In a new JNeurosci paper, Adrian Rothenfluh and colleagues from the University of Utah developed a fruit fly model of cocaine self-administration that can be used to explore the genetic underpinnings of cocaine addiction.   To model voluntary cocaine intake in fruit flies, or Drosophila melanogaster, the researchers first assessed cocaine consumption and preferences of this insect. Cocaine was innately aversive to fruit flies because it activated their bitter-sensing receptors. In other words, the fruit flies did not like cocaine’s ...

For the first time, researchers have created genetically modified fruit flies that can become addicted to cocaine. The flies will self-administer cocaine if given the option. The new model could prove immensely valuable for the development of new therapies to prevent and treat cocaine use disorder, a growing and deadly concern that affects about 1.5 million people nationwide. Heredity strongly impacts the risk of developing cocaine use disorder, but the large number of genes implicated in addiction risk has made it difficult to determine which might be the best targets for therapeutics. With their new fruit fly model ...

A new county-level dataset from Johns Hopkins University researchers reveals a national decline in the measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccination rate among U.S. children since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Out of 2,066 studied counties, 1,614 counties, 78%, reported drops in vaccinations and the average county-level vaccination rate fell 93.92% pre-pandemic to 91.26% post-pandemic—an average decline of 2.67%, moving further away from the 95% herd immunity threshold to predict or limit the spread of measles. Only four of the 33 states in studied—California, ...

About The Study: In an average-risk colorectal cancer screening population, a blood-based test demonstrated acceptable accuracy for colorectal cancer detection, but detection of advanced precancerous lesions remains a challenge, and ongoing efforts are needed to improve test sensitivity.  Corresponding Author: To contact the corresponding author, Theodore R. Levin, MD, email theodore.levin@kp.org. To access the embargoed study: Visit our For The Media website at this link https://media.jamanetwork.com/ (doi:10.1001/jama.2025.7515) Editor’s Note: Please see the article for additional ...

About The Study: The finding of a slightly lower prevalence of any adenoma in the younger compared with the older age group (35.4% vs 40.8%) in the current study is consistent with an evaluation of 2001 screening colonoscopies from a university-based medical center between 2019 and 2021, which reported slightly lower rates of adenoma detection in those ages 45 to 49 vs 50 to 54 (34.3% vs 38.2%) and with a large study of adenoma detection rates in those ages 45 to 49 vs 50 to 54 (28.6% vs 31.8%) who underwent a screening colonoscopy before the change in guidelines ...

About The Study: This county-level dataset complements the state and national-level Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data, confirming a widespread decline in measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccination rates in the U.S. after the COVID-19 pandemic while revealing significant heterogeneity in vaccination patterns within and across states. This dataset can be used in spatial and statistical analyses to identify factors associated with low or declining MMR rates in U.S. counties and help inform targeted vaccination strategies to reduce the risk of measles outbreaks.  Corresponding Author: To contact the corresponding author, Lauren M. ...

Findings from a new study of almost 50,000 women followed for 30 years suggest that a morning cup of coffee might do more than boost energy; it could also help women stay sharp, strong and mentally well as they age.   The analysis found that women who drank caffeinated coffee in midlife were more likely to exhibit healthy aging. However, the researchers didn’t find any links with tea or decaf coffee, while drinking more cola was tied to a significantly lower chance of healthy aging.   “While past studies have linked coffee to individual health outcomes, our study is ...

For more information, contact: Nicole Fawcett, nfawcett@umich.edu   EMBARGOED for release at noon ET June 2, 2025   Researchers find early driver of prostate cancer aggressiveness Study links higher expression of the gene PROX1 to aggressive change in prostate tumor cells; FDA-approved class of drugs can disable PROX1   ANN ARBOR, Michigan — Researchers at the University of Michigan Rogel Cancer Center identified a gene that plays a key role in prostate cancer cells that have transitioned to a more aggressive, treatment-resistant form. ...

A protein that gives fleas their bounce has been used to boot out bacteria cells, with lab results demonstrating the material’s potential for preventing medical implant infection.   The collaborative study led by researchers at RMIT University in Australia is the first reported use of antibacterial coatings made from resilin-mimetic proteins to fully block bacteria from attaching to a surface.  Study lead author Professor Namita Roy Choudhury said the finding is a critical step towards their ...

Scientists from Helsinki, Durham and Toulouse universities used data from NASA’s Hubble and the European Space Agency’s Gaia space telescopes to simulate how the Milky Way and Andromeda will evolve over the next 10 billion years.   The two galaxies are currently heading towards each other at a speed of about 100 kilometres per second.   A collision would be devastating for both galaxies which would be destroyed, leaving behind a spheroidal pile of stars known as an elliptical galaxy.   The team ran 100,000 simulations of both galaxies based on the latest observational ...

About The Study: This study demonstrates that the artificial sweetener neotame was a ubiquitous constituent of popular disposable e-cigarettes sold in the U.S. in 2024, including those containing no nicotine or the nicotine analogue 6-methylnicotine. Neotame is 7,000 to 13,000 times sweeter than table sugar and is 35 to 65 times sweeter than aspartame. Corresponding Author: To contact the corresponding author, Sven E. Jordt, PhD, email sven.jordt@duke.edu. To access the embargoed study: Visit our For The Media website at this link https://media.jamanetwork.com/ (doi:10.1001/jama.2025.7398) Editor’s ...

Chapel Hill, NC — Electronic-cigarette warnings are effective in discouraging vaping, with warnings specific to health harms being generally more effective than warnings about e-cigarette addiction, according to a meta-analysis of 24 studies conducted by University of North Carolina Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center researchers and their colleagues. The researchers also found no negative unintended consequences of e-cigarette warnings, such as encouraging people to smoke cigarettes instead of vaping. The results will be published in JAMA Internal Medicine on June 2. “This is the first meta-analysis that has tested the effectiveness of e-cigarette warnings ...

Marijuana use among older adults in the US has reached a new high, with 7 percent of adults aged 65 and over who report using it in the past month, according to an analysis led by researchers with the Center for Drug Use and HIV/HCV Research (CDUHR) at the NYU School of Global Public Health.  Their findings, published in JAMA Internal Medicine, also show that the profile of those who use cannabis has changed in recent years, with pronounced increases in use by older adults who are college-educated, married, female, and have higher incomes. “Our study shows that ...

About The Study: Between 2021 and 2023, prevalence of current cannabis use increased among adults age 65 or older nationally, with key demographic subgroups experiencing marked increases. Adults with the highest incomes initially had the lowest prevalence of cannabis use vs other income levels, but by 2023, they had the highest prevalence, which may indicate better access to medical cannabis given its costs.  Corresponding Author: To contact the corresponding author, Benjamin H. Han, MD, email b2han@health.ucsd.edu. To ...

While molecues with a single cavity have been extensively studied in solution, the solution state functions of polycavity materials remain elusive owing to their synthetic inaccessibility. Porous aromatic polymers (PAPs) are synthesized in a single step and offer polymeric cavity frameworks with high stability, which are applicable to gas and molecule adsorption/separation only in the solid state. Due to their strong aggregation-derived insoubility, unsubstituted PAPs cannot be used in any solvent until now. To move the functions of PAPs from the solid to the solution ...

According to a recent study, in patients with frontotemporal dementia (FTD), epileptic seizures are significantly more common than previously known. The discovery deepens understanding of the symptoms of this memory disorder and emphasises the importance of taking epileptic seizures into account in the treatment and monitoring of patients.   Coordinated by Neurocenter Finland, this major project by the University of Eastern Finland and the University of Oulu examined the prevalence of epilepsy in patients with FTD. The research dataset ...

Patients with Stage II and III (early-stage) HER2+ breast cancer usually undergo pre-operative therapy with multi-agent chemotherapy in combination with anti-HER2 antibodies, followed by surgery. A less intensive, reduced chemotherapy treatment approach is currently being evaluated in the CompassHER2 pCR trial (EA1181, NCT04266249) by the ECOG-ACRIN Cancer Research Group (ECOG-ACRIN). While longer follow-up is needed to assess long-term outcomes, pathologic complete response (pCR) rates and predictors of ...

A new way of thinking about Alzheimer’s disease has yielded a discovery that could be the key to stopping the cognitive decline seen in Alzheimer’s and other neurodegenerative diseases. University of Virginia School of Medicine scientists have been investigating the possibility that Alzheimer’s is caused, at least in part, by the immune system’s wayward attempts to fix DNA damage in the brain. Their research reveals that an immune molecule called STING drives the formation of the harmful plaques and protein ...

FRANKFURT. Habitat loss, diseases, pollution, and climate change are already massively affecting amphibians – frogs, salamanders, and the caecilians native to tropical regions. The new study from the Institute for Ecology, Evolution and Diversity shows that extreme weather events serve as an additional stress factor, further intensifying this crisis. For this purpose, the scientists analyzed global weather data from the past 40 years. They compared regions with significantly increased heat waves, droughts, and cold spells with the geographical ...

As the U.S. population ages and dementia cases rise, many people are asking whether it is possible to prevent this devastating disease. According to a new study, the answer may be on your plate: People who followed a dietary pattern known as the MIND diet were significantly less likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease or related forms of dementia.   The MIND diet, which stands for Mediterranean-DASH Intervention for Neurodegenerative Delay, combines the Mediterranean diet with the blood pressure-lowering DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) diet and also emphasizes proven brain-healthy ...

Older adults are quite aware of their financial abilities – and these abilities actually improve with age – that is, until dementia sets in, according to new research from Binghamton University, State University of New York. From paying bills to making change, knowing how to handle money is necessary to live and thrive in society. But what happens as we get older? Do our financial abilities decline and if so, are we even aware of our own shortcomings? To examine this, a team of researchers led by Binghamton University psychologist ...

Highlights: Infections by antimicrobial resistant (AMR) pathogens are a leading cause of death worldwide, with more than 1 million deaths annually, highlighting the need for new treatments. Researchers have synthesized a new compound called infuzide that shows activity against resistant strains of pathogens. Infuzide works against known, problematic gram-positive pathogens. In lab and mouse tests, infuzide reduced bacterial populations, suggesting it might be useful as a new treatment for drug-resistant infections.  Washington, D.C.—Antimicrobial ...

PULLMAN, Wash.--A team of Washington State University-led researchers has recreated the world's oldest synthetic pigment, called Egyptian blue, which was used in ancient Egypt about 5,000 years ago. Reporting in the journal, NPJ Heritage Science, the researchers used a variety of raw materials and heating times to develop 12 recipes for the pigments, providing useful information for archaeologists and conservation scientists who study the ancient Egyptian materials. The work was done in collaboration with Carnegie Museum of ...

Results from a phase 3 clinical trial published in the New England Journal of Medicine, today (June 2nd) show that patients with lung cancer who received an immunotherapy drug, nivolumab, along with standard chemotherapy before surgery had improved long term survival compared to those who received chemotherapy alone, at 5 years after completing treatment.  Prof. Patrick Forde of the Trinity St. James’s Cancer Institute (TSJCI), Trinity College Dublin School of Medicine presented the findings at the American ...

The SWOG S2302 Pragmatica-Lung trial, which broke new ground with its streamlined pragmatic design, unusually broad eligibility criteria, and reduced data collection, has quickly answered its primary question, finding that the investigational combination it tested did not significantly extend overall survival compared to standard of care treatments.  Importantly, the phase 3 trial’s rapid development and implementation, coupled with its successful enrollment of a group of patients broadly representative of the larger U.S. population, establish Pragmatica-Lung as a paradigm-shifting model for the design and conduct of future large randomized studies. Results will be presented ...