Aggregator

Researchers concluded that doomsday will fall on 13 November—but not for the reasons we might expect today

Using genome editing to trace cell lineages, researchers capture the early history of the mouse embryo in unprecedented detail

Samples from Japan’s MMX mission could reveal how Phobos formed—and may contain pieces of Mars

A Stanford-designed molecule turns a major lymphoma-promoting protein against cancer cells, activating their own self-destruct machinery instead of simply blocking tumor growth. In mice, the treatment completely eliminated aggressive human lymphoma tumors within 11 days, although much more testing is needed before it could reach patients.

Eating more sugar while taking antibiotics was linked to greater disruption of the gut microbiome and increased growth of potentially harmful bacteria. Researchers say temporarily cutting back on sweets during and after antibiotic treatment could be a simple way to reduce this damage, though clinical trials are still needed.

Climate change appears to have made food scarce for chinstrap penguins, which had numbered more than 1 million on a remote South Atlantic island

Blocking a receptor called P2X7 significantly reduced inflammation in human brain tissue, revealing a potential new treatment strategy for neurological and psychiatric disorders. The discovery could help researchers repurpose existing drugs for conditions including traumatic brain injury, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, depression, and schizophrenia.

Ancient swimming creature provides clues to when nursing evolved

Aging-associated β-cell senescence is a key driver of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). However, its associated molecular mechanisms remain poorly explored. This study identifies Chromobox 4 (CBX4), a Polycomb group protein with SUMO E3 ligase activity, as an essential regulator of β-cell aging and function. The results show that CBX4 expression progressively downregulates in both aged and diabetic pancreatic islets. Targeted deletion of Cbx4 in β-cell accelerates cellular senescence, impairs...

The pursuit of high-energy-density lithium metal batteries is often hampered by severe safety hazards and limited cycle life, leading to increased environmental impact and higher costs. Here, we demonstrate that tuning the underappreciated miscibility between electrolyte components could provide an effective approach. By introducing a non-coordinating, non-flammable cyclic fluorinated diluent, we minimize diluent-ion pair intermolecular forces, thereby enabling the formation of isolated...

Black carbon (BC) is a highly toxic air pollutant and potent short-lived climate pollutant. China's Dual Carbon strategy-peaking carbon emissions before 2030 and achieving carbon neutrality before 2060-has driven rapid BC emission reductions. However, global inventories still misrepresent BC emissions in China, biasing estimates of its health and climate impacts. Using a localized BC inventory and revised health risk function, we estimate that over 540,000 premature deaths were attributable to...

The formation of advanced glycation end products (AGEs), first described in food science, is driven by hyperglycaemia (diabetes mellitus) and the modifications on long-lived proteins (natural ageing); AGE formation is enhanced by oxidative stress and inflammation, which are factors that accompany high-AGE settings of diabetes mellitus and ageing. Exogenous tobacco, ultra-processed foods, pollutants and alcohol contribute to AGE formation. Evidence demonstrates higher concentrations of AGEs in...

What is the ultimate goal of biogerontology (the study of the biology of aging)? A fashionable answer these days, often encountered, is that it is to extend healthspan not lifespan. Here we argue that this is a misguided cliché. Experimental research with animal models has demonstrated the possibility of intervening in and retarding the aging process, and extending lifespan. This, to varying degrees, increases both healthspan and gerospan, the later-life phase in diminished health. Considering...

Efficient muscle regeneration relies on the coordinated crosstalk between muscle stem cells (MuSCs) and their surrounding niche. Specialized pro-resolving mediators (SPMs), like resolvins, serve as critical autocrine and paracrine signals within this microenvironment, with macrophages acting as one of the primary sources of SPMs required to resolve inflammation and boost myogenesis. However, while dysregulation of endogenous SPM synthesis in aged skeletal muscle is known to drive chronic...

Research on brain aging has largely focused on neurological disorders such as Alzheimer's disease, mild cognitive impairment, and other forms of cognitive decline. However, relatively few studies have examined how age affects self-knowledge in healthy older adults. Thus, the present study aimed to investigate the impact of age on the neural correlates of self-referential and other-referential processing, as well as patterns of task-related connectivity. To this end, trait adjectives were...

CONCLUSIONS: Consistent with prior autism trait-based research in the general population, middle-aged and older autistic adults report more extensive sleep problems and worse sleep quality than non-autistic adults. Sleep problems were associated with older age and poorer mental health. Though the study is cross-sectional, the findings highlight the need to explore causal links through intervention. Addressing anxiety, and mental health problems more broadly, may improve sleep quality in ageing...

Brain aging provides an integrative marker of systemic health, but whether regional patterns outperform whole-brain approaches remains unknown. Here, we show that regional brain age signatures achieve superior mortality prediction through identifiable neurovascular-immune mechanisms in 1,240 community-dwelling adults followed for 10 years (120 deaths). While global brain age independently predicts mortality (hazard ratio [HR], 1.044 per year), a data-driven three-region model combining the left...

INTRODUCTION: Aging is associated with declines in physical and cognitive capacities, which become more pronounced after age 80. Institutionalization may further increase anxiety and depression. This pilot study assessed the feasibility and effects of a dance intervention on physical function, cognition, and mental health in institutionalized older adults with cognitive impairment.

Aging is accompanied by a decline in circulating ketone bodies and progressive cardiac dysfunction, yet whether dietary ketone repletion counteracts cardiac aging in a sex-specific manner remains unclear. Here, we first investigated the associations between plasma ketone bodies and cardiac function in a human cohort, comprising 120 adults (44.78 ± 10.97 years; 66 male/54 female) and 121 aged individuals (69.59 ± 6.88 years; 75 male/46 female). And, we then evaluated the therapeutic potential of...

CONCLUSIONS: The effects of psychosocial stress-inflammation associations are complex and may depend on cardiovascular burden. Replication is needed to establish temporality and clinical relevance.