Original article: "The influence of intermittent hypercapnia on cerebrospinal fluid flow and clearance in Parkinson’s disease and healthy older adults" - https://www.nature.com/articles/s41531-025-01179-6
Abstract: "A failure of the glymphatic pathway to clear brain byproducts implicated in neurodegeneration may contribute to the pathophysiology of Parkinson’s disease. The glymphatic pathway relies on vasomotion (rhythmic constriction and dilation of blood vessels) to drive cerebrospinal fluid through the interstitial space and clear waste from the brain. The current study demonstrated that intermittent hypercapnia, exposure to low levels of CO2 in ON-OFF cycles, elicited vasomotion-induced cerebrospinal fluid inflow in both healthy controls and individuals with Parkinson’s disease. The magnitude of the vasomotion-induced cerebrospinal fluid inflow in patients with Parkinson’s disease was reduced relative to healthy controls. However, intermittent hypercapnia, administered in three 10-minute sessions totaling approximately 30 minutes, increased the appearance of total α-synuclein, neurofilament light, glial fibrillary acidic protein, amyloid β<sub>1-42</sub>, amyloid β<sub>1-40</sub>, and phosphorylated tau 217 in the plasma of both healthy controls and individuals with Parkinson’s disease. This suggests that intermittent hypercapnia can be used to clear potentially toxic brain byproducts from the brain, highlighting its potential use as a disease modifying treatment."
Original article: "Association between shingles vaccination and slower biological aging: Evidence from a U.S. population-based cohort study" - https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/41556115/
Abstract: "There is growing interest in whether adult vaccines such as shingles vaccine may slow biological aging beyond preventing acute infections. Using data from the nationally representative U.S. Health and Retirement Study, we examined whether shingles vaccination is associated with more favorable profiles across seven biological aging domains: inflammation, innate and adaptive immunity, cardiovascular hemodynamics, neurodegeneration, and epigenetic and transcriptomic aging, as well as a composite biological aging score. Analyses included adults aged 70+ in 2016 (n = 3,884), with biological measures drawn from venous blood, flow cytometry, and physical assessments. Weighted linear regressions adjusted for sociodemographic, and health covariates. Shingles vaccination was significantly associated with lower inflammation scores (b=-0.14, p = 0.0027), slower epigenetic (b=-0.17, p = 0.0001) and transcriptomic aging (b=-0.19, p < .0001), and a lower composite biological aging score (b=-0.18, p = 0.0002), suggesting potential benefits for systemic inflammation, molecular and overall biological aging. In contrast, vaccination was linked to higher adaptive immunity scores (b = 0.09, p = 0.0133), an unexpected finding warranting further investigation. Timing analyses indicated that epigenetic, transcriptomic and overall composite biological aging improvements were most pronounced within three years post-vaccination, with slower aging persisting beyond this window. The results support the hypothesis that shingles vaccination may influence key biological systems relevant to aging, though effects appear domain-specific and vary over time. Longitudinal studies are needed to confirm these patterns and explore implications for long-term health. This study adds to emerging evidence that vaccines could play a role in strategies to promote healthy aging by modulating biological systems beyond infection prevention."
Related: There have been numerous submissions in the last year about shingles vaccines possibly reducing dementia risk - do a search by date if you're interested.
Summary: "Imagine the tools a cow would make. This idea, humorously illustrated in Gary Larson’s Far Side cartoon, captures a widespread assumption: cows are neither problem-solvers nor tool users. In science, as in culture, livestock species are often cognitively underestimated, reinforced by their utilitarian role and persistent mind-denial biases associated with meat consumption1. Despite over 10,000 years of domestication, research on cattle cognition remains scarce and confined to applied contexts such as productivity and welfare2. Tool use, while rarely observed, offers a stringent test of cognitive flexibility. Defined as the manipulation of an external object to achieve a goal via a mechanical interface3, tooling ranges from species-typical routines to innovative, problem-specific acts4,5. We report here our experimental demonstration of flexible egocentric tooling in a pet cow (Bos taurus), Veronika, who uses a deck brush to self-scratch. Across randomized trials, she preferred the bristled end but switched to the stick end when targeting softer lower-body areas. This adaptive deployment of tool features reveals multi-purpose tool use not previously reported in non-primate mammals. Our findings broaden the taxonomic scope of flexible tool use and invite a reassessment of livestock cognition."
Abstract: "To what extent is social media research independent from industry influence? Leveraging openly available data, we show that half of the research published in top journals has disclosable ties to industry in the form of prior funding, collaboration, or employment. However, the majority of these ties go undisclosed in the published research. These trends do not arise from broad scientific engagement with industry, but rather from a select group of scientists who maintain long-lasting relationships with industry. Undisclosed ties to industry are common not just among authors, but among reviewers and academic editors during manuscript evaluation. Further, industry-tied research garners more attention within the academy, among policymakers, on social media, and in the news. Finally, we find evidence that industry ties are associated with a topical focus away from impacts of platform-scale features. Together, these findings suggest industry influence in social media research is extensive, impactful, and often opaque. Going forward there is a need to strengthen disclosure norms and implement policies to ensure the visibility of independent research, and the integrity of industry supported research. "
Abstract: "Opposing someone on a contentious sociopolitical issue often prompts criticism and conflict. People may be tempted to reduce such acrimony by expressing neutrality. Across 11 studies with North American samples, we find that, although people commonly express neutrality on controversial issues, observers are skeptical of others’ neutrality, judging them as similarly moral as those who oppose them those who explicitly oppose them. Unpacking lay beliefs about why people express neutrality sheds light on this disjunction between responses to the neutral self versus the neutral other. Specifically, people render more favorable attributions for their own neutrality (e.g., true indecision) than do observers (e.g., apathy, strategic behavior). Therefore, while neutrality is an often-invoked strategy to manage impressions, it is unlikely to succeed in doing so."
"Findings. 43 studies were included in the systematic review, and 17 studies in the meta-analysis. When considering sibling comparison studies, paracetamol exposure during pregnancy was not associated with the risk of autism spectrum disorder (OR 0·98, 95% CI 0·93–1·03; p=0·45), ADHD (0·95, 0·86–1·05; p=0·31), or intellectual disability (0·93, 0·69–1·24; p=0·63). There was also no association between paracetamol intake during pregnancy and autism spectrum disorder (OR 1·03, 95% CI 0·86–1·23; p=0·78), ADHD (0·97, 0·89–1·05; p=0·49), or intellectual disability (1·11, 0·92–1·34; p=0·28) when considering only studies at low risk of bias according to QUIPS. This absence of association persisted when considering all studies with adjusted estimates and those with more than 5 years of follow-up."
Abstract: "The near-Earth asteroid 2024 YR4 -- a ∼60 m rocky object that was once considered a potential Earth impactor -- has since been ruled out for Earth but retained a ∼4.3% probability of striking the Moon in 2032. Such an impact, with equivalent kinetic energy of ∼6.5 Mt TNT, is expected to produce a ∼1 km crater on the Moon, and will be the most energetic lunar impact event ever recorded in human history. Despite the associated risk, this scenario offers a rare and valuable scientific opportunity. Using a hybrid framework combining Monte Carlo orbital propagation, smoothed particle hydrodynamics (SPH) impact modeling, and N-body ejecta dynamics, we evaluate the physical outcomes and propose the observation timelines of this rare event. Our results suggest an optical flash of visual magnitude from -2.5 to -3 lasting several minutes directly after the impact, followed by hours of infrared afterglow from ∼2000 K molten rock cooling to a few hundred K. The associated seismic energy release would lead to a global-scale lunar reverberation (magnitude ∼5.0) that can be detectable by modern seismometers. Furthermore, the impact would eject ∼108 kg of debris that escapes the lunar gravity, with a small fraction reaching Earth to produce a lunar meteor outburst within 100 years. Finally, we integrate these results into a coordinated observation timeline, identifying the best detection windows for ground-based telescopes, lunar orbiters, and surface stations.
Original title: "Dust Properties of the Interstellar Object 3I/ATLAS Revealed by Optical and Near-Infrared Polarimetry"
Abstract: "We present independent polarimetric observations of the interstellar object 3I/ATLAS, including the first near-infrared polarimetric measurements. Using imaging polarimeters, we measured the degree of linear polarization from the visible RC band (0.64 {\mu}m) to the near-infrared KS band (2.25 {\mu}m), and investigated its dependence on solar phase angle (polarization phase curve; PPC) and wavelength (polarization color curve; PCC). We confirm that the PPC of 3I/ATLAS differs significantly from those of typical Solar System comets, showing an unusually large polarization amplitude. This PPC shows no significant change in the RC band across perihelion passage, despite the perihelion lying within the water snow line. This indicates that the unusual polarimetric behavior of 3I/ATLAS is unlikely to be driven by transient volatile activity, but instead reflects intrinsic optical properties of refractory dust particles. The PCC increases with wavelength over 0.6-1.2 {\mu}m and peaks at 1.5-2.0 {\mu}m, suggesting that the dominant scattering units are dust aggregates composed of submicron-sized monomers, broadly consistent with interstellar dust and solar-system cometary aggregates. Taken together, our results indicate that 3I/ATLAS preserves polarimetric properties characteristic of a primitive cometary planetesimal formed in another planetary system, with a refractory dust composition that differs from that typically observed among Solar System comets, despite sharing a similar size scale of the aggregate building blocks."
Abstract: "Based mainly on rodents studies, forty-hertz (40-Hz) physical stimulation has been regarded as a potential noninvasive treatment for Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Considering the brain differences between rodents and humans, the effects of 40-Hz physical stimulation need to be further validated using nonhuman primates before its clinical application. Here, we took advantage of a rare opportunity to expose nine aged rhesus monkeys (26 to 31 y old) to 40-Hz auditory stimulation. Given the strong correlation between cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) Aβ and Tau concentrations and corresponding AD pathology in brain parenchyma in clinical practice, we investigated the effects of 40-Hz stimulation on AD pathology by monitoring changes in CSF Aβ and Tau concentrations. Our results revealed that 7 consecutive days of 40-Hz auditory stimulation triggered a rapid and significant increase of Aβ levels by more than 200%, but no effect on Tau levels in the CSF. Additionally, we observed that the elevation of CSF Aβ levels persisted for more than 5 wk after cessation, which had not been reported in any previous studies. After this, a pathological examination of the temporal cortices of 4 of the experimental monkeys was carried out and the data demonstrated that all of them had prevalent extracellular Aβ senile plaque pathology, whereas Tau pathology was negative or very weak. These results provide a good explanation for the differences between the CSF Aβ and Tau protein levels. Together, these first-time results from monkeys suggest that 40-Hz auditory stimulation has strong potential of a noninvasive AD treatment method."
Abstract: "A failure of the glymphatic pathway to clear brain byproducts implicated in neurodegeneration may contribute to the pathophysiology of Parkinson’s disease. The glymphatic pathway relies on vasomotion (rhythmic constriction and dilation of blood vessels) to drive cerebrospinal fluid through the interstitial space and clear waste from the brain. The current study demonstrated that intermittent hypercapnia, exposure to low levels of CO2 in ON-OFF cycles, elicited vasomotion-induced cerebrospinal fluid inflow in both healthy controls and individuals with Parkinson’s disease. The magnitude of the vasomotion-induced cerebrospinal fluid inflow in patients with Parkinson’s disease was reduced relative to healthy controls. However, intermittent hypercapnia, administered in three 10-minute sessions totaling approximately 30 minutes, increased the appearance of total α-synuclein, neurofilament light, glial fibrillary acidic protein, amyloid β<sub>1-42</sub>, amyloid β<sub>1-40</sub>, and phosphorylated tau 217 in the plasma of both healthy controls and individuals with Parkinson’s disease. This suggests that intermittent hypercapnia can be used to clear potentially toxic brain byproducts from the brain, highlighting its potential use as a disease modifying treatment."
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