Elder Care (Everybody)

Scientists have discovered a parasite that can sneak into your skin without you feeling a thing. The worm, Schistosoma mansoni, has evolved a way to switch off the body’s pain and itch signals, letting it invade undetected. By blocking certain nerve pathways, it avoids triggering the immune system’s alarms. This stealth tactic not only helps the worm survive, but could inspire new kinds of pain treatments and even preventative creams to protect people from infection.

Sunniva Kwapeng struggled with lipoedema, a painful condition causing disproportionate fat accumulation, until finally being diagnosed in her 40s. An NTNU study found that a low-carb diet helped alleviate pain and resulted in more weight loss than a low-fat diet. Though compression garments provided relief, the overall treatment options for this poorly understood condition remain scarce.

Your brain has its own elite defense team — and new research shows these "guardian" cells might be the real battleground for neurological diseases like Alzheimer’s and stroke. Scientists discovered that most genetic risks linked to these diseases act not in neurons, but in the blood vessels and immune cells that form the blood-brain barrier.

Could popular diabetes and weight loss drugs like Ozempic actually protect your brain from stroke damage, or prevent strokes altogether? Three new studies presented at a major neurosurgery conference suggest they might.

New research suggests that multiple sclerosis (MS) may quietly begin affecting the body up to 15 years before the first obvious neurological symptoms appear. Researchers found a steady increase in healthcare visits related to vague symptoms like fatigue, pain, and mental health issues, with noticeable patterns of doctor consultations long before diagnosis.

In an exciting breakthrough, researchers have identified cancer drugs that might reverse the effects of Alzheimer's disease in the brain. By analyzing gene expression in brain cells, they discovered that some FDA-approved cancer medications could reverse damage caused by Alzheimer's.

Stepping into a virtual forest or waterfall scene through VR could be the future of pain management. A new study shows that immersive virtual nature dramatically reduces pain sensitivity almost as effectively as medication. Researchers at the University of Exeter found that the more present participants felt in these 360-degree nature experiences, the stronger the pain-relieving effects. Brain scans confirmed that immersive VR scenes activated pain-modulating pathways, revealing that our brains can be coaxed into suppressing pain by simply feeling like we re in nature.

Scientists at UCSF have uncovered how certain immune cells in the brain, called microglia, can effectively digest toxic amyloid beta plaques that cause Alzheimer’s. They identified a key receptor, ADGRG1, that enables this protective action. When microglia lack this receptor, plaque builds up quickly, causing memory loss and brain damage. But when the receptor is present, it seems to help keep Alzheimer's symptoms mild. Since ADGRG1 belongs to a drug-friendly family of receptors, this opens the door to future therapies that could enhance brain immunity and protect against Alzheimer’s in more people.

President Trump s diagnosis of Chronic Venous Insufficiency (CVI) has brought renewed attention to a frequently overlooked yet dangerous condition. CVI affects the ability of veins especially in the legs to return blood to the heart, often leading to swelling, pain, skin changes, and ulcers. The American Heart Association warns that CVI isn t just a cosmetic issue; it's strongly linked to cardiovascular disease and increased mortality, even when other risk factors are accounted for. Seniors, smokers, those with sedentary lifestyles, and people with obesity are particularly at risk.

Dogs trained to detect Parkinson’s disease using scent have shown remarkable accuracy in new research. In a double-blind trial, they identified skin swabs from people with Parkinson’s with up to 80% sensitivity and 98% specificity, even when other health conditions were present. The findings offer hope for a simple, non-invasive diagnostic method using biomarkers that appear long before traditional symptoms, potentially allowing earlier treatment and slowed disease progression.

Researchers in Australia have created a biodegradable gel that delivers Parkinson’s medications through a single weekly shot, replacing the need for multiple daily pills. Injected just under the skin, the gel steadily releases levodopa and carbidopa for seven days, helping keep tremors and stiffness in check while easing side effects linked to fluctuating doses.

Scientists at ETH Zurich have broken new ground by generating over 400 types of nerve cells from stem cells in the lab, far surpassing previous efforts that produced only a few dozen. By systematically experimenting with combinations of morphogens and gene regulators, the researchers replicated the vast diversity of neurons found in the human brain. This breakthrough holds major promise for studying neurological diseases like Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s, creating more accurate models for drug testing, and eventually even enabling neuron replacement therapies.

A team of researchers has discovered that a protein called cypin plays a powerful role in helping brain cells connect and communicate, which is crucial for learning and memory. By uncovering how cypin tags certain proteins at synapses and interacts with the brain’s protein recycling system, scientists are opening doors to possible treatments for Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, and traumatic brain injuries. This breakthrough could be the first step toward boosting brain resilience and cognition.

What if your brain is the reason some pain feels unbearable? Scientists at the Salk Institute have discovered a hidden brain circuit that gives pain its emotional punch—essentially transforming ordinary discomfort into lasting misery. This breakthrough sheds light on why some people suffer more intensely than others from conditions like fibromyalgia, migraines, and PTSD. By identifying the exact group of neurons that link physical pain to emotional suffering, the researchers may have found a new target for treating chronic pain—without relying on addictive medications.

Scientists at UCSF combined advanced brain-network modeling, genetics, and imaging to reveal how tau protein travels through neural highways and how certain genes either accelerate its toxic journey or shield brain regions from damage. Their extended Network Diffusion Model pinpoints four gene categories that govern vulnerability or resilience, reshaping our view of Alzheimer’s progression and spotlighting fresh therapeutic targets.