Comment

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa 11 hours ago

The researchers then examined the underlying mechanisms driving these changes. They found that air pollution had triggered significant changes in the regulation of DNA in brown fat cells.

This included modifications in DNA methylation patterns and changes in how accessible certain genes were for being turned on or off—a process known as chromatin remodeling. These epigenetic changes affect how cells function by regulating gene activity without altering the genetic code itself.

Two enzymes were identified as main drivers of this process: HDAC9 and KDM2B. These enzymes are involved in modifying histones, the proteins around which DNA is wrapped. They were found to bind to specific regions of the DNA in brown fat cells of the mice exposed to PM2.5, leading to a reduction in key chemical tags, or methyl groups, that normally promote gene activity.

When these enzymes were experimentally suppressed, brown fat function improved, whereas increasing their activity led to further declines in metabolism.
The study shows that long-term exposure to fine air pollution can impair metabolic health by disrupting the normal function of brown fat. This occurs through complex changes in gene regulation controlled by epigenetic mechanisms.

Rengasamy Palanivel et al, Air pollution modulates brown adipose tissue function through epigenetic regulation by HDAC9 and KDM2B, JCI Insight (2025). DOI: 10.1172/jci.insight.187023

Part 2

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa 12 hours ago

Study suggests air pollution can contribute to obesity and diabetes

Long-term exposure to fine air pollution can impair metabolic health by disrupting the normal function of brown fat in mice. A study co-led by the University of Zurich shows that this occurs through complex changes in gene regulation driven by epigenetic mechanisms. The results demonstrate how environmental pollutants contribute to the development of insulin resistance and metabolic diseases.

There is growing evidence that air pollution is not just harmful to our lungs and heart, but also plays a significant role in the development of metabolic disorders like insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes.

For their investigation, the researchers exposed laboratory mice to either filtered air or concentrated PM2.5 for six hours a day, five days a week, over a period of 24 weeks. This setup was designed to closely mimic chronic urban exposure in humans.
Particular attention was paid to brown adipose tissue, a special type of fat that helps the body generate heat and burn calories, and therefore plays a key role in energy balance and glucose metabolism. After the exposure period of about five months, the mice that had inhaled PM2.5 showed signs of disrupted metabolism, including impaired insulin sensitivity.

Further examination revealed that the function of brown fat had been significantly altered. In particular, they found that the expression of important genes in brown adipose tissue which regulate its ability to produce heat, process lipids and handle oxidative stress were disturbed. These changes were accompanied by increased fat accumulation and signs of tissue damage and fibrosis within the tissue.

Part 1

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa 12 hours ago

For cancer patients, this discovery suggests simple changes, like eating more foods rich in OA (such as olive oil, avocados and nuts) and cutting back on PA (found in processed foods, palm oil and fatty meats), could improve the effectiveness of cancer treatments. The study also points to novel strategies, like combining dietary changes with specific drugs to further boost the immune system.

Yanmei Zhang et al, Oleic acid restores the impaired antitumor immunity of γδ-T cells induced by palmitic acid, Signal Transduction and Targeted Therapy (2025). DOI: 10.1038/s41392-025-02295-8

Part 2

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa 12 hours ago

Certain dietary fatty acids can supercharge cancer-fighting immune cells

A research team has discovered that certain dietary fatty acids can supercharge the human immune system's ability to fight cancer. The team found that a healthy fatty acid found in olive oil and nuts, called oleic acid (OA), enhances the power of immune γδ-T cells, specialized cells known for their cancer-fighting properties.

Conversely, they found that another fatty acid, called palmitic acid (PA), commonly found in palm oil and fatty meats, diminishes the ability of these immune cells to attack tumors.

Their study, published in the journal Signal Transduction and Targeted Therapy, offers an innovative approach using dietary OA supplementation to strengthen the antitumor immunity of γδ-T cells.

Dietary fatty acids are essential for health, helping with growth and body functions. They may also play a role in cancer prevention and treatment, but understanding how they affect cancer is challenging because of the complexity of people's diets and the lack of detailed studies.
Recently, scientists have learned that fatty acids can influence the immune system, especially in how it fights cancer. Specialized immune cells, called γδ-T cells, are particularly good at attacking tumors. These cells, once activated, have helped some lung and liver cancer patients live longer.
However, this therapy is not effective for all patients, partly because the variation of metabolic status, such as fatty acid metabolism, can influence its efficacy in the patients.

The research team identified a correlation between PA and OA levels and the efficacy of cancer therapies. The research suggests that dietary fatty acid supplementation, particularly with foods rich in OA, such as olive oil and avocados, could enhance γδ-T cell immunosurveillance, leading to more effective cancer treatments.

The team also discovered that another fatty acid, called PA, can weaken these immune cells and how OA can counteract this.

The results indicate that cancer patients should avoid PA and consider OA supplementation in their diets to improve clinical outcomes of γδ-T cell-based cancer therapies.

By analyzing blood samples, the researchers confirmed that the levels of these fatty acids are linked to the outcome of cancer immunotherapy.

Part 1

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa 13 hours ago

Nanoparticle vaccine prevents multiple cancers and stops metastasis in mice

A new study by researchers demonstrates that their nanoparticle-based vaccine can effectively prevent melanoma, pancreatic and triple-negative breast cancer in mice. Not only did up to 88% of the vaccinated mice remain tumor-free (depending on the cancer), but the vaccine reduced—and in some cases completely prevented—the cancer's spread.

By engineering these nanoparticles to activate the immune system via multi-pathway activation that combines with cancer-specific antigens, they could prevent tumor growth with remarkable survival rates.

The first test paired their nanoparticle system with well-characterized melanoma peptides (called an antigen, similar to how a flu shot typically contains parts of the inactivated flu virus). The formulation activated immune cells called T cells, priming them to recognize and attack this type of cancer. Three weeks later, the mice were exposed to melanoma cells.

Eighty percent of these "super adjuvant" vaccinated mice remained tumor-free and survived until the completion of the study (250 days). In comparison, all of the mice vaccinated with traditional vaccine systems, non-nanoparticle formulations or unvaccinated mice developed tumors; none survived longer than 35 days.

The vaccine also protected against the spread of cancer to the lungs. When exposed to melanoma cells systemically, which mimics how cancer metastasizes, none of the nanoparticle-vaccinated mice developed lung tumors, while all of the other mice did.

The tumor-specific T-cell responses that the researchers are able to generate—that is really the key behind the survival benefit. 

There is really intense immune activation when you treat innate immune cells with this formulation, which triggers these cells to present antigens and prime tumor-killing T cells. This robust T-cell response is possible because of the particular nanoparticle design of the vaccine.

The researchers say that their design offers a platform approach that could be used across multiple cancer types.

"Super adjuvant" nanoparticles for platform cancer vaccination, Cell Reports Medicine (2025). DOI: 10.1016/j.xcrm.2025.102415. www.cell.com/cell-reports-medi … 2666-3791(25)00488-4

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa 13 hours ago

Schizophrenia is linked to iron and myelin deficits in the brain, neuroimaging study finds

Schizophrenia is a severe and debilitating psychiatric disorder characterized by hallucinations, disorganized speech and thought patterns, false beliefs about the world or oneself, difficulties concentrating and other symptoms impacting people's daily functioning. While schizophrenia has been the topic of numerous research studies, its biological and neural underpinnings have not yet been fully elucidated.

While some past brain imaging studies suggest that schizophrenia is associated with abnormal levels of iron and myelin in the brain, the results collected so far are conflicting. Iron is a metal known to contribute to healthy brain function, while myelin is a fatty substance that forms a sheath around nerve fibers, protecting them and supporting their conduction of electrical signals.

Researchers  recently set out to further explore the possibility that schizophrenia is linked to abnormal levels of iron and myelin in the brain. Their findings, published in Molecular Psychiatry, uncovered potential new biomarkers of schizophrenia that could improve the understanding of its underlying brain mechanisms.

Iron is essential for many neuronal processes but excess causes oxidative damage, so brain levels are kept in a delicate balance. Iron-sensitive MRI studies focusing on schizophrenia have yielded conflicting results, with both increases and decreases reported. As myelin—which increases brain signal transmission—influences iron-sensitive MRI, myelin variation could complicate interpretation.

Researchers  examined the brains of 85 individuals diagnosed with schizophrenia and 86 matching control subjects. To study the brains of the study participants, they used iron-sensitive and myelin-sensitive magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), imaging techniques that allow researchers to detect iron and myelin levels in specific regions of the brain.

The researchers' results suggested iron and myelin anomalies that affected specific regions in the brains of individuals diagnosed with schizophrenia, including the caudate, putamen, and globus pallidus. Their findings are aligned with those of some earlier studies and could help to paint a clearer picture of disease pathophysiology.

They found that patients with schizophrenia had lower magnetic susceptibility, higher mean diffusivity, and lower magnetic susceptibility anisotropy, suggesting that both iron and myelin brain levels are lower in schizophrenia.

This was most significant in regions rich in oligodendrocytes. As oligodendrocytes utilize iron to synthesize myelin, this links oligodendrocyte dysfunction to schizophrenia, highlighting the mechanism underlying this as an important research area.

Luke J. Vano et al, The role of low subcortical iron, white matter myelin, and oligodendrocytes in schizophrenia: a quantitative susceptibility mapping and diffusion tensor imaging study, Molecular Psychiatry (2025). DOI: 10.1038/s41380-025-03195-7.

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa yesterday

Novel blood test for chronic fatigue achieves 96% accuracy

Scientists  have developed a high accuracy blood test to diagnose chronic fatigue syndrome, also known as myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME/CFS).

The debilitating long-term illness affects millions worldwide but is poorly understood and has long lacked reliable diagnostic tools.

With 96% accuracy, the new test offers new hope for those living with the condition—which is often misunderstood and misdiagnosed. It is hoped that the breakthrough could pave the way for a similar blood test to diagnose long COVID.

Chronic fatigue syndrome is not a genetic disease you're born with. That's why using EpiSwitch 'epigenetic' markers—which can change during a person's life, unlike a fixed genetic code—was key to reaching this high level of accuracy.

The team discovered a unique pattern that appears consistently in people with ME/CFS that is not seen in healthy people.

The researchers also found signs of immune system and inflammation pathways involved in the disease, which may help guide future treatments and identify patients more likely to respond to specific therapies.

'Development and validation of blood-based diagnostic biomarkers for Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS) using EpiSwitch® 3-dimensional genomic regulatory immuno-genetic profiling, Journal of Translational Medicine (2025). translational-medicine.biomedc … 6/s12967-025-07203-w

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa yesterday

New type of diabetes discovered in babies

Advanced DNA sequencing technologies and a new model of stem cell research have enabled an international team to discover a new type of diabetes in babies.

The researchers established that mutations in the TMEM167A gene are responsible for a rare form of neonatal diabetes.

Some babies develop diabetes before the age of six months. In over 85% of cases, this is due to a genetic mutation in their DNA. Research  found that in six children with additional neurological disorders such as epilepsy and microcephaly identified alterations in a single gene: TMEM167A.

To understand its role, the researchers  used stem cells differentiated into pancreatic beta cells and gene-editing techniques (CRISPR). They found that when the TMEM167A gene is altered, insulin-producing cells can no longer fulfill their role. They then activate stress mechanisms that lead to their death.

This discovery shows that the TMEM167A gene is essential for the proper functioning of insulin-producing beta cells, but also for neurons, whereas it seems dispensable for other cell types. These results contribute to a better understanding of the crucial steps involved in insulin production and could shed light on research into other forms of diabetes, a disease which today affects almost 589 million people worldwide.

Enrico Virgilio et al, Recessive TMEM167A variants cause neonatal diabetes, microcephaly and epilepsy syndrome, Journal of Clinical Investigation (2025). DOI: 10.1172/jci195756

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa yesterday

Three scientists win Nobel Prize in chemistry for the development of metal-organic frameworks

Three scientists won the Nobel Prize in chemistry this week for their development of new molecular structures that can trap vast quantities of gas inside, laying the groundwork to potentially suck greenhouse gases out of the atmosphere or harvest moisture from desert environments.

Heiner Linke, chairperson of the committee that made the award, compared the structures called metal-organic frameworks to the seemingly bottomless magical handbag carried by Hermione Granger in the "Harry Potter" series. Another example might be Mary Poppins' enchanted carpet bag. These containers look small from the outside but are able to hold surprisingly large quantities within.

The committee said Susumu Kitagawa, Richard Robson and Omar M. Yaghi were honored for "groundbreaking discoveries" that "may contribute to solving some of humankind's greatest challenges," from pollution to water scarcity.

The chemists worked separately but added to each other's breakthroughs over decades, beginning with Robson's work in the 1980s.

The scientists were able to devise stable atomic structures that preserved holes of specific sizes that allowed gas or liquid to flow in and out. The holes can be customized to match the size of specific molecules that scientists or engineers want to hold in place, such as water, carbon dioxide or methane.

That level of control is quite rare in chemistry.

A relatively small amount of the structure—which combines metal nodes and organic rods, somewhat like the interchangeable building pieces in Tinker Toys—creates many organized holes and a huge amount of surface area inside.

Why the work matters

Today researchers around the world are exploring possibilities that include using the frameworks to remove greenhouse gases from the atmosphere and pollution from industrial sites. Another possibility is to use them to harvest moisture from desert air, perhaps to one day provide clean drinking water in arid environments.

Scientists are also investigating using the structures for targeted drug delivery. The idea is to load them with medicine that may be slowly released inside the body. It could be a better way to deliver low doses continually.

The research "could be really, really valuable" in many industries.

Nobel committee announcement:

The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences has decided to award the Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2025 to

Susumu Kitagawa, Kyoto University, Japan

Richard Robson, University of Melbourne, Australia

Omar M. Yaghi, University of California, Berkeley, U.S.

"for the development of metal-organic frameworks"

Their molecular architecture contains rooms for chemistry

The Nobel Prize laureates in chemistry 2025 have created molecular constructions with large spaces through which gases and other chemicals can flow. These constructions, metal-organic frameworks, can be used to harvest water from desert air, capture carbon dioxide, store toxic gases or catalyze chemical reactions.

https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/chemistry/2025/press-release/

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on Wednesday

Many newborn baby deaths linked to preventable or treatable factors

A new study has identified the most critical risk factors linked to neonatal deaths worldwide, providing comprehensive evidence to help guide global efforts to save newborn lives.

Researchers reviewed more than 60 studies published in the past 35 years, covering more than 50 risk factors for neonatal mortality—defined as a baby dying in the first 28 days of life.

The paper, "Risk factors for neonatal mortality: an umbrella review of systematic reviews and meta-analyses," is published in eClinicalMedicine.

It found strong evidence of conditions and factors that significantly increase the likelihood of neonatal mortality, covering maternal health and lifestyle factors (obesity, prenatal opioid exposure, anemia, bleeding disorders), socioeconomic and environmental factors (maternal age, low occupational status, arsenic exposure), neonatal factors (preterm birth, delayed breastfeeding, low birthweight) and protective factors (antenatal care, health facility delivery).

Babies born with low birthweight face more than 15 times the risk of dying compared to those born at a healthy weight, babies born preterm face up to seven times higher risk, delaying breastfeeding by more than 24 hours after birth increases the risk by 60% to 70%, while mothers who receive antenatal care can reduce the risk of losing their baby by up to 85%.

These are staggering numbers, but they are also clear, actionable areas where change could save countless lives, the researchers say.

These are preventable and treatable issues—if we get this right, the impact will be profound across the globe.

Bereket Kefale et al, Risk factors for neonatal mortality: an umbrella review of systematic reviews and meta-analyses, eClinicalMedicine (2025). DOI: 10.1016/j.eclinm.2025.103525

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