The Daily Trickle

Lab study finds malaria drug lumefantrine slows hematin crystal growth

A peer-reviewed study combining parasite experiments with laboratory and microscopy work examines how lumefantrine, one of the drugs in current malaria combination therapies, acts on hematin crystallization, a process malaria parasites rely on to survive. The authors report that lumefantrine suppresses Plasmodium falciparum parasites in their assays and slows hematin crystal growth, while also promoting the formation of hematin-rich clusters.

Published

Oct 12, 2026

Four models compare typhoid vaccine schedules across settings

A peer-reviewed multi-model comparison, commissioned by the World Health Organization (WHO), used four computer models of typhoid transmission to compare schedules for typhoid conjugate vaccine (TCV). The models predicted that routine vaccination at 9 months, with a catch-up campaign to 15 years and a booster at 5 years, would have the greatest impact, cutting cases by a median of 40% to 68% over 10 years, and that the best schedule depends on incidence, case fatality risk and how fast protection wanes.

Published

Oct 13, 2026

Preprint links liver protein UBE4A to fatty liver protection in mice

A preprint, not yet reviewed by other scientists, reports mouse experiments and human liver samples on UBE4A, a protein the authors say protects against fatty liver disease (MASLD) and steatohepatitis (MASH) by keeping the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) working properly. In the mice, deleting the protein in liver cells worsened fatty liver changes, inflammation and insulin resistance, and the authors say levels of the protein are lower in human MASLD and MASH livers.

Published

Oct 13, 2026

Preprint reports BCG lowered blood sugar in a type 1 diabetes trial

A preprint, not yet reviewed by other scientists, reports a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled phase 2 trial of BCG, which the authors call an old generic drug, in people with type 1 diabetes (T1D), followed for up to 8 years. The authors report that hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c), a measure of average blood sugar, fell by 7.04% at year 5 and 12.84% at year 8 in the BCG group but did not change in the placebo group, and that BCG was safe.

Published

Oct 13, 2026

Mouse preprint suggests ovarian aging depends on the wider body

A preprint, not yet reviewed by other scientists, reports ovary transplant experiments and parabiosis experiments (where two animals share a circulation) in mice. The authors report that ovarian aging shifted in both directions depending on the host, and that ovaries from 13-month-old donors supported live births when moved into young hosts but not into old hosts.

Published

Oct 13, 2026

Preprint links stress response in brain cells to vascular dementia in mice

A preprint, not yet reviewed by other scientists, reports that mice fed a high-fat diet and with hypertension developed oligodendroglial cell loss, thinner myelin, memory problems and features the authors say resemble vascular dementia. Blocking the integrated stress response (ISR) in those cells, or deleting the ISR-activating kinase PERK from them, protected the mice, and the authors say the pathway may be a therapeutic target.

Published

Oct 13, 2026

Study maps structural variants in 467,152 UK Biobank genomes

A peer-reviewed study in Cell analyzes 467,152 genomes from the UK Biobank to map structural variants, which it describes as changes in DNA sequence greater than 50 base pairs. The authors say these variants are an important and previously underrecognized source of human disease risk, and the resource reveals rare and regulatory variants linked to disease.

Published

Oct 15, 2026

Preprint reports fucose sugar in HIV vaccine design broadens antibody response

A preprint, not yet reviewed by other scientists, reports HIV-1 vaccine candidates, made by human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) researchers, that carry a core fucose sugar on their envelope protein, tested mainly in mice. The authors say the sugar supports neutralizing antibody responses against several strains, and that humanized mice showed detectable neutralization by week 11.

Published

Oct 15, 2026

Preprint reports llama nanobodies that bind conserved COVID-19 virus sites

A preprint, not yet reviewed by other scientists, reports single-domain antibodies, called nanobodies, isolated from a llama immunized with a mosaic receptor-binding domain (RBD) nanoparticle. The authors say some of the nanobodies bind conserved parts of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein, the virus that causes COVID-19, and neutralized several variants of concern (VOCs) and zoonotic sarbecoviruses in tests, which they say shows potential therapeutic use.

Published

Oct 15, 2026

Preprint estimates modest out-of-pocket costs but heavy time burden for COVID-19 care

A preprint, not yet reviewed by other scientists, reports two U.S. surveys from fall 2023, one of adults and one of caregivers of children, on costs and time spent on COVID-19 illness. The authors report median out-of-pocket medical costs per visit of $5 to $10 for adults, time spent ranging from 90 to 300 minutes across settings, and that 34% of adults reported COVID-related financial challenges.

Published

Oct 15, 2026

Preprint identifies bacterial enzymes that release sugar chains from lipid carrier

A preprint, not yet reviewed by other scientists, identifies three enzymes in Escherichia coli, called UprA, UprB and UprC, that release sugar-based chains from undecaprenyl, a lipid carrier that bacteria use to build their cell envelope. The authors say UprA completes the synthesis of peptidoglycan, and that this enzyme family could be a potential target for antibiotics.

Published

Oct 15, 2026

Preprint screens tuberculosis drug target pairs for synergy

A preprint, not yet reviewed by other scientists, reports a pooled CRISPR interference (CRISPRi) screen in Mycobacterium tuberculosis that tested 1,326 pairs of 51 drug-target genes. The authors say many pairs were synergistic, and that chemically inhibiting polyketide synthase 13 (Pks13) made several antitubercular drugs more effective in lab tests.

Published

Oct 15, 2026

Preprint reports late AI access lowered team creativity in an experiment

A preprint, not yet reviewed by other scientists, reports a preregistered experiment with 148 three-person teams using a language model during a product-design task. The authors report that giving the same access during selection rather than search lowered expert-rated creativity by 0.62 standard deviations, although teams used the model at similar rates.

Published

Oct 14, 2026

Preprint reports AI-designed games outperformed human designers in an experiment

A preprint, not yet reviewed by other scientists, reports three experiments with 1,025 participants who designed computer games with an AI coding agent and bought games. The authors report that games designed by the AI alone outperformed those by human producers, including professional creatives, and that telling consumers a game was human-designed did not raise their willingness to pay.

Published

Oct 15, 2026

Preprint models long-term pediatric vaccine tenders with quantity discounts

A preprint, not yet reviewed by other scientists, models multi-year tenders for pediatric vaccines in low- and lower-middle-income countries, with flexible lengths and all-unit quantity discounts. The authors report that the procurement objective, rather than demand variability, drives cost and schedule complexity, and that quantity discounts favor large producers and concentrate the market.

Published

Oct 15, 2026

UK tax regulations treat loans and living accommodation as specified benefits

This is UK law: the Income Tax (Pay As You Earn) (Amendment No. 3) Regulations 2026 amend the PAYE regulations to make loans and living accommodation a 'specified benefit' and set out how to calculate their cash equivalent. Employers may apply to the tax agency to become an 'authorised employer' for these benefits for the tax year 2027-28 onwards. The regulations were made on October 13, 2026 and come into force on November 5, 2026.

Published

Oct 15, 2026

Made

Oct 13, 2026

Effective

Nov 5, 2026

UK regulations set out local authority charges for building functions in England

This is UK law, made on October 14, 2026, covering England. It sets out provisions about the charges local authorities make for, or in connection with, certain building-related functions. The abstract does not say what the charges are or who pays them, so see the regulations themselves for those details.

Published

Oct 15, 2026

Made

Oct 14, 2026

Preprint describes cobalt catalyst that converts CO2 to CO and back

A preprint, not yet reviewed by other scientists, describes a cobalt-based molecular catalyst that can turn carbon dioxide (CO2) into carbon monoxide (CO) and also oxidize CO back to CO2. The authors report a Faradaic efficiency of 85% for the CO2 reduction direction, at an overpotential as low as 0.27 V.

Published

Oct 13, 2026

Preprint links flooding in CO2 electrolyzers to ion gradients

A preprint, not yet reviewed by other scientists, studies why water builds up in membrane-electrode assembly devices that use electricity to convert carbon dioxide (CO2) into chemicals. The authors report that ion gradients in the membrane are the main driver of this flooding, and that they demonstrated stable carbon monoxide (CO) production at 500 mA cm-2 on a silver catalyst.

Published

Oct 13, 2026

Denali Park Road limit of 160 vehicles per 24 hours in final rule

The National Park Service (NPS) is amending special regulations for Denali National Park and Preserve to set a limit of 160 vehicles per 24-hour period on the restricted section of Denali Park Road, miles 15-90, during the visitor season. The rule implements a Vehicle Management Plan the NPS has been implementing since 2012, and it comes into force on November 16, 2026.

Published

Oct 16, 2026

Effective

Nov 16, 2026

How to weigh in: No comment period: this is a final rule.

Coast Guard delays electronic submission of mariner course data

The Coast Guard, part of the Homeland Security Department, will not require electronic submission of mariner course completion data until at least November 25, 2028, because the system for it is not yet fully operational. It will notify the public through the Federal Register before requiring the submissions.

Published

Oct 16, 2026

Comments close

Nov 25, 2028

How to weigh in: The rule is final, but the agency takes comments until November 25, 2028.

UK rules extend Nursery Milk Scheme to childminder agency providers

This is UK law, made on October 13, 2026, covering England and Wales. It changes the Welfare Food Regulations 1996 to replace references to day care with childcare, and extends the Nursery Milk Scheme to childcare providers registered with Childminder Agencies, so they can claim reimbursement for milk given to eligible children.

Published

Oct 15, 2026

Made

Oct 13, 2026

Temporary ban on shortraker rockfish catch in Gulf of Alaska

This temporary rule, in effect since October 14, 2026, is from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). It bars keeping shortraker rockfish in the Central Regulatory Area of the Gulf of Alaska, except for certain catcher/processors in the Central GOA Rockfish Program fishing under a rockfish cooperative quota permit, because the total allowable catch for other vessels will soon be or has been reached.

Published

Oct 16, 2026

Effective

Oct 14, 2026

How to weigh in: No comment period: this is a final rule.

Proposed spiny lobster catch limits for St. Croix and St. Thomas

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) proposes rules that would update annual catch limits for spiny lobster in St. Croix and in St. Thomas and St. John, under Framework Action 4 of fishery plans prepared by the Caribbean Fishery Management Council. The aim is to update management reference points to match the most recent stock assessments, to prevent overfishing and achieve optimum yield.

Published

Oct 16, 2026

Comments close

Nov 16, 2026

How to weigh in: Comment by November 16, 2026.

UK sanctions order extends human rights sanctions to overseas territories

This is UK law: the Global Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law Sanctions (Overseas Territories) Order 2026 extends, with modifications, the Global Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law Sanctions Regulations 2026 to all British overseas territories except Bermuda and Gibraltar. It was made on October 14, 2026 and came into force on October 15, 2026.

Published

Oct 15, 2026

Made

Oct 14, 2026

Effective

Oct 15, 2026

Nature study reports lithium-ion clusters in battery electrolytes

A peer-reviewed study in Nature combines machine-learning simulations, spectroscopy, electrochemical data and quantum-chemical calculations. The authors report multi-lithium-ion complexes without bound anions in battery electrolytes, which they say improves understanding of how lithium-ion batteries work at the atomic level.

Published

Oct 14, 2026

Study estimates conservation areas cover 26.81% of land, near 30% goal

A peer-reviewed study in Nature uses a globally representative sample of 25 countries and territories to estimate that conservation areas cover 26.81% of the land. The authors say this is much closer to the 30% by 2030 target than official reports have suggested.

Published

Oct 14, 2026

Preprint reports high-entropy phosphates conduct protons with less cobalt

A preprint, not yet reviewed by other scientists, reports single-phase high-entropy metal phosphates, materials that mix several metals, whose proton conductivity was measured at 25 °C and 80 °C. The authors say a greater mix of metals raised conductivity, which let them cut cobalt to about 40 mol% without losing performance compared with a pure cobalt benchmark.

Published

Oct 14, 2026

Preprint reports iron-based framework converts nitrate to ammonia

A preprint, not yet reviewed by other scientists, describes TU-420, a crystalline covalent organic framework that helps turn nitrate into ammonia. The authors report 98.1% ammonia Faradaic efficiency at -0.60 V versus the reversible hydrogen electrode for the iron version, and say it is more selective than the copper version.

Published

Oct 14, 2026

Pew says income and wealth grew for every income group since 2000

Pew Research Center says income and wealth have grown for lower-, middle- and upper-income households in the United States since 2000. The announcement is cut off before it says which group's gains were greatest, so see the original for that detail.

Published

Oct 14, 2026

Preprint reports probabilistic AI weather models forecast heat extremes better

A preprint, not yet reviewed by other scientists, compares heat-extreme forecasts from probabilistic artificial intelligence (AI) weather prediction models with the ECMWF IFS ensemble, a numerical weather prediction system. The authors report that the AI models clearly outperform it over global land, including for record-breaking heat, and argue that many reported AI limitations come from comparing deterministic forecasts.

Published

Oct 15, 2026

Study reports nearly half of reef-building corals face elevated extinction risk

A peer-reviewed study in Nature reports that nearly half of reef-building corals face elevated relative risk of extinction. The abstract gives no further detail, so see the original for the methods and scope.

Published

Oct 15, 2026

Preprint reports electrochemical CO2 capture that tolerates oxygen and water

A preprint, not yet reviewed by other scientists, reports an ortho-quinone molecule, 1,10-phenanthroline-5,6-dione (PD), that captures carbon dioxide (CO2) electrochemically and releases it again, tested on a carbon-felt electrode in near-neutral water. The authors report reversible capture and release over 16 hours from a 9.3% CO2 feed, with 96% electron-utilization efficiency.

Published

Oct 15, 2026

Preprint reports framework material captures CO2 and releases it with light

A preprint, not yet reviewed by other scientists, describes a copper-based conjugated framework material that captures carbon dioxide (CO2) at room temperature and releases it when hit with one-sun light or a 10 V voltage. The authors report adsorption capacities of 0.04 to 1.11 mmol per gram across 1% to 50% CO2, and say that adding alkylamine groups more than tripled capacity.

Published

Oct 15, 2026

Preprint reports light-driven method to add double bonds to plastics

A preprint, not yet reviewed by other scientists, describes a photocatalytic, cobalt-catalyzed method that removes hydrogen from polyethylene and polypropylene, including post-consumer plastics, to create reactive double bonds. The authors say the resulting materials can serve as compatibilizers for immiscible polymer blends and as strong adhesives.

Published

Oct 15, 2026

Max Planck Society says human learning matters in human–AI teams

The Max Planck Society says a new study suggests human learning is an underestimated factor in how well human–AI teams perform. It also says human–machine interaction is better than its reputation; the announcement gives no further detail, so see the original for the study's findings.

Published

Oct 15, 2026

MIT News reports on online public services and trust in government

MIT News describes a new study on partnerships between governments and private companies that provide public services online. The study asks how those partnerships affect people's trust in government, and the announcement does not give the answer, so see the original for the findings.

Published

Oct 15, 2026