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Nearly 10,000 patients reveal what works best for knee arthritis pain relief
A major analysis of 139 clinical trials involving nearly 10,000 people suggests that some of the simplest treatments may work best for knee osteoarthritis. Knee braces ranked highest overall for reducing pain, stiffness, and mobility problems, while water-based therapy was especially effective for pain and regular exercise consistently improved both pain and physical function. More high-tech approaches, including ultrasound, generally performed worse.
California to spend billions on ‘visionary’ plan to boost fish habitat
But skeptics question whether effort to save San Francisco Bay delta region will work without allocating more water for nature
Tiny cell “antennas” may help explain why some babies are born with heart defects
A newly discovered communication system in the microscopic “antennae” of cells may help explain how some congenital heart defects develop. When genetic mutations disrupt this system, the effects may extend beyond the heart to organs including the brain, kidneys, and skeleton.
Plague was killing entire families thousands of years before the Black Death
Ancient DNA reveals that plague was already killing hunter-gatherers in Siberia 5,500 years ago, long before cities and flea-driven epidemics. The prehistoric strains may have been especially dangerous because they carried a genetic factor capable of provoking severe immune reactions.
OpenAI breakthrough triggers ‘existential crisis’ in math
Claimed Navier-Stokes solution has polarized mathematicians over AI’s role—and what it means for the next generation
Cancer is rising in younger adults. Faster biological aging may help explain why
Cancer rates are rising in adults under 55, and new research suggests accelerated biological aging may be one piece of the puzzle. Scientists found that people from more recent generations tended to have bodies that appeared biologically older than those of earlier generations at the same chronological age. Greater biological age acceleration was linked to a higher risk of early onset cancers, with specific patterns seen for lung, gastrointestinal, uterine and colorectal cancers.
Hidden brain wiring may help keep the mind sharp as gray matter shrinks
Scientists have discovered that the brain’s short-range wiring may help protect cognition even as gray matter shrinks with age. Healthier connections just beneath the brain’s surface were linked to better language skills and appeared to weaken the impact of gray matter loss.
Scientists find a hidden cause of high blood pressure that routine tests can miss
A wearable device has revealed nighttime hormone surges that may expose a frequently missed cause of high blood pressure. The discovery could help explain why primary aldosteronism often escapes standard blood tests and point toward a more accurate way to diagnose it.
Scientists discover strange link between low vitamin D and pain
Low vitamin D levels may make recovery from breast cancer surgery more painful, according to a study of 184 women undergoing mastectomy. Patients with vitamin D deficiency were three times more likely to experience moderate to severe pain during the first 24 hours after surgery and also used substantially more of the opioid painkiller tramadol. They received slightly more fentanyl during surgery and experienced more postoperative nausea as well.
Single brain implant lets paralyzed people both talk and gesture via an avatar
By decoding two kinds of signals from one brain area, multitasking device offers step toward more natural communication
DNA methylation changes associated with Parkinson's disease in SNCA
Parkinson's disease (PD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder influenced by both genetic and epigenetic mechanisms. Among these mechanisms, DNA methylation has emerged as a key regulatory process affecting gene expression without altering the DNA sequence. The synuclein alpha (SNCA) gene is a well-established contributor to Parkinson's disease pathogenesis, yet the extent and consistency of its methylation changes remain unclear. This scoping review aimed to map and summarise existing...
Gut microbiota dysregulation in dementia: Molecular mechanism linking the gut-brain axis to neurodegeneration
Dementia is a progressive neurodegenerative syndrome characterised by cognitive decline, synaptic dysfunction, and neuronal loss. In recent years, growing attention has been given to the role of the gut-brain axis in neurodegenerative disease. Emerging evidence indicates that changes in gut microbiota composition and metabolic activity may affect various systemic processes that contribute to dementia. This review examines the current evidence linking gut microbiota imbalance to dementia through...
Mechanisms related to increased susceptibility of the elderly lung to ventilator-induced lung injury: A scoping review
Rapid population aging has markedly increased the exposure of elder humans to invasive mechanical ventilation (MV). Mounting evidence suggests that aging fundamentally alters pulmonary structure and stress responses, predisposing the aged lung to ventilator-induced lung injury (VILI). However, the biological basis of this heightened vulnerability remains insufficiently synthesized. The review was conducted in accordance with the PRISMA 2020 guidelines. To this end, PubMed, Web of Science, and...
GLP-1 receptor agonists, epigenetic aging, and the prospect of pharmacological healthspan extension
Glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1 RAs) reduce major adverse cardiovascular events, all-cause mortality, and systemic inflammation in randomized controlled trials, with effect sizes exceeding those predicted from glycemic and weight-related improvements alone. The convergence of these findings with a maturing body of evidence linking metabolic dysfunction to accelerated epigenetic aging has prompted renewed interest in GLP-1 RAs as candidate gerotherapeutic agents. The present...
Bidirectional associations between loneliness and physical multimorbidity and the mediating role of social inactivity
Physical multimorbidity and loneliness are increasingly recognised as public health concerns, but the nature of their potential relationships remains unclear. Here we report bidirectional associations between physical multimorbidity and loneliness in middle-aged and older adults and the mediating role of social inactivity. Longitudinal data from adults aged ≥45 years are analysed across 19 countries from five prospective cohorts: US Health and Retirement Study; English Longitudinal Study on...
Beyond redlining: Gentrification, displacement, disadvantages, and exclusivity predict urban environmental and health inequities
This study investigated environmental justice by developing and comparing four contemporary urban segregation typologies (persistent exclusivity, persistent disadvantage, recent gentrification, and recent displacement-hosting) with historical Homeowners' Loan Corporation (HOLC) zones and 104 variables spanning the natural and built environments, pollution, environmental hazards, health, and disability. We applied principal component analysis to the 2010 and 2020 American Community Survey and the...
Synaptic Mitochondrial Oxidative Stress Contributes to Individual Variability in Age-Related Cognitive Inflexibility in Mice
Aging is associated with impairments in cognitive flexibility, a key executive function supported by the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC), yet the biological mechanisms underlying individual variability in age-related decline remain poorly understood. Here we investigated behavioral, ultrastructural, and proteomic correlates of cognitive inflexibility in mice across aging. Using a touchscreen-based attentional set-shifting task, we observed substantial individual variability in cognitive...