A 3 months study conducted in the intensive care unit (ICU) in Japan, revealed that healthcare workers experience reduced environmental satisfaction and concentration due to lack of natural light and excessive ambient noise. When designing ICUs, architects should focus on increasing natural light and mitigating noise. These factors could help enhance healthcare worker satisfaction, productivity, and quality of patient care.

Researchers have taken a significant step toward creating a standardized language for describing the aromas of cannabis and hemp.

By fusing enzyme fragments to antibodies, researchers from Institute of Science Tokyo, Japan, developed an innovative enzyme switch “Switchbody,” which is activated when bound to its target antigen. Switchbody is based on a trap-and-release of enzyme fragment that dynamically controls enzyme activity, offering new opportunities in diagnostics, therapeutics, and precision bioprocessing.

The new SOFA-2 redefines how dysfunction in six organ systems is assessed in critically ill patients, integrating the advances in life support and diagnostics that have transformed intensive care medicine over the past three decades. Developed from the analysis of more than three million patients admitted to intensive care units across nine countries, the new model has been internationally validated and improves the accuracy of the original system. Led by the international SOFA-2 Study Group consortium, with the prominent participation of the Institut de Recerca Sant Pau, which spearheaded the methodological development and data analysis, the project marks a milestone in global scientific collaboration. It sets a new standard for the assessment of multiple organ failure worldwide.

The iMetaMed framework illustrates the integrative vision for medicine by dissolving disciplinary boundaries. Four major modules are highlighted: (1) Molecular & Computational Frontiers, represented by AlphaFold3 protein structure prediction (precision diagnostics), GeneCompass federated learning, and single-cell transcriptome integration; (2) AI-Enabled Clinical Translation, including AI-driven drug discovery, virtual cell modeling, and generative virtual staining; (3) Data Science & Infrastructure, featuring big data methodologies, dual-axis slicing, semantic dictionaries, and accelerated Biobank data extraction; and (4) Health Systems & Public Impact, encompassing telemedicine applications, open science, transparent peer review, multilingual dissemination, and diversity-oriented equity frameworks. At the core, iMetaMed envisions a seamless continuum from molecules to clinical practice, population health, and policy—transforming information abundance into actionable breakthroughs for global health.

A research paper by scientists from Liaoning Cancer Hospital & Institute, The First Affiliated Hospital of Ningbo University, and other institutions proposed a hollow mesoporous carbon (HMC) nanoparticle prepared via the sacrificial template method, featuring a porphyrin-like structure that enables efficient singlet oxygen generation and synergistic sono-immunotherapy for pancreatic cancer.

The new research paper, published on May 9 in the journal Cyborg and Bionic Systems, presented the preparation, characterization, and therapeutic application of MOF-derived HMC nanoparticles, and demonstrated their potential to enhance sono-immunotherapy efficacy by inducing tumor cell apoptosis and activating the immune

system.