Understanding complex biological pathways, such as gene-gene interactions and gene regulatory networks, is crucial for exploring disease mechanisms and advancing drug development. However, manual literature curation of these pathways cannot keep pace with the exponential growth of discoveries. Large-scale language models (LLMs) trained on extensive text corpora contain rich biological information and can be leveraged as a biological knowledge graph for pathway curation. Recently, Quantitative Biology published a study titled "A Comprehensive ...

LA JOLLA, CA—Do you grab a fork and take a first bite of cake, or say no and walk away? Our motivation to eat is driven by a complex web of cells in the brain that use signals from within the body, as well as sensory information about the food in front of us, to determine our behaviors. Now, Scripps Research scientists have identified a group of neurons in a small and understudied region of the brain—the parasubthalamic nucleus (PSTN)—that controls when an animal decides to take a first bite of food. In the study, published in Molecular Psychiatry on July 4, 2024, the team of scientists set out to selectively manipulate a group of PSTN cells that dial up their ...

RIVERSIDE, Calif. -- Quantum computing, which uses the laws of quantum mechanics, can solve pressing problems in a broad range of fields, from medicine to machine learning, that are too complex for classical computers. Quantum simulators are devices made of interacting quantum units that can be programmed to simulate complex models of the physical world. Scientists can then obtain information about these models, and, by extension, about the real world, by varying the interactions in a controlled way and measuring the resulting behavior of the quantum simulators.   In a paper published in Physical Review B, a UC Riverside-led research team ...

U.S. Forest Service ecologists and partners published new findings on how planted mangroves can store up to 70% of carbon stock to that found in intact stands after only 20 years. Researchers have long known that mangroves are superstars of carbon absorption and storage. But until now, limited information existed on how long it took for carbon stored in planted mangroves to reach levels found in intact mangroves. “About ten years ago, Sahadev Sharma, then with the Institute of Pacific Islands Forestry, and I discovered that 20-year-old mangrove plantations in Cambodia had carbon stocks comparable to those of intact forests,” ...

Immune system dysregulation and elevated inflammation contribute to the development of the fatal neurodegenerative condition amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig's disease.  In new research published in The FASEB Journal, repeated infusions of certain immune cells delayed ALS onset and extended survival in mice, and also reduced markers of inflammation in an individual with the disease. The work was conducted by investigators at Massachusetts General Hospital, a founding member of the Mass General ...

CAR-T cell therapy, which targets a specific protein on the surface of cancer cells, causes tumors to shrink or disappear in about half of patients with large B-cell lymphoma who haven’t experienced improvement with chemotherapy treatments. But if this CAR-T treatment fails, or the cancer returns yet again — as happens in approximately half of people — the prognosis is dire. The median survival time after relapse is about six months. Now, a phase 1 clinical trial at Stanford Medicine ...

A major clinical trial, led by experts at the University of Nottingham, has shown the Lee Silverman Voice Treatment (LSVT LOUD®) is more effective than the current speech and language therapy provided by the NHS, when treating patients with Parkinson’s disease (PD). The results of the NIHR HTA funded trial, which are published today in the BMJ, showed that LSVT LOUD® was more effective at reducing the participant’s reported impact of voice problems than no speech and language therapy, as well as the NHS delivered speech and language therapy. The trial was led by experts from the Universities of Nottingham and Birmingham, ...

An intensive voice treatment developed in the USA and known as the Lee Silverman voice treatment (LSVT LOUD) is more effective than conventional NHS speech and language therapy or no therapy for people with Parkinson’s disease, finds a trial published in The BMJ today. The researchers say the results emphasise the need to optimise the use of speech and language therapy resources for people with Parkinson’s disease. Slurred or slow speech (known as dysarthria) is a common feature of Parkinson’s disease and can have a significant effect ...

“The NHS’s relentless focus on finance and productivity is failing patient safety,” argues patient safety commissioner Henrietta Hughes in an interview for The BMJ today. “The patient’s anecdote is the canary in the coal mine,” she says. It’s the thing that tells us there’s something going wrong. But too often we hear about patients who have raised concerns being gaslighted, dismissed, and fobbed off.” Hughes, a GP and former medical director at NHS England, became England’s first independent patient safety commissioner in September 2022. The job was created ...

For the first time in the World Health Organization’s 76 year history, world leaders have unanimously committed to put social participation - people, communities and civil society - at the heart of health decision making processes. This landmark pledge marks an important step forward in creating a healthy world, say experts in The BMJ today, and they urge everyone to seize their right to influence the decisions that affect their health and well-being. Global challenges such as access to care, climate change, widening ...

Artificial intelligence (AI) chatbots have frequently shown signs of an “empathy gap” that puts young users at risk of distress or harm, raising the urgent need for “child-safe AI”, according to a study. The research, by a University of Cambridge academic, Dr Nomisha Kurian, urges developers and policy actors to prioritise approaches to AI design that take greater account of children’s needs. It provides evidence that children are particularly susceptible to treating chatbots as lifelike, quasi-human confidantes, ...

International refugees and academic experts have contributed to a new book examining the resonance of Dante’s Divine Comedy with today’s migrants fleeing the troubles in their home countries. Dante on the Move is launched in Rome today (Thursday 11th July) and has been produced as part of a research project Reading Dante with Refugees led by the University of Birmingham and Trinity College Rome. It features work by people from Afghanistan, China, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Kurdistan, Ukraine, the USA and Venezuela. Mohammed, a Kurdish refugee from Iraqi and contributor to the book survived a shipwreck in the Mediterranean in which many people drowned. He said: “Reading ...

About a third of Canadians feel lonely, and a study from the University of Waterloo shows it has a greater negative impact on memory than even social isolation, though both present a significant risk to the aging population. Loneliness is a subjective emotion that people might feel even while engaging in social activities. It is often associated with depression and an increase in stress hormones that may contribute to impaired memory. Waterloo researchers examined four combinations of social isolation ...

ATLANTA — To offer cross-protection against diverse influenza virus variants, nanoparticle vaccines can produce pivotal cellular and mucosal immune responses that enhance vaccine efficacy and broaden protection, according to a study by researchers in the Institute for Biomedical Sciences at Georgia State University. The study, published in the journal Nature Communications, offers valuable insights into tailoring immunization strategies to optimize influenza vaccine effectiveness. To alleviate the significant ...

URBANA, Ill. – Colleges and universities often highlight leadership development as a critical component of their curriculum — but there is no clear consensus on what constitutes effective leadership education. In a new paper, two educators from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and John Carroll University provide a roadmap for training competent leaders, suggesting a comprehensive, practical approach for postsecondary institutions to follow. “Our purpose was to discuss what it means to develop leaders and what a model for leadership education could ...

The question of whether Mars ever supported life has captivated the imagination of scientists and the public for decades. Central to the discovery is gaining insight into the past climate of Earth’s neighbor: was the planet warm and wet, with seas and rivers much like those found on our own planet? Or was it frigid and icy, and therefore potentially less prone to supporting life as we know it? A new study finds evidence to support the latter by identifying similarities between soils found on Mars and those of Canada’s Newfoundland, a cold subarctic climate. The study, published July 7th in Communications Earth and Environment, looked for soils on Earth with ...

Taylor Swift’s past struggles with body image, disordered eating, and body objectification have had an overall positive influence on her fans’ attitudes on these issues, a new study from University of Vermont (UVM) researchers finds. The new research, published in journal Social Science & Medicine, analyzed the top 200 TikTok and Reddit posts—including over 8,300 online comments—about Taylor Swift, eating disorders, and body image to determine the impact of Swift’s disclosures about her past eating disorder on her fans. “Our findings suggest that fans who felt highly connected to Swift were influenced to positively change their behaviors ...

Cystic fibrosis is one of the most common genetic disorders, causing thick mucus build-up in the lungs and other parts of the body, breathing problems, and infection. A three-drug cocktail known as Trikafta has greatly improved patient quality of life since its development in 2019, but can cause cataracts and liver damage and must be taken daily at a cost of about $300,000 per year. Now, researchers at the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard and the University of Iowa have developed a gene-editing approach that efficiently corrects the most common mutation that causes cystic fibrosis, found in 85 percent of patients. With further development, it could ...

Researchers have identified unique 3-dimensional features called TULIPs in the genome of posterior fossa group A (PFA) ependymoma, a difficult-to-treat brain tumor diagnosed in very young children. The findings, published in Cell by a team of researchers at Baylor College of Medicine, Texas Children’s Hospital, McGill University and collaborating institutions, could lead to the development of new treatments. “PFA ependymomas are lethal. Radiation therapy, the only treatment currently available, is not curative and can cause serious developmental and cognitive issues,” ...

While taking snapshots with the high-speed “electron camera” at the Department of Energy’s SLAC National Acceleratory Laboratory, researchers discovered new behavior in an ultrathin material that offers a promising approach to manipulating light that will be useful for devices that detect, control or emit light, collectively known as optoelectronic devices, and investigating how light is polarized within a material. Optoelectronic devices are used in many technologies that touch our daily lives, including ...

WASHINGTON, DC – Applications are currently being accepted for the Spring 2025 term of two programs offered by the Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science (SC): the Science Undergraduate Laboratory Internships (SULI) program and the Community College Internships (CCI) program. The application deadline for the two programs is 5:00 pm (ET) October 2, 2024.  Through the SULI and CCI programs, undergraduate students and recent graduates discover science and technology careers at the DOE national laboratories and gain the experience ...

Toronto, ON – In a groundbreaking effort to mitigate the risks associated with muscle-building dietary supplement use among adolescents and young adults, a comprehensive set of guidelines has been introduced to assist healthcare professionals. These guidelines, published in the Journal of Adolescent Health, focus on assessment and harm reduction strategies to better support young individuals engaged in the use of these readily available supplements. Muscle-building dietary supplements, such as whey protein and creatine monohydrate, are commonly used by adolescents and young adults, particularly boys and young men, and are intended to enhance muscle mass, ...

Amsterdam UMC's Alzheimer Centre has developed a prediction model that can predict cognitive decline in patients with mild cognitive impairment or mild dementia due to Alzheimer's disease. The next step is developing an app that uses this prediction model, which would represent an important step towards personalised forecasts for patients. The study is published today in the journal Neurology.  After people have been diagnosed with Alzheimer's, their first question is often: "What can I expect now?". This question is difficult ...

MINNEAPOLIS – A new study looks at predicting how quickly people with early Alzheimer’s disease will experience cognitive decline. The study is published in the July 10, 2024, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. It also looked at how the new drugs recently approved for the disease may reduce decline. “The rate of cognitive decline varies greatly from person to person, and people are very interested in what to expect from the disease in themselves or their loved ones, so better prediction models are urgently needed,” said study author Pieter J. van der Veere, M.D., of Amsterdam ...

The general public has limited knowledge of the U.S. farm bill that politicians are debating on Capitol Hill, according to the June 2024 Consumer Food Insights (CFI) Report. The survey-based report out of Purdue University’s Center for Food Demand Analysis and Sustainability (CFDAS) assesses food spending, consumer satisfaction and values, support of agricultural and food policies, and trust in information sources. Purdue experts conducted and evaluated the survey, which included 1,200 consumers across the U.S “Around one-third ...