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Engineered probiotic bacteria boost immune attack against pancreatic cancer

Cancer immunotherapies have transformed treatment for many cancers, but pancreatic cancer remains especially difficult to treat. One major reason is that pancreatic tumors often create a “cold” tumor microenvironment, where the tumor prevents immune cells from mounting a strong attack.

In a new study published in Science Advances, researchers at the University of Chicago report a promising new strategy to overcome this barrier using BifidoSumIL-2, an engineered bacterial strain of Bifidobacterium longum, a probiotic bacterium naturally found in the gut, to deliver an immune-stimulating therapy directly inside tumors.

The treatment suppressed pancreatic tumor growth by selectively activating cancer-fighting T cells. The effects were further enhanced when combined with chemotherapy, radiotherapy or immunotherapy. The study highlights BifidoSumIL-2 as a potentially powerful approach for improving treatment response in pancreatic cancer.

Cleveland Clinic study links gut microbe byproduct to heart arrhythmia

A Cleveland Clinic-led study shows a connection between elevated blood levels of TMAO (trimethylamine N-oxide) — a byproduct of gut bacteria digestion of nutrients found in red meat and other animal products — and a higher risk of atrial fibrillation.

The research team, led by Robert Koeth, M.D., Ph.D., analyzed blood samples from more than 5,000 people undergoing heart procedures. The researchers also conducted laboratory studies in cells to better understand how TMAO may influence the heart. They discovered that gut microbe-produced TMAO changes the heart’s electrical environment, increasing susceptibility to abnormal rhythms. Findings were published today in the Journal of Clinical Investigation.

Atrial fibrillation is the most common type of rhythm disorder that begins in your heart’s upper chambers, with at least 2.7 million Americans living with it. Symptoms include fatigue, heart palpitations, trouble breathing and dizziness. Risk factors include high blood pressure, coronary artery disease and having obesity. Medications and procedures such as an ablation, where scar tissue is created to help the electrical system work better, can lower your risk of a stroke.

Japan’s average life expectancy rises in 2025

For men, average life expectancy was 81.35 years, up 0.25 years from the previous year. For women, the figure was 87.33 years, up by 0.2 years.

The ministry said Friday it believes the increases are due to a decrease in deaths caused by cancer, heart disease and COVID-19.

Average life expectancy indicates how many years newborns in a given year are expected to live, on average.

Another iPS product approved for public insurance coverage in Japan

The Central Social Insurance Medical Council, which advises the health minister, on Wednesday approved the application of public health insurance to RiHeart, a cardiac muscle cell sheet that uses induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells, effective on Sept. 1.

It is the second case of insurance coverage approval in the country for an iPS cell-derived regenerative medicine product.

Created by introducing specific genes into the cells of blood and skin, iPS cells are versatile in that they possess the ability to grow into the cells of various tissues and organs.

Working memory rapidly updates its priorities after distractions, study finds

When humans tackle many everyday tasks, ranging from driving to completing household chores and work assignments, they rely heavily on working memory. This is the brain’s ability to temporarily store and manipulate important information that can help complete a task in the immediate future.

This temporarily stored information can be used to make decisions and plan subsequent actions, such as which supermarket aisle to visit next or where to turn while driving. While many studies have investigated working memory processes, the impact of distractions or unexpected events on these processes remains poorly understood.

Researchers at the University of Texas at Austin recently conducted a study aimed at better understanding how people respond to distractions while completing tasks. Their findings, published in Communications Psychology, suggest that working memory is highly flexible and can rapidly reprioritize the information it is temporarily holding after an interruption.

Early respiratory infections may explain half of younger siblings’ earnings gap

Younger siblings are often portrayed as reckless, scatterbrained and less put-together than their older siblings. Social science researchers have underpinned these portrayals with data, showing that younger siblings obtain, on average, slightly less education and earn slightly less in adulthood.

The explanation has often been that firstborns get more attention and quality time from parents than their younger siblings, resulting in the latter acting out. But a new study from Northwestern University suggests there may be a more immediate reason: germs.

Using Danish administrative data covering all firstborn and second-born siblings born in Denmark between 1981 and 2017, researchers found that younger siblings are two to three times more likely than older siblings to be hospitalized for a respiratory illness in the first months of life—largely because older siblings bring home viruses such as respiratory syncytial virus (RSV).

Can We Finally Reverse Aging? | Aubrey de Grey

Can an engineered enzyme repair molecular damage that was once thought permanent? Dr. Aubrey de Grey explains why CMLase may be an important proof of concept for longevity research—and what still has to be proven.

In this episode, Tim Ventura speaks with Dr. Aubrey de Grey, founder, President and Chief Science Officer of the Longevity Escape Velocity Foundation, about a striking new result from researchers at Revel Pharmaceuticals.

The researchers developed an enzyme called CMLase to target Nε-carboxymethyl-lysine, or CML is an advanced glycation end product that accumulates on long-lived proteins in tissues including the skin, arteries and lens of the eye. It has historically been considered a stable and effectively irreversible form of molecular damage.

After screening and evolving more than 500 million enzyme variants, the team created CMLase, which oxidizes CML and restores the affected amino acid to its native lysine form.

In laboratory experiments involving donated human tissue, CMLase reduced CML burden by more than 70% in aged arterial sections and more than 55% in aged skin sections. In the skin samples, post-treatment CML staining was lower than that observed in tissue from a 31-year-old donor. The researchers also demonstrated reductions in CML in human lens proteins.

This does not mean that a person has had their aging reversed.

Continue reading “Can We Finally Reverse Aging? | Aubrey de Grey” | >

The quest to keep organs alive outside the body

Another way to prolong the lifespan of an organ is to use a machine that perfuses it with nutrients, mimicking what happens inside the body. Machine perfusion devices have become more commonly used over the last decade or so and are typically used to maintain livers and kidneys for up to about 24 hours.

Researchers are now adapting this protocol for a growing list of organs, even eyeballs —a recent feat that might enable whole-eye transplants. In March, I went to visit scientists in Valencia who had developed a perfusion system for uteruses. They had used their device—which they nicknamed “Mother”—to keep a human uterus alive for a day.

It’s an exciting time for organ preservation. Keep an eye out for more coverage from MIT Technology Review in the coming weeks.

The Divergent Effects of Nicotinamide Riboside and High‐Intensity Exercise Training on Skeletal Muscle Epigenetic Aging

This study investigated the effects of nicotinamide riboside supplementation and high-intensity interval training on skeletal muscle epigenetic aging. Our findings reveal that both interventions may…

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