Lifeboat Foundation

Substance use disorders are a group of conditions involving the recurrent use of substances, like drugs or alcohol, despite harmful consequences to physical, mental, or social health. These disorders are characterized by an inability to control usage, intense cravings, and continued use despite negative impacts on relationships, work, or health.

While it is well-known that substance use disorders have negative consequences for the individual, research has recently begun to focus on the effects of these disorders on others, known as the “harm to others” framework. A key area of these studies is the impact on children growing up with parents affected by substance use disorders. These children have been found to have lower academic achievement than their peers whose parents do not have such disorders, as well as an increased risk of various mental health and developmental issues.

Study author Hélio Manhica and his colleagues aimed to explore the mental health risks for children of parents with substance use disorders in greater detail. They also sought to determine whether these risks differ between males and females and if certain periods in childhood or adolescence are particularly critical in relation to exposure to parental substance use disorder (i.e., periods that influence the overall risk of developing psychiatric disorders).

Summary: Researchers found that exercise promotes neuron growth through both biochemical signals (myokines) and physical stretching. Muscle cells, when contracted, release myokines that boost neuron growth and maturity. Furthermore, neurons that were “exercised” through mechanical movement grew just as much as those exposed to myokines.

These findings reveal the dual role of exercise in stimulating nerves, offering hope for developing therapies targeting nerve repair and neurodegenerative diseases. This research opens new avenues in treating nerve damage through “exercise as medicine.”

How is California’s rapidly shrinking Salton Sea contributing to dust pollution in the Golden State? This is what a recent study published in Geographies hopes to address as a team of researchers investigated how much dust pollution is occurring from Salton’s receding shoreline, which has been occurring due to water needs transitioning from the Colorado River to San Diego. This study holds the potential to help researchers better understand water management strategies and how to curtail potential environmental catastrophes from them.

“This research was a direct response to a request from the community, which wanted to be involved in impactful research questions to understand shoreline reduction,” said Dr. Ryan Sinclair, MPH, who is an associate professor of environmental microbiology at Loma Linda University School of Public Health and lead author of the study. “The community wants to be able to live next to a Salton Sea that they’re proud of.”

For the study, the researchers analyzed balloon and satellite images obtained between 2002 and 2021 and estimated the average rate of shoreline loss the Salton Sea experienced during that period. They estimated the shoreline loss averaged 12.53 meters/year between 2002 and 2017 and more than tripled to 38.44 meters/year between 2017 to 2020. They also provided predictions regarding its continued retreat, estimating that between 2030 and 2041 the shoreline is estimated to retreat 22 meters in total. They caution this retreat will contribute to increased dust pollution as a result of the continued shoreline retreat.

Macrophages are associated with many human diseases but are challenging to study in vivo. Here, Ginhoux and colleagues discuss how iMacs — macrophages generated from induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells — can enable disease modelling, including through the use of patient-derived iPS cells and 3D organoid co-culture systems. Ultimately, these iMac-based approaches can improve our understanding of macrophage biology in both health and disease.

A team of EU scientists is developing a new advanced camera that uses photonics to reveal what the eye cannot see. This innovative system is being developed to transform various industries, including vertical farming. It will allow farmers growing crops like salads, herbs, and microgreens to detect plant diseases early, monitor crop health with precision, and optimise harvest times — boosting yields by up to 20%.

A new European consortium funded under the Photonics Partnership is developing a new imaging platform that ensures everything from crops to factory products is of the highest quality by detecting things humans simply cannot.

Called ‘HyperImage’, the project aims to revolutionise quality assurance and operational efficiency across different sectors. This high-tech imaging system uses AI machine learning algorithms to identify objects for more precise decision-making.

Adolescents see a greater remission of type 2 diabetes compared to adults.

What

Young people with severe obesity who underwent weight-loss surgery at age 19 or younger continued to see sustained weight loss and resolution of common obesity-related comorbidities 10 years later, according to results from a large clinical study funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

Deep sleep could be key to forestalling slow declines in brain health that may one day lead to Alzheimer’s disease, the most common form of dementia.

In their 2023 study of 62 older, cognitively healthy adults, researchers from the University of California (UC) Berkeley, Stanford University, and UC Irvine in the US found individuals with brain changes associated with Alzheimer’s performed better on memory function tests as they got more deep sleep.

This was irrespective of education and physical activity, two factors along with social connection known to contribute to cognitive resilience in older age.

Researchers from MIT’s Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (CSAIL), the University of California at Berkeley, and Aarhus University have taken an intriguing step forward by fabricating “PortaChrome,” a portable light system and design tool that can change the color and textures…

The portable light system and design tool “PortaChrome” uses UV and RGB LEDs to activate photochromic dye, reprogramming everyday objects like shirts. The MIT CSAIL researchers’ software can help users turn items into multicolor displays of fashion designs and health data.

Health Innovation For Prevention And Precision At Scale — Dr. Päivi Sillanaukee, MD, Ph.D. — Special Envoy, Health & Wellbeing, Ministry of Social Affairs and Health Finland.

Dr. Päivi Sillanaukee, MD, Ph.D. is Special Envoy for Health and Wellbeing, Ministry of Social Affairs and Health Finland (https://stm.fi/en/rdi-growth-programm…).

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