Preprint, not peer-reviewedChemRxiv
A new model aims to predict H5N1 resistance to flu drugs
This is a preprint, not yet reviewed by other scientists, by Muhammadjon Tursunbadalov and co-authors. It describes ARGUS, a model that combines four structural signals to estimate resistance of H5N1 influenza neuraminidase to the antivirals oseltamivir and zanamivir. The authors say the model predicts maintained efficacy of both antivirals against mutations from the US H5N1 B3.13 outbreak.
- Published
- Oct 12, 2026
DOI 10.26434/chemrxiv.15010305/v1
Preprint, not peer-reviewedbioRxiv
Preprint tests herbal extracts and their ingredients for effects on liver cells
This is a preprint, not yet reviewed by other scientists, led by G. Ollitrault and co-authors. The authors profiled 13 botanical extracts and 85 known constituents in primary human hepatocytes (liver cells) using the Cell Painting method, which detected activity in 11 of 13 extracts and 46 of 85 constituents. They say Aristolochia and goldenseal were the most potent extracts, and that their machine-learning models generate testable hypotheses about mechanisms.
- Published
- Oct 12, 2026
DOI 10.64898/2026.10.05.756246
Preprint, not peer-reviewedbioRxiv
A preprint finds fast-dissociating CAR-T cells reach solid tumors better in mice
This is a preprint, not yet reviewed by other scientists, led by R. Mao and co-authors, comparing two antibodies against the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) that bind at similar speed but release at different speeds. In NSG mice with large human tumors, CAR-T cells built with the faster-releasing binder H1 expanded, persisted and infiltrated tumors better than cetuximab-based cells at low doses. The study is in mice, so it does not show how such treatment would work in people.
- Published
- Oct 12, 2026
DOI 10.64898/2026.10.10.756030
Preprint, not peer-reviewedbioRxiv
A preprint finds large Maf transcription factors maintain fast muscle fibers
This is a preprint, not yet reviewed by other scientists, led by S. Sadaki and co-authors, on adult skeletal muscle. The authors report that inducible deletion of the large Maf transcription factors Mafa, Mafb, and Maf caused near-complete loss of type IIb fibers, with reduced strength and greater fatigue resistance. They note that fast myofibers are preferentially affected during aging, and that the changes resemble those seen in aging and denervation.
- Published
- Oct 13, 2026
DOI 10.64898/2026.10.09.758120
Preprint, not peer-reviewedbioRxiv
A preprint links blood aging marks in King penguins to stem cell aging
This is a preprint, not yet reviewed by other scientists, led by M. Hukkanen and co-authors. Analyzing 126 whole-blood methylomes from King penguins of known age, the authors identify 409 aging-associated genes, many of them regulators of hematopoietic stem and progenitor cell function. They also report that a human age model built only from orthologues of these genes predicts chronological age with high accuracy, which they propose reflects a long-lived cellular memory of stem-cell aging.
- Published
- Oct 13, 2026
DOI 10.64898/2026.10.10.757848
Preprint, not peer-reviewedmedRxiv
Preprint links blood pressure variability to death and stroke risk
This is a preprint, not yet reviewed by other scientists, led by S. Han and co-authors, using the UK Biobank cohort of 57,611 participants. The authors report that absolute blood pressure variability was associated with all-cause mortality, and that diastolic and mean arterial pressure variability were associated with overall stroke after false discovery rate (FDR) correction. The study is observational, so it shows links rather than causes, and adjusting for variability changed the glycemic status association only minimally.
- Published
- Oct 13, 2026
DOI 10.64898/2026.10.11.26365219
Preprint, not peer-reviewedmedRxiv
Preprint links brain fog and forgetfulness to migraine interference
This is a preprint, not yet reviewed by other scientists, led by A. Bina and G. Rezaee. Using daily smartphone diaries from 143 participants over a 30-day monitoring period, the authors report that brain fog, forgetfulness and mood disturbance were each independently associated with headache-related interference with activity and concentration, while age, sex and employment status were not. The study is observational, so these are associations rather than proven causes.
- Published
- Oct 13, 2026
DOI 10.64898/2026.10.11.26365249
Preprint, not peer-reviewedmedRxiv
Preprint links psychotropic drug receptor effects to cognition in psychotic disorders
This is a preprint, not yet reviewed by other scientists, led by C. J. Watson and co-authors. It is a cross-sectional study of 1,067 people with psychotic disorders, using prescribed doses of 49 psychotropic medications to estimate receptor-engagement profiles. Some profiles were associated with cognitive performance, such as one with alpha2-adrenergic and dopaminergic receptors linked to poorer performance and dopamine transporter engagement linked to better performance, and because the study is cross-sectional it cannot show that a medicine changes cognition.
- Published
- Oct 13, 2026
DOI 10.64898/2026.10.12.26365151
Preprint, not peer-reviewedbioRxiv
Preprint finds a mitochondrial enzyme that Japanese encephalitis virus uses
This is a preprint, not yet reviewed by other scientists, led by V. Sood and co-authors, on Japanese encephalitis virus (JEV), which the abstract describes as the leading cause of viral encephalitis in Asia and for which no antiviral therapies exist. In human SH-SY5Y cells, silencing the mitochondrial transaminase GOT2 reduced JEV RNA, viral protein and infectious virus production. The authors call GOT2 a candidate host-directed antiviral target.
- Published
- Oct 13, 2026
DOI 10.64898/2026.10.12.758629
Preprint, not peer-reviewedbioRxiv
Preprint links non-invasive nerve stimulation to less neuron damage after brain injury
This is a preprint, not yet reviewed by other scientists, led by C. Li and co-authors. The authors report that non-invasive trigeminal nerve stimulation (TNS) preserved neuronal survival after traumatic brain injury, by preventing aggregation of the outer mitochondrial membrane receptor TOM20 and restoring PINK1/Parkin pathway function. They describe it as a non-pharmacological strategy that reduced progressive infarct expansion and recovered sensorimotor functions in their experiments.
- Published
- Oct 13, 2026
DOI 10.64898/2026.10.12.758678
Final reportCDC MMWR
A CDC MMWR report examines binge eating among U.S. high school students
This is a final report from CDC MMWR, which describes the prevalence of binge eating among U.S. high school students using the 2025 Youth Risk Behavior Survey. It identifies groups disproportionately affected and examines associations between binge eating and social media use, mental health and suicide risk. As a survey-based report, it shows associations rather than causes.
- Published
- Oct 13, 2026
Final reportCDC MMWR
A CDC MMWR report looks at substance use among U.S. high school students
This is a final report from CDC MMWR, which describes patterns of substance use among U.S. high school students using the 2025 Youth Risk Behavior Survey. It examines differences by sex, race and ethnicity, grade and urban-rural classification. The report describes differences between groups, not what causes them.
- Published
- Oct 13, 2026
Peer-reviewed studyNature
Study engineers an IL-10 candidate that targets myeloid cells but not T cells
This is a peer-reviewed study in Nature. It engineers a tetravalent, nanobody-based myeloid-selective agonist of the Interleukin-10 (IL-10) receptor that suppresses monocytes, macrophages and dendritic cells without stimulating T cells, by exploiting a difference in TYK2 dependence between cell types. The agonist reduced inflammation in mouse models of lipopolysaccharide challenge, delayed-type hypersensitivity and colitis, and a humanized version kept myeloid suppression for up to 30 days in non-human primates without T cell activation or haematological toxicities.
- Published
- Oct 14, 2026
DOI 10.1038/s41586-026-11176-1
Preprint, not peer-reviewedbioRxiv
Preprint finds a calcium channel drives invasive joint cells in rheumatoid arthritis
This is a preprint, not yet reviewed by other scientists, led by M. R. Tanner and co-authors. The authors report that the CaV1.2 channel carries the calcium influx triggered by blocking the KCa1.1 potassium channel in fibroblast-like synoviocytes, and that blocking CaV1.2 removed the effects of KCa1.1 blockade on invasiveness in human and rat cells. In a rat collagen-induced arthritis model, combining blockers of both channels removed the therapeutic benefit of KCa1.1 blockers alone.
- Published
- Oct 14, 2026
DOI 10.64898/2026.10.12.758622
Preprint, not peer-reviewedbioRxiv
Preprint links an oral bacterium and nerves to gastroesophageal junction tumors
This is a preprint, not yet reviewed by other scientists, led by Y. Zeng and co-authors. The authors report that bile acid remodeling enriches the oral commensal Prevotella melaninogenica at the gastroesophageal junction, where its succinate activates sensory neurons and tuft cells in a self-reinforcing circuit that promotes dysplastic progression. They say disrupting the circuit, including with the approved CGRP antagonist rimegepant, suppressed tumor development.
- Published
- Oct 15, 2026
DOI 10.64898/2026.10.13.759004
Preprint, not peer-reviewedmedRxiv
Preprint links starting regular activity to fewer mobility problems in older adults
This is a preprint, not yet reviewed by other scientists, by J. Liang. Using Health and Retirement Study (HRS) data, the author emulates a target trial of starting regular physical activity in older adults who had been inactive, and reports that cumulative incidence of mobility difficulty at about 2 years was 32.75% among initiators and 39.73% among noninitiators. The difference was less clear at about 4 and 6 years, and the study is observational, so it shows an association rather than a proven effect.
- Published
- Oct 15, 2026
DOI 10.64898/2026.10.14.26365469
Preprint, not peer-reviewedmedRxiv
Preprint proposes EPB42, KLF1 and H3F3A as candidate kidney disease markers
This is a preprint, not yet reviewed by other scientists, led by X. Zhang and co-authors. Using two discovery datasets and clinical blood samples, the authors propose EPB42, KLF1 and H3F3A as candidate stage-associated biomarkers in chronic kidney disease (CKD) and end-stage renal disease (ESRD). EPB42 moved in opposite directions between the two diseases, which the authors say may help distinguish CKD from ESRD.
- Published
- Oct 15, 2026
DOI 10.64898/2026.10.14.26365574
Preprint, not peer-reviewedbioRxiv
Preprint links locus coeruleus degeneration to fragmented REM sleep in mice
This is a preprint, not yet reviewed by other scientists, led by N. Zelinger and co-authors, in adult female DBH-Cre mice. Using a progressive Caspase-3 method that ablates the locus coeruleus (LC) in stages, the authors report that REM sleep fragmentation appeared already at mild degeneration, about 25% neuronal loss, and that REM theta power declined across all stages. At moderate degeneration, about 50% loss, total REM sleep during light hours had significantly increased.
- Published
- Oct 16, 2026
DOI 10.64898/2026.10.12.758491
Preprint, not peer-reviewedbioRxiv
Preprint links acute kidney injury to lung damage and the CLOCK gene
This is a preprint, not yet reviewed by other scientists, by Z. Tian. The authors report that patients with acute kidney injury (AKI) who later had lung injury had higher observed mortality than the AKI cohort overall (36.67% against 25.45%). They also report that the circadian gene CLOCK was selectively lower in primary human donor lungs from clinical AKI, a finding they describe as human-validated, though the donor groups were small.
- Published
- Oct 16, 2026
DOI 10.64898/2026.10.13.758311
Preprint, not peer-reviewedbioRxiv
Preprint reports zinc enzymes designed from scratch by computation
This is a preprint, not yet reviewed by other scientists, led by C. Shan and co-authors, describing a pipeline for de novo design of metalloenzymes using Metal Mer, a structural unit that maps backbone geometry to preferred metal coordination modes. The authors report a designed zinc-dependent hydride-transfer enzyme giving enantiomeric excess above 99% on 13 substrates without directed evolution, and an iron-catalyzed variant reaching 96:4 enantiomeric ratio after a single active-site residue mutation. They say a crystal structure of one design matched the computational model closely.
- Published
- Oct 16, 2026
DOI 10.64898/2026.10.13.758590
Preprint, not peer-reviewedbioRxiv
Preprint reports a GIRK channel activator with strong antiseizure effects
This is a preprint, not yet reviewed by other scientists, led by J. Simhadri and co-authors. It describes GAT1508, a urea-based activator of neuronal G protein-gated inwardly rectifying potassium (GIRK) channels, which in a pentylenetetrazole (PTZ)-induced seizure model outperformed ML297 and GiGA1 and was comparable to valproic acid. The authors also report that it significantly potentiated the antiseizure effects of cannabidiol (CBD) in seizure models, with results from oocyte, hippocampal slice and in vivo experiments.
- Published
- Oct 16, 2026
DOI 10.64898/2026.10.14.758970
Preprint, not peer-reviewedbioRxiv
Preprint links the amino acid valine to social behavior through a brain receptor
This is a preprint, not yet reviewed by other scientists, led by X. Shan and co-authors. The authors report that valine, a branched-chain amino acid (BCAA), engages a valine-selective allosteric pocket on metabotropic glutamate receptor 5 (mGluR5) in the medial prefrontal cortex, and that partial dietary valine restriction disrupted social interaction while local valine supplementation rescued it. They describe valine as a diet-derived allosteric ligand that potentiates glutamate-evoked mGluR5 signaling.
- Published
- Oct 16, 2026
DOI 10.64898/2026.10.14.759089
Preprint, not peer-reviewedmedRxiv
Preprint compares pTau217, NfL and risk scores for 11-year dementia prediction
This is a preprint, not yet reviewed by other scientists, led by J. Stubs and co-authors. Using data from the Norwegian Trondelag Health Study, it compares plasma phosphorylated tau217 (pTau217), neurofilament light chain (NfL) and eight modifiable risk scores for predicting all-cause dementia 11 years later. The authors report that higher pTau217 was associated with greater likelihood of dementia, that the risk scores gave only marginal improvement, and that NfL did not improve prediction beyond pTau217 or the scores.
- Published
- Oct 16, 2026
DOI 10.64898/2026.10.15.26365615
Preprint, not peer-reviewedmedRxiv
Preprint finds drug brand names grew more unusual over four decades
This is a preprint, not yet reviewed by other scientists, by B. L. Lambert. Using new molecular entity names approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and other drug name data, the author reports that proprietary drug names became more orthographically distinctive over four decades, with trigram surprisal rising in every decade. The author notes that unfamiliar letter sequences can introduce other error pathways, so more distinctive names do not necessarily mean better safety.
- Published
- Oct 16, 2026
DOI 10.64898/2026.10.15.26365645
Preprint, not peer-reviewedbioRxiv
Preprint maps how positions across the whole human genome depend on each other
This is a preprint, not yet reviewed by other scientists, by I. Kurth and co-authors. Using Nucleotide Transformer v3, the authors perturbed every position of the complete telomere-to-telomere human genome to build a directed, weighted network of position-to-position relationships. They name recurring modules 'relons' and report that these reflect evolutionary and functional constraints and associate with human genetic variation and pathogenic variants.
- Published
- Oct 16, 2026
DOI 10.64898/2026.10.15.759350
Preprint, not peer-reviewedbioRxiv
Preprint finds sex differences in brain capillary flow in aging mice
This is a preprint, not yet reviewed by other scientists, led by E. Gutierrez-Jimenez and co-authors, in middle-aged mice at 15 months. The authors report that cortical blood flow is higher in females, that capillary transit-time heterogeneity scales more steeply with transit time in females, and that oxygen extraction fraction is reduced without a deficit in arterial oxygen delivery. They also report a male-associated myelin and axonogenesis signature in white matter, and suggest elevated blood flow in females can mask rather than reflect adequate tissue oxygenation.
- Published
- Oct 18, 2026
DOI 10.64898/2026.10.12.758495