Biomedical engineers built a hydrogel wound dressing whose molecular crosslinks break apart only when harmful bacteria produce a specific enzyme, releasing trapped antibiotics precisely when needed. In mice, a single application cleared infections and healed wounds faster than current clinical dressings.

When kidneys falter, rising nitrate in the colon fuels E. coli production of indoxyl sulfate — a toxin that further damages kidneys and binds to blood proteins so tightly that dialysis cannot clear it. Blocking a single enzyme in mice broke the cycle and improved kidney outcomes.

Using buried fiber-optic cables to detect vibrations from water flow, researchers found that cultivated soil traps rainwater near the surface where it evaporates, while undisturbed soil channels it deep underground through a natural pore network that tillage destroys.

A survey of 1,650 U.S. adults finds that public awareness of alcohol's cancer risk held steady at 53% after the USDA's 2025-2030 dietary guidelines dropped all mention of the link. The Surgeon General's earlier advisory, not the guidelines, appears to have driven the initial awareness jump.

A Johns Hopkins analysis of nearly 3.8 million Medicare patients found that average monthly out-of-pocket insulin costs fell from $50.87 in 2019 to $21.98 in 2023 after federal price caps. But about 25% of beneficiaries still paid more than $35 due to a prorating loophole.

For women 70 and older with estrogen receptor-positive breast cancer, a blood test measuring circulating tumor DNA fragments may reveal early whether hormone-blocking therapy alone is working — potentially sparing some patients from surgery, radiation, and their side effects.

Young people who stay in England's urban coastal areas are far more likely to end up in routine and manual jobs by age 25. Moving away breaks the pattern, but those who leave tend to come from wealthier families — deepening a cycle of deprivation in seaside communities.

Researchers at the Paul Scherrer Institute used an X-ray free-electron laser to watch a light-switchable beta blocker change shape at its receptor in real time. The drug does not fall off when bent by light -- it simply loosens its grip, turning the receptor into a dimmer switch.

Psychologists at SWPS University created the Post-Game Depression Scale, the first validated tool for measuring the emotional void players report after completing immersive video games. RPG fans scored highest, and the phenomenon correlates with broader depressive symptoms.

Using AI protein design tools from Nobel laureate David Baker's lab, researchers converted 672 antibodies into stable intrabodies capable of binding disease-related proteins inside cells. The library targets proteins linked to Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, Huntington's, and motor neurone disease.

A lactic acid bacterium isolated from kimchi retained 57% nanoplastic adsorption efficiency under simulated gut conditions, compared to just 3% for a reference strain. In germ-free mice, it more than doubled the nanoplastics detected in feces, suggesting enhanced excretion.

Lawrence Toll, a professor at Florida Atlantic University who co-discovered the pain-related molecule nociceptin three decades ago, has been named a senior member of the National Academy of Inventors. His nine patents span opioid receptor research and nicotine addiction therapies.

Tracking 470 pregnant women across all three trimesters, researchers found that limiting sitting to 8 hours daily and getting 7+ hours of light activity reduced hypertensive disorder risk by nearly 30%. The optimal daily pattern cut risk by more than half.

A new fMRI study identifies why people judge others harshly for dishonesty yet cheat themselves. The ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC) shows reduced activity in morally inconsistent individuals, and stimulating it actually makes the problem worse.

Scientists found reduced levels of a freely circulating brain protein called Cacna2d1 in the spinal fluid of schizophrenia patients. A synthetic version, SEAD1, corrected overexcited brain circuits and behavioral deficits in a mouse model with a single injection and no observable side effects.

In a 15-year Swedish cohort study, people carrying the Alzheimer's-linked APOE4 gene variants showed no excess dementia risk if they were in the top fifth of meat consumers. At low intake, their risk was more than double that of non-carriers. Unprocessed meat drove the benefit.

A new study in JAMA Network Open identified a high-risk group for colorectal cancer among individuals who tested positive on fecal occult blood screening but never followed up with colonoscopy. Those who did get scoped and came back negative saw declining cancer incidence, with a larger drop in men.

A single-group implementation trial published in JAMA Network Open found that warfarin patients who managed their own INR testing at home maintained safe anticoagulation levels. The results add to evidence that the U.S. healthcare system has been slow to adopt a model already common in Europe.

Among 2,100 Swedish adults aged 60+, carriers of the APOE 3/4 or 4/4 gene variants had more than double the dementia risk at low meat intake. But in the top fifth of meat consumers, that genetic disadvantage disappeared entirely. Processed meat, however, raised risk regardless of genotype.

Researchers analyzed sleep EEG recordings from 7,000 people and found that when a person's estimated 'brain age' exceeded their actual age, dementia risk climbed nearly 40% for every 10-year gap. Standard sleep metrics like total deep sleep time missed this signal entirely.

Hypertensive heart disease deaths among U.S. women aged 25-44 rose from 1.1 to 4.8 per 100,000 between 1999 and 2023. Non-Hispanic Black women bore the highest toll at 8.6 per 100,000, and the South led all regions. Over 29,000 young women died during the study period.

Among 340,000 UK adults tracked for 13 years, low-to-moderate wine consumption correlated with a 21% lower cardiovascular death risk compared with non-drinkers — but the same level of beer, cider, or spirits consumption correlated with a 9% higher risk.

A 600-patient NCI-sponsored trial has finished enrolling patients to determine whether adding sargramostim — a GM-CSF cytokine — to standard dual checkpoint immunotherapy improves overall survival in unresectable stage 3 or 4 melanoma.

With O-negative blood chronically short across the U.S., anesthesiologists are calling for a simple protocol change: use O-positive blood in emergencies for men and women past childbearing age, reserving the scarce universal donor supply for those who truly need it.

People shown dating profiles written as personal narratives reported more empathy and greater romantic interest than those shown the same information as a list of traits, according to research from Reichman University published in Psychology of Popular Media.