Biotech/medical – Lifeboat News: The Blog

Mar 6
2026

Group Vs Individual Grief-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Older Adults

In a randomized clinical trial including older bereaved adults, group-format grief-focused cognitive behavioral therapy (ProlongedGriefDisorder) was noninferior to individual therapy for reducing symptoms of prolonged grief, posttraumatic stress disorder, depression, and anxiety at 6 months.

Both formats produced large reductions in symptom burden, suggesting either delivery method is effective for older adults seeking treatment after loss.

This study examines whether cognitive behavioral therapy delivered in a group format is noninferior to cognitive behavioral therapy delivered in an individual format in reducing prolonged grief disorder symptoms in older adults.

Mar 6
2026

Listening to the body’s quietest, yet most dynamic movements with a wearable sensor

The human body continuously generates a rich spectrum of vibrations—often without us ever noticing. Everyday unconscious activities such as breathing, speaking, and swallowing all produce subtle yet distinct mechanical signals. Although these faint vibrations carry valuable information about physiological state, they have long been difficult to capture accurately using conventional wearable devices.

Recently, a research team led by Professor Kilwon Cho of the Department of Chemical Engineering at Pohang University of Science and Technology (POSTECH), along with Ph.D. candidate Kang Hyuk Cho and postdoctoral researcher Dr. Jeng-Hun Lee, has developed a wearable vibration sensor capable of precisely detecting these subtle yet highly dynamic signals, without requiring any external power source. This breakthrough opens new possibilities for wearable medical and health care technologies and demonstrates strong potential as a core sensing platform for next-generation smart devices. The work was published in the inaugural issue of Nature Sensors.

Sounds produced by the human body span a wide range of frequencies. Physiological signals such as breathing, swallowing, and speech typically occur at lower frequencies, while sounds such as coughing or groaning emerge at relatively higher frequencies. Accurately capturing these signals requires precise detection of the minute vibrations transmitted to the skin surface across a broad frequency spectrum.

Mar 6
2026

Polymers that crawl like worms: How materials can develop direction without being told where to go

Researchers at the University of Vienna have uncovered a surprising phenomenon: polymer chains with segments that simply fluctuate at different intensities can spontaneously develop directional, persistent motion when densely packed—even though nothing in the system points them in any particular direction. This “entropic tug of war,” driven by fundamental physical constraints, could help explain how DNA organizes and moves inside living cells and may lead to new materials. The study is published in Physical Review X.

“Think of a chain threaded through a dense forest of trees, which represent obstacles posed by the other chains in the system. One end of the chain is being shaken much more vigorously than the other,” explains lead author Jan Smrek from the Faculty of Physics at the University of Vienna. “You might expect it to just wiggle randomly in place. But we found that because the chain has to find its way by going in-between the trees, the difference in shaking intensity creates an imbalance that actually propels the entire chain forward through the forest.”

This analogy can be conferred to a polymer, a large molecule consisting of many units linked together in a long chain, such as DNA. The Viennese research team—Adam Höfler, Iurii Chubak, Christos Likos and Jan Smrek—used computer simulations and analytical theory to show that this directed motion arises purely from topological constraints. When polymer chains are entangled and cannot pass through each other, segments with stronger fluctuations generate larger entropic forces. This creates an imbalance that pushes the entire chain forward along its own contour, with the stronger fluctuating part acting as the “head of the snake” moving through the forest of obstacles.

Mar 6
2026

Making mini-lightning in a block of plastic

Lightning formation and the conditions triggering it have long been shrouded in a cloud of mystery, but new research led by Penn State scientists is lifting the fog. Using mathematical calculations, the researchers have discovered that lightning-like discharge doesn’t require a storm cloud—it could be made inside everyday material on a lab bench. The study is published in the journal Physical Review Letters.

“We applied the same exact models that we use for lightning research but shrank down the scale to slightly larger than a deck of cards,” said Victor Pasko, professor of electrical engineering at Penn State and lead author on the paper. “We calculated that when supplied with a high-powered electron source, lightning can be triggered in everyday insulating materials like glass, acrylic and quartz.”

The team used detailed numerical simulations to show that lightning-like radiation bursts could form inside small solid blocks, under conditions achievable in the lab. The work, if proven experimentally, could have implications for more compact and potentially safer X-ray sources in doctors’ offices and security checkpoints, the researchers said. The primary benefit, however, would be to enable the study of a powerful natural phenomenon on a lab bench.

Mar 5
2026

Alzheimer’s may start with inflammation in the skin, lungs or gut

Alzheimer’s disease has long been viewed as something that originates inside the brain, but an in-depth genomic analysis suggests it may initially triggered by inflammation in distant organs like the skin, lungs or gut – perhaps decades before a person’s memory starts to decline.

This radical reframing of the disease may explain why Alzheimer’s drugs have been disappointing to date, because they act too late in the disease process. Instead, we may need to redirect our efforts towards addressing inflammation in other parts of the body.

“As neuroscientists, we tend to be very brain-centric, but this study really shines a spotlight on the fact that the brain is not disconnected from the rest of the body, and when changes happen in the rest of the body, it affects how the brain functions,” says Donna Wilcock at Indiana University, who wasn’t involved in the research. “Even though Alzheimer’s is a brain disease, we need to think about the whole body when we think about how it begins.”

Image: Alamy

The Alzheimer’s field is being turned on its head as mounting evidence points to the disease beginning outside the brain many years before symptoms start. This may mean we have to totally rethink how we approach preventing and treating the condition.

By Alice Klein

Continue reading “Alzheimer’s may start with inflammation in the skin, lungs or gut” | >

Mar 5
2026

In older adults, AML often follows clonal hematopoiesis mutations

However, the pathogenic contribution of PTPN11 mutations has been unclear.

John C. Byrd & team reveal PTPN11 mutations in AML can be early events in the clonal evolution of disease development and are associated with variably differentiated myeloid cells, based on human and murine studies:

The figure shows lower survival of the Npm1cA/Ptpn11E76K mouse model.

¹Medical Scientist Training Program, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA.

²Department of Internal Medicine, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, Ohio, USA.

³Division of Experimental Hematology and Cancer Biology, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital, Cincinnati, Ohio, USA.

Continue reading “In older adults, AML often follows clonal hematopoiesis mutations” | >

Mar 5
2026

MARK2 serves as a key regulator of host antiviral immunity through GEF-H1 phosphorylation

Key cytoplasmic sensors, including the RNA sensors RIG-I and melanoma differentiation-associated gene 5 (MDA5), along with the DNA sensor cyclic GMP-AMP synthase (cGAS), specifically recognize viral RNA and DNA.⁶^,⁷ Upon nucleic acid detection, PRR adaptors (TRIF, MAVS, and STING) recruit kinases such as TBK1 and IKKε to initiate downstream signaling cascades.⁸^,⁹^,¹⁰ This process leads to the phosphorylation and activation of the transcription factor interferon regulatory factor 3 (IRF3), which subsequently translocates from the cytoplasm to the nucleus to trigger type I interferon (IFN-I; IFN-α/β) expression.¹¹^,¹²^,¹³ The secreted IFNs then activate pathways that culminate in the expression of interferon-stimulated genes (ISGs), establishing an antiviral state in host cells.¹³

Guanine nucleotide exchange factor H1 (GEF-H1), encoded by Arhgef2, is a microtubule-associated protein (MAP) and plays a pivotal role in diverse cellular processes, including epithelial barrier permeability, cell cycle regulation, cell motility, polarization, and leukemic cell differentiation.¹⁴ Beyond its structural role, GEF-H1 contributes to inflammatory cytokine production, intracellular mycobacterial elimination, and macrophage-mediated antiviral defenses.¹⁵^,¹⁶ Activation of GEF-H1 enhances RLR signaling through its interaction with TBK1, thereby promoting IFN-β induction in macrophages via a microtubule-dependent mechanism.¹⁵ Its regulation also extends beyond microtubule binding and involves phosphorylation-dependent mechanisms and dynamic protein-protein interactions.¹⁷^,¹⁸^,¹⁹^,²⁰^,²¹^,²²^,²³ The RhoA-specific GEF activity of GEF-H1 is inhibited by its phosphorylation at Ser886 and Ser959, which is mediated by microtubule affinity-regulating kinase 2 (MARK2).²⁴ Notably, here, MARK2 was also screened out to interact with GEF-H1 by immunoprecipitation and mass spectrometry (IP-MS) assays in A549 cells. MARK2 belongs to the evolutionarily conserved KIN1/PAR-1/MARK family of serine/threonine kinases, which are crucial for microtubule stability and cellular polarity from yeast to humans.²⁵ All mammalian MARK family members (MARK1–4) share a conserved architecture, featuring an N-terminal catalytic domain, a central ubiquitin-associated domain, and a C-terminal kinase-associated domain.²⁶^,²⁷ These kinases regulate microtubule dynamics by phosphorylating key MAPs, including TAU, MAP2, and MAP4.²⁸^,²⁹ However, their roles in viral infections remain poorly understood.³⁰

Given the importance of phosphorylation-dependent signaling in antiviral responses, we hypothesized that MARK2 may modulate innate immunity through interacting with GEF-H1. To test this, we employed a combination of in vitro and in vivo approaches, including MS-based interactome profiling, reporter gene assays, gene editing via CRISPR-Cas9, in vitro kinase assays, viral infection models in primary macrophages and cell lines, and mouse models of RNA and DNA virus infection. By elucidating the functional significance of the MARK2-GEF-H1-TBK1 signaling axis, this study aims to reveal a previously uncharacterized layer of innate immune regulation and identify potential targets for broad-spectrum antiviral strategies.

Mar 5
2026

Overcoming ovarian cancer’s resistance to immunotherapy

Cells in our immune system are best known for providing security against external invaders such as bacteria and viruses. These immune cells also guard against internal threats, including cancerous tumors. Different forms of cancer cells and tumors have their own tricks for avoiding detection by the body’s security system altogether or otherwise sabotaging any attempts to muster an immune response. In the case of the most common and difficult-to-treat form of ovarian cancer, this ability to suppress the immune system also makes the cancer resistant to treatments known as immunotherapies that seek to supercharge immune cells.

“Even if you boost the capability of immune cells, a treatment will have limited success if the cells struggle to recognize and react to the tumor,” said David Schlaepfer, Ph.D., a professor in the department of OBGYN and Reproductive Sciences at the University of California San Diego Moores Cancer Center.

Mar 5
2026

Cannabis Extracts Significantly Reduce Myofascial Pain

“These findings indicate the clinical potential of cannabinoids as a promising therapeutic alternative for managing TMD…” [ https://www.labroots.com/trending/cannabis-sciences/30277/ca…ial-pain-2](https://www.labroots.com/trending/cannabis-sciences/30277/ca…ial-pain-2)

Temporomandibular Disorder (TMD) consists of a myriad of conditions causing jaw pain and dysfunction and the muscles controlling jaw movement. One type of pain is myofascial pain, which is associated with deep, aching muscle pain around the jaw, often resulting in later neck and shoulder pain. Traditional treatments include self-care like eating soft foods and over-the-counter anti-inflammatories. But how can Delta-9-Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and Cannabidiol (CBD) be used to relieve myofascial pain in patients suffering from TMD?

Now, a team of researchers from Brazil might be one step closer to better understanding the role of cannabis in treating myofascial pain. For their study, which was recently published in the journal Clinics, the team investigated how a combination of THC and CBD drug therapy could be used to not only decrease myofascial pain while also enabling TMD patients to regain jaw function. Over a 90-day period, 20 adults suffering from myofascial pain due to TMD were given gradual increases of THC and CBD starting from 2mg and eventually 10mg near the end of the trial.

The goal of the study was to ascertain the role of THC and CBD on treating myofascial pain and improving jaw movement and function. In the end, the researchers found that not only did the participants report an approximate 90 percent reduction in pain, but they were able to open their jaws approximately 4 mm wider than before the THC/CBD treatment.

Mar 5
2026

Beyond amyloid plaques: AI reveals hidden chemical changes across the Alzheimer’s brain

Scientists at Rice University have produced the first full, dye-free molecular atlas of an Alzheimer’s brain. By combining laser-based imaging with machine learning, they uncovered chemical changes that spread unevenly across the brain and extend beyond amyloid plaques. Key memory regions showed major shifts in cholesterol and energy-related molecules. The findings hint that Alzheimer’s is a whole-brain metabolic disruption—not just a protein problem.