As a chronic condition, rheumatoid arthritis (RA) can’t be cured, so treatment focuses on managing the disease and controlling its progression. Although current treatments help control RA symptoms in most people, they cannot prevent the onset of RA or painful flare-ups. Now, researchers publishing in ACS Central Science have developed nanoparticles that could slow disease progression and reduce flare severity, based on results from tests with human blood and mice models with RA-like disease. For a person diagnosed with RA, their immune system attacks tissue that makes up the joints, causing inflammation, swelling and pain. ...

Multinational enterprises (MNEs) can negate supplier-induced environmental, social and governance (ESG) controversies by setting up ‘small-world’ networks, according to new research co-authored by Bayes Business School. Globalising supply chains has become a dominant strategy for MNEs. Benefits include lower costs of labour and distribution, and greater scope for innovation. However, long-distance operations also carry associated risks. Contrasting ethical standards of suppliers in different areas of the world can lead to ...

Quantum distance refers to a measure of quantum mechanical similarity between two quantum states. A quantum distance of one means that the two quantum states are the same, whereas a quantum distance of zero implies that they are exactly the opposite. Physicists introduced this concept in the realm of theoretical science a long time ago, but its importance has been increasingly recognized in the field of physics only in recent times. In the last few years, many experimental physicists have tried to measure the quantum distance of electrons ...

The mitral valve controls blood flow between the heart’s left atrium and ventricle. When structural changes affect the atrium or valve, it may not close fully—causing blood to leak backwards, a condition known as atrial functional mitral regurgitation (AFMR). Common in frail or elderly patients, AFMR often leads to heart failure, and standard surgery is typically too risky due to other health issues.   Transcatheter edge-to-edge repair (TEER), a minimally invasive surgery, has emerged as a low-risk treatment option for various ...

Research Highlights: Increased time on electronic devices or watching TV among children and young adults was associated with higher cardiometabolic disease risk, such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol and insulin resistance, based on data from over 1,000 study participants in Denmark. The link between screen time and cardiometabolic risks was strongest among youth who slept fewer hours, suggesting that screen use may harm health by “stealing” time from sleep, researchers said. Researchers said the findings underscore the ...

  Three nano glass spheres cling to one another. They form a tower-like cluster, similar to when you pile three scoops of ice cream on top of one another – only much smaller. The diameter of the nano cluster is ten times smaller than that of a human hair. With the help of an optical device and laser beams, researchers at ETH Zurich have succeeded in keeping such objects almost completely motionless in levitation. This is significant when it comes to the future development of quantum sensors, which, together with quantum computers, constitute the most promising applications of quantum research. As part of their levitation ...

Users of the NHS Active 10 app, designed to encourage people to become more active, immediately increased their amount of brisk and non-brisk walking upon using the app, according to researchers from the University of Cambridge. In a study published today in npj Digital Medicine, the researchers found that while activity levels then slowly declined over time, even after 30 months those users who were still using the app were more active than they had been beforehand. Lack of physical activity ...

University of Warwick astronomers have uncovered compelling evidence that a nearby white dwarf is in fact the remnant of two stars merging — a rare stellar discovery revealed through Hubble Space Telescope ultraviolet observations of carbon in the star’s hot atmosphere.  White dwarfs are the dense cores left behind when stars exhaust their fuel and collapse. They are Earth-sized stellar embers weighing typically half as much as the Sun, made up of carbon-oxygen cores with surface layers of helium and hydrogen. While white dwarfs ...

University of Queensland research shows emissions from the global chocolate industry could be reduced by growing more shade trees over farms in the region that supplies 60 per cent of the world’s cocoa. Dr Wilma Blaser-Hart and Dr Simon Hart from UQ’s School of the Environment and Centre for Biodiversity and Conservation Science led a study which used satellite images and machine learning to examine farms in West Africa “Cocoa is naturally an understory tree in rainforests, but in monoculture farming systems it’s grown in the open,” ...

KANSAS CITY, MO—August 6, 2025—The eye of the apple snail is unusually similar to a human eye—but, unlike human eyes, it can regrow itself if injured or even amputated. New research from the Stowers Institute for Medical Research has established the apple snail as a novel research organism to study eye regeneration, with the potential to better understand and find treatments for eye conditions in humans like macular degeneration. The study, from the lab of Stowers President and Chief Scientific Officer Alejandro Sánchez Alvarado, Ph.D., published in Nature Communications on [date], describes a new system to study sensory organ ...

Researchers from the Broad Institute and Mass General Brigham have shown that a low-oxygen environment — similar to the thin air found at Mount Everest base camp — can protect the brain and restore movement in mice with Parkinson’s-like disease. The new research, in Nature Neuroscience, suggests that cellular dysfunction in Parkinson’s leads to the accumulation of excess oxygen molecules in the brain, which then fuel neurodegeneration — and that reducing oxygen intake could help prevent or even reverse Parkinson’s symptoms. “The ...

Previously Hidden Changes Now Visible Esophageal cancer ranks among the deadliest cancers: when diagnosed at an advanced stage, the survival rate is only about ten percent. However, if detected early, around 90 percent of patients survive. The new O2E technology could play a crucial role in identifying changes in esophageal tissue at much earlier stages. O2E combines two imaging techniques in a new endoscopy technology. While optical coherence tomography is particularly effective at capturing tissue structures, optoacoustic ...

Human eyes are complex and irreparable, yet they are structurally like those of the freshwater apple snail, which can completely regenerate its eyes. Alice Accorsi, assistant professor of molecular and cellular biology at the University of California, Davis, studies how these snails regrow their eyes — with the goal of eventually helping to restore vision in people with eye injuries. In a new study published Aug. 6 in Nature Communications, Accorsi shows that apple snail and human eyes share many anatomical and genetic features.  “Apple snails are an extraordinary organism,” said Accorsi. “They provide a unique opportunity to study regeneration of complex ...

The new toolkit is designed to support the implementation and scale-up of hepatitis B and C interventions in prisons across Europe. It also reinforces the principle of ‘equivalence of care’, ensuring that people in prison receive healthcare comparable to that available in the community.  People in prison experience higher levels of viral hepatitis than the general population, making them a key group for targeted prevention and treatment. In Europe, individuals entering prison are also more likely to have a history of injecting ...

Some artificial sweeteners, such as saccharin and acesulfame K, have a bitter aftertaste that affects consumer acceptance of reduced-calorie foods and beverages. New research in FEBS Open Bio reveals the potential of compounds that inhibit bitter taste receptors to make artificial sweeteners more palatable. Saccharin and acesulfame K are detected by two types of bitter taste receptors from the taste receptor type 2 (TAS2R) family: TAS2R31 and TAS2R43. When investigators measured the inhibitory effects of various compounds against TAS2R31, they found that menthols reduced the responses ...

New research in Diabetes, Obesity and Metabolism reveals that metformin, a medication traditionally prescribed to treat diabetes, is linked to lower risks of dementia and early death. In the study by investigators at Taipei Medical University that included 452,777 adults with varying degrees of overweight and obesity, 35,784 cases of dementia and 76,048 deaths occurred over 10 years. Metformin users exhibited significantly lower risks of both dementia and all-cause death than nonusers. The benefits of metformin were seen across all categories of overweight, obesity, and severe obesity, with 8–12% lower risks of dementia and 26–28% ...

Flexible electronics—including wearable devices, stretchable sensors, and soft robotics—require materials that integrate mechanical flexibility, stretchability, and durability with additional attributes like electrical conductivity. A review in the journal Small considers the potential of natural rubber as a sustainable resource to minimize the carbon footprint of flexible electronics. The authors examine how natural rubber might be used in different types of flexible sensors, self-powered systems, and ...

Based on more than a decade’s worth of data across 36 U.S. states, a study in Contemporary Economic Policy finds that spreading out food assistance payments over more days reduces financially motivated crimes—especially robberies. Compared with a single-day lump-sum monthly distribution through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), a disbursement schedule consisting of 15 or more distribution days was associated with a decline of 0.03 robbery incidents per 100,000 population. Similarly, when SNAP distribution was staggered across 15 or more days, the incidence of robbery ...

A new paper in Annals of Botany, published by Oxford University Press, indicates that pollination can have a dramatic effect on how plants grow and change. The study shows that when plants and pollinators become uncoordinated (even for a brief time) it can change who reproduces best and change plant diversity. The paper offers new insights into how evolution works in real time. Pressures on pollination behavior can fluctuate over reproductive seasons, influencing which plants animals pollinate. Changes in the interaction between plants ...

Respiratory disorders in dogs can quickly become critical and are reported to be the second leading cause of cardiac arrest in canines. Therefore, it is necessary to take appropriate measures according to each patient’s condition. This, however, requires rapid and accurate disease severity assessments. In human medicine, scoring systems that incorporate physical examinations and blood tests results with respiratory function assessments exist, and enable more accurate severity assessments. In contrast, there are only a few reports on severity assessments that use tests other than respiratory function evaluations in veterinary medicine. Further, these evaluations usability ...

Hurricanes and related natural catastrophes like flooding are becoming more severe and more frequent around the world. Older people are especially at risk, but relatively little is known about long-term health effects. In 2012, the north-east US was hit by Hurricane Sandy, which resulted in unusable transportation systems, destruction of homes, power loss, and more than 100 casualties. But what about the people who continue living in hurricane-mangled areas? Now, researchers in the US have investigated if ...

BURLINGTON—Researchers at the University of Vermont have developed a more precise way to assess stroke risk in people with atrial fibrillation (A-Fib), a condition that affects 10.5 million Americans and is a leading cause of stroke. Their findings, published August 6 in the Journal of Thrombosis and Haemostasis, show that adding simple blood tests to an existing risk calculator can help physicians better determine who truly needs anticoagulant medications—powerful drugs that prevent strokes but ...

New research by the University of South Australia finds a silver lining to the struggling media landscape in the face of the digital age, revealing that social media is enhancing the diversity of news the community receives.     The study found that Australian news is more diverse on social media, as the traditional media landscape – particularly quality local journalism – has become increasingly unsustainable. Social media is the most popular way for Australians to find and consume news, ...

HOXB13, a B-class homeobox transcription factor, sits at the hub of developmental gene networks yet has emerged as a double-edged sword in human cancer. While indispensable for embryonic patterning and androgen-dependent organogenesis, its expression is frequently hijacked or extinguished by epigenetic, mutational and post-translational events that drive tumour initiation, progression and therapy resistance. Across more than twenty malignancies, the protein acts as either oncogene or tumour suppressor, depending on tissue context, interacting partners and mutational ...

A proposed earthquake early warning system could have provided several communities an alert of 10 seconds or more ahead of strong shaking from the magnitude 7.3 quake that occurred south of Sand Point near the tip of the Alaska Peninsula in mid-July. That analysis is provided by Alex Fozkos of the Alaska Earthquake Center’s systems team at the University of Alaska Fairbanks Geophysical Institute. “Individuals in Sand Point could have expected approximately 10 seconds of warning time before ...