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  • Startups based on Harvard innovations devise solutions for a warming world — Harvard Gazette

    Five companies started with discoveries in Harvard labs and, with various forms of support, developed impactful solutions that are enhancing our quality of life.

    Already, the planet has warmed by more than 1 degree Celsius, and it’s inching ever closer to topping the 1.5-degree mark, which scientists say is a tipping point for the most catastrophic impacts of climate change.

    Society must rapidly and significantly reduce emissions to combat warming while developing a more sustainable future. Startups commercializing foundational research developed in Harvard labs have created various solutions to address climate and sustainability issues, tackling global challenges in industries ranging from cooling buildings to less resource-intensive agriculture and technologies powering our electric grid. 

    The following five startups brought technologies from Harvard labs to real-world solutions that are improving society. These companies serve as “clear evidence of the potential for Harvard’s climate-related research to realize commercial impact,” says Sam Liss, executive director of strategic partnerships at Harvard’s Office of Technology Development (OTD) and the manager of the Harvard Grid Accelerator and the Climate and Sustainability Translational Fund.

    Sustainable farming with a smaller carbon footprint

    A startup launched with foundational research out of the lab of Professor Daniel Nocera in the Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology at Harvard and with support from the Wyss Institute at Harvard, Kula Bio engineered a way to increase the energy held within the naturally-occurring microbe Xanthobacter autotrophicus. This allows it to survive longer when applied to soil and more effectively pull nitrogen from the atmosphere and convert it into a form that is deliverable to plants, which need the nutrient to grow. Rather than spraying huge amounts of nitrogen-based fertilizer across a field, Kula’s product is delivered via irrigation system to the plant’s root zone, and much less is needed than when using traditional fertilizers.

    Alternative meat for meat lovers

    Tender, a startup launched with foundational research out of Professor Kit Parker’s lab at the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS), aims to undercut emissions from traditional meat production as part of a growing contingent of alternative meat companies.

    Tender’s protein alternatives evolved out of an unrelated project in Parker’s lab with federal funding support from the National Science Foundation. The research group developed a novel technology designed to replicate tissue fiber for applications in medicine, such as for surgical implants. The research team explored what else could be spun out of microfibers, which led to the replication of animal muscle.

    Disrupting the HVAC industry 

    Air conditioning and dehumidification are some of the most energy-intensive activities in the world: air conditioning alone accounts for more than double the global emissions of the airline industry. Trellis Air, a startup launched with foundational research developed in labs across Harvard, has innovated a dehumidification system that significantly amplifies the efficiencies of these systems, reducing their energy use and drastically drawing down their emissions impact.

    Reliable and affordable grid energy storage 

    Quino Energy, a startup launched with foundational research developed in the labs of Professors Michael Aziz and Roy Gordon, at SEAS and the Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology at Harvard, is developing large flow-batteries. These systems store electrolytes in tanks filled with quinones, which are easily manufactured organic compounds that can store energy when dissolved in water. The system is water-based, meaning it avoids flammability risks and uses no rare earth metals, which are common in current large-scale batteries but are in short supply.

    Exploring an untouched area of the atmosphere 

    Rarefied Technologies, a startup with foundational research out of Professor Joost Vlassak’s lab at SEAS, focuses on monitoring a band of the atmosphere that today’s commercial satellites are unable to reach. Using extremely tiny and lightweight flying devices — each weighing less than a grain of rice — propelled by little more than sunlight, Rarefied will collect climate data from the “mesosphere,” an area that is too low for most satellites and too high for most airplanes. That data, previously extremely difficult to collect, would help predict storms and deepen weather forecasts and could also provide important information about how the atmosphere works and is changing amid climate change.

    Read the full story to learn about the development of these innovations while in Harvard labs, the research funding that enabled these technologies to become solutions for society, and recent milestones reached to continue advancing them.


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  • ESC Guidelines Update Clarifies Pregnancy Risks and Choices in Women With CVD

    ESC Guidelines Update Clarifies Pregnancy Risks and Choices in Women With CVD

    In addition to less restrictive guidance for some high-risk patients, the document advises vaginal birth whenever possible.

    Personalized pregnancy-related risk assessments and shared decision-making are crucial for women and their physicians making reproductive health choices when maternal CVD is present, according to updated guidelines from the European Society of Cardiology (ESC).

    Endorsed by the European Society of Gynecology (ESG), the guidelines supplant the previous version, published in 2018, and they highlight new evidence as well reorganize and revise certain sections to make them more user-friendly. Among other things, the task force emphasizes autonomy regarding reproductive choice in high-risk pregnancy, as well as the importance of multidisciplinary teams to ensure comprehensive care from preconception through the postpartum period.

     ”Evidence has shown that women who are managed by a pregnancy heart team have better outcomes,” said Julie De Backer, MD, PhD (Ghent University Hospital, Belgium), in a press conference at the ESC Congress 2025 in Madrid, Spain, where the guidelines were presented. The organization of these teams should  take into account regional differences in care, she added.

    “There are countries where people are living very far away, and may need to travel a long way to get to get to these pregnancy heart teams. This is not the case in all countries,” De Backer added.

    At their core, these teams should consist of a cardiologist, anesthesiologist, midwife obstetrician, and clinical nurse specialist. Additional medical specialists, including geneticists, electrophysiologists, primary care physicians, psychologists, social workers, and a pulmonary embolism response team, among others, may also be part of extended case-based teams depending on the needs of the patient.

    Rather than advising against pregnancy for certain rare health conditions such as Ehlers-Danlos syndrome and pulmonary arterial hypertension, as other guidance has done, the new document recommends counselling women with these conditions about their risks, taking into account their genetic background, family history, and any previous vascular events.

    The guidelines were simultaneously published in the European Heart Journal.

    Modifications and Revisions for 2025

    In presenting the guidelines, De Backer said a critical change that the committee made was to the modified World Health Organization (mWHO) 2.0 classification of maternal cardiovascular risk. The change refines and expands clinical categories, including arrhythmias and cardiomyopathy, as well as some acquired heart diseases.

    The document also incorporates data from the CARPREG II study, from which a risk index was derived to predict the likelihood of maternal cardiac complications. De Backer said these changes allow for a more nuanced understanding of risk estimation for the different classes of maternal CV risk. This section of the guidelines also helps clinicians to know which women need referral to a pregnancy heart team.

    Detailed sections of the document address peripartum cardiomyopathy, congenital cardiac disease, venous thromboembolism in pregnancy and postpartum, hypertension, valvular diseases, arrhythmias, special populations—including those with active or prior cancer—and drugs that are and are not recommended during pregnancy and lactation.

    With regard to delivery, the guideline writers are clear that vaginal birth should be preferred for most women with CVD, including most who are taking vitamin K antagonists (VKA) or heparins. The exceptions to that recommendation are women have taken VKAs within the 2 weeks prior to delivery and those with high-risk aortopathy (mWHO 2.0 class III), hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) with severe left ventricle outflow tract obstruction, or acute intractable HF. In those cases, the guidelines recommend cesarean section delivery for the safety of both the mother and fetus.

    Another important aspect of the guidelines, De Backer noted, is that it addresses adverse pregnancy outcomes (APO) ranging from postpartum hypertensive disorders to preterm birth and pregnancy loss. Among the recommendations listed here are that in women with a history of any APO, cardiovascular risk assessment should be considered at 3 months postpartum, followed by a repeat assessment at 6 to 12 months after implementation of appropriate lifestyle interventions, and regular long-term follow-up thereafter.

    Also presenting during the session, Kristina Hermann Haugaa, MD, PhD (Oslo University Hospital, Norway), who co-chaired the guidelines update with De Backer, pointed to flow charts that walk clinicians through management of specific patient scenarios, including  heart failure occurring in pregnancy or postpartum, and cardiac arrest.

    Haugaa noted that the guide to drugs in pregnancy and postpartum are color coded. “We have marked them with green if there is a first safe medication, with yellow if there is a second-choice medication, and in red if they are contraindicated due to fetal toxicity,” she added.

    “ Furthermore, we have included the primary arrhythmia syndromes and the cardiomyopathies in the new guidelines, and . . . we have sorted them into classifications,” Haugaa said. These tables also provide levels of evidence to aid in the management of women with long QT syndrome, catecholaminergic polymorphic ventricular tachycardia (CPVT), and Brugada syndrome.

    De Backer said the committee hopes this extensive guideline update “will be very useful for all healthcare providers having pregnant women in their care.”


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  • Overcoming the Challenges of Safely Using Opioids to Treat Patients With Chronic Cancer-Related Pain

    Research has shown that pain is among the most commonly experienced and feared aspects of a cancer diagnosis.1 It’s easy to understand why. In fact, cancer-related pain is so ubiquitous, between 20% and 50% of patients with early-stage cancer will experience pain,2 and up to 90% of patients with advanced cancer will develop severe pain.3 In addition, as many as half of all cancer survivors will continue to experience pain and functional limitations long after their treatment has ended.4

    Cancer-related pain is a complex biological and psychosocial phenomenon. Although not completely understood, it is believed to be the result of processes that involve cross-talk between neoplastic cells and a patient’s immune, peripheral, and central nervous systems. However, the cancer itself is not the only cause of the problem. All modalities of cancer treatment, including surgery, chemotherapy, radiation therapy, transplantation, and immunotherapy, also have the potential to cause long-term chronic pain.

    Although pain caused by acute inflammation usually responds well to nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, opioids, such as methadone, oxycodone, and hydrocodone, have long been the mainstay to effectively manage moderate-to-severe cancer-related pain. However, their use poses serious challenges. The potential for the development of opioid use disorder or addiction and common side effects such as constipation, drowsiness, and nausea; stigma surrounding opioid use; reimbursement issues; and patients’ fear of becoming addicted highlight the need for evidence-based strategies to help oncologists and palliative care providers mitigate the risk of development of opioid use disorder in their patients while successfully managing patients’ cancer-related pain.

    In response to these concerns, in 2016, ASCO published a new guideline on chronic pain management in cancer survivors and updated it in 2022.5 The revised guideline provides recommendations by ASCO’s expert panel of reviewers based on the evidence found in 31 systematic reviews and 16 randomized controlled trials. The recommendations include the following:

    Opioids should be offered to patients with moderate-to-severe pain related to cancer or active cancer treatment unless contraindicated.

    Opioids should be initiated as needed at the lowest possible dose to achieve acceptable analgesia and patient goals, with early assessment and frequent titration.

    For patients with a history of substance use disorder, clinicians should collaborate with palliative care, pain, and/or substance use disorder specialists to determine the optimal approach to pain management.

    Adverse effects related to the use of opioids should be monitored, and solutions should be offered to prevent and manage these adverse effects.

    Janet Ho, MD, MPH, FASAM, FAAHPM

    Janet Ho, MD, MPH, FASAM, FAAHPM

    To learn more about how oncologists and palliative care providers may safely balance the use of opioid therapy to relieve cancer-related pain while protecting patients from addiction, The ASCO Post talked with Janet Ho, MD, MPH, FASAM, FAAHPM, Associate Professor of Palliative Medicine at the University of California, San Francisco. Dr. Ho is also an addiction medicine specialist at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital and Trauma Center.

    Addressing the Problem of Long-Term Cancer-Related Pain

    Please talk about how oncologists and palliative care physicians can address the chronic cancer-related pain patients experience and how the challenges of achieving effective pain relief can be overcome.

    Chronic cancer pain is increasingly recognized as an entity that palliative care clinicians, oncologists, and primary care physicians have to manage. Decades ago, cancer-related pain was largely untreated or undertreated. That changed after palliative care became recognized as a subspecialty to improve the quality of life of patients with serious or life-threatening diseases, including cancer, and to help patients better tolerate cancer treatment.

    In the past, clinicians tended not to worry about the dangers of prescribing opioids to patients with advanced cancer because many of these patients died within a short time. Now, with the advances in cancer treatment, patients with advanced disease are living much longer, and some are even cured of their cancer. And, in this setting, we’re realizing we cannot keep these patients on high doses of these medications indefinitely because of the high risk for adverse events, including potentially triggering a new opioid abuse disorder, a complicated dependence on the drug, or even an accidental overdose.

    There is also increasing evidence that the higher the dose and the longer periods that patients are on these medications may also contribute to other detrimental effects in the survivorship population, including hormonal disruption, endocrine destruction, and immune suppression. Despite these risks, we know that a high percentage of cancer survivors continue to have moderate-to-severe cancer pain, even after the disease is stabilized, and we have to address this problem. We’re a little behind the gap in trying to figure out how best to provide better care for these patients.

    Understanding the Biology of Chronic Cancer Pain

    Please talk about the underlying mechanisms of pain in patients with cancer.

    There are myriad ways cancer produces pain. There is guidance showing that some chronic pain is neuropathic, caused by a mass irritating the nerve, and we have neuropathic agents to reduce that type of pain. A tumor invading the bone will cause bony pain, which has an inflammatory component; in that case, patients might respond well to anti-inflammatory agents.

    However, chronic cancer-related pain is often multidimensional, and, in addition to a physical component, it may include psychosocial, emotional, and spiritual aspects. Consequently, addressing chronic pain management often requires a multidisciplinary approach from experts across diverse medical fields, including medical oncology, radiation oncology, palliative care, and physiatry, as well as from psychiatry, psychology, social work, and chaplaincy.

    There is a discussion now underway about whether chronic cancer-related pain is its own entity, differing from other types of chronic pain, and, therefore, it should be treated differently, or whether we should approach it as we do other chronic pain for which opioids are not first-line treatment. We need more research in this area to determine the exact underlying mechanisms of this type of pain and, more importantly, how best to treat it.

    Balancing the Harms and Benefits of Opioid Use

    According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, from 1999 to 2019, nearly 500,000 people died of an overdose involving prescription and illicit opioids.6 How can palliative care providers balance opioid use to relieve cancer-related pain while protecting patients from addiction and death?

    We’ve learned so much about the dangers of the long-term use of opioids, and prescribers have adjusted their practices accordingly. As a result, opioid prescriptions have decreased sharply over the past decades. But, at the same time, these medications are helpful in aggressively treating cancer-related pain and are widely accepted as a standard of care for cancer-related pain.

    Before we start a patient on opioids to manage pain, we should first assess the patient’s level of symptom burden. The Edmonton Symptom Assessment System (https://albertametis.com/app/uploads/2022/01/ESAS-Tool_V4.pdf) is a reliable tool to assist palliative care physicians in determining and tracking a patient’s level of pain, fatigue, nausea, depression, anxiety, drowsiness, appetite, well-being, and shortness of breath. The information can then be used to start a discussion about how to manage the patient’s chronic pain in the context of overall levels of distress.

    Janet L. Abrahm, MD, FACP, FAAHPM, FASCO

    Janet L. Abrahm, MD, FACP, FAAHPM, FASCO

    Dr. Abrahm is Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School and former Chief of the Division of Adult Palliative Care, Department of Supportive Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, and Division of Palliative Medicine, Brigham and Women’s Hospital. Palliative Care in Oncology addresses the evolving needs of cancer survivors at various stages of their illness.

    Oncologists and palliative care physicians should also institute an ongoing benefit/risk analysis to ensure that the opioid being prescribed is providing more benefit than harm. We also need to bring patients into this informed consent and decision-making process in the form of more disclosure about the benefits and risks of these medications, including their side effects and potential for the development of complicated dependence or addiction, as well as the process of tapering off these medications once treatment is completed. We then need to revisit these discussions on a regular basis.

    Buprenorphine has emerged over the past several decades as a safer alternative in the effective management of moderate-to-severe chronic cancer-related pain than full-agonist opioids such as morphine, fentanyl, hydrocodone, and oxycodone, especially for patients who may need to be on a pain medication for a long time, are unable to taper off full-agonist opioids after active cancer treatment is completed, or may have a substance use disorder. I encourage oncologists and palliative care physicians to familiarize themselves with buprenorphine, a partial-agonist opioid, which should be considered a first-line opioid in this setting.

    Predicting Opioid Addiction in Cancer Survivors

    What are the predictive factors for opioid addiction in cancer survivors?

    Research shows several factors are associated with the risk of persistent opioid therapy in this population, including younger age, unemployment at the time of the cancer diagnosis, lower median income, increased comorbidity, and current or prior tobacco use. Alcohol as well as depression and a history of chronic opioid use are also factors.7

    Similarly, patients with psychiatric conditions (including bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, obsessive-compulsive disease, and attention deficit disorder) are also at higher risk for developing an opioid use disorder. In addition, there is a genetic component that may predispose a person to having a substance use disorder after exposure to that substance, including opioids prescribed for cancer pain.

    Before prescribing opioids to cancer survivors for pain management, physicians should use a screening tool to help identify those who may have concerning substance use or a current substance use disorder or who may be at higher risk for developing an opioid use disorder to prevent related health consequences, accidents, and injuries. The National Institute on Drug Abuse has a useful Opioid Risk Tool for pain management (https://nida.nih.gov/nidamed-medical-health-professionals/screening-tools-resources/opioid-risk-tool-oud-ort-oud). Another is the Screening, Brief Intervention, and Referral to Treatment (www.samhsa.gov/substance-use/treatment/sbirt).

    Although opioid risk tools may help to guide clinicians on risk stratification, none have been validated for use in cancer survivors, nor can they diagnose substance use disorder or fully identify who is likely to develop an opioid use disorder. Still, they may be helpful in providing information on substance use history, identifying the most appropriate opioid therapy for individual patients, and in normalizing and initiating a nonjudgmental conversation with patients about substance use. 

    DISCLOSURE: Dr. Ho reported no conflicts of interest.

    REFERENCES

    1. Lemay K, Wilson KG, Buenger U, et al: Fear of pain in patients with cancer or in patients with chronic noncancer pain. Clin J Pain 27:116-124, 2011.

    2. Fischer DJ, Villines D, Kim YO, et al: Anxiety, depression, and pain: Differences by primary cancer. Support Care Cancer 18:801-810, 2010.

    3. Falk S, Dickenson AH: Pain and nociception: Mechanisms of cancer-induced bone pain. J Clin Oncol 32:1647-1654, 2014.

    4. Harrington CB, Hansen JA, Moskowitz M, et al: It’s not over when it’s over: Long-term symptoms in cancer survivors—A systematic review. Int J Psychiatry Med 40:163-181, 2010.

    5. Paice JA, Bohlke K, Barton D, et al: Use of opioids for adults with pain from cancer or cancer treatment: ASCO Guideline. J Clin Oncol 41:914-930, 2023.

    6. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Uncovering the opioid epidemic. Available at www.cdc.gov/museum/pdf/cdcm-pha-stem-uncovering-the-opioid-epidemic-lesson.pdf. Accessed August 6, 2025.

    7. Jones KF, Fu MR, Merlin JS, et al: Exploring factors associated with long-term opioid therapy in cancer survivors: An integrative review. J Pain Symptom Manage 61:395-415, 2021.

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  • Microsoft to use some AI from Anthropic in shift from OpenAI, the Information reports

    Microsoft to use some AI from Anthropic in shift from OpenAI, the Information reports

    (Reuters) – Microsoft will pay to use Anthropic’s technology for some AI features in Office 365 apps, the Information reported on Tuesday, in a sign that the software firm is diversifying its artificial intelligence portfolio.

    The move will blend Anthropic and OpenAI technology in the apps, after years in which Microsoft primarily used OpenAI for the new features in Word, Excel, Outlook and PowerPoint, the report said.

    Microsoft is developing its own artificial intelligence models, while integrating DeepSeek’s models into the Azure cloud as it seeks to maximize AI output to meet growing demand.

    It has been OpenAI’s biggest financial backer, having invested more than $13 billion into the AI startup and getting a head-start in the AI race due to the company’s models.

    “As we’ve said, OpenAI will continue to be our partner on frontier models and we remain committed to our long-term partnership,” a Microsoft spokesperson said.

    Developers making Office AI features found Anthropic’s latest models performed better than OpenAI in automating tasks such as financial functions in Excel or generating Powerpoint presentations based on instructions, the report said, citing one of the two people involved in the effort.

    Microsoft will pay its cloud rival Amazon Web Services to access the Anthropic models, according to the report. AWS is one of Anthropic’s largest shareholders.

    Anthropic, and OpenAI did not immediately respond to Reuters requests for comment, while AWS declined to comment.

    OpenAI’s launch of GPT-5 is a step up in quality but Anthropic’s Claude Sonnet 4 performs better in creating Powerpoint presentations that are more aesthetically pleasing, the report said.

    Microsoft plans to announce the move in the coming weeks, while the price of AI tools in Office will stay the same, the report said.

    (Reporting by Zaheer Kachwala in Bengaluru; Editing by Arun Koyyur)

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  • ASC Announces 2025 Student Heritage Award Nominees

    ASC Announces 2025 Student Heritage Award Nominees

    The American Society of Cinematographers (ASC) has unveiled the nominees for its 2025 Student Heritage Awards, a cornerstone of the organization’s commitment to nurturing emerging filmmakers. These awards are part of the ASC’s broader educational initiatives designed to champion rising talent at the formative stages of their careers. Winners will be announced on Sunday, October 12, 2025.

    To qualify, students submit undergraduate, graduate or documentary projects that are evaluated by a distinguished ASC jury for outstanding achievement in cinematography.

    Each year, the Student Heritage Awards pay tribute to the legacy of revered ASC members whose artistry and dedication continue to inspire the next generation of visual storytellers.

    The 2025 ASC Graduate Award is named in recognition of Rexford Metz, ASC, a master of 2nd-unit cinematography whose career spanned more than five decades and helped define the visual language of action cinema. Known for his daring aerial and underwater work, Metz contributed iconic sequences to films like Bullitt, for which he operated the camera to capture the legendary San Francisco car chase, and Jaws, for which he photographed haunting underwater shots of the production’s mechanical shark. He also played a key role on both Tora! Tora! Tora! and The Rocketeer, and was a trusted collaborator on over 80 films including Tron, Total Recall, Kiss the Girls, Courage Under Fire, Corvette Summer and On Golden Pond, among many others. Metz eventually shared his filmmaking experience and knowledge as an instructor at Florida State University College of Motion Picture, Television and Recording Arts.

    The Undergraduate Award is named in honor of George Spiro Dibie, ASC, whose pioneering work in multi-camera television earned him five Emmy Awards and seven additional nominations between 1985 and 1998. His celebrated credits include Mr. Belvedere; Growing Pains; Just the Ten of Us; and Sister, Sister. A respected union leader and passionate educator, Dibie chaired the ASC Education and Outreach Committee for many years.

    The Documentary category is dedicated to Oscar-winner Haskell Wexler, ASC, whose work helped shape modern filmmaking. He earned two Oscars for Best Cinematography for Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? and Bound for Glory. His credits also include In the Heat of the Night, One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest and Days of Heaven. Wexler also directed several acclaimed documentaries, including Medium Cool, which blended scripted drama with real-world footage, and Introduction to the Enemy, which he co-directed with Jane Fonda.

    Contenders for the 2025 ASC Student Heritage Awards, sponsored this year by Sony, are:

    Rexford Metz ASC Award – Graduate Category

    • Yash Bhatnagar for A Man Fate Forgot (Chapman University)

    • Fernando Pelaez Rovalo for Hecuba (Chapman University)

    • Zach Morrison for The Witch the Pricker and The Hare (American Film Institute)

    • Bruce Puyu Wang for In Your Gaze (American Film Institute)

    George Spiro Dibie ASC Award – Undergraduate Category

    • Andrew Arrieta for Phantom Contact (Miami Dade College)

    • Simon Blaustein for Pit (Loyola Marymount University)

    • Kimberly Edelson for The Wren in the Wood (Syracuse University)

    • Max Losson for PhotoPlay XX (Florida State University)

    • Ray Shay for Love Bite (Chapman University)

    • Shile Yang for It’s not a Monster (Chapman University)

    Haskell Wexler ASC Award – Documentary Category

    • Adam Goldstick for The Art of Perception (Loyola Marymount University)

    • Abel Guan for La Linea (University of Southern California)

    • Miley Luo for All of Us Girls (University of Southern California)

    Many of those recognized by the ASC Student Heritage Award program since it was inaugurated in 1999 have gone on to have successful careers in filmmaking, including the Student Awards Committee Co-Chairs Craig Kief and Armando Salas, as well as ASC members Nelson Cragg, Masanobu Takayanagi and Lisa Wiegand.

    For additional information about the ASC, visit www.theasc.com.

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  • Young adults most at risk as nearly half of diabetes cases missed

    Young adults most at risk as nearly half of diabetes cases missed

    A study published this week indicates that 44% of people worldwide with diabetes have not been diagnosed. The study, by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington School of Medicine, appeared in The Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology.

    The study found that young adults are most at risk of having undiagnosed diabetes.

    Among those diagnosed with the disease, 91% are taking pharmacological treatment. But only 42% of them have optimal blood sugar levels. The study suggests that just 21% of people with diabetes worldwide are properly managing their condition.

    With diabetes cases rising globally, the authors warn the disease is becoming a growing health crisis.

    “By 2050, 1.3 billion people are expected to be living with diabetes, and if nearly half don’t know they have a serious and potentially deadly health condition, it could easily become a silent epidemic,” said Lauryn Stafford, first author and researcher at IHME.

    The study found people in the United States and other developed nations were more likely to have their diabetes diagnosed.

    Stafford said getting diagnosed as soon as possible can help reduce the harmful health impacts of the disease.

    “Diabetes is a chronic metabolic disorder characterized by high blood glucose levels,” she said. “The diabetes care cascade is a comprehensive assessment of the activities of diagnosis, treatment, and glycaemic management among a population of people living with diabetes.”

    The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that 15.8% of U.S. adults have diabetes. Of those, more than one in four have not been diagnosed, the CDC says.


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  • Apple debuts Apple Watch Series 11, featuring groundbreaking health insights

    Apple debuts Apple Watch Series 11, featuring groundbreaking health insights

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  • Oil prices up – Newsonair

    1. Oil prices up  Newsonair
    2. Crude Oil Forecast Today 09/09: Attempts to Bounce (Chart)  DailyForex
    3. Oil Rises Amid Risk of Tighter Russia Sanctions  Barron’s
    4. Oil Futures Rise on Geopolitical Risk Premium  The Wall Street Journal
    5. Why Oil Prices Are Rising Even After OPEC Hiked Production Again  MSN

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  • Why binge watching TV may be a good thing

    Why binge watching TV may be a good thing



    Though binge watching may seem like a bad habit, a new study suggests there may be some benefits to not turning off the tube.

    If you often find yourself watching episode after episode, it may be harder for a story to leave your head, the researchers say. But that’s not necessarily a bad thing.

    The new study found people who marathon movies, shows, or books are more likely to remember stories and keep engaging with them through daydreams and fantasies.

    “Humans are storytelling creatures,” says Joshua Baldwin, lead author of the study and postdoctoral researcher at the University of Georgia.

    “One of the functions of narratives is the ability to satisfy motivations for things like connecting with other people, feeling autonomous and confident, and even security and safety.

    “Stories have characters that fulfill these roles, and we can satisfy those needs through them.”

    Binge watching may help viewers build mental worlds where stories continue even after finishing the series. And these tales may help them cope in times of stress.

    People who binge watch more likely to engage with stories through imagination
    Binge watching may help make stories more memorable by helping viewers connect plot threads and come away with a bigger picture of the story. This is especially true for longer series, with lots of different plotlines and characters to follow.

    The study suggests binge watchers are more likely to think about stories they’ve finished than people who consume media more slowly.

    “People who have that habit of binge watching shows often aren’t doing it passively but are actually actively thinking about it afterwards,” says Baldwin.

    “They’re very much wanting to engage with stories, even when they’re not around to watch shows.”

    To imagine a story, a person needs a good memory of it. Most participants says they tend to remember and fantasize more often about stories they enjoyed or thought to be moving and meaningful.

    Overall, the respondents says TV shows were more memorable than books. But that doesn’t mean books are forgettable.

    “If you think about people who are avid book readers, like those who might read a whole book from cover to cover, they might have a better memory of that book and have a higher chance of engaging with the story mentally after finishing it,” says Baldwin.

    Though impacts on well-being need to be explored further, the positives and negatives of binging may come down to the individual, the researchers say.

    “There’s a lot of debate over whether or not media is a good or bad thing, but it’s always nuanced argument,” says Baldwin.

    “It always depends on the content itself, why people are watching it, the psychological background of the individual, and the context.”

    The study appears in Acta Psychologica.

    Source: University of Georgia

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  • Unveiling the Biological, Immunological Factors Driving Flu Severity in Older Adults

    Unveiling the Biological, Immunological Factors Driving Flu Severity in Older Adults

    Influenza remains a significant threat to individuals ages 65 and over. These individuals are twice as likely to be hospitalized and have more complications and mortality compared with younger populations. Although a large number of vaccinations are administered, this age group is still the most affected by the flu each year, indicating that there are still some unknown factors about the influence of age on susceptibility and the effectiveness of preventive strategies.

    Image Credit: InsideCreativeHouse | stock.adobe.com

    A study recently summarized in ScienceDaily uncovers a key molecular contributor to severe influenza in older adults: apolipoprotein D (ApoD). This glycoprotein accumulates in lung tissue with age, where it disrupts the body’s innate antiviral defenses by impairing the type I interferon response while simultaneously driving mitochondrial dysfunction and tissue damage.

    “Aging is a leading risk factor in influenza-related deaths. Furthermore, the global population is aging at an unprecedented rate in human history, posing major issues for healthcare and the economy. So, we need to find out why older patients often suffer more severely from influenza virus infection,” Kin-Chow Chang, a professor at the University of Nottingham, explained.“There is now an exciting opportunity to therapeutically ameliorate disease severity of the elderly from influenza virus infection by the inhibitory targeting of ApoD.”1 This discovery opens a promising avenue for novel treatments aimed at bolstering antiviral resilience in the elderly.

    This molecular insight must be understood within the broader context of immunosenescence—the decline of immune function with age, which is an extrinsic factor that both predisposes the organism to infections and reduces the effectiveness of flu vaccines. The review extensively describes the impact of immunosenescence on different immune compartments. Decreased dendritic cell function, declining NK cell and macrophage activity, and lowered antigen presentation capacity are a few of the major contributors to less efficient immune control and increased viral susceptibility in elder patients.² Likewise, humoral immunity gets weaker: the elderly generally have lower rates of seroconversion after vaccination and weaker neutralizing antibody responses, which is consistent with impaired adaptive immune mechanisms.³

    The changes in the immune system that come with age have a direct impact on the flu vaccination. Standard-dose inactivated vaccines are less effective in elderly people. The results of the systematic reviews confirm that more immunogenic formulations—such as high-dose, adjuvanted, and recombinant vaccines—elicit stronger immune responses and provide better protection to this group.⁴ A 2024 review in Nature Reviews reports that high-dose vaccines, containing up to 4 times the amount of hemagglutinin antigen, generate significantly higher antibody titers and are associated with notably reduced influenza-related hospitalization and mortality among individuals ages 65 and older.5

    Together, these findings underscore the need for multifaceted strategies to reduce flu severity in the elderly. Targeting ApoD pharmacologically may offer a way to preserve lung tissue integrity and restore antiviral defenses during infection. Simultaneously, vaccine policy must evolve; high-dose or adjuvanted influenza vaccines should be the standard for older adults, supported by efforts to improve coverage through reduced cost barriers, prescription simplification, and public education.

    Such insights allow pharmacists in the clinical pharmacy setting to implement actions of both molecular and public health intervention. Health care professionals have the opportunity to foster the use of high-dose vaccine therapies customized to patients with immunosenescence, as well as being alert to novel therapeutic approaches addressing ApoD. At the same time, health systems should ensure that these enhanced vaccines are accessible and equitably distributed, particularly to older adults with chronic conditions or mobility limitations.

    Using new therapeutic targets like ApoD inhibition together with well-planned vaccine strategies provides multiple protections against a severe flu case in elderly people. While molecular innovation may eventually offer new prophylactic or treatment modalities, the most immediate and impactful approach remains improving access to enhanced vaccines and adapting immunization strategies to the realities of aging immune systems.

    REFERENCES
    1. Why the flu turns deadly for older adults, and how scientists found the cause. ScienceDaily. Published 2025. Accessed September 9, 2025. https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2025/09/250908175434.htm
    2. Reber AJ, Chirkova T, Kim JH, et al. Immunosenescence and Challenges of Vaccination against Influenza in the Aging Population. Aging Dis. 2012;3(1):68-90.
    3. Crooke SN, Ovsyannikova IG, Poland GA, Kennedy RB. Immunosenescence and human vaccine immune responses. Immun Ageing. 2019;16:25. Published 2019 Sep 13. doi:10.1186/s12979-019-0164-9
    4. Moa A, Kunasekaran M, Akhtar Z, Costantino V, MacIntyre CR. Systematic review of influenza vaccine effectiveness against laboratory-confirmed influenza among older adults living in aged care facilities. Hum Vaccin Immunother. 2023;19(3):2271304. doi:10.1080/21645515.2023.2271304
    5. Hou Y, Chen M, Bian Y, et al. Insights into vaccines for elderly individuals: from the impacts of immunosenescence to delivery strategies. npj Vaccines. 2024;9(1). doi:10.1038/s41541-024-00874-4

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