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Even under general anesthesia, the human brain can analyze language, recognize different types of words, and predict what comes next in a story, according to a surprising discovery by Baylor researchers. The findings challenge our understanding of consciousness and suggest that the unconscious brain is far more capable than scientists previously realized.

Eating late at night could be putting your liver at risk, according to a large study led by Oregon Health & Science University. Researchers analyzed data from nearly 200,000 people and found that those who regularly ate after dinner or around bedtime had a 20% to 30% higher risk of liver disease, including fatty liver disease and cirrhosis.

Scientists have discovered that unusually small cancer cells carrying extra chromosomes can be far more aggressive than larger ones, growing faster, spreading more readily, and resisting common treatments. The surprising finding could help explain why some tumors are especially dangerous and provide a new way to predict cancer outcomes.

A rare examination of an Alzheimer’s patient’s brain revealed that regions cleared of amyloid plaques had remarkably little of the harmful tau buildup associated with memory loss, while neighboring areas showed extensive damage. The discovery suggests that removing amyloid may have lasting protective effects and could help slow Alzheimer’s progression, especially when treatment begins early.

CONCLUSION: In this analytic NHATS sample, self-reported chewing or swallowing problems were not independently associated with a statistically significant difference in episodic-memory trajectory after sensory and other prespecified adjustment. The item may warrant oral, swallowing, functional, or neurological assessment, but it is not a specific marker of masticatory dysfunction or cognitive risk.

CONCLUSION: Cortical alpha slowing was detected in PD and MSA-C, but not in MSA-P. Age independently contributes to alpha slowing and strengthens its association with non-motor symptom burden, supporting age-aware interpretation of resting-state electroencephalography biomarkers in synucleinopathies.

CONCLUSION: These findings provide initial evidence for a candidate kinematic index of motor reserve in healthy aging. Motor reserve was not reducible to global motor speed or chronological age but expressed as a multidimensional profile of timing stability, lateralized motor organization, and consistency across task contexts.

Normal aging compromises behavioral functions supported by cortical circuits, yet how age-related cellular reorganization relates to weakened circuit-behavior correspondence remains poorly defined. Here, we examined layer 4 (L4) of the mouse primary somatosensory barrel cortex, a thalamorecipient lamina in which dendritic organization, microglial process architecture, and whisker-dependent tactile function can be analyzed within the same sensory system. Aged mice showed impaired...

CONCLUSION: Age-friendly work requires shared responsibility across societal actors, supported by clear coordination. Personal relationships and informal networks should be recognised as valuable for enabling collaboration, but they need to be complemented by formal structures to ensure sustainability over time. Moreover, greater efforts to reach seldom-heard older adults are needed. Doing so may contribute to more nuanced and age-friendly initiatives that better reflect the diverse needs of the...

CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS: Perceived CC and technology use characterized cognitively robust older adults, whereas tangible support identified vulnerable individuals yet was associated with slower cognitive decline. These findings underscore the need for nuanced CC strategies: digital tools engage those aging well, while intensive tangible support may be especially important for those with greater vulnerabilities. These associations are observational and do not establish causality.

Aged skeletal muscle has a reduced ability to adapt to hypertrophic stimuli concomitant with dysregulation across several molecular layers. Whether altered RNA splicing associates with impaired adaptive potential is not well studied. We hypothesized that aging disrupts the splicing response to involuntary muscle mechanical loading. Using deep short-read Illumina RNA-sequencing (SRS, 60 million read pairs) and third generation Oxford Nanopore long-read RNA-sequencing (LRS) combined with a murine...

Skeletal muscle is increasingly recognized as a secretory organ that communicates with distant tissues through the release of bioactive factors, including extracellular vesicles (EVs). During aging, muscle-derived EVs have emerged as important mediators of interorgan communication, influencing tissue homeostasis, regeneration, metabolism, and disease progression. Recent studies demonstrate that skeletal muscle EVs carry diverse cargos such as proteins, lipids, metabolites, and regulatory RNAs...

CONCLUSIONS: Using a community-engaged modified Delphi approach, this study identified key clinical and research priorities for older transgender adults. Findings highlight the importance of provider knowledge, social support, and addressing knowledge gaps in gender-affirming care and aging. These results provide direction for future research and best practice guidelines for this population.