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Category: health

Post-prandial hyperlipidaemia impairs systemic vascular function and dynamic cerebral autoregulation in young and old male adults

Dietary fat is an important part of our diet. It provides us with a concentrated source of energy, transports vitamins and when stored in the body, protects our organs and helps keep us warm. The two main types of fat that we consume are saturated and unsaturated (monounsaturated and polyunsaturated), which are differentiated by their chemical composition.

But these fats have different effects on our body. For example, it is well established that eating a meal that is high in saturated fat, such as that self-indulgent Friday night takeaway pizza, can be bad for our blood vessels and heart health. And these effects are not simply confined to the heart.

The brain has limited energy stores, which means it is heavily reliant on a continuous supply of blood delivering oxygen and glucose to maintain normal function.

One of the ways the body maintains this supply is through a process known as “dynamic cerebral autoregulation”. This process ensures that blood flow to the brain remains stable despite everyday changes in blood pressure, such as standing up and exercising. It’s like having shock absorbers that help keep our brains cool under pressure.

But when this process is impaired, those swings in blood pressure become harder to manage. That can mean brief episodes of too little or too much blood reaching the brain. Over time, this increases the risk of developing conditions like stroke and dementia.

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Ultra-short RNA insertions offer scalable, cost-effective gene silencing for agriculture

A team of researchers from the Spanish National Research Council has made a significant advance in plant biotechnology by developing a new method for silencing genes. The novel technique uses ultra-short ribonucleic acid (RNA) sequences carried by genetically modified viruses to achieve genetic silencing, allowing the customization of plant traits. The work, published in the Plant Biotechnology Journal, opens up new avenues for crop improvement, functional genomics, and sustainable agriculture.

Viral vector technology involves modifying viruses, removing the genetic material that causes disease, to turn them into vehicles that carry the RNA sequence to be introduced into an organism. This technique, when applied to plants, has already proven effective under experimental conditions in inducing flowering and accelerating the development of improved crop varieties, modifying plant architecture to facilitate adaptation to mechanization, improving drought tolerance, and producing metabolites beneficial to human health, among other applications.

Now, the method developed by the CSIC, together with the Valencian University Institute for Research on the Conservation and Improvement of Agrodiversity (COMAV) and the Italian Department of Applications and Innovation in Supercomputing (Cineca), represents an optimization of technological platforms to accelerate the development and validation of agricultural applications based on viral vectors.

How AI, robots and other cutting-edge technologies can keep workers safe and sound

Can artificial intelligence, robots and surveillance protect workers on the job? Yes, according to the latest report from the International Labour Organization. In this episode of the Future of Work podcast, ILO occupational safety and health expert Manal Azzi explains how AI and technology is being used as a safety net, and not a threat, for workers worldwide.

This bedtime snack swap could rewire your gut and help prevent diabetes

Eating pistachios every night for 12 weeks altered bacteria in the gut, according to new study. A new study reveals that swapping a typical nighttime carbohydrate snack for pistachios may beneficially alter gut bacteria in people with prediabetes. Conducted by Penn State researchers, the 12-week clinical trial found that pistachio consumption increased beneficial gut microbes like Roseburia and reduced harmful ones such as Blautia hydrogenotrophica. These microbiome changes could potentially support metabolic health and slow the progression to Type 2 diabetes. While more research is needed to confirm health outcomes, this study positions pistachios as a promising late-night snack with microbiome-boosting potential.

Prediabetes affects a third of people in the United States and most of them will develop Type 2 diabetes, yet effective dietary intervention strategies remain limited. Pistachios have shown promise in improving markers of diet quality, yet little is known about how they influence the gut microbiome — a key player in glucose regulation and inflammation.

A new study led by Kristina Petersen, associate professor of nutritional sciences at Penn State, determined that nighttime pistachio consumption affects gut bacteria in adults with prediabetes. Though the potential therapeutic implications of the findings remain unclear, according to Petersen, they may prove significant for people who are working to improve their metabolic health.

Exposure to nanoplastics could induce spread of Alzheimer’s disease from the brain to other organs

A new preclinical study has found exposure to nanoplastics may contribute to the rapid progression of Alzheimer’s disease and subsequent spread from the brain to other key organs such as the liver, heart and gut.

The research, “Cerebral to Systemic Representations of Alzheimer’s Pathogenesis Stimulated by Polystyrene Nanoplastics,” is published in the journal Environment & Health.

The study, co-led by Monash University and South China University of Technology, investigated how environmental-level polystyrene exposure influences the progression of Alzheimer’s disease from the brain to other parts of the body. Studies in mice revealed that nanoplastic-induced neurological damage is not confined within the brain, but expands systemically through the gut–liver–brain axis.

New Technique Uses Focused Sound Waves and Holograms to Control Brain Circuits

NEW YORK, Aug. 5, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — A new study provides the first visual evidence showing that brain circuits in living animals can be activated by ultrasound waves projected into specific patterns (holograms).

Led by scientists at NYU Langone Health and at the University of Zurich and ETH Zurich in Switzerland, the study describes a system that combines sources of ultrasound waves and a fiber scope connected to a camera to visualize in study mice brain targets that are directly activated by the sound. This lays the groundwork, the study authors say, for a new way to treat neurological diseases and mental health disorders from outside of the body.

Already, there are applications approved by the Food and Drug Administration and designed to reduce tremor symptoms seen in Parkinson’s disease, using intense sound waves to kill brain cells called neurons within neural pathways linked to tremors. Rather than kill neurons, the lower-intensity ultrasound waves used in the current work can temporarily activate them, the researchers say. The resulting effects can be widespread as neurons relay messages to other neurons within their circuits and between interconnected neuronal circuits.

Discovery of a new analgesic promises pain relief with fewer downsides

Opioids like morphine are widely used in medical practice due to their powerful pain-relieving effects, yet they carry the risk of serious adverse effects such as respiratory depression and drug dependence. For this reason, Japan has strict regulations in place to ensure that these medications are prescribed only by authorized physicians.

In the United States, the opioid OxyContin was once frequently prescribed, triggering a surge in the misuse of synthetic opioids such as fentanyl. As a result, the number of deaths caused by surpassed 80,000 in 2023, escalating into a national public health crisis now referred to as the “opioid crisis.”

Opioids may soon have a rival, however. A team of researchers at Kyoto University has recently discovered a novel analgesic, or , that exerts its effect through an entirely different mechanism. Clinical development of their drug ADRIANA is currently underway as part of an international collaborative effort.

Plastic pollution ‘grave and growing’ health threat: Lancet

Plastic pollution is a “grave, growing and under-recognized danger” to health that is costing the world at least $1.5 trillion a year, experts warned in a report on Monday.

The new review of the existing evidence, which was carried out by leading health researchers and doctors, was published one day ahead of fresh talks opening in Geneva aiming to seal the world’s first treaty on plastic pollution.

“Plastics cause disease and death from infancy to old age and are responsible for health-related economic losses exceeding US$1.5 trillion annually,” said the review in The Lancet medical journal.

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