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A protein once thought to mainly protect chromosome ends may also be essential for keeping muscle stem cells ready to repair injuries. Researchers found that TRF2 helps these cells maintain their identity and coordinate the cycle of rest, repair, and renewal.

A surprisingly small dose of exercise may deliver major health benefits for adults carrying excess fat around the waist. In a four-month trial involving 315 adults with central obesity, researchers found that completing 75 minutes of brisk interval walking in a single weekly session reduced body fat, trimmed waistlines, and improved cardiovascular fitness about as effectively as splitting the same exercise across three days.

A sweeping review of more than 350 studies suggests that the protein boom may be overselling what many people actually need. Eating less protein appears to improve metabolism, reduce inflammation and cellular damage, and activate pathways linked to healthier aging and longer life.

Cancer cells rely on powerful genetic switches to keep growth genes running at full speed, but that intense activity can damage their own DNA. The resulting breaks are repeatedly repaired, sometimes with small mistakes that allow new mutations to accumulate. Researchers believe this self-inflicted damage may help tumors evolve while also creating a potential target for new treatments.

A daily avocado may help lower heart disease risk in adults with obesity by reducing the number of LDL particles circulating in the blood. After six months, participants who ate an avocado each day experienced a decline associated with an estimated 4% reduction in cardiovascular risk.

Scientists have identified an immune response that may explain why statins cause muscle pain, weakness, and exercise intolerance in some people. The finding could eventually lead to treatments that protect muscles while preserving the drugs’ lifesaving cardiovascular benefits.

INTRODUCTION: Atrial fibrillation (AF) is associated with cognitive decline and dementia even in the absence of clinical stroke, potentially through mechanisms such as silent infarction, small-vessel disease, hypoperfusion, and systemic inflammation. However, most previous studies have focused on global brain measures, and little is known about region-specific structural alterations, particularly within deep gray-matter structures and hippocampal subfields. Evidence regarding atrial flutter...

INTRODUCTION: Mild cognitive impairment (MCI) is frequently accompanied by impairments in postural control and trunk muscle function. Although gamma-theta rhythmic stimulation has been reported to modulate neural oscillatory activity, its influence on brain-muscle interactions in individuals with MCI remains poorly understood. This exploratory pilot study investigated whether changes in EEG connectivity following gamma-theta stimulation were associated with alterations in trunk muscle...

INTRODUCTION: Age-related motor decline is particularly evident during complex movements that require sequencing and bimanual coordination. The one-target advantage (OTA), in which single-target movements are typically initiated faster than the first segment of a two-target sequence, provides a useful framework for assessing planning demands in older adults.

Aging-related neurological disorders, including stroke, Alzheimer's disease (AD), Parkinson's disease (PD), epilepsy, and various neuroinflammatory conditions, affect over three billion individuals worldwide and constitute leading causes of morbidity, disability, and socioeconomic burdens. Aging contributes not only to the increased incidence of these disorders but also to their progression through interconnected mechanisms, including endothelial dysfunction, oxidative stress, chronic...

Local brain age (LBA) is a spatially resolved biomarker of brain aging that captures regional deviations from chronological age, yet its genetic architecture in the subcortex remains unexplored. Here, we present the first genome-wide association study (GWAS) of subcortical LBA, estimated using a deep neural network applied to T1-weighted MRI scans from 41,957 cognitively normal participants in the UK Biobank. We computed LBA across 14 subcortical structures and identified 14 significant...

Amyloid-β (Aβ) accumulation begins many years before the onset of clinical symptoms in Alzheimer's disease (AD). Studies in humans suggest that unimpaired individuals with elevated Aβ exhibit subtle changes in cognitive trajectories over time, particularly in memory. Identifying animal models that recapitulate these early changes is critical for translational research on preclinical AD. Here, we hypothesized that aging dogs, which naturally accumulate Aβ, show similar patterns to those observed...

As a major contributor to cardiac diseases, thrombosis, a pathological process in which the formation of a blood clot restricts blood flow, is a leading cause of mortality worldwide. A central event in thrombosis involves thrombin-mediated cleavage of soluble fibrinogen into fibrin monomers, which polymerize into an insoluble fibrin mesh that forms the thrombus. While the risk of thrombosis increases markedly with age, the underlying cellular mechanisms linking aging and thrombus formation...

Blood cancers that eventually worsen may carry detectable genetic warning signs years before patients develop serious symptoms. The findings could lead to earlier intervention while also helping doctors distinguish true cancer from harmless age-related blood changes.

A new report suggests that blood pressure may be controlled more effectively by increasing potassium while also cutting sodium. Potassium-rich foods can help balance sodium’s effects, but most people consume far less potassium than recommended.

A gene involved in the brain’s overnight cleaning system may change how strongly poor sleep affects Alzheimer’s-related brain changes. The findings point toward more personalized prevention strategies based on both genetics and sleep habits.

New science may explain mysterious gap before oxygen flooded our planet billions of years ago

New research challenges the decades-old idea that children experience an “adiposity rebound” when their BMI begins rising around age 6. Although BMI returns to earlier levels, a more reliable measure showed that body fat does not rebound at all. The increase appears to come from growing muscle and lean tissue as children prepare for later growth. Researchers say this normal process has been mistakenly treated as an obesity warning sign for 42 years.

Never-before-seen ability may allow the insects to home in on their favorite plants

Individual midbrain dopamine (mDA) neurons exhibit complex morphologies, a feature that may underlie their different functions and disease vulnerability. However, the developmental programs and wiring principles underlying this morphological complexity, particularly in terms of axonal and dendritic architecture, remain largely unknown. To address this, we developed and employed a unique intersectional genetic strategy in mice (Gucy2c-iCre:Pitx3-FlpE:Ai65D [GPA]) that enables specific sparse...