This cross-sectional study in two independent middle-aged and aged cohorts investigates whether psychological characteristics associated with varying dementia risk aggregate into psychological profiles and relate to aging brain health.
An unplugged electric instrument may function, but it sounds much better when it is connected to an amplifier. Similarly, toxins and other small molecules at low concentrations in the environment or human body may emit quiet signals that are undetectable without specialized lab technology.
Now, thanks to a “cool trick” in biochemistry used to adapt a sensing platform already being deployed by Northwestern scientists to measure toxins in drinking water, researchers can detect and even measure chemicals at low enough concentrations to have use outside the lab. By attaching circuitry akin to a volume knob to “turn up” weak signals, the team has opened the door for the system to be applied to disease detection and monitoring in the human body for nucleic acids like DNA and RNA, as well as bacteria such as E. coli.
The results, which describe a system that is 10 times more sensitive than previous cell-free sensors built by the team, are published in the journal Nature Chemical Biology.
A research team developed electrokinetic mining (EKM), an eco-friendly method for extracting rare earth elements. EKM reduces environmental harm, lowers resource use, and achieved over 95% recovery in industrial tests, marking a breakthrough in sustainable mining.
On-adsorption rare earth deposits (IADs) are the primary source of heavy rare earth elements (HREE), meeting over 90% of global demand. However, the widely used ammonium-salt-based in-situ mining method has caused significant environmental damage.
To promote sustainable rare earth element (REE) extraction, Professors Jianxi Zhu and Hongping He from the Guangzhou Institute of Geochemistry at the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) have developed an environmentally friendly and efficient electrokinetic mining (EKM) technology.
New research challenges the ease of implanting false memories, highlighting flaws in the influential “Lost in the Mall” study.
By reexamining the data from a previous study, researchers found that many supposed false memories might actually be based on real experiences, casting doubt on the use of such studies in legal contexts.
Reevaluating the “Lost in the Mall” Study.
Scientists at Penn State have discovered a method to induce ferroelectric properties in non-ferroelectric materials by layering them with ferroelectric materials, a phenomenon termed proximity ferroelectricity.
This breakthrough offers a novel approach to creating ferroelectric materials without altering their chemical composition, preserving their intrinsic properties, and potentially revolutionizing data storage, wireless communication, and the development of next-generation electronic devices.
New ferroelectric materials without chemical alterations.
According to Meta, memory layers may be the answer to LLM hallucinations as they don’t require huge compute resources at inference time.
Introduction: Hyperthermia is an established adjunct in multimodal cancer treatments, with mechanisms including cell death, immune modulation, and vascular changes. Traditional hyperthermia applications are resource-intensive and often associated with patient morbidity, limiting their clinical accessibility. Gold nanorods (GNRs) offer a precise, minimally invasive alternative by leveraging near-infrared (NIR) light to deliver targeted hyperthermia therapy (THT). THT induces controlled tumor heating, promoting immunogenic cell death (ICD) and modulating the tumor microenvironment (TME) to enhance immune engagement. This study explores the synergistic potential of GNR-mediated THT with immunotherapies in immunogenically ‘cold’ tumors to achieve durable anti-tumor immunity.
Methods: GNRs from Sona Nanotech Inc.™ were intratumorally injected and activated using NIR light to induce mild hyperthermia (42–48°C) for 5 minutes. Tumor responses were analyzed for cell death pathways and immune modulation. The immunogenic effects of THT were assessed alone and in combination with intratumoral interleukin-2 (i.t. IL-2) or systemic PD-1 immune checkpoint blockade. Immune cell infiltration, gene expression changes, and tumor growth kinetics were evaluated.
Results: THT reduced tumor burden through cell death mechanisms, including upregulated ICD marked by calreticulin exposure within 48 hours. By 48 hours, CD45+ immune cell levels were increased, including increased levels of immunosuppressive M2 macrophages. While THT led to innate immune cell stimulations highlighted by gene expression upregulation in the STING cGAS pathway and enhanced M1 and dendritic cell levels, tumor regrowth was observed within six days post-treatment. To enhance THT’s immunogenic effects, the therapy was combined with intratumoral interleukin-2 (i.t. IL-2) or systemic PD-1 immune checkpoint blockade. Sequential administration of i.t. IL-2 post-THT induced robust CD8+ T-cell infiltration and led to sustained tumor regression in both treated and distant tumors, accompanied by the emergence of memory T cells. However, IL-2-induced immunosuppressive T-reg populations were also sustained to tumor endpoint suggesting that therapy could be further enhanced.
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They found that when people with aphantasia try to conjure an image in their mind’s eye, the primary visual cortex – the part of the brain that processes picture-like visual information – is activated, but any images that are produced remain unconscious to the individual.
In 1956, a small group of scientists gathered for the Dartmouth Summer Research Project on Artificial Intelligence, which was the birth of this field of research.
To celebrate the anniversary, more than 100 researchers and scholars again met at Dartmouth for AI@50, a conference that not only honored the past and assessed present accomplishments, but also helped seed ideas for future artificial intelligence research.
The initial meeting was organized by John McCarthy, then a mathematics professor at the College. In his proposal, he stated that the conference was “to proceed on the basis of the conjecture that every aspect of learning or any other feature of intelligence can in principle be so precisely described that a machine can be made to simulate it.”
A new biodegradable electrode stimulates brain repair by activating neural precursor cells, dissolving naturally after a week. This breakthrough could transform treatments for neurological disorders like stroke.
Summary: Researchers have developed a flexible, biodegradable electrode capable of stimulating neural precursor cells (NPCs) in the brain, offering a safer and more precise alternative for neural repair. The electrode dissolves naturally after seven days, eliminating the need for surgical removal while promoting tissue regeneration.
Made from FDA-approved materials, the device successfully increased NPC activity in preclinical models without causing significant inflammation or damage. This innovation could significantly expand treatment options for neurological disorders, which are a leading cause of disability worldwide.
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