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Category: biotech/medical – Page 15

GLP-1 Drugs May Have a Hidden Effect on Your Eyes, Study Finds

GLP-1 drugs such as Ozempic have transformed healthcare in recent years, dramatically altering how we treat conditions like type 2 diabetes and obesity.

But while the medications are primarily used to help lower blood sugar and reduce appetite, scientists keep finding GLP-1 effects appear to extend much further, affecting our health in ways we never expected.

Now, a new study has uncovered another unintended effect, and it shows we’re still only scratching the surface of fully understanding how GLP-1 receptor agonists impact the body.

Engineered human neurons rebuild damaged spinal cord circuits

Spinal cord injuries affect an estimated 15 to 20 million people worldwide, often causing lasting impairments in movement, sensation and independence. Such injuries can be especially devastating when they occur at the level of the neck, where damaged spinal circuits disrupt signals that control the diaphragm, the main muscle used for breathing.

Despite advances in emergency care and rehabilitation, no approved therapies exist to rebuild the neurons and connections lost after a spinal cord injury. But new research from scientists at Gladstone Institutes offers hope for a regenerative treatment in the future.

The study, published in Science Translational Medicine, shows that human stem cell-derived spinal interneurons—cells that are critical for breathing and movement— can survive after being transplanted in injured rats, connect with the animals’ own neural circuits and improve breathing-related motor function.

Building Biostasis Organizations to Last

No one can predict with any confidence how long it will be before it may be possible to repair and revive patients in biostasis. It is plausible that it will take a century. It could be decades less – especially if artificial intelligence accelerates biomedical advances – or it could be decades longer. But one century gives us something to work with. It is a long time in terms of changes in the world.

This raises an obvious question: How can a biostasis organization survive for a century or more until its patients can be returned to life?

How to Protect Your Telomeres for Healthy Aging and Longevity

Telomere shortening is associated with increased risk of disease and decreased lifespan. Various nutrients have been shown to support the length and health of telomeres in clinical and preclinical studies.

Scientifically reviewed by: Gary Gonzalez, MD, in May 2026. Written by: Richard Ross.

What Can We Learn From the Most Genetically Modified Human Alive? | Liz Parrish

In 2015, Liz Parrish flew to Colombia and let someone inject an untested gene therapy into her body 150 times. She texted her kids that she loved them before it started. When it was over, she went for nachos.

Ten years later, her telomeres are longer than when she started, and she has taken 12 gene therapies in total.

Her decade of self-experimentation has produced peer-reviewed data, a growing protocol of gene therapies, and a company training its sights on making biological aging optional. Our conversation goes over what it took to become patient zero and what gene therapy for aging looks like in practice today, among other things.

Newly-discovered protein acts as off switch for human immune cells

Mayo Clinic researchers have identified a protein that cancer cells use to shut down the body’s immune response, a discovery that could help scientists develop new treatments that make cancer immunotherapies more effective.

Published in the Journal of Clinical Investigation, the study identifies a previously unknown role for a protein called TRAILshort, which acts like an immune “off switch.” The researchers found that TRAILshort prevents T cells — the immune system’s primary cancer-fighting cells — from recognizing and destroying cancer and virus-infected cells. In preclinical models, blocking the protein restored T-cell activity and improved immune response.

The researchers also found that TRAILshort reduces the effectiveness of chimeric antigen receptor-T cell therapy (CAR-T cell therapy), one of the most advanced forms of cancer immunotherapy. Their findings suggest that therapies designed to block TRAILshort could improve CAR-T treatment and potentially benefit other immune-based cancer therapies.

Implant design helps fight ovarian cancer from the inside

Researchers have developed an implant that could deliver next-generation therapies for ovarian cancer precisely where they are needed while simultaneously monitoring how the disease responds.

The project was carried out by a team at CÚRAM, the Research Ireland Centre for Medical Devices based at the University of Galway, along with collaborators from the University of Minnesota, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and the Wyss Institute.

The research was published in the journal Device. It showed how the team developed a flexible, porous implant designed to sit inside the peritoneal cavity—the space surrounding the abdominal organs in a woman’s body where ovarian cancer predominantly occurs. The device is designed to connect to an external port through the skin so it can be replenished with therapeutic agents as often as needed without requiring further surgery.

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