeneity in health and disease, yet aging across organs and systems remains incompletely understood. Leveraging plasma proteomic data from 53,014 UK Biobank participants, we construct 16 organ- and system-specific aging clocks that show 5436 significant associations with 1059 diseases (i.e., 655 incident and 404 prevalent diseases) and widespread responses to 841 diverse environmental factors, highlighting organ-specific and...

Understanding the genetic and epigenetic regulation of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) is essential for elucidating mechanisms of aging and disease. Long-read sequencing can span the mitochondrial genome and capture base-modification signals, yet analytical tools remain limited. We developed Himito, a graph-based toolkit for analyzing mitochondrial genome using long reads. Himito filters reads originating from nuclear mitochondrial insertions (NUMTs), constructs a sequence graph to represent mtDNA...

By 2050, almost 1 billion people are expected to live with osteoarthritis-a disabling musculoskeletal condition with currently no cure. Despite its burden and costs, osteoarthritis remains largely invisible in national and global health agendas, is poorly integrated within service models for other chronic health conditions, and is frequently perceived as inevitable with ageing and associated with limited therapeutic options. This context drives an osteoarthritis identity problem that fuels...

Scientists have discovered a hidden cleanup system at the back of the eye that drains fluid and waste through a previously unknown pathway. The surprising finding, demonstrated in mice, could open the door to new treatments for glaucoma, macular degeneration, and other causes of blindness.

A simple change in the order you eat your food could help prevent blood sugar spikes. Scientists discovered that giving mice olive oil before carbohydrates slowed digestion and activated a surprising combination of hormones and nerve signals that helped regulate blood sugar, even in mice with type 2 diabetes.

One of the world's most common plastics may pose a hidden threat to liver health. Texas A&M researchers discovered that polyethylene microplastics can contribute to fatty liver disease, with potentially worse effects when combined with an unhealthy diet. Even more surprising, this widely used plastic was previously considered relatively harmless.

Neanderthals may have used a sticky substance made from birch bark to treat wounds thousands of years before antibiotics existed. Researchers recreated ancient birch tar production techniques and discovered that every sample could inhibit the growth of bacteria responsible for dangerous wound infections. Previously known mainly as a prehistoric glue, birch tar may have doubled as a surprisingly effective natural medicine.

Scientists have developed a tiny, injectable device that can control nerve activity without surgery, batteries, or wires, potentially transforming treatment for chronic pain and movement disorders. Powered wirelessly from outside the body, the seed-sized technology has shown promising results in early testing.

A surprisingly simple change in how you walk could help relieve knee arthritis pain and even slow joint damage. In a year-long clinical trial, researchers found that adjusting the angle of a person's foot while walking reduced osteoarthritis pain by an amount comparable to medication, without requiring drugs or surgery. Even more promising, MRI scans revealed that participants who adopted the personalized walking technique experienced slower deterioration in a marker of knee cartilage health.

A large study suggests loneliness and social isolation can cost people years of healthy life, especially when it comes to mental health. Men experiencing both lost about 5.8 years free from depression and anxiety, while women lost roughly 3.7 years.

A short course of immunotherapy before surgery may offer remarkably durable protection for some patients with stage two or three bowel cancer. In the NEOPRISM-CRC trial, 32 patients with a specific genetic form of bowel cancer received pembrolizumab for up to nine weeks before surgery instead of the usual post-surgery chemotherapy. After nearly three years of follow-up, none of the patients had experienced a cancer recurrence, including those who still had small traces of disease after treatment.

Ocular age estimates derived from fundus photographs, optical coherence tomography, ocular fluids, systemic omics, and multimodal models are increasingly reported in years. The eye is unusually tractable for organ-specific aging research because it is paired, repeatedly imageable, locally treatable, and linked to quantitative function. The familiar scale can obscure differences in what was measured, what the model was developed to predict, which quantity is reported, and what the study design...

Sensory degradation with aging can impair balance control, partly by disrupting visual contributions to self-motion estimation. We investigated age-related differences in center of mass (CoM) trajectories controlling in the frontal plane during exposure to repeated visual perturbations in walking. We hypothesized that the older adults would show larger responses to visual perturbations and less adaptation to repeated visual perturbation exposure. We applied three visual perturbations to 14...

Lysosomal decline and proteostasis collapse are defining features of aging and major contributors to neurodegenerative vulnerability, yet interventions that preserve neuronal lysosomal function across aging remain poorly defined. Here, we identify 20(S)-ginsenoside Rg3, a ginseng-derived natural product, as a geroprotective small molecule in Caenorhabditis elegans. Rg3 extended lifespan and preserved key physiological outputs, including locomotion and pharyngeal pumping, indicating that Rg3...

Centromeres are essential regions of the genome that ensure chromosome segregation during mitosis but are also hotspots for chromosome breaks and rearrangements in cancer. The mechanisms underlying this fragility are not fully elucidated. Here, we show that oxidative DNA damage destabilizes centromeres and promotes chromosome instability. Using a chemoptogenetic system to generate singlet oxygen locally at centromeres, we uncouple centromeric oxidative damage from global oxidative stress....