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Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on June 20, 2026 at 1:39pm

Hibernation-like cooling after stroke may reduce brain damage

Our body loves the state of homeostasis, where everything is in perfect equilibrium, from temperature to pH levels to fluid balance. As soon as the body's core temperature drops below 95°F (35°C) and stays there for a long time, the heart, nervous system and other organs start to function poorly, which makes hypothermia extremely dangerous when not dealt with immediately. It is a medical emergency that can result in loss of consciousness or death.

Researchers have now found a way to turn this emergency into a tool to protect the body from the devastating effects of another health emergency—a stroke. A recent study investigated whether drugs like chlorpromazine and promethazine (C+P) can be used to mimic the chilling effects of hypothermia to protect the brain from the aftereffects of stroke.

C+P treatment reduced brain damage and improved neurological function in a mouse stroke model. In rhesus monkeys, the drugs lowered body temperature, which suppressed the metabolic rate and protected the brain from stroke-related injury.

The researchers then moved to a small Phase I clinical trial with 32 stroke patients. The treatment was safe at a 100 mg dose and successfully lowered body temperature while slowing the body's energy use, an effect that the researchers suggest helps protect the brain after a stroke.

Shuaili Xu et al, The translational potential of drug-induced hypothermia in acute ischemic stroke, Science Translational Medicine (2026). DOI: 10.1126/scitranslmed.ady7847

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on June 20, 2026 at 1:36pm

For babies hospitalized with bronchiolitis, lying on stomach shows no clear benefit over lying on back

Acute viral bronchiolitis ranks among the top reasons infants land in the hospital .
Placing a baby on their stomach in the prone position can help them breathe more comfortably. With the chest facing down and the back facing up, this position takes pressure off the lungs, allowing for better oxygen exchange and helping fluid drain more effectively. In a randomized clinical trial, named PROPOSITIS, researchers investigated whether the prone sleeping position could help very young babies with a lung infection called bronchiolitis, not to be confused with bronchitis.
They followed 451 infants ages 6 months or younger who were hospitalized in France with bronchiolitis and were struggling to breathe. Some babies were placed in the prone position, lying on their stomachs, while others remained in the supine position, lying on their backs, as we typically do when sleeping.

Babies who were placed on their stomachs did not do much better than those who remained on their backs. About 15% of those on their stomachs needed stronger breathing support, compared with about 21% of those on their backs. Prone positioning was better, but the improvement was not statistically significant.

There was another challenge, too. Many babies became fussy or uncomfortable when placed on their stomachs, making it difficult for them to stay in that position for long.

Florent Baudin et al, Prone Positioning in Infants With Acute Bronchiolitis, JAMA (2026). DOI: 10.1001/jama.2026.11078

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on June 20, 2026 at 1:32pm

Scientists discover 'hyperparasite' in Malaysia Borneo jungle

Scientists have discovered a new species of parasitic fungus in Borneo's jungles that preys on "zombie fungi" known to infect insects before subjecting them to a gruesome death.

It was dubbed a "hyperparasite" because it "effectively parasitizes the primary pathogen.

The fungus belongs to the genus Pleurocordyceps and acts as a specialized hyperparasite.

The new species targets ants already infected by Ophiocordyceps, or "zombie fungus," which manipulates the infected insect's nervous system and makes it behave erratically before killing it and bursting from its carcass.

Rather than manipulating the insect's nervous system itself, Pleurocordyceps infiltrates and feeds directly on the thriving Ophiocordyceps tissue inside the host.

Named after its unique, distinctly horn-shaped structure, Pleurocordyceps cornusynnemata was discovered after scientists studied a dead ant collected from the Danum Valley, a remote area in southern Sabah.

MUHAMMAD SHAHBAZ et al, Taxonomy and phylogeny of Pleurocordyceps (Polycephalomycetaceae, Hypocreales) associated with ants and cicadas from Malaysia, including a new species and new records, Phytotaxa (2026). DOI: 10.11646/phytotaxa.750.4.1

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on June 19, 2026 at 12:49pm

How the brain builds a sentence

Researchers have tracked the electrical activity of individual brain cells during conversation in real time, capturing how sentences are built before a single word is spoken. By observing these neurons in a brain region called the frontotemporal cortex, scientists have discovered that individual neurons act as specialized linguistic building blocks. “We used to think language was this diffuse, whole-network phenomenon,” says neurosurgeon and study co-author Ziv Williams. “But it turns out you have specific neurons that only care if a word is a noun, or only care if a phrase is ending.”

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-026-10691-5?utm_source=Live+...

https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-026-01922-w?utm_source=Live+...

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on June 19, 2026 at 12:30pm

One vaccine changed everything: England's youngest women stopped dying from this cancer

The HPV vaccine for cervical cancer has reduced the risk of dying from the disease before age 30 in England to almost zero, the first study of its kind showed this week.
Between 2020 and 2024, no women in the country ages 20 to 24 died from cervical cancer, according to the study published in The Lancet medical journal.

It is the first time not a single death has been recorded in the age group, with the vaccine estimated to have saved the lives of nearly 200 young women.

In addition to the complete absence of deaths for 2020–24, there was also an 80% reduction in the same age group in the four preceding years, between 2015 and 2019, the study, which examined nationwide mortality data, found.

Thanks to HPV (human papillomavirus) vaccination and cervical screening, a future where almost nobody gets cervical cancer is now firmly in sight.

Nationwide mortality data from England show that cervical cancer deaths among women aged 20–24 fell to zero between 2020–2024, with an estimated ~200 deaths averted since HPV vaccination began. Vaccination at ages 12–13 was associated with near-zero risk of death from cervical cancer before age 30. However, current HPV vaccine uptake (76%–86% by age 15) remains below the 90% target.

Peter Sasieni et al, Cervical cancer mortality trends following HPV vaccination in England, 2001–24: an analysis of population-based mortality data, The Lancet (2026). DOI: 10.1016/s0140-6736(26)00918-9

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on June 19, 2026 at 12:21pm

Microplastics may worsen fatty liver disease, new study suggests

Microplastics—minuscule pieces of plastic broken down from larger plastic waste—are a growing concern for human health, especially for the liver. A new study published in Science Advances demonstrates that a common type of microplastic is particularly harmful to the liver under high-fat dietary conditions.
The study, conducted in mice, found that blood markers of liver injury were more than twice as high in animals exposed to microplastics while consuming a high-fat diet, compared with animals exposed to the same particles while consuming a standard diet. The study focused on the most common type of plastic, polyethylene, which is found in materials like plastic bags and milk jugs.
The study also identified a gene regulator known as PPAR-alpha as playing a key role in the liver's response to microplastic exposure. PPAR-alpha, a protein inside the cells that controls how the body breaks down and uses fat for energy, influences a gene called Anxa2, which plays a role in tissue repair.

These findings suggest that microplastics may affect some of the liver's natural defense and repair mechanisms.
Although the research was conducted in mice, and additional research is needed to determine whether the same effects occur in humans, the study establishes a framework for understanding how microplastics may contribute to liver disease.
In mice, polyethylene microplastics combined with a high-fat, MASH-inducing diet more than doubled blood markers of liver injury compared with microplastics plus standard diet. Spatial transcriptomics localized “hot spots” of liver damage and inflammation. PPAR-α–dependent regulation of Anxa2 was implicated, suggesting disruption of hepatic defense and repair pathways.

Woncheol Jung et al, Spatial transcriptome mapping identifies Ppara-Anxa2 cross-talk in microplastic-induced hepatotoxicity, Science Advances (2026). DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.aec8681

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Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on June 19, 2026 at 12:17pm

Warming climate reduces milk quality and quantity

Heat stress on dairy cows affects more than just the quantity of milk produced—warming temperatures also reduce the fat and protein content of the milk, new research finds.
Heat stress in dairy cows reduces both milk yield and fat/protein content, with composition losses beginning at lower temperatures than yield declines. A 10-point increase in temperature-humidity index cuts yield by 1.2% but revenue by 2.8%, implying economic losses comparable to yield effects. Little evidence of biological heat adaptation was detected across cows or regions.

Jeisson Prieto et al, Milk composition responses amplify economic damages from heat stress, Environmental Research Letters (2026). DOI: 10.1088/1748-9326/ae74e6

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on June 19, 2026 at 12:14pm

Shell too snug? Hermit crabs have a fix

Hermit crabs depend on empty snail shells for protection, and the right size shell isn't always available.

For decades, biologists have known that hermit crabs forced to live in shells that are too small slow their growth. What wasn't clear was how they did it. New research suggests the answer isn't simply that the crabs eat less. Instead, they appear to regulate growth by changing how efficiently they use the food they consume.

Hermit crabs constrained to undersized shells slow growth not by reducing food intake but by lowering nutrient assimilation efficiency and increasing fecal output. This indicates structural constraints can modulate internal energy processing, showing growth depends on both nutrient intake and conversion to body mass rather than consumption alone.

Caitlin E. Ball et al, Small shells, slower growth: Experimental evidence consistent with nutrient elimination in Pagurus longicarpus, Invertebrate Biology (2025). DOI: 10.71161/ivb.144.4.2025.00022

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on June 19, 2026 at 12:09pm

Orangutans eat medicinal plants in patterns that suggest self-medication

Long-term observations of Bornean orangutans show they selectively consume plant species rich in antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, and wound-healing compounds, often in recurring combinations and sequences atypical of their usual diet. These patterns are consistent with self-medication rather than purely nutritional feeding and parallel medicinal plant use by local Indigenous communities.
Orangutans seek out plants with antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory and wound-healing properties, new research shows. Based on 20 years of observations of orangutans in Indonesian Borneo, scientists assessed how often the animals ate plants with known medicinal benefits. The findings, published in Scientific Reports, suggest orangutans eat combinations of plants in specific sequences—consistent with "self-medication" seen in other species.
It's not clear how they learn to do this, but the researchers think it may involve instinct and/or behaviour passed down over many generations.
What makes the findings interesting is that some plant species appeared together in the orangutan diet far more often than we would expect by chance. Several of these plants are known to contain compounds linked to antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory or wound-healing effects.

Importantly, many of these plants are not major parts of the orangutan diet overall, suggesting they may be eaten for specific benefits rather than as everyday food sources.
Chimpanzees are known to engage in "self-medication," for example by eating plants that reduce internal parasite infections. Similar behaviours have also been observed in bonobos, gibbons and gorillas.
Some of the plants eaten by the orangutans are also used by local Indigenous people for medicinal purposes.

G. Allen et al, Investigating medicinal resource combinations in the Bornean orangutan diet, Scientific Reports (2026). DOI: 10.1038/s41598-026-52614-4

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on June 19, 2026 at 10:05am

How do flocking birds and schools of fish move? New research offers crystal-clear answer
Flocking birds and schools of fish are a familiar sight. While previous research has uncovered the broad dynamics driving these movements, their underlying intricacies remain a mystery. Now a study by a team of  mathematicians offers new insights into these phenomena. It reveals that flocks and schools behave in ways similar to a soft crystalline material, with individual birds and fish serving as "atoms" that are evenly spaced in a lattice-like formation.
The findings, reported in the journal Physical Review Fluids, offer detailed insights into the hydrodynamic and aerodynamic interactions crucial in aerospace and automotive engineering, robotics and energy harvesting.
Lines of birds or fish behave like an elastic material with regularly spaced individuals held together by flexible, or spring-like, bonds—akin to soft crystalline substances in which atoms are arranged in an orderly, repeating pattern.
The research team proposed a mathematical model to explain these movements—one akin to those of soft crystalline materials, or soft crystals. These ordered solid materials can change their properties in response to stimuli, such as temperature or physical force, which makes their atomic organization fragile. The researchers subsequently saw a connection between crystalline organization and how birds or fish move together while adjusting their movements and formation in response to air or water flows, predators or objects such as rocks or buildings.

Crystalline organization is inherently fragile, as positions are susceptible to deformations and instabilities. In similar ways, birds and fish must sense and respond quickly to other forces in order to maintain long columnar formations. So while soft crystals, flocks of birds, and schools of fish are fragile in their makeup, such fragility may also be advantageous as it can be responsive to its surroundings.

Christiana Mavroyiakoumou et al, Modeling flying formations as flow-mediated matter, Physical Review Fluids (2026). DOI: 10.1103/tp8s-76vr

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