Agricultural soils across the world are increasingly polluted by heavy metals such as cadmium, lead, chromium, and arsenic. These toxic elements, often introduced through industrial wastewater, fertilizers, and manure, can accumulate in crops and threaten human health through the food chain. Long-term exposure is linked to kidney damage, osteoporosis, and even cancer. Protecting soil health and food safety has therefore become an urgent global challenge. In a new study published in Agricultural ...

Much excitement has built in recent years on the new class of incretin drugs that include glucagon-like-peptide-1 inhibitor (single agonists such as semaglutide) and also dual glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide (GIP) and GLP-1 receptor agonists (dual agonists such tirzepatide). Billions of dollars is now being poured into research to develop new anti-obesity medications that exhibit stronger effects while minimising side-effect profiles. But the excitement is not just limited to existing mono- and dual-agonists. In a session at this year’s Annual Meeting of the European Association for the Study of Diabetes ...

HERSHEY, Pa. — Approximately 7 million children in the United States between the ages of three and 17 have been diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), according to the Centers For Disease Control and Prevention. Up to 50% of children with ADHD also have severe problems with impulsive aggression and persistent irritability, according to James Waxmonsky, professor of psychiatry and University Chair in Child Psychiatry at the Penn State College of Medicine. These children can experience intense and extended emotional ...

Adults with both Down Syndrome and congenital heart defects, also known as congenital heart disease (CHD), are showing remarkable resilience despite facing significant medical challenges, according to a new MUSC study in Pediatric Cardiology. The study found that adults ages 18 to 45 with both conditions are just as likely to work, volunteer and experience the same quality of life as those with Down Syndrome alone.  The study was conducted through the Pediatric Heart Network, a consortium of leading children’s hospitals that includes ...

In 2022, after Elon Musk bought what’s now X, the company laid off 80% of its content moderation team and made Community Notes the platform’s main form of fact-checking. Previously a pilot program at Twitter, Community Notes lets users propose attaching a comment to a specific post — usually to add context or correct an inaccurate fact. If other users with diverse views vote that the comment is useful, as measured by X’s algorithm, then the note is appended to the post. Other social media platforms, including Meta and YouTube, have since followed.  A University of Washington-led study of X found that posts with Community Notes attached were less prone ...

TUCSON, Ariz. — The University of Arizona and the University of New Mexico received a seven-year, $43.6 million federal grant to fund a broad range of research programs aimed at improving the health of people living in Arizona and New Mexico, while also training a new generation of scientists and staff.  The Clinical and Translational Science Award from the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences will fund the new Southwest Center for Advancing Clinical and Translational Innovation, or SW CACTI. The National Institutes of Health CTSA consortium includes 61 of the leading academic research centers in the country. ...

Richmond Hill, Canada, 19 September 2025 - For nearly half a century, the conflict between Türkiye and the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) has not only killed tens of thousands of people but also caused deforestation, pollution, and land degradation in the region. The recent call by the incarcerated PKK leader Abdullah Öcalan for the group to disarm and dissolve offers a rare prospect for peace and order.  A new publication by the United Nations University Institute for Water, Environment ...

Ningbo / Qingdao, 18 September 2025 — A new computational study reveals that polyethylene furanoate (PEF) — a bio-based polyester — has markedly stronger resistance to hydrogen permeation than commonly used polyamide 6 (PA6) and polyethylene (PE). The work, published in AI & Materials, uses density functional theory (DFT), revised force-field molecular dynamics (MD), Grand Canonical Monte Carlo (GCMC), and nudged elastic band (NEB) calculations to quantify the crystallographic origins of PEF’s superior barrier performance, pointing ...

Pregnant women rely on a balanced diet and supplements to deliver proper nutrients to their babies, to ensure they grow healthfully. Such nutrients contribute to fueling development and providing cellular building blocks that lead to healthy brains, bones, organs, and immune systems. While this kind of nutritional preparation helps during pregnancy, EMBL scientists found that metabolism – the way cells break down food into energy –  during embryonic development does more than just provide energy and cellular building blocks for proper embryonic development. Metabolism has a surprising signalling element. And by modulating metabolism in a tailored fashion, they could ...

Scientists have uncovered how the plant hormone auxin helps roots bend and downwards towards gravity – a process called gravitropism - even after encountering obstacles in soil.  Experts from the University of Nottingham’s School of Biosciences and Shanghai Jiao Tang University (SJTU), identified how auxin activates a specific gene, which strengthens cell walls on the lower side of the root. This reinforcement prevents growth below while allowing cells above to expand, making the root bend downward. The findings have been published today in Science Advances. Root ...

A new study from Duke University School of Medicine is challenging long-standing views on blood sugar regulation — and pointing to a surprising new ally in the fight against type 2 diabetes. Published Sept. 19 in Science Advances, the research reveals that pancreatic alpha cells, once thought to only produce glucagon — a hormone that raises blood sugar to maintain energy when fasting or exercising — also generate GLP-1, a powerful hormone that boosts insulin and helps regulate glucose. GLP-1 is the same hormone mimicked by ...

Graphic of electron properties around lithium hydride    A new trick for modeling molecules with quantum accuracy takes a step toward revealing the equation at the center of a popular simulation approach, which is used in fundamental chemistry and materials science studies.   The effort to understand materials and chemical reactions eats up roughly a third of national lab supercomputer time in the U.S. The gold standard for accuracy is the quantum many-body problem, which can tell you what's happening at the level of individual electrons. This is the key to chemical ...

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — When German physicist Wilhelm Röntgen discovered X-rays in the late 1800s while experimenting with cathode ray tubes, it was a breakthrough that transformed science and medicine. So much so that the basic concept remains in use today. But a team of researchers at Sandia National Laboratories believes they’ve found a better way, harnessing different metals and the colors of light they emit. “It’s called colorized hyperspectral X-ray imaging with multi-metal targets, or CHXI MMT for short,” said project lead Edward Jimenez, an optical engineer. Jimenez has been working with materials scientist Noelle Collins and electronics ...

Woods Hole, Mass. – Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) researchers have shown large sharks can spend hours deep in the oceans' mesopelagic zone, which lies 200 to 1,000 meters (650 to 3,300 feet) below the surface. This region is home to more biomass than any other layer of the ocean, but most of its inhabitants are too tiny to serve as meals for large predators, so why are they spending so much time there? A new study published in Marine Ecology Progress Series highlights the important roles of mid-sized predators, such as bigscale pomfret, linking the upper and lower layers of the ocean foodweb. ...

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — While acute myocardial infarction — commonly referred to as a heart attack — remains a leading cause of death in the United States, deaths have decreased significantly over the past two decades in part due to improved treatment methods, according to Charleen Hsuan, associate professor of health policy and administration at Penn State. However, not all patients may receive the recommended treatment. According to a new study, led by Hsuan, Hispanic and non-Hispanic Black patients in Florida who experienced a ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) — a severe ...

Preclinical study provides first direct evidence linking colorectal cancer metastasis to the glucose-fructose blend found in sugar-sweetened beverages Metastasis is the leading cause of death among patients with colorectal cancer The combination of glucose and fructose, found in most sodas and fruit juices, activates the SORD enzyme, fueling cancer cell migration and metastasis Study suggests cutting back on sugary drinks could help slow cancer progression in patients with colorectal cancer and points to possible new treatment targets HOUSTON, SEPTEMBER 19, 2025 – A ...

Hertz Fellow Vivek Nair thinks that traditional cybersecurity approaches don’t cut it when it comes to the world of rapidly advancing AI systems. His startup company, Multifactor, aims to provide new security solutions that are designed from the ground up to protect consumers and businesses from AI-related data breaches.  Nair has now won funds from the Hertz Foundation via the Harold Newman and David Galas Entrepreneurial Initiative, which will be used to support the development of multiple new cybersecurity products aimed at both companies and individual ...

Inhaling Cannabis May Greatly Increase Your Risk of Getting Asthma If you’re looking to reduce your chances of developing lung disease, say experts at UC San Francisco, then it may be smart to avoid inhaling cannabis. A new study in the Journal of General Internal Medicine found that inhaling marijuana every day is associated with a 44% increased chance of developing asthma. It also increased the odds of developing chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) by 27%.  The COPD risk may be understated, since the disease takes decades to develop, and the researchers ...

Researchers have focussed on building a QA system which can answer query of user from building code and reduces the laborious traditional way of manual querying. One possible solution to build a robust QA system is to utilise the power of Retrieval Augmented Generation (RAG). Researchers have explored the potential of several retrieval methods and efficiency of Low Rank Adaptation (LoRA) to fine-tune Large Language Models (LLMs). Retrievers and LLMs are core component of a RAG system, and their performance affects ...

Many hopes rested on so-called tissue engineering: With the help of stem cells, skin and other organs could be grown, thereby enabling better wound healing and better transplants. Although some of this is already a reality, the level expected around 20 years ago has not yet been achieved because the stem cells do not always bind to the required host material as they should in theory. An international research team led by chemist Professor Shikha Dhiman from Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz (JGU) has now found the reason for this: "Whether an interaction ...

Two projects at the University of California, Davis, that use artificial intelligence to design and engineer proteins for industrial and health applications have been funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF).  The grants are part of a $32 million investment in AI and protein engineering announced Aug. 7 by the NSF Directorate for Technology, Innovation and Partnerships (NSF TIP). Both teams are affiliated with the UC Davis Innovation Institute for Food and Health in collaboration with industry partners. Total funding to UC Davis will be about $1 million over three years.  The two grants are among five announced by NSF that aim to ...

The University of Texas at Arlington will bring together experts and innovators at the fifth annual Texas Health Informatics Alliance Conference, exploring how artificial intelligence is shaping the future of health care. The conference will take place Friday, Sept. 26, in the Bluebonnet Ballroom of the University Center. This year’s theme, ALL IN: Practice of Trustworthy and Responsible AI Operations in Health Care, reflects its focus on ethical, effective and patient-centered AI applications. “Our conference has become a must-attend event for anyone in health informatics,” said Marion Ball, Presidential ...

Seismology is undergoing significant change with the rise of Distributed Acoustic Sensing (DAS), a fast-growing technology that leverages existing fiber-optic cables—including those used for the Internet—into ultra-dense seismic networks with meter-scale sensor spacing. DAS provides a scalable and cost-effective way to monitor earthquakes from local to global scales, but it also poses a pressing challenge: the massive volume of data produced outpaces human capacity to analyze. For example, ...

About The Study: The findings of this cohort study suggest that poverty and social disadvantage, characterized by low educational level and household income among both women and men, were associated with lower fecundability (defined as the per-month probability of conceiving) and increased risks of subfertility (defined as a time to pregnancy or the duration of actively pursuing pregnancy of more than 12 months or use of assisted reproductive technology) but not with miscarriage risk. Further studies are needed to identify the underlying and explanatory mechanisms associated with fertility outcomes and the potential for novel public health strategies for couples desiring pregnancy. Corresponding ...

About The Study: The findings of this study highlight the critical role of improving measles, mumps, rubella (MMR) vaccination coverage to prevent large-scale measles outbreaks, particularly in regions with declining immunization rates. Corresponding Author: To contact the corresponding author, Kaiming Bi, Ph.D., email kaiming.bi@uth.tmc.edu. To access the embargoed study: Visit our For The Media website at this link https://media.jamanetwork.com/ (doi: 10.1001/jamahealthforum.2025.3992) Editor’s Note: Please see the article for additional information, including other authors, author contributions and ...