Medulloblastoma is one of the most common malignant tumors of the central nervous system (CNS) in children and adolescents. It develops in the area of the cerebellum, which is responsible for movement coordination, among other things. Medulloblastomas enlarge rapidly, often grow into surrounding tissue and can also form metastases. The wide variety of this tumor group also makes it difficult to find the right treatment. A team of researchers at the Hopp Children's Cancer Center Heidelberg (KiTZ), the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ) and Heidelberg University ...

Current anticancer treatments essentially target the primary tumour cells that proliferate quickly, but do not effectively eliminate specific cancer cells able to adapt to existing treatments and which exhibit high metastatic potential1. Yet metastases are responsible for 70% of cancer deaths. A French research team from Institut Curie, the CNRS and Inserm has just developed a new class of small molecules that bring about the destruction of cell membranes, and hence triggers cell death. Led by scientists at the Laboratory of Biomedicine (Institut Curie/CNRS/Inserm)2, ...

A landmark study published by scientists at the University of California San Diego is redefining science’s understanding of the way learning takes place. The findings, published in the journal Nature and supported by the National Institutes of Health and U.S. National Science Foundation, provide novel insights on how brain wiring changes during learning periods, offering a path to new therapies and technologies that aid neurological disorders. For many years, neuroscientists have isolated the brain’s primary ...

NEW YORK — Our attraction to sugar has grown to an unhealthy level. The average person in the United States now consumes more than 100 pounds of the sweet stuff every year, up from 18 pounds in 1800. With new research published May 7, in Cell, Columbia University scientists have taken a major step toward dealing with this public health crisis. For the first time, they have mapped the 3-D structure of the human sweet taste receptor, the molecular machine that allows us to taste sweet things. This could lead to the discovery of new regulators of the receptor that would significantly alter our attraction to and appetite for sugar. "The ...

A landmark study exploring Canadians’ consumption of chips, frozen pizzas, breakfast cereals and other ultra-processed foods typically loaded with fat, sugar and additives has confirmed these foods are directly and significantly linked to poor health outcomes.  Researchers at McMaster University investigated the relationship between ultra-processed food (UPF) consumption and risk factors including blood pressure, cholesterol levels (LDL and HDL), waist circumference and body mass index (BMI).    Their study is the first in Canada to leverage population-based and robust biomarker data to examine this relationship.   The team analyzed data from more than ...

“Low-dose, intermittent rapamycin administration over 48 weeks is relatively safe in healthy, normative-aging adults, and was associated with significant improvements in lean tissue mass and pain in women.” BUFFALO, NY — May 7, 2025 — A new research paper was published in Aging (Aging-US) Volume 17, Issue 4, on April 4, 2025, titled “Influence of rapamycin on safety and healthspan metrics after one year: PEARL trial results.” A research team led by first author Mauricio Moel and corresponding author Stefanie L. Morgan from AgelessRx conducted a clinical trial to ...

More than half of Black and Latina women in a study in South Los Angeles reported using personal care products that contain formaldehyde-releasing preservatives. Given that formaldehyde is known to cause cancer in humans, the study reveals both critical safety gaps in how personal care products are regulated in the United States and their disproportionate health impacts on women of color. In recent years, growing concerns about exposure to formaldehyde in personal care products have focused on hair relaxers. For instance, recent studies show a link between ...

Surgical face masks help prevent the spread of airborne pathogens and therefore were ubiquitous during the COVID-19 pandemic. Now, a modified mask could also protect a wearer by detecting health conditions, including chronic kidney disease. Researchers reporting in ACS Sensors incorporated a specialized breath sensor within the fabric of a face mask to detect metabolites associated with the disease. In initial tests, the sensor correctly identified people with the condition most of the time. Kidneys remove waste products made by the body’s metabolic processes. But in the ...

ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, Ill. (May 7, 2025) – People who have struggled with asthma or allergies for years understand the psychological toll of these conditions. The May issue of Annals of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (Annals), the scientific journal of the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology, explores the mental health burden these conditions can exact. “The diseases we treat in allergy/immunology are primarily chronic illnesses and they often have a psychological impact on those who suffer from them,” says allergist Mitchell Grayson, MD, ...

Learning about one’s risk for Alzheimer’s disease may not lead to emotional distress, but motivation to maintain healthy lifestyle changes tends to fade over time, even in people at high risk, according to a study involving a Rutgers Health researcher.   The study, published in Alzheimer’s & Dementia, was written by Sapir Golan Shekhtman, a doctoral degree student at the Joseph Sagol Neuroscience Center at the Sheba Medical Center in Israel, and led by Orit Lesman-Segev, a neuroradiologist at the Department of Diagnostic Imaging and researcher at the Joseph Sagol Neuroscience Center, Sheba Medical Center ...

Two new advanced predictive algorithms use information about a person’s health conditions and simple blood tests to accurately predict a patient’s chances of having a currently undiagnosed cancer, including hard to diagnose liver and oral cancers. The new models could revolutionise how cancer is detected in primary care, and make it easier for patients to get treatment at much earlier stages.  The NHS currently uses prediction algorithms, such as the QCancer scores, to combine relevant ...

Wealthy individuals have a higher carbon footprint. A new study published in Nature Climate Change quantifies the climate outcomes of these inequalities. It finds that the world’s wealthiest 10% are responsible for two thirds of observed global warming since 1990 and the resulting increases in climate extremes such as heatwaves and droughts. The study assesses the contribution of the highest emitting groups within societies and finds that the top 1% of the wealthiest individuals globally contributed 26 times the global average to increases in monthly 1-in-100-year heat extremes globally and 17 times more to ...

For Embargo Release: May 7, 2025 at 5 am ET USA   Media Contact: Katelyn Deckelbaum, katelyn.deckelbaum@gwu.edu   New Study Tracks Air Pollution and CO₂ Emissions Across Thousands of Cities Worldwide WASHINGTON (May 7, 2025) - In a sweeping new study of more than 13,000 urban areas worldwide, researchers have mapped air pollution levels and carbon dioxide emissions, providing comprehensive global analysis of urban environmental quality.  The research led by George Washington University, in collaboration with scientists from Washington University in St. Louis and the University ...

A major study of around 260,000 women shows that taking the progesterone-only contraceptive pill can increase asthma attacks in some women. The research, published in ERJ Open Research [1], shows an increase in asthma attacks in women with asthma who are taking the progesterone-only pill and either aged under 35, or using fewer asthma treatments, or with a type of asthma called eosinophilic asthma.   There was no increase in asthma attacks for women taking the combined oestrogen and progesterone contraceptive pill.   The researchers say their finding could be an important step towards understanding why women are more likely ...

A portable device that can instantly detect dangerous street drugs at extremely low concentrations has been developed at the University of Bath in the UK. The device, which is being trialled by drug-checking services in the UK, Norway and New Zealand, can identify substances such as benzodiazepines and synthetic opioids that are difficult to detect with existing mobile technologies and are major contributors to drug overdoses globally. The device, which is similar to an ultraviolet spectrometer, will allow drugs to ...

All 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia have adopted vertical identification laws, which require state drivers’ licenses issued to individuals under age 21 to be vertically oriented, with the goals of lowering the cost of age verification and curbing underage drinking and smoking. Research published in Contemporary Economic Policy indicates that these laws have not achieved these goals, however.  For the study, investigators analyzed 1991–2019 data from the national and state Youth Risk Behavior Surveys. ...

A quarter of women who gave birth in metropolitan France and were surveyed reported that they were treated disrespectfully during childbirth and/or while staying in the hospital after giving birth.  Among the 7,332 women surveyed in the Acta Obstetricia et Gynecologica Scandinavica study, 1,888 reported that they experienced words, gestures, or attitudes that shocked, offended, or made them feel uncomfortable from health care professionals. They were more frequently nulliparous, had a high education level, a birth plan, and an instrumental or cesarean birth. Women with psychiatric history or prenatal psychological distress were ...

In research published in New Phytologist, investigators reveal that tomato ripening is regulated by the same mechanism that contributes to humans' and animals' life- and health-span.  The mechanism, called autophagy, regulates cellular recycling and operates in all life forms apart from bacteria. This latest work shows that autophagy affects tomato fruit ripening by controlling the production of ethylene. Ethylene is the primary hormone that controls ripening in many fruits such as apples, bananas, mangoes, avocados, and tomatoes.  To assess the role of autophagy in ripening, ...

In research published in Advanced Science, investigators describe their ability to reconstruct 3D facial images from DNA data, which could have important applications in forensic investigations of crime scenes.  Their model, called Difface, applies single DNA nucleotide differences to 3D facial point clouds, or sets of data points that represent the exterior surface of a face.   When tested on a Han Chinese database with 9,674 paired DNA differences and 3D facial images, Difface demonstrated excellent performance ...

Forests without top predators (such as tigers) risk being overgrazed by large herbivore prey, depleting vegetation carbon stocks and their capacity to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, an essential ecosystem function for mitigating climate change. Therefore, just as forest protection and restoration can support top predator recovery “bottom-up,” large carnivore conservation likely promotes vegetation recovery “top-down” and represents an understudied component in nature-based solutions to climate change. Research published in Global Change Biology provides new ...

Because life expectancy for individuals with Down syndrome has increased dramatically, investigators assessed the risk of age-related cardiovascular diseases in this population. As reported in the Journal of Internal Medicine, the researchers found increased risks of various cardiovascular diseases compared with the general population.  In the study, 5,155 individuals with Down syndrome born in Sweden in 1946–2000 were compared with other Swedish individuals matched by sex, birthyear, and county of birth.  Down syndrome was associated with 4.41-times higher risk of ...

Researchers at Linköping University have developed a new type of pipette that can deliver ions to individual neurons without affecting the sensitive extracellular milieu. Controlling the concentration of different ions can provide important insights into how individual braincells are affected, and how cells work together. The pipette could also be used for treatments. Their study has been published in the journal Small. “In the long term, this technology could be used to treat neurological diseases ...

By Amy Norton PISCATAWAY, NJ – More people are landing in the hospital with cannabis-related problems—and for many, a mental health condition is the primary issue, according to a new study published in the Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs. The study, conducted in Arizona, found that between 2016 and 2021, cannabis-related hospital visits across the state rose by 20%. Among those visits, one quarter ended up with a primary diagnosis of a mental health condition, including bipolar disorder, depression, and psychotic disorder. That compared with only about 3% of visits unrelated to cannabis. Overall, people with a cannabis-related hospital visit ...

What makes us care about others? Scientists studying empathy have found that people are more likely to choose to empathize with groups rather than individuals, even though they find empathizing equally difficult and uncomfortable in both cases. The scientists suggest that the sight of groups of people could offer more context information which helps people decide whether to empathize, and therefore increases the chances that they choose to do so.   “People’s willingness to empathize is different depending on who the target is: a single individual ...

A Korean research team has developed a new proton exchange membrane (PEM) that significantly enhances the performance of electrochemical hydrogen storage systems. Dr. Soonyong So of the Korea Research Institute of Chemical Technology (KRICT) and Professor Sang-Young Lee of Yonsei University have developed a next-generation PEM for LOHC-based electrochemical hydrogen storage using a hydrocarbon-based polymer called SPAES (sulfonated poly(arylene ether sulfone)). This SPAES membrane reduces toluene ...