A team from the Institute of Neurosciences of the University of Barcelona (UBneuro) has discovered that early and sustained cognitive stimulation can help preserve brain connectivity and memory in Alzheimer’s disease, even in advanced stages of the pathology. The study, published in the journal iScience and carried out with animal models, also reveals that males respond better than females to cognitive intervention to delay the onset of the disease.

Acute necrotizing encephalopathy (ANE) is a rare but life-threatening pediatric neurologic disorder characterized by rapid progression and high mortality. Tocilizumab, an interleukin-6 receptor antagonist, combined with high-dose methylprednisolone (MP, ≥20 mg/kg/day) may improve outcomes, yet the optimal MP dosing strategy remains uncertain. Now, researchers have evaluated the comparative efficacy and safety of two high-dose MP regimens (20 mg/kg/day vs. 30 mg/kg/day), each in combination with tocilizumab for ANE. The findings suggest that higher dose of MP may yield better neurological outcomes with no increase in adverse events in children with ANE.

That eating plenty of vegetables, wholegrains and legumes is beneficial for health is well known. More surprising, however, is that people who eat in a environmentally-friendly way also display nutritional values that are better than researchers had expected. This is shown in a new study from Lund University.

Ambitious climate action to improve global air quality could save up to 1.32 million lives per year by 2040, according to a new study.

The research, led by Cardiff University, shows how developing countries rely heavily on international cooperation to see these benefits, because much of their pollution originates outside their borders.

The first-of-its-kind study analysed these cross-border pollution “exchanges” for nearly every country – 168 in total.

In rural regions of Africa, high blood pressure often goes untreated because health centres are far away and there is a shortage of health professionals. A study in Lesotho shows that, with the help of a tablet app, villagers who have received training achieve better blood pressure control in their village community compared to normal treatment in healthcare facilities. The results provide the first robust data for an approach that could significantly improve access to blood pressure treatment in underserved regions. The study was conducted by the University of Basel and the Swiss non-profit NGO SolidarMed.

Scientists at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine discovered a surprising new way the body can fight insulin resistance and diabetes – by boosting a special type of “good” immune cell in fat tissue. Announced today in Nature Communications, the preclinical findings pave the path to develop a medication to treat and prevent type 2 diabetes, potentially replacing or supplementing GLP-1 weight maintenance drugs that lose effectiveness over time.