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Medicine & Health

Updates every hour. Last Updated: 2-Jun-2026 23:16 ET (3-Jun-2026 03:16 GMT/UTC)

Researchers sharpen understanding of how the body responds to energy demands from exercise

Virginia Tech
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Virginia Tech researchers identified a precise cell signaling step that enables the AMPK enzyme — the body’s master energy sensor — to respond to the increased energy demands of exercise, a finding that could inform future treatments for diabetes.

Journal: Science Advances
Funder: Red Gates Foundation, American College of Sports Medicine

The Lancet: Single daily pill shows promise as replacement for complex, multi-tablet HIV treatment regimens

The Lancet
Peer-Reviewed Publication

A new, daily oral tablet that combines two current HIV treatment medications, bictegravir and lenacapavir (BIC/LEN), may be able to effectively replace more complicated HIV treatment regimens used by people living with HIV who are long-term survivors, according to the results of a new phase 3 clinical trial published in The Lancet.

Journal: The Lancet
Funder: Gilead Sciences
Meeting: Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections (CROI) 2026

Keeping neurons on the right path

University of California - Riverside
Peer-Reviewed Publication

New research from UC Riverside shows how RNA regulation helps neurons migrate to the right place in the developing brain — a key to building the cerebral cortex and understanding neurodevelopmental disorders.

Journal: Cell Reports

Saving sea lions with soft robotics

University of Nevada, Las Vegas
Peer-Reviewed Publication

UNLV mechanical engineering lab creates 3D-printed synthetic sea lion pelvis, enhancing veterinary capabilities and countering ongoing beaching crisis.

Journal: Scientific Reports

Benzodiazepine use declines across the U.S., led by reductions in older adults

Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Benzodiazepine treatment declined among U.S. adults between 2018 and 2022, with the steepest drop among adults ages 56 and older, according to a new study by researchers at the Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health and Columbia University Irving Medical Center. Despite the overall decrease, co-prescribing with other central nervous system (CNS) depressants — including opioids — remains common, particularly among adults in poor health or experiencing serious psychological distress.

Journal: Journal of Clinical Psychiatry

Applied Microbiology International launches new report on improving soil health in the UK

Applied Microbiology International
Reports and Proceedings

Scientists have warned that the world’s tiniest organisms need to be taken into account in efforts to improve soil health. AMI has launched a new policy report setting out key recommendations to support the long-term protection, restoration and sustainable management of soils across the UK’s four nations.

Scientists sharpen genetic maps to help pinpoint DNA changes that influence human health traits and disease risk

Jackson Laboratory
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Scientists have identified how specific genetic changes function in cells to influence disease risk and other human health traits. By probing regions of DNA previously linked to disease, the work has created high resolution maps of DNA variant activity, helping pinpoint the exact changes that shape blood pressure, cholesterol levels, blood sugar and other complex human traits.

Journal: Nature
Funder: Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Novo Nordisk Foundation

AI, monkey brains, and the virtue of small thinking

Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Assistant Professor Benjamin Cowley and colleagues have developed an AI version of the visual cortex that’s about 500 times smaller than state-of-the-art computer vision models. Their research brings us closer to understanding how the brain processes sight and may set the stage for AI models of mental health conditions.

Journal: Nature
Funder: Starr Foundation, Simons Foundation, BRAIN Initiative

Firearm mortality and equitable access to trauma care in Chicago

JAMA Network
Peer-Reviewed Publication

About The Study: Strategic placement of a trauma center in an area with high rates of violent injury and limited trauma care access was associated with significantly reduced mortality within the service area. These findings should inform trauma system planning to address geographic disparities in trauma care access, particularly in communities with high rates of penetrating trauma.

Journal: JAMA Surgery