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FAPESP / UNICAMP / Life Sciences · 8 Oct 2026 · Exercise

Seven strength sessions shrank visceral fat cells in obese male mice before body weight changed

Study (male mice only). ScienceDaily carried the FAPESP account on 8 October 2026. Diego Gomes de Melo, Leandro Pereira de Moura, and colleagues at the State University of Campinas report in Life Sciences (2026; 401:124546; doi 10.1016/j.lfs.2026.124546). Obese mice made that way with a high-fat diet either stayed sedentary or climbed a 70-centimeter staircase carrying a tail weight, 20 climbs at about 70 percent of maximum, with 60 to 90 seconds of rest, for seven sessions. Both obese groups kept eating the high-fat diet. Body weight did not fall. Trained mice had less mesenteric fat, the fat around the intestines, and smaller fat cells. Obesity had lowered proteins used to break down stored fat. After the seven sessions, PLIN1, ABHD5, and ATGL were more engaged, and Scd1, a gene involved in making fat, was lower. The release says the animals were male, only one fat depot was studied, and seven days in a mouse is not a human program. Moura said aerobic and strength work turn on overlapping and different paths, and that the scale can lag the cell changes. Educational notes. This is not a workout plan.

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• Metabolic / glucose

• study
• animal
• fitness
• nutrition

Wroclaw Medical University · 8 Oct 2026 · Supplements / medicine

In lab dishes, curcumin and four other plant compounds stopped many fibrosarcoma cells from dividing; healthy muscle cells were less affected

Study (cell lines and wax-moth larvae, not a human cancer trial). ScienceDaily carried the Wroclaw Medical University account on 8 October 2026. Julita Kulbacka and colleagues tested curcumin, berberine, biochanin A, cucurbitacin E, and CAPE from propolis on fibrosarcoma cells and on healthy muscle cells. All five cut cancer-cell ATP by about 83 to 92 percent, against about 23 to 73 percent in the healthy muscle cells. Curcumin raised the share of senescent, non-dividing fibrosarcoma cells from about 16.5 percent to more than 75 percent. The other four each pushed that share above 66 percent. Berberine, cucurbitacin E, and CAPE increased a mitophagy marker in the cancer cells, which the authors read as an overwhelmed cleanup response rather than protection. In greater wax moth larvae, curcumin and berberine were the best tolerated. CAPE and cucurbitacin E were tied to higher mortality, and biochanin A was the most toxic of the five. Kulbacka said the work does not show these compounds can treat sarcomas, and that dosing and delivery are untested in people. Sarcomas are described as under 1 percent of adult cancers and as more than 100 subtypes. Educational notes. This is not medical advice, not a cancer treatment, and not a reason to take curcumin or berberine instead of oncology care. Laboratory activity is weakly evidenced as a human therapy.

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• study
• aging
• metformin

Cochrane · 8 Oct 2026 · Research

Across 80 trials and 29,861 people, nicotine e-cigarettes produced about four more quitters per 100 than nicotine patches or gum

Study (living systematic review of randomized trials). ScienceDaily carried the Cochrane account on 8 October 2026. Nicola Lindson, Jamie Hartmann-Boyce, and colleagues report in the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews (2026; 2026(8); doi 10.1002/14651858.CD010216.pub11). The update added nine trials, for 80 trials and 29,861 participants. High-certainty evidence said nicotine e-cigarettes led to about 4 additional quitters per 100 people compared with nicotine replacement such as patches and gum, and about 2 additional quitters per 100 compared with non-nicotine e-cigarettes. Quit rates were also higher than with no support or behavioral support alone, with less confidence because of possible bias in some designs. The authors said they found no sign in these trials that using e-cigarettes to quit raised serious short-term harm, and that longer follow-up is still needed. The conclusion is limited to regulated nicotine e-cigarettes. Hartmann-Boyce said unlicensed products can have unstable batteries and harmful chemicals, and that THC products are a different question. The World Health Organization figure cited is more than seven million smoking deaths a year, including 1.6 million among people exposed to second-hand smoke. The same organizations warn that e-cigarettes still deliver nicotine and other chemicals, and that use by children can lead to nicotine addiction. The release does not split results by age or sex. Lindson said people who want to stop smoking should talk with stop-smoking services or a clinician. Educational notes. This is not medical advice and not a suggestion that a non-smoker start vaping.

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• study

Yale School of Medicine / Bioactive Materials · 8 Oct 2026 · Supplements / medicine

In preclinical tests, low-dose lacosamide in a joint gel slowed cartilage loss more than a daily oral dose; this is not an approved osteoarthritis use

Study (preclinical; the release does not report a human osteoarthritis trial). ScienceDaily carried the Yale School of Medicine account on 8 October 2026. Chaopeng He, Chuan-Ju Liu, and colleagues report in Bioactive Materials (2026; 61:640; doi 10.1016/j.bioactmat.2026.02.045). Lacosamide is an approved epilepsy drug. The group tested it against Nav1.7, a sodium-channel protein they say is quiet in healthy joints and more active in osteoarthritis, both in pain nerves and in cartilage cells. In the preclinical work, a low concentration pushed cartilage cells toward building-matrix proteins and away from breakdown. Higher and lower concentrations weakened that pattern. The drug also raised HSP70 and midkine, which the authors tie to stress response and inflammation control. An oral dose worked in the same preclinical tests, but the knee clears injected liquid within hours. They put lacosamide in a collagen II gel that is liquid in a cool syringe and sets at body temperature. One gel injection every four weeks prevented cartilage loss more than a daily oral dose in those tests. Liu said no medicine approved for both stopping osteoarthritis pain and stopping cartilage breakdown exists yet, and that this joint use is not an approved osteoarthritis indication. People with certain Nav1.7 nerve-pain conditions have taken lacosamide. That is not this joint study. Educational notes. Not medical advice. Not a substitute for a prescribed medicine. Using an epilepsy drug for joints would be off-label and is clinician-only. Do not start, stop, or replace a prescription from this headline.

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• study
• off-label-context
• inflammation

University of Reading / Nutrition Research · 7 Oct 2026 · Nutrition

A review of 22 studies found natural dairy trans fats were not tied to heart disease or type 2 diabetes

Study (review of trials and cohorts). ScienceDaily carried the University of Reading account on 7 October 2026. Constance Gayet-Boyer, Fanny Tenenhaus-Aziza, Moises Torres-Gonzalez, D. Ian Givens, and Cindy Schweitzer report in Nutrition Research (2026; 150:33; doi 10.1016/j.nutres.2026.03.009). They separated trans fats that occur in milk, butter, yogurt, and cheese from industrial trans fats made by partial hydrogenation. Ten controlled trials compared dairy with higher natural trans fat (about 1.3 to 13.2 grams a day) with ordinary dairy and found no meaningful difference in blood lipids. Twelve cohort studies, some longer than 20 years, in Europe, Canada, and the United States, did not link higher blood levels of dairy trans fats with heart disease, stroke, cardiovascular death, or type 2 diabetes. Givens said these dairy fats are not the same as industrial partially hydrogenated fats, and that the finding is about dairy inside a balanced diet, not a reason to seek out trans fat. The release does not split results by sex or age. Educational notes. This is not medical advice.

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• Cardiovascular / lipids
• Metabolic / glucose

• study

NYU Langone / Nature · 7 Oct 2026 · Supplements / medicine

In 173 hospitalized patients, more sugar in the two days before antibiotics lined up with a less diverse gut microbiome

Study (hospital diet records, plus mice). ScienceDaily carried the NYU Langone account on 7 October 2026. Anqi Dai, Annamaria Ballweg, William Jogia, Jonas Schluter, Jonathan U. Peled, Marcel R. M. van den Brink, and colleagues report in Nature (2026; doi 10.1038/s41586-026-11077-3). The paper was posted online on 30 September 2026. Staff logged 9,419 meals for 173 people hospitalized with blood cancers, a group that often receives antibiotics and stem-cell transplant care, and sampled the gut microbiome daily. For every extra 100 grams of sugar in the 48 hours before treatment, alpha diversity fell by an additional 21 percent. Sugary intake plus antibiotics also lined up with more Enterococcus faecium. In mice, the antibiotic biapenem plus dietary sucrose raised gut Enterococcus 16.3-fold by day 3 and 33.4-fold by day 6. The authors say surviving bacteria may use the sugar to expand, and that a trial is still needed before a diet change can be said to improve outcomes. Schluter has filed intellectual property related to the microbiome and disclosed industry ties managed by NYU Langone. The release does not give sex or age. Educational notes. This is not a diet prescription.

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• study
• gut
• nutrition
• off-label-context

The Menopause Society / Drexel University · 7 Oct 2026 · Supplements / medicine

In a matched records study, testosterone therapy in postmenopausal women lined up with more cardiovascular events

Records study presented at a meeting (the release does not cite a journal paper). The Menopause Society posted this on 7 October 2026. The dateline reads 20 October 2026; the meeting is 20-24 October 2026 in San Diego. Xuezhi Daniel Jiang and colleagues used the TriNetX US Collaborative Network. More than 6,300 postmenopausal women ages 45 and older were propensity-matched. Women starting testosterone were compared with women without testosterone exposure, after a 12-month washout and after excluding prior cardiovascular disease. Mean follow-up was nearly 3 years. A composite of coronary disease, ischemic stroke or arterial occlusion, and heart failure, from 30 days to 5 years, occurred in 3.8 percent with testosterone and 0.5 percent without (hazard ratio 8.08; 95 percent confidence interval 4.72 to 13.82). The association held when testosterone plus hormone therapy was compared with hormone therapy alone. Absolute counts were low. The release says there is no FDA-approved testosterone product for women in the United States, and that prescriptions for low sexual desire use low doses of products made for men, off label. It also says evidence is insufficient for fatigue, memory, weight, or bone density. Not medical advice. Not a substitute for a prescribed medicine. Off-label prescription use is clinician-only. VitaLonga does not diagnose, treat, or cure disease. Never start, stop, or replace a prescription on the basis of a headline.

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• Women
• 40–59
• 60+
• Cardiovascular / lipids

• study
• off-label-context
• cognition

Northwestern University / JAMA Pediatrics · 7 Oct 2026 · Research

Of 796 fathers who died within five years of a 2017 Georgia birth, about 60 percent of the deaths were counted as preventable

Study (state birth and death records). ScienceDaily carried the Northwestern University account on 7 October 2026. Craig F. Garfield, Clarissa D. Simon, and colleagues report in JAMA Pediatrics (2026; 180(7):795; doi 10.1001/jamapediatrics.2026.1217). They linked fathers named on all 130,267 Georgia birth certificates from 2017 and followed them for five years, through 2022. 796 fathers died. Of those deaths, 60 percent were classed as preventable: homicide 143, accidental injury 142, suicide 102, and overdose 93. Another 296 were natural causes. Deaths from non-natural causes were more common among younger fathers. The release says men in their 20s through early 40s are the group already known to carry more of these deaths, and it gives one rate: at ages 30 to 34, Georgia fathers died at 120 per 100,000 compared with 231 per 100,000 men who were not fathers. Fathers over 20 had lower overall mortality than men who were not fathers. Fathers who died were more likely to be older, non-Hispanic Black, unmarried, rural, and linked to a Medicaid-paid birth. Higher education, Hispanic ethnicity, and Tricare-paid births lined up with fewer deaths. A national link is not possible from de-identified files, so this is Georgia only. Educational notes. This is not medical advice.

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• Men
• Under 40
• 40–59

• study

University of Birmingham / Brain · 7 Oct 2026 · Supplements / medicine

Blocking the P2X7 receptor cut inflammatory signaling in human brain tissue in the lab

Study (human cells and surgical brain tissue, not a patient trial). ScienceDaily carried the University of Birmingham account on 7 October 2026. Jamie Cowley, Nicholas M. Barnes, and colleagues report in Brain (2026; 149(10):3614; doi 10.1093/brain/awag068). They studied the P2X7 receptor in live human brain-cell cultures and in slices taken during neurosurgery. The receptor promoted release of cytokines, including IL-1 beta. A specific blocker cut that inflammatory response in the tissue. They also turned blood monocytes into microglia-like cells, because microglia taken out of the brain lose their usual character. The same block interfered with signals from those cells as they were damaged. Barnes said existing drugs that hit this receptor might be studied again for brain inflammation, and that the next step would be trials in neurodegenerative disease or traumatic brain injury, where no drug is established for this purpose. The release names Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, multiple sclerosis, depression, and schizophrenia as conditions where inflammation is discussed. It does not report a human treatment result, a dose, or a sex or age split. Educational notes. This is not a medicine to start.

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• Cognitive / dementia research

• study
• cognition
• inflammation

The Menopause Society · 7 Oct 2026 · Research

In a survey of nearly 100 male partners in Canada and the UK, most said they were unprepared for a partner's menopause

Survey for a meeting (the release does not cite a journal paper). The Menopause Society posted this on 7 October 2026. The dateline reads 20 October 2026; the meeting is 20-24 October 2026 in San Diego. Amobi Onumaeme and colleagues surveyed nearly 100 male partners in Canada and the United Kingdom of women in or after menopause. Among Canadian men who answered the knowledge question, 68 percent said they knew little or nothing about menopause beforehand. In the UK sample, 43 percent said they understood menopause well enough to support a partner. In the UK, 50 percent said men are not supported during a partner's menopause. In Canada, 88 percent had never sought support, and 90 percent said a support program would help or might help. The write-up names four themes: loss of intimacy, wanting to help while feeling unprepared, emotional strain, and little education aimed at men. The release does not give the men's ages, so this row stays all ages rather than a guessed midlife band. Stephanie Faubion said relationship stress around menopause is common and that reliable material for men is scarce. Educational notes. This is not medical advice.

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• Men

• study

Stanford Medicine / Science · 6 Oct 2026 · Supplements / medicine

Blocking an age-linked enzyme regrew knee cartilage in old mice and in tissue from knee replacements

Study (old mice, plus human cartilage taken during knee replacement). ScienceDaily carried the Stanford Medicine account on 6 October 2026. Mamta Singla, Yu Xin Wang, Helen Blau, Nidhi Bhutani, and colleagues report in Science (2026; 391(6789):1053; doi 10.1126/science.adx6649). The enzyme 15-PGDH, which they call a gerozyme, was about twice as abundant in knee cartilage from old mice as from young mice. A small-molecule inhibitor, given into the abdomen or into the knee, thickened hyaline cartilage across the joint in older mice. After an ACL-like injury, twice-weekly inhibitor for four weeks lowered the chance of osteoarthritis; mice given a control drug had about twice the 15-PGDH of uninjured knees and developed osteoarthritis within four weeks. The release says about half of people with these ligament injuries develop osteoarthritis in that joint within about 15 years, and that osteoarthritis affects about one in five U.S. adults. In cartilage from people undergoing total knee replacement, one week of the inhibitor reduced degradation-related gene activity and the tissue began making articular cartilage. The release does not give the number of mice or the ages of the people whose tissue was studied. An oral 15-PGDH inhibitor has phase 1 data for muscle weakness in healthy volunteers, not for joints. Some authors are inventors on Stanford patents licensed to Epirium Bio, and Blau is a cofounder. This is not a drug available for arthritis. Educational notes. This is not medical advice.

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• study

Brigham Young University / Family Relations · 6 Oct 2026 · Supplements / medicine

In nearly 1,700 young married couples, exercising together lined up with calmer conflict and better communication

Study (survey of young married couples; not a training trial). ScienceDaily carried the Brigham Young University account on 6 October 2026. Ashlyn Mildenhall, Matthew Nunez, and Jeremy Yorgason report in Family Relations (2026; doi 10.1111/fare.70260), using the CREATE study of nearly 1,700 young married couples in the United States. Both individual exercise and shared exercise lined up with better communication, better conflict resolution, and less marital stress. Shared activity had the stronger link. About 60 percent of husbands and wives said they exercised, and about a third exercised together. Walking was the most common shared activity. The authors call the effect small and consistent, and they say it is not a fix for every relationship problem. The release does not give ages beyond “young,” and it does not measure fitness or disease. Educational notes. This is not a workout prescription.

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• Women
• Men
• Under 40

• study
• fitness
• off-label-context