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New waist-focused criteria suggest more than 75% of adult Americans may meet obesity guidelines than previously thought. Obesity has always been defined by a simple equation: height divided by weight, better known as body mass index (BMI). It is fast, cheap and familiar. However, according to a new study published in JAMA Network Open, it may also be missing the bigger picture. Researchers found that when obesity is defined using not just BMI, but also waist-based measurements, more than 75% of US adults could meet the criteria – nearly double the current estimate of around 40%. The finding reframes obesity…

For the first time in decades, psychiatry is experiencing a genuine scientific renaissance, driven by a deeper understanding of the brain, investment in mental healthcare, and ultimately by the need for better solutions for patients. Psychedelics, such as psilocybin and MDMA, and dissociative drugs like ketamine, have dominated headlines and generated enthusiasm for their potential to alleviate a range of conditions. While these drugs have existed in some form for decades, they are now being studied beyond recreational use, reconfirming a scientific truth: the adult brain retains an extraordinary capacity for plasticity, even long after illness onset. But as the…

Just before the pandemic took center stage in 2020, scientists at a T cell memory conference convened to discuss a less than traditional topic: nomenclature. Prior to the event, the workshop organizers sent out a survey with questions related to defining various T cell types. The answers from almost 150 respondents demonstrated a diversity in ideas of how to describe T cells.These participants shared their opinions and ideas at the nomenclature workshop. At the end of the meeting, the researchers hadn’t made any concrete resolutions, but many felt the impetus for change.As COVID-19 became a reality, many of these researchers…

As resolutions drive demand, regulators warn against fake, illegal weight-loss medicines circulating online and on social media. For many, the New Year comes with renewed determination to lose weight, eat better and feel healthier. But alongside that annual surge in motivation comes a quieter, more dangerous trend: a spike in illegal and unsafe weight-loss medicines sold online. This week, the UK’s Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) issued a public warning urging people to check that any weight-loss medicines they use are safe, legitimate and properly prescribed, especially as demand rises around New Year resolutions [1]. It is the…

Global longevity therapeutics market projected to hit US$43.72b by 2033, as supplements and antiaging solutions move from niche to mainstream. According to new figures from market research and consulting firm DataM Intelligence, the global longevity therapeutics market is shifting from polite speculation to something more commercially legible. The firm expects it to grow from US$23.24 billion in 2024 to US$43.72 billion by 2033 – a steady 7.8% annual climb that suggests longevity is becoming a consumer category rather than an after-dinner debate among geroscientists [1]. The immediate driver is not a single miracle molecule or a radical rejuvenation protocol. It…

Hopeful mouse data suggest restoring the brain’s energy balance could do what decades of research have not: push Alzheimer’s into retreat. For more than a century, treatments for Alzheimer’s disease have largely focused on slowing decline, not turning it around. But a new study from University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center is quietly challenging that assumption, offering a different way of thinking about the disease. Now, it’s seen not just as toxic buildup in the brain, but as a crisis of energy. In experiments involving mice and human brain tissue, researchers found that restoring balance to a molecule essential for cellular…

GLP-1 drugs help with weight and heart health, but a review finds they may not meaningfully lower the risk of cancers linked to obesity. For the past few years, weight loss drugs like Ozempic and Zepbound have carried a quiet hope alongside their fame. Beyond weight loss, improved blood sugar and better heart health, many wondered if these medications could also blunt the rising tide of obesity-linked cancers. It felt plausible: obesity fuels inflammation, hormones and metabolic stress, all known contributors to cancer. Reduce weight, reduce risk… or so the thinking went. A new analysis suggests the story is far…

During pregnancy, a fetus grows inside of the uterus surrounded by a liquid called the amniotic fluid. This watery world provides the developing baby with a protective barrier against physical injury. However, this liquid also provides vital nutrition to the fetus as it grows.Amniotic Fluid Composition“Amniotic fluid is a pretty complex matrix,” said Brian Scottoline, a physician scientist and neonatologist at the Oregon Health and Science University (OHSU). He added that while the majority of this fluid is water, “There are over a thousand different—upwards of 2,000—proteins that are in amniotic fluid depending on what part of gestation you’re talking…

China’s speed, scale and infrastructure are central to Insilico’s ambition to build a ‘digital Einstein’ for faster, cheaper drug discovery. Now more than a decade into its AI drug discovery journey, Insilico Medicine, is chasing an audacious goal: building an artificial intelligence (AI) system smart enough to rethink how medicines are discovered. Founder and CEO Alex Zhavoronkov calls it a “digital Einstein” for drug discovery, a system that can connect dots across biology, chemistry and data in ways humans simply cannot. Yet Zhavoronkov is quick to temper the hype. “Biotechnology is a high-risk field like a ‘molecular casino’,” he said,…

Nephrodite’s device designed to ‘free patients from the cycle of center-based dialysis’ becomes the first to receive the designation.   Medical device startup Nephrodite has received Breakthrough Device Designation from the US FDA for its implantable synthetic kidney system. The Atlanta-based company claims it is the first implantable continuous renal replacement device to receive the designation, which should accelerate its path toward first-in-human clinical studies. The Breakthrough Device program recognizes technologies that have the potential to offer more effective treatment for life-threatening or irreversibly debilitating conditions. In this case, the FDA recognized the potential of Nephrodite’s device, dubbed “Holly”, to…