When people cannot hear their own voices, their tongue movements become less precise when they speak, according to a study from the University of Oklahoma. This finding, the first direct evidence of its kind, could help guide therapies designed to restore speech control in people with hearing loss or those whose tongues have been affected by cancer.

Led by Y. Xu and Professor Ping-Chih Ho at the University of Lausanne (Unil), the international research team identifies a previously unknown proteasome–heme signaling axis that connects mitochondrial failure to irreversible immune dysfunction.

AI researchers at Mass General Brigham have two new papers showing that the thymus, an immune system organ long assumed irrelevant after puberty, may actually be a key driver of longevity, disease risk, and response to cancer treatment. In their first study, they used AI to analyze CT scans from more than 27,000 adults, and found inviiduals with high "thymic health" scores had a ~50% lower risk of death, 63% lower cardiovascular mortality, and 36% lower lung cancer risk compared to those with low scores. In a second study of 1,200 cancer patients treated with immunotherapy, the researchers found those with stronger thymic health had a 37% lower risk of cancer progression and a 44% lower risk of death. Together, the findings point to a major role of the thymus in adult health, and its potential as a target for screening and personalized medicine.