Life sciences: genetics, neuroscience, ecology and molecular biology.
A change in the CDC42 gene was linked to a previously unrecognized inflammatory condition. Experiments showed that the change activates pyrin, while testing found that an interleukin-1 blocker was therapeutically effective for this condition.
A greenhouse study found that Neoseiulus californicus predatory mites established on pepper plants and reduced populations of both broad mites and two-spotted spider mites. Longer studies are needed to determine the best timing for additional releases.
An AI system was tested to grade the ripeness of oil palm fresh fruit bunches from camera images. It runs fast enough for real-time use and gives immediate ripeness categories linked to harvesting decisions. The approach also aims to provide maturity information to support harvest planning and mill capacity management.
This narrative review discusses whether ketamine could be a candidate therapy for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). It focuses on proposed mechanisms related to sigma-1 receptors, mitochondria, protein handling, inflammation, and neuroplasticity, but it does not present new clinical trial results in people with ALS.
A new systematic review synthesizes research from 2018 to 2026 on fungal, oomycete, nematode, and viral threats to forest health. It reports that climate change and global trade are shifting where pathogens can spread, while improved DNA-based surveillance tools are still not fully translated into integrated forest management. The review also flags gaps, including limited viral disease research and weak coverage of tropical forest systems.
A retrospective study of 53 infants with Chiari II–associated hydrocephalus found that combining endoscopic third ventriculostomy with choroid plexus cauterization helped many avoid long-term shunt surgery. Success rates were higher in older infants, and complications still occurred, with meningitis the most common.
Early blockage of NMDA receptors in male rats led to long-lasting changes in inhibitory interneurons in the visual cortex, including fewer parvalbumin-positive cells. When the rats later lived in enriched environments, parvalbumin cell counts rose and several plasticity-related protein markers increased, while NMDA receptor NR1 levels did not recover.
Fall armyworm is a major crop pest, and insecticide use is increasingly constrained by resistance and side effects. This review synthesizes evidence that endophytic fungi—fungi that live inside plants—can colonize plant tissues and reduce fall armyworm performance. It also highlights limited field testing and a lack of data on effects on beneficial insects.
Irradiating contaminated peanuts with gamma rays or an electron beam reduced aflatoxin B1 and microbial contamination. But at higher doses—especially 10 kGy—the treated peanuts showed signs of lipid oxidation and color changes, suggesting a tradeoff between safety and quality.
A new review in Animals examines two major bottlenecks in poultry production: egg quality drops before incubation and the routine culling of male chicks after hatch. It finds that lab tests can be accurate under controlled conditions, but wider use is limited by performance across batches and practical safety and scale issues. The authors propose an end-to-end, connected workflow to help bridge the gap from lab to farms.
A vaccine journal study reports that giving lambs antibodies by mouth against an Haemonchus contortus antigen reduced worm development and egg production after experimental infection. The treated animals also showed lower signs of inflammation in the gut.
A study in mice and human cells finds that ER stress linked to unfolded proteins can trigger beta cell death through a pathway involving JNK and p53. Inhibiting JNK in living animals, and inhibiting both JNK and p53 in human cells, improved beta cell survival.
Mediterranean dryland crops face cycles of drought and then sudden rain. In a year-long field experiment, researchers found that the biggest bursts of nitrogen pollution in the form of nitrous oxide and nitric oxide followed rewetting, especially when plants had been stressed by drought. Soil texture changed how much inorganic nitrogen built up, but it did not lead to proportionally larger gas spikes.
A new study in mice tests what happens when fibroadipogenic progenitors—a cell type linked to both healing and degeneration—are depleted before injury. The approach reduced muscle scarring in both a rotator cuff tear model and a muscle tissue loss model, but only the rotator cuff tear model showed less fat buildup and better shoulder function.
A team engineered a bioactive wound dressing by attaching an enzyme to clinically relevant gauze. In a murine infection model using Acinetobacter baumannii, the enzyme disrupted biofilm structure, improved immune cell access, and accelerated wound healing without directly killing the bacteria.
