Organic chemistry features a wide array of reactions for creating complex molecules, among which the Diels–Alder reaction stands out for its versatility and precision. This reaction enables the construction of intricate polycyclic compounds—structures often found in natural products and pharmaceuticals—by joining dienes and dienophiles with high regio- and stereoselectivity.  One particularly valuable diene for this purpose is ortho-quinodimethane (oQDM), known for its ability to form fused-ring systems. However, synthesizing this reactive intermediate ...

WASHINGTON, DC – June 16, 2025 -- Despite the rise of the new anti-obesity drugs known as GLP-1s, rumors surrounding the death of metabolic and bariatric surgery have been greatly exaggerated. While the number of bariatric procedures were down about 3.5% in 2023 and likely dropped further in 2024, surgery now appears to be rebounding as many GLP-1 patients turn to one-time minimally invasive surgical procedures, including sleeve gastrectomy and gastric bypass, for even more robust and durable results. “GLP-1 ...

A patch containing tens of millions of microscopic nanoneedles could soon replace traditional biopsies, scientists have found. The patch offers a painless and less invasive alternative for millions of patients worldwide who undergo biopsies each year to detect and monitor diseases like cancer and Alzheimer’s. Biopsies are among the most common diagnostic procedures worldwide, performed millions of times every year to detect diseases. However, they are invasive, can cause pain and complications, and can deter patients from seeking early ...

Scientists at UCLA and the University of Toronto have developed an advanced computational tool, called moPepGen, that helps identify previously invisible genetic mutations in proteins, unlocking new possibilities in cancer research and beyond.  The tool, described in Nature Biotechnology, will help understand how changes in our DNA affect proteins and ultimately contribute to cancer, neurodegenerative diseases, and other conditions. It provides a new way to create diagnostic tests and to find treatment targets previously invisible to researchers. Proteogenomics combines the study of genomics and proteomics to provide a comprehensive molecular profile of diseases. ...

A new hereditary condition has been discovered that affects patients’ ability to repair DNA – leaving them both at greater risk of developing blood cancer, and unable to repair some of the damage caused by chemotherapy treatments.   In a paper published in Nature Communications, an international team of researchers led by cancer genetics experts at the University of Birmingham and funded by Cancer Research UK have found a new disease they call DIAL syndrome.   The rare, inherited ...

New results from a clinical trial reveal that a single dose of psilocybin—a naturally occurring psychedelic compound found in mushrooms—can provide sustained reductions in depression and anxiety in individuals with cancer suffering from major depressive disorder. The findings are published by Wiley online in CANCER, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Cancer Society. People with cancer often struggle with depression. In this phase 2 trial, 28 patients with cancer and major depressive ...

Scientists at EPFL have created MammAlps, a multi-view, multi-modal video dataset that captures how wild mammals behave in the Swiss Alps. This new resource could be a game-changer for wildlife monitoring and conservation efforts. Have you ever wondered how wild animals behave when no one’s watching? Understanding these behaviors is vital for protecting ecosystems—especially as climate change and human expansion alter natural habitats. But collecting this kind of information without interfering has always been tricky. Traditionally, researchers relied on direct observation or sensors strapped to animals—methods that ...

1 in 12 workers experienced threats, insults or physical attacks in the workplace in the past year, according to a new study. The research was co-authored by Dr Vanessa Gash (City St George’s, University of London) and Dr Niels Blom (University of Manchester), and found that violence and threats in the workplace are much more prevalent than previously thought: Workplace violence was found in all industries examined, from finance to construction to the arts 1 in 13 employees reported feeling unsafe at work Violence & fear in the workplace were linked to workers developing anxiety, depression or post-traumatic stress disorder Workers continued to experience symptoms of poor ...

When the brain is under pressure, certain neural signals begin to move in sync – much like a well-rehearsed orchestra. A new study from Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz (JGU) is the first to show how flexibly this neural synchrony adjusts to different situations and that this dynamic coordination is closely linked to cognitive abilities. "Specific signals in the midfrontal brain region are better synchronized in people with higher cognitive ability – especially during demanding phases of reasoning," explained Professor Anna-Lena Schubert from JGU's ...

ANN ARBOR, Mich. –   Parents’ visions of family vacation time may not always match what their teens have in mind. And many parents struggle with that transition in travel expectations as kids get older, a new national poll suggests, with one in five saying they have never allowed their teen to be away from them during a vacation or trip. Fewer than half of parents are also likely to leave a teen alone while they go to a hotel breakfast or out for dinner, according to the University of Michigan Health C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital National Poll on Children’s Health. “It’s natural for teens to seek more independence and time ...

The Institute of Science and Technology Austria (ISTA) in Klosterneuburg and Google have signed a “Master Sponsored Research Agreement” to explore joint scientific research areas. Under this agreement, Google will collaborate with and fund research projects at ISTA, ranging from AI and algorithms to neuro-imaging techniques useful for medical research. In addition, Google has opened a presence at the xista science park directly opposite the ISTA campus to form a liaison between the American corporation, ...

What inspired you to become a researcher? As a child, I was fascinated by reports and documentaries about field research and often wondered what it took to be there and what kind of knowledge was being produced. Later, as an ecologist, I felt the need for approaches that better connected scientific research with real-world contexts. I became especially interested in perspectives that viewed humans not as separate from nature, but as part of ecological systems. This led me to explore integrative methods that incorporate local and traditional knowledge, aiming to make research more relevant and accessible to the communities ...

Technologies enabling safe visual recognition in low-visibility environments are gaining increasing attention across sectors such as autonomous driving, aviation, and smart transportation. Thick fog remains a major challenge on highways, mountainous roads, and airport runways, where vision-based recognition systems frequently fail. Traditional visible light cameras, LiDAR, and thermal infrared (IR) sensors experience a sharp drop in signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) under scattering conditions, making object and pedestrian detection unreliable. To overcome these challenges, ...

A recent survey commissioned by The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center – Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute (OSUCCC – James) focused on Americans’ perceptions of testicular cancer. The results suggest more can be done to educate the public about the disease, which affects nearly 10,000 adults in the United States each year according to the American Cancer Society. The OSUCCC – James survey found that only 13% of U.S. adults—just ...

Philadelphia, June 16, 2025 – The most comprehensive analysis of rheumatoid arthritis data to date reveals that demographic changes and uneven health infrastructure have exacerbated the rheumatoid arthritis burden since 1980 and shows global disparities on a granular level. The AI-powered study in the Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases, published by Elsevier, utilized deep learning techniques and policy simulations to uncover actionable insights for localized interventions that national-level studies have previously missed. Its design yielded highly precise, dynamic projections of further disease burden to 2040. Principal investigator Queran ...

Canada can learn from England’s successful diabetes prevention program to build its own programs to tackle diabetes prevention across the country, argue authors in an analysis in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal) https://www.cmaj.ca/lookup/doi/10.1503/cmaj.250057. In 2022, Canada released a diabetes framework that calls on provincial and Indigenous governing bodies to build community-based programs to help address increases in new cases of diabetes. Based on evidence showing positive preventive benefits of diet and exercise on type 2 ...

Homelessness is increasing in pregnant and parenting people in Canada, posing health risks to children. Authors of a commentary in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal) https://www.cmaj.ca/lookup/doi/10.1503/cmaj.241623 argue it is a health crisis that needs urgent attention. “Housing is a basic life necessity for everyone,” write Drs. Nicole Racine and Stéphanie Manoni-Millar, University of Ottawa, and CHEO Research Institute, Ottawa, Ontario. “With rising numbers of pregnant and parenting people experiencing homelessness ...

Various reports have linked loneliness to premature death, with some — including the U.S. Surgeon General — suggesting that loneliness is as harmful to one’s health as smoking 15 cigarettes a day.  However, a new international study led by researchers at the University of Waterloo’s School of Public Health Sciences has found that while loneliness is common among older adults receiving home care, it is not associated with an increased risk of death. The researchers analyzed data from more than ...

Women who work night shifts are more likely to suffer with moderate or severe asthma compared to women who work in the daytime, according to a study published today (Monday) in ERJ Open Research [1].   The research, which included more than 270,000 people, found no such link between asthma and working nightshifts in men.   The study was by Dr Robert Maidstone from the University of Manchester, UK, and colleagues. He said: “Asthma disproportionately affects women. Women generally have more severe asthma, and higher rate of hospitalisation and death from asthma compared to men.   “In ...

A video consultation between patient and surgeon is just as good as a physical visit to the outpatient clinic to discuss a major operation. This is evident from research by Amsterdam UMC, demonstrated that a video consultation is just as good as a physical consultation in terms of information uptake. Alongside this finding, patients save an average of two hours of travel time and waiting time per consultation, incur no costs for travel and parking, and reduce their ecological footprint. The CO₂ emissions of a video consultation are 99 percent lower than those of a physical hospital visit. The results were published today in The ...

Neuroscience Drives New Wellbeing App: ReNeuWell Launched by NeuRA and UNSW Sydney Researchers from NeuRA and UNSW Sydney have launched a new app aimed at boosting the wellbeing and resilience of adults. This innovative mobile application, called ReNeuWell, shifts the focus from managing distress to actively promoting mental flourishing, offering a neuroscience-backed, personalized approach to mental health. Designed by Associate Professor Justine Gatt, Director of the Centre for Wellbeing, Resilience and Recovery at NeuRA and UNSW’s School of Psychology, ReNeuWell is underpinned by the COMPAS-W ...

Málaga, Spain – May 29, 2025 – The MOVEO project has officially launched! On May 27–28, 2025, 16 partners from nine European countries gathered at the headquarters of project coordinator CEMOSA in Málaga to initiate a bold new step toward transforming how people and goods move through Europe’s transport networks. With growing urban populations and a surge in shipping demands, today’s transport infrastructure faces unprecedented pressure. The MOVEO project—funded under the Horizon Europe programme—aims to tackle these challenges by creating smart, integrated solutions for logistics and passenger flows, moving Europe closer to truly ...

Sophia Antipolis, France, 14 June: The first study to use artificial intelligence (AI) technology to generate podcasts about research published in scientific papers has shown the results were so good that half of the papers’ authors thought the podcasters were human.  In research published today (Saturday) in the European Journal of Cardiovascular Nursing (EJCN) [1], researchers led by Professor Philip Moons from the University of Leuven, Belgium, used Google NotebookLM, a personalised AI research assistant created by Google Labs, to make podcasts explaining research published recently in the EJCN.  Prof. Moons, who also presented ...

A pioneering partnership between researchers from The Grainger College of Engineering at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign has produced a novel nanopore sensing platform for single-biomolecule detection. Their findings, published in PNAS, pave the way for solid-state, label-free DNA sequencing technologies with implications for precision medicine. Nanopore sensors are tiny devices used to detect and analyze individual molecules by measuring ionic changes as the molecules pass through nanometer-scale openings. These sensors are classified into two types: one relying on biological materials, and the other on inorganic solid-state ...

HOUSTON – (June 13, 2025) – Twenty-seven entreaties drafted and endorsed following discussions at the 50-year anniversary summit of the 1975 Asilomar Conference on Recombinant DNA have been published and archived at Rice University’s Fondren Library to serve as a reference on biotechnology governance for scholars, policymakers and the public. Entreaties can be viewed on the Rice Research Repository website at Fondren Library. Here is a link that presents the entreaty collection in numerical order. Here is a permanent URL for the entire collection. Each accepted entreaty ...