Strange “chimeric” RNA once thought to be the product of cancer is actually an important controller of women’s health, including influencing their susceptibility to infectious disease and autoimmune disorders, new research suggests. 

The United States still leads China in the quality and commercial reach of its biomedical science but is losing the race to translate scientific discoveries into cures. New analyses from the Cure Innovation Index, released today ahead of Cure's session on U.S.-China biomedical competitiveness at the BIO International Convention in San Diego, find that without immediate renewed investment and policy changes, the U.S. scientific edge will not hold. “America’s challenge is no longer discovery alone. The emerging battleground is translation, the speed and efficiency with which scientific breakthroughs move from the laboratory into development, commercialization, and patient impact," said Seema Kumar, CEO of Cure, the premier healthcare innovation ecosystem headquartered in New York City. If the United States wants to stay ahead, the answer isn't to out-publish China. It's to fix the translational bottlenecks with renewed funding, especially for early translational work, modernized clinical trial infrastructure, and stronger bridges between academic research and industry.

Insilico Medicine ("Insilico", 3696.HK), a clinical-stage generative artificial intelligence (AI)-driven drug discovery company, and SK Biopharmaceuticals, a Korean-based company leads the way in biotech innovation with groundbreaking drug research, development, and commercialization worldwide, announced a research and development collaboration at the BIO 2026 International Convention to discover AI-enabled innovative drug candidates in the neuroimmune area of the central nervous system (CNS).

A team of researchers has developed a new type of imaging sensor that uses both light and sound to create detailed pictures of biological tissues. This marks the first successful use of an array of over 40 microscopic, polymer-based "microrings" to capture these types of images. It can track oxygen levels, blood flow, and how dense blood vessels are. Therefore, it is much more effective at spotting the early signs of cancer.

Paneth cell metaplasia (PCM), long viewed as a consequence of chronic inflammation in ulcerative colitis, may also help protect and repair the intestine, according to researchers at Science Tokyo. The study found that inflammation increases IL-22 signaling, which promotes PCM and the production of REG3A, a protein that helps heal the intestinal lining. The findings suggest PCM may be a protective response but should be monitored because persistent PCM could increase cancer risk.