Amy B. Heimberger find therapeutic benefit in adding the STING agonist 8,803 to radiation in preclinical models of glioma. The combination reprogramed the glioma tumor microenvironment, and 8,803 induced the opening of the blood-brain barrier.
3Department of Radiology.
4Department of Neurology, and.
5Department of Radiation Oncology, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, Illinois, USA.
Tumor–brain crosstalk worsens lung cancer.
It is not clear how the brain senses and responds to tumors in peripheral organs, although tumors are innervated by different branches of the peripheral nervous system and increased tumor innervation is associated with poor cancer outcomes.
Authors in this study identify an immuno-suppressive tumor microenvironment established by a tumor–brain axis that promotes oncogenesis.
The researchers demonstrate that lung adenocarcinoma induces innervation and functional engagement of vagal sensory neurons. Mechanistically, the vagal sensory nerves transmit signals from lung tumors to brainstem nuclei, driving elevated sympathetic efferent activity in the tumor microenvironment. This, in turn, suppresses β2 adrenergic signalling in alveolar macrophage and anti-tumor immunity.
Disruption of this sensory-to-sympathetic pathway significantly inhibited lung tumor growth by enhancing immune responses against cancer. sciencenewshighlights sciencemissionn https://sciencemission.com/Tumour%E2%80%93brain-crosstalk
Mouse models demonstrate that vagal sensory neurons transmit signals from lung adenocarcinoma to the brain, increasing sympathetic efferent activity in the tumour microenvironment and thereby creating a immunologically permissive environment for tumour growth.
Scientists have long looked to the human brain as the ultimate blueprint for computing, seeking to build “neuromorphic” systems that process information with the same efficiency and flexibility as our own neurons. However, replicating the brain’s complex ability to both excite and inhibit signals—essentially “talking” and “listening” simultaneously—has proven difficult with standard hardware.
The problem? Perovskites are often too chaotic. Tiny charged particles called ions tend to zip around inside the material too quickly, making the device’s behavior hard to control. Additionally, the “bottlenecks” (barriers) where the electricity enters the device often cause lopsided performance, preventing the smooth, bidirectional communication required for advanced brain-like tasks.
Li et al. report feedback neurons based on perovskite memristors with a nickel single-atom modified reduced graphene oxide cathode. The device successfully implements an unsupervised learning network with over 50% clustering accuracy and cooperative learning for solving NP-hard combinatorial optimisation problem.
Yue et al. find the subtype-specific regulation of Nmnat2 transcription by Raf-MEK-ERK in DRG neurons, while cortical and spinal neurons use a MEK-independent mechanism. This context-dependent axon survival paradigm helps explain differential MEKi vulnerability of PNS and CNS neurons, indicating Nmnat2 as a potential target to counteract MEKi-induced neuropathy.
Several mental health mobile apps with millions of downloads on Google Play contain security vulnerabilities that could expose users’ sensitive medical information.
In one of the apps, security researchers discovered more than 85 medium-and high-severity vulnerabilities that could be exploited to compromise users’ therapy data and privacy.
Some of the products are AI companions designed to help people suffering from clinical depression, multiple forms of anxiety, panic attacks, stress, and bipolar disorder.
From the article:
The thematic analysis revealed that synesthete dreams systematically differed from control dreams in four distinct categories. People with synesthesia were more likely to describe dreams involving digital life. This theme included references to scrolling, screens, computer accounts, and routine technology use.
Synesthetes also reported more dreams centered on interpersonal regret. This theme featured scenarios involving guilt, moral conflict, missed opportunities, and urgent apologies. The scientists note that this aligns with the heightened emotional reactivity and memory retention frequently observed in people with synesthesia.
The third prevalent theme in synesthete dreams was diverse worlds. This category included shifting environments, cultural settings, and complex or dystopian landscapes. Because synesthetes tend to score high in openness to experience, they may possess a more flexible cognitive style that supports the construction of richly detailed and varied dream settings.
Finally, the violent conflict theme appeared more often in the dreams of synesthetes. This theme involved fictional threats, horror imagery, and words associated with intense physical clashes. The researchers suggest that individuals with enhanced memory abilities, a common trait in synesthesia, might be more likely to incorporate intense waking experiences into their dreams.
Do waking perceptual traits influence our sleep? New research indicates that people with synesthesia have unique dream patterns, providing evidence that our individual brain structures actively shape our imagination long after we fall asleep.
Cryptococcus neoformans is one of four fungi classified as “critical priority” on the WHO’s Fungal Pathogens Priority List, which was published in October 2022 following decades of research and calls for fungal pathogens to be classified alongside their bacterial and viral counterparts.
The fungus infects people through inhalation of spores or yeast cells in the environment, first colonizing the lungs and can then spread to the brain. In 2020, an estimated 112,000 deaths were associated globally to fungal meningitis caused by C. neoformans.
Increasing evidence shows that co-infection of Mycobacterium tuberculosis, the causative agent of tuberculosis, together with C. neoformans, is a grave public health concern, increasing the risk of death significantly compared to fungal infection alone.
Dos Santos Correa et al. show that exposure to a stressful context promotes the acquisition of rescue behavior in mice and that the dorsal hippocampus is required for this learning. Calcium imaging reveals synchronized neuronal ensembles in the dHPC that mechanistically support successful prosocial rescues.
Periods of prolonged social isolation have long been associated with difficult emotions and, in some cases, with the emergence of psychiatric symptoms, such as depression, anxiety, and difficulties connecting with others. Some past psychology studies have suggested that chronic isolation during adolescence, the critical stage between childhood and adulthood, can disrupt the structure and functioning of a brain region known as the prefrontal cortex (PFC).
The PFC is known to play a critical role in various mental functions, including decision-making and the regulation of emotions. Disruptions to this brain region could thus explain the emotional and social difficulties experienced by many people after long periods of isolation.
Researchers at University of Electronic Science and Technology of China and other institutes recently carried out a study involving mice that investigated the potential of oxytocin (OXT), a hormone released when bonding or cuddling with others, as a therapeutic target for the mental health symptoms arising from chronic isolation. Their findings, published in Translational Psychiatry, suggest that this hormone could reverse some of the adverse effects of prolonged isolation.