How food is shared inside ant colonies has long been invisible in real time. Researchers in Japan have now used a highly sensitive radioactive imaging technique to watch food move from ant to ant, minute by minute. The method reveals unexpected patterns in how resources spread through a group and could help scientists detect early warning signs of stress or imbalance in insect societies, crucial to ecosystems and agriculture.

A research team has identified a promising new therapeutic strategy for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), showing that blocking two proteins can halt and even reverse lung scarring in pre-clinical models. IPF is a progressive disease in which scar tissue builds up in the lungs, making it increasingly difficult to breathe. The disease affects an estimated 100,000 people in the United States, with about 30,000 to 40,000 new cases diagnosed each year, according to the National Institutes of Health. 

Diabetes is a highly prevalent chronic condition and a major contributor to the global burden of disease, posing substantial challenges to health systems. Cardiovascular disease (CVD) remains its leading complication, and people with diabetes face a two- to four-fold higher risk of cardiovascular morbidity and mortality than the general population. Control of glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c), blood pressure, and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), collectively referred to as ABC risk factors, is a cornerstone of cardiovascular prevention in diabetes.

Scientists from the National University of Singapore have successfully engineered a naturally occurring beneficial gut bacterium into a programmable “living medicine” to treat hepatic encephalopathy (HE), a severe brain dysfunction linked to liver failure. The therapy combines two engineered gut-bacteria strains: one absorbs excess gut ammonia and converts it into nutrients lacking in HE patients, while the other reduces ammonia production. Compared with a standard HE antibiotic, the cocktail achieved stronger improvements in anxiety and short-term memory, while also reduced inflammation in the brain.

Mothers provide a hidden immune legacy that protects their children's teeth long after weaning is over. A new study reveals how maternal antibodies act as early life architects, programming the mouth to resist aggressive bacteria and prevent the bone loss associated with adult gum disease. By setting a healthy immune tone before birth, these maternal defenses ensure that the foundation for a lifetime of oral health is laid from the very beginning.

The finding explains how the absence of a key protein in the structure of bile ducts promotes the onset of fibrosis. 

If bile ducts let bile acids leak through, these will cause damage that liver tissue repairs by producing scars. The accumulation of these scars leads to fibrosis.

For the study’s authors, "this finding allows research to be steered towards safer therapies targeting liver fibrosis."

The paper is published in Nature Metabolism.