Health

Ancient black holes, How good cholesterol is made, Self-healing plastic, Dengue’s genetic imprint, Korean mussel power & Space clean-up. Read all in the latest Editor's Choice.

National Taiwan University researchers uncover how silencing a single protein protects the brain and extends lifespan.

Commuting time and living environment have been found to correlate with poor sleep health

A new study led by National Taiwan University Hospital (NTUH) researchers shows that while scarless thyroid surgery preserves delicate structures better, it requires longer operative time, higher costs, and may compromise specimen integrity.

A Kyoto University study has revealed, for the first time, how the body produces the “good cholesterol” that can prevent heart disease

Lingnan University has achieved another remarkable milestone in the 2025 edition of the World’s Top 2% Scientists list, published by Stanford University. This year, a total of 43 Lingnan scholars were named in the list, representing an increase of about 50 per cent compared with last year’s 29. Among them, 19 scholars were ranked among the global top 100 in their respective disciplines, underscoring the international recognition of Lingnan’s research excellence and its rising global impact.

The risk of extreme water shortages due to climate change is predicted to affect almost 74% of drought-prone regions by 2100, according to new research in Nature Communications. In the first known published estimation of its kind, the authors report that hotspots of water scarcity will likely emerge across the Mediterranean, southern Africa, and parts of North America by the 2020s and 2030s.

Cell membranes in our body relies on membrane viscosity to transport membranes and carry-out cellular functions. But measuring this viscosity has been notoriously difficult, with scientists often relying on model membranes. Now, a collaborative research team has developed a new method to directly measure the viscosity of living cell membranes directly.

Combined effects of body cooling and mental fatigue hinder endurance performance

Increases in wildfires, linked to projected future climate change, are expected to cause a notable increase in premature deaths, according to two new modelling studies.

Researchers at Osaka Metropolitan University have developed an AI model for diagnosing esophageal achalasia using chest X-rays. The AI model demonstrated higher sensitivity and specificity than physicians in its diagnostic capability.

Researchers in Vietnam, Thailand, India and the UK have been awarded more than £4 million by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) to identify and evaluate inclusive methods of healthcare provision.

Researchers from National Taiwan University Hospital and Academia Sinica have identified a simple blood marker that can reliably pinpoint chronic hepatitis B (CHB) patients at negligible risk of developing liver cancer.

Researchers have identified the mechanism by which a common genetic mutation increases liver disease risk. Their findings suggest that healthy choices, such as increasing antioxidants and limiting exposure to smoke, may reduce the risk of this disease.

Perimetry (visual field testing) quantifies a patient’s retinal sensitivity to light and clarifies a deviation from normal retinal sensitivity. Visual field tests generally require high patient concentration, which can be exhausted. We constructed a framework for deep reinforcement learning to train ViFT (Visual Field Transformer), which controls all processes of visual field testing. ViFT achieves the same or higher accuracy than the state-of-the-art strategies, with less than half the test time of the state-of-the-art strategies.

Around 354 million people in North America and Europe are likely to have been affected by fine particulate matter pollution from the 2023 Canadian wildfire season, a new study suggests.

Standard blood tests can help physicians predict the risk of mortality in patients with Drug Reaction with Eosinophilia and Systemic Symptoms (DRESS). These findings may facilitate earlier interventions and enable more personalized treatment strategies for this severe cutaneous adverse reaction (SCAR).

Researchers at National Taiwan University have discovered a versatile enzyme from Bacillus subtilis that efficiently attaches phosphate groups to natural compounds. This breakthrough offers a greener way to boost drug solubility and develop more effective nutraceuticals and prodrugs.

• Singapore’s flagship medical school is doubling down on population health research and technology-enabled solutions to strengthen healthcare systems and prepare tomorrow’s leaders • The School rebrands its Health Services & Systems Research (HSSR) programme to deliver policy-relevant, tech-driven solutions for a healthier Singapore • Launches new education pathways to enhance professional capabilities in population health research

With just five minutes a day of training in Rei-ho (an ancient practice common amongst samurai), seniors can improve their leg strength and build up muscles essential for independent living.

The research group led by Drs. Mitsuru Arase, Mari Murakami, and Prof. Kiyoshi Takeda (Graduate School of Medicine/ Immunology Frontier Research Center at The University of Osaka) revealed that transcription factors RUNX2 and BHLHE40 play crucial roles in inducing T cells involved in Crohn's disease.

Taiwan Innotech Expo (TIE) 2025 will return from October 16–18 at Taipei World Trade Center, Hall 1, uniting government, academia, and industry under the theme “Cross-Domain AI Innovation: Driving the Future with Intelligence.” The event will feature 450 exhibitors presenting nearly 1,100 patented technologies, highlighting Taiwan’s role as a key driver of global innovation.

Self-healing hydrogel, Cool crawler, AI and world's longest crop experiment & Freeze-framing cells. Plus how media interest helps engineers and society. Read all in the latest Editor's Choice

A customizable protein has been developed to help the body remove harmful cells, such as those involved in cancer or autoimmune diseases, offering a potential new direction for treatments.

Researchers from The University of Osaka have found that they can keep mouse uterine tissue alive outside of the body, allowing them to directly observe embryonic implantation and development. Their technique brings hope for patients with infertility, and may allow for the development of therapies to treat recurrent implantation failure and improve the chance of implantation success using assisted reproductive technologies.

Researchers from The University of Osaka found that macrophages use microautophagy, mediated by Rab32-positive lysosome-related organelles, to directly engulf damaged mitochondria and other organelles. This was discovered to be independent of macroautophagy. Key factors in this process include Rab32 GTPase, PI(3,5)P2, ubiquitination, and p62/SQSTM1. By clearing mitochondria, microautophagy promotes metabolic reprogramming toward glycolysis, supporting M1 macrophage polarization. Loss of Rab32/38 disrupts this process, highlighting microautophagy’s role in regulating macrophage function.

A drug called lubiprostone - typically used for constipation - was remarkably shown to help patients with chronic kidney disease.

• International researchers led by Duke-NUS identify rare mutations in the SPNS1 gene as the cause of a previously undiagnosed multi-organ disorder • Faulty fat recycling in cells triggers damaging build-up in muscles and liver • Findings lay the groundwork for new therapies for affected families

By analyzing outcomes from a large-scale national dataset, this study raises tough questions about the impact of pre-hospital life support procedures on outcomes in patients with asystole.