Shuttering Chapel Hill: How Federal Cuts Are Unraveling U.S. Science

The EPA shut down its unique Chapel Hill exposure lab after refusing to renew UNC’s lease, halting decades of controlled pollutant studies that informed U.S. air-quality standards. The move reflects wider cuts and reorganization: the EPA’s research arm (ORD) has reportedly lost about a third of its 1,600 staff and is being folded into a new office reporting directly to the administrator, prompting fears of politicized priorities. Across agencies, the Trump administration has proposed or enacted more than $50 billion in science cuts amid a protracted government shutdown, with layoffs at the CDC and threatened reductions at NASA, NOAA, and USGS. Scientists warn of weakened environmental monitoring, chemical-risk assessment (including IRIS), and climate research, loss of institutional expertise, and damaged career pipelines—jeopardizing hurricane forecasts, PFAS and microplastics work, and evidence-based public health protections. (Nature)

Light Turns Tumors’ Heat Against Them

A new light-activated cancer approach uses engineered “nanoflakes” that heat up only inside tumors when illuminated, killing malignant cells while sparing surrounding tissue. In mouse studies, the photothermal particles homed to cancers and ablated them with brief external light exposure, avoiding the systemic side effects that limit chemotherapy and some immunotherapies. The team says the technique could pair with imaging for precise targeting and might work on hard-to-treat solid tumors if delivery and dosing translate in humans. Key questions ahead include how deeply therapeutic light can penetrate, how uniformly particles accumulate in heterogeneous tumors, and long-term safety. Still, the study adds momentum to minimally invasive, physics-driven oncology modalities moving toward the clinic. (WIRED)

Record-Setting Whole-Genome Sequencing Could Remake Newborn Care

Researchers have set a new speed record for whole-genome sequencing—finishing in under four hours—raising hopes for same-day genetic diagnoses in neonatal intensive care units. Rapid sequencing can pinpoint treatable metabolic disorders, congenital heart defects, or immune conditions when hours matter, guiding targeted interventions and improving outcomes. The advance reflects iterative hardware improvements, streamlined library prep, and algorithmic acceleration for base-calling and variant interpretation. Experts caution that ultra-fast workflows still need rigorous validation, robust reference ranges for newborns, and clear protocols for incidental findings. If clinical pilots bear out, hospital labs could triage critically ill infants with a “sequence-first” approach, reserving broader work-ups for ambiguous cases. Turnaround time may soon be limited more by consent and counseling than the sequencer. (The Scientist)

Dengue Vaccine Shows Sustained Protection in Phase 3

Takeda reported fresh phase 3 data indicating its live-attenuated dengue vaccine maintains protective efficacy with a favorable safety profile. The update, from an ongoing trial, suggests durability of immune protection—crucial as dengue seasons intensify and shift geographically with climate and vector changes. Although details were shared in a company communication rather than a peer-reviewed paper, the finding aligns with the strategy of using boosters to extend coverage through multiple transmission seasons. Real-world effectiveness will hinge on age groups, serostatus, and circulating serotypes, and on how countries balance vaccine benefits with risks in dengue-naïve populations. As dengue cases surge globally, the data could influence procurement and national immunization plans heading into 2026. (CIDRAP)

First Modern Oral Vaccine to Protect Against Paratyphoid A in Challenge Trial

An investigative oral vaccine (CVD 1902) protected healthy adults against Salmonella Paratyphi A in a human challenge study—the first modern vaccine to show protection against this cause of enteric (paratyphoid) fever. In the randomized, double-blind trial (n=72) conducted in the UK, infection was diagnosed within 14 days in 21% of vaccinees versus 75% of placebo recipients, yielding 73% vaccine efficacy in the intention-to-treat analysis (69% per-protocol). While challenge studies don’t replace field trials, the signal is compelling for a pathogen lacking licensed vaccines and contributing to significant disease burden in South and East Asia. Next steps include longer follow-up, broader age groups, and evaluation alongside typhoid conjugate vaccines to inform integrated prevention strategies. (CIDRAP)

AAVantgarde Raises $141M to Tackle Big-Gene Retinal Diseases

Italian startup AAVantgarde Bio closed a $141 million Series B to advance gene therapies for inherited eye diseases whose causal genes exceed adeno-associated virus (AAV) cargo limits. Led by Schroders with participation from Atlas Venture, Forbion, and Amgen Ventures, the round funds programs in Stargardt disease and Usher syndrome 1B. The platform combines DNA- and protein-splicing strategies to reassemble large proteins in retinal cells after delivery—an approach aiming to broaden the reach of AAV therapies beyond small-gene indications like RPE65 (treated by Luxturna). The financing—among Europe’s largest private ophthalmic raises this year—positions the company to scale manufacturing and initiate mid-stage clinical testing, pending safety and durable expression data. (Labiotech.eu)

FDA Rethink Hammers uniQure’s Huntington’s Program

uniQure said an unexpected FDA shift on using external controls in its phase I/II Huntington’s disease trials for AMT-130 has upended its plans and pummeled its share price. The company, which is exploring intraparenchymal AAV delivery to slow neurodegeneration, now faces added uncertainty about acceptable endpoints and comparator strategies in a rare, relentlessly progressive condition. The setback underscores evolving regulator views on single-arm designs and real-world data when randomized controls are impractical. Investors reacted sharply as timelines and evidentiary barlines grew hazier. For gene therapy developers, the episode is a reminder to engage early on statistical and control frameworks—especially in first-in-class CNS indications—before committing to expensive manufacturing and surgery-intensive studies. (BioWorld)

Single-Cell Atlas of Developing Human Brain Guides Parkinson’s Models

A Duke-NUS–led team built “BrainSTEM,” a multi-resolution single-cell atlas charting early human brain development and a focused midbrain map enriched for dopaminergic neuron lineages—the cells that die in Parkinson’s disease. Spanning hundreds of thousands of cells, the reference lets researchers project lab-grown neurons onto in-vivo trajectories to assess fidelity, identify rare subtypes, and refine differentiation protocols. The authors argue the atlas will help standardize mDA cell production, improving preclinical disease modeling and graft quality for cell-replacement trials. Beyond PD, the resource could benchmark organoids and assembloids used in neurodevelopment and neuropsychiatric research. The study appears in Science Advances and reflects a wider push to pair single-cell atlases with functional validation to de-risk translational pipelines. (GEN)

New NLS Strategy ‘Turbocharges’ Cas9 Nuclear Import

To boost CRISPR editing yields, researchers report a clever redesign: instead of piling nuclear localization signals (NLSs) onto Cas9’s termini—where they can hinder expression—they insert additional NLS motifs into surface-exposed internal loops. The rearrangement enhances nuclear import and editing efficiency in human T cells without compromising protein stability, addressing a long-standing bottleneck for ex vivo engineered cell therapies. The piece highlights work from the Innovative Genomics Institute and explains why NLS geometry matters for importin engagement. If broadly generalizable across editors and cargo fusions, the strategy could reduce doses, lower off-target risk, and improve manufacturing consistency for CAR-T and other CRISPR-enabled modalities. (GEN)

Biomaterial “Vaccines” Aim to Protect Orthopedic Implants from Infection

Wyss Institute scientists propose a biomaterial-based “vaccine” concept that presents pathogen-specific antigens at the implant site to prime local immunity and thwart biofilm-forming infections on orthopedic hardware. The approach could complement systemic antibiotics and coatings by training tissue-resident immune cells to recognize likely culprits before they colonize titanium or polyethylene surfaces. Early data suggest the strategy can lower infection risk in preclinical models, but optimization of antigen selection, depot release kinetics, and host compatibility remains. If it translates, it may reduce revision surgeries, antimicrobial use, and disability stemming from prosthetic joint infections—a costly, stubborn complication. The team frames it as a generalizable platform for other implantable devices. (EurekAlert!)

“Cyclone” Gene Switch Uses Acyclovir for Precise On/Off Control

A newly unveiled gene-switch system dubbed “Cyclone” offers sharp, reversible control of gene expression using acyclovir, an antiviral with a well-characterized safety profile. The design embeds a “poison exon” that shuts down expression by default; adding acyclovir toggles splicing to restore transcription, enabling dose-responsive activation with low toxicity compared with steroid- or antibiotic-based switches. Developers say Cyclone reduces background leakiness and could be easier to translate into therapeutic contexts and organoid or animal studies that need sustained, clean control. As with any regulator, context dependence, pharmacokinetics, and long-term effects will need vetting. Still, a clinically familiar inducer could lower barriers to deploying programmable circuits in vivo. (EurekAlert!)