Countries court US PhD talent amid funding uncertainty

Canada, France, and Germany are actively recruiting US PhD students with fast-track offers and guaranteed stipends. Western University launched a Doctoral Excellence Award for 25 candidates, including those whose US offers were rescinded, providing up to four years of stipend support plus supervisor placement. Canada last year set a blanket Can$40,000 annual PhD stipend. Paris-Saclay opened eight PhD spots (including for students who began in the US) with scholarships that can cover accommodation, living costs, and sometimes health insurance; typical funded stipends range from €16,800–€18,000. Germany’s Max Planck Society created a Transatlantic Program offering contracted doctoral roles (39 hours/week) with minimum pay of €32,400. Together, these packages seek to capture talent unsettled by US policy shifts. (Nature)

Modeling warns US HIV prevention cuts would spike infections and costs

Two modeling studies project sharp rises in HIV if US prevention funding is reduced. One study simulating a 3.3% absolute annual drop in PrEP coverage over a decade estimates 8,618 additional infections and $3.6 billion in discounted lifetime medical costs; a larger decline (10 per 100 eligible people yearly) yields 26,873 additional infections and up to $29.0 billion in undiscounted costs. A second analysis modeling disruptions to the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program across 31 high-burden cities estimates 75,436 extra infections by 2030 (a 49% increase) if services end in July 2025, with city-level increases ranging from 9% (Riverside) to 110% (Baltimore). Authors emphasize PrEP’s up to 99% effectiveness when used as directed and warn policy timing is especially harmful. (CIDRAP)

Vaccine panel’s September agenda raises stakes for COVID-19 and hepatitis B policy

A reconstituted US immunization advisory group meets 18–19 September with sparse agenda details, prompting concern. For young children (6 months–5 years), 2022–23 data show mRNA COVID-19 vaccines were 46%–70% effective against emergency care visits shortly after dose two or three, with no safety signals reported in that age group. Reports suggest officials might cite 25 pediatric deaths from a passive reporting database at the meeting—entries that require investigation before any causal inference. The agenda may also revisit newborn hepatitis B vaccination, which clinicians warn is crucial: infant infection carries about a 90% risk of chronic disease, and universal infant vaccination has coincided with steep declines in acute cases among children and adolescents. (Nature)

The race to drug cancer’s rogue DNA circles

Circular extrachromosomal DNA (ecDNA) lets tumors dial oncogenes up or down quickly, fueling heterogeneity and fast drug resistance. Building a global research consortium, Paul Mischel and collaborators mapped ecDNA’s prevalence (common in aggressive cancers) and behavior (clustering into hubs, unevenly segregating during division). Early drug strategies exploit ecDNA’s strain on DNA replication and repair—e.g., blocking CHK1 or ribonucleotide reductase—to push ecDNA-rich cells over the edge. Initial clinical tests hit safety and pharmacokinetic hurdles, prompting combination-dose pivots while teams probe DNA damage-response targets and ecDNA sorting machinery. Skeptics note gaps in basic biology, but proponents argue the therapeutic window—large ecDNA in cancers, not in normal cells—remains compelling. (Science)

Mpox landscape shifts in Africa as cholera surges concentrate in Central Africa

Regional mpox activity is mixed: health agencies are launching a new study this fall led by the International Vaccine Institute with the DRC’s National Public Health Laboratory as principal investigator and Japan’s Institute for Health Security as co-investigator. Meanwhile, cholera activity has spiked in Chad and the Republic of Congo, driven by refugee movements, overcrowded camps, and poor sanitation, with cases clustered along the Congo River and other vulnerable areas. Sudan, South Sudan, and the DRC account for 75% of the region’s cases and deaths. Despite localized spikes, overall cholera cases in Africa fell 33% over the past six weeks, with deaths down slightly, though 23 countries have battled outbreaks this year—underscoring fragile gains. (CIDRAP)

Study finds AI use in scientific papers far outstrips author disclosures

An analysis by the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) of 7,177 manuscript submissions (1 January–30 June) found AI-generated text in 36% of abstracts, yet only 9% of authors disclosed using AI during submission. The study also detected AI text in nearly 15% of methods sections and 7% of peer-review reports late in 2024, despite reviewers being asked not to use it. AACR relied on Pangram Labs’ deep-learning AI Detection Dashboard, validated by flagging under 1% of pre-ChatGPT manuscripts from 2020–2021. Editors caution detectors can yield false positives and require human judgment, and authors may underreport out of fear of rejection. Non-English-speaking countries’ submissions were flagged twice as often. AACR may automate follow-ups; experts warn a tools-versus-evasion arms race. Field-specific validation benchmarks remain priorities. (Science)