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Homer1 gene plays a critical role in shaping attention

Attention disorders such as ADHD involve a breakdown in our ability to separate signal from noise. The brain is constantly bombarded with information, and focus depends on its ability to filter out distractions and detect what matters.

22 Dec 2025

Unlocking sleep-wake secrets with dual brain signal analysis

Understanding the dynamic neural mechanisms of sleep-wake cycles is a major challenge in sleep science and neuroengineering.

22 Dec 2025

Splicing regulator U2AF1 promotes angiogenesis in cardiac injury

A study published in Engineering shows that a protein called U2 small nuclear RNA auxiliary factor 1 (U2AF1), released by immune cells known as macrophages, helps grow new blood vessels in the heart after a myocardial infarction (MI) by altering how the gene Yap1 is spliced.

22 Dec 2025

Blood metabolite profiling outperforms BMI in predicting pregnancy complications

This study shows that a blood-based metabolomic signature linked to maternal BMI predicts gestational diabetes and preeclampsia more strongly than BMI alone, particularly in late pregnancy. A subset of 16 metabolites statistically mediates the BMI–gestational diabetes association, highlighting metabolic pathways that may improve prenatal risk stratification.

21 Dec 2025

Simple fruit granola intervention shows promising cardio-renal signals in CKD patients

A single-arm intervention study in Japanese adults with moderate chronic kidney disease found that replacing breakfast with fruit granola for two months lowered systolic blood pressure, reduced LDL-related lipid markers, and decreased a urinary marker of tubular injury. Renal function remained stable, bowel habits improved, and findings were exploratory due to the small, open-label design.

21 Dec 2025

Simple blood test maps hidden Alzheimer’s disease changes

This population-based study used plasma pTau217 to estimate how common Alzheimer’s disease neuropathological changes are across age and cognitive status in a Norwegian community cohort. Prevalence rose steeply with age and was strongly associated with APOE ε4 genotype, education level, and kidney function, with implications for future use of blood biomarkers in clinical practice.

21 Dec 2025

Skin and internal organs sense cold through different molecular pathways

A research team led by Félix Viana, co-director of the Sensory Transduction and Nociception laboratory at the Institute for Neurosciences (IN), a joint research centre of the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC) and Miguel Hernández University of Elche (UMH), has demonstrated that the body uses different molecular mechanisms to detect cold in the skin and in internal organs.

19 Dec 2025

Genes influence the gut microbiome beyond the individual

The gut microbiome - made up of trillions of microbes in the digestive tract - is vital for digestion and overall health. Diet and medication shape these microbial ecosystems, but the contribution of genetics has been more difficult to ascertain.

19 Dec 2025

New AI model brings precision medicine to multiple myeloma care

C. Ola Landgren, M.D., Ph.D., received HealthTree Foundation's prestigious 2025 Innovation Award for his work in developing CORAL, a new research tool that leverages AI to predict individual outcomes and guide treatment decisions in patients with multiple myeloma.

19 Dec 2025

New insights into how a molecular gatekeeper controls early protein modification

For years, ETH researchers have been investigating a molecular complex that plays a key role in protein synthesis. They have now discovered that this complex also contributes a crucial function in ensuring that our DNA is properly processed and “packaged”.

19 Dec 2025

Nanoplastics alter the gut barrier and metabolism depending on diet

A team of researchers from INRAE, CNRS, and the University of Lille studied how low dietary doses of nanoplastics affected mice.

19 Dec 2025

Long-approved drug shows promise in slowing neuron loss in Alzheimer’s disease

Scientists at the University of Colorado Anschutz have discovered that while brain neuron changes, including cell loss, may begin in early life, a drug long-approved for other conditions might be repurposed to slow this damage, offering new hope for those with Alzheimer's disease (AD) and other cognition issues.

19 Dec 2025

DNA twisting controls how cells respond to estrogen

Estrogens, the main female sex hormone, although they also perform some functions in men, are involved in a myriad of processes, which is why the body changes so much during menopause. This is because estrogens regulate hundreds of genes.

19 Dec 2025

Viral DNA elements help control early embryonic development

Transposable elements are stretches of DNA that can move around the genome. Many of these DNA sequences originate from long ago, when viruses inserted their genetic material into our ancestors' genomes during infection.

19 Dec 2025

ACE2 protein may play a protective role against high blood pressure and type 2 diabetes

A collaborative study from the MRC Laboratory of Medical Sciences (LMS) and Imperial College London has found that the protein ACE2 may play a protective role against two common conditions, high blood pressure and type-2 diabetes, which affect millions of people worldwide.

19 Dec 2025