CDC Adds Thousands of Cyclospora Cases: The U.S. Cyclospora outbreak has grown dramatically, with the CDC adding 3,285 infections to its 2026 count, bringing the total to 17,180 cases. Another 11,844 suspected cases remain under investigation and have not yet been laboratory confirmed. Reporting delays can stretch to roughly six weeks, meaning the true number of recent infections may be higher. At least 922 people have been hospitalized and two have died during this summer’s outbreaks. The largest cluster occurred in Michigan and neighboring states and was linked to contaminated iceberg lettuce, while several additional outbreaks have also been identified. Cyclosporiasis, caused by the parasite Cyclospora cayetanensis, typically peaks between May and August in the United States, so officials expect case numbers to decline as summer ends. (CIDRAP)

Shingles Vaccine May Also Protect the Heart: The shingles vaccine Shingrix may offer an unexpected cardiovascular benefit, according to a study in Nature Medicine. Researchers compared about 35,000 Americans who received Shingrix in 2018 with a similar group given the older Zostavax vaccine in 2017, reducing biases common in studies comparing vaccinated and unvaccinated people. Shingrix recipients experienced fewer cardiovascular problems, including heart failure, stroke, and atrial fibrillation. After 3.5 years, heart-failure risk was 16% lower, while recipients lived without cardiovascular disease about 9% longer overall. The protective effect weakened over time, suggesting Shingrix may temporarily alter immune activity, perhaps by reducing inflammatory signaling. Researchers caution that the mechanism remains uncertain and observational data cannot prove causation. Ongoing randomized trials should help determine whether Shingrix truly provides cardiovascular protection. (Science)

Ancient Insects Had More Than Six Legs: Some of the earliest insects may have possessed far more than the six legs that define the group today. Paleontologists reexamined four fossils from Texas, Illinois, and Scotland and concluded they represent transitional forms between crustacean ancestors and modern insects. One newly named species, Chosha praecursor, lived about 324 million years ago and combined insect traits—including antennae, three pairs of walking legs, and an egg-laying structure—with additional abdominal limbs reminiscent of crustaceans. Some of those appendages may have functioned as paddles or gills, suggesting insects’ move from water to land occurred gradually. Together with fossils dating back roughly 405 million years, the findings indicate early wingless insects displayed far greater anatomical diversity than previously recognized. Modern insects’ six-legged body plan apparently emerged only after many additional limbs were evolutionarily lost. (Science)

Depression May Suppress New Neuron Formation: The adult hippocampus appears capable of producing new neurons, but that process may be impaired in people with major depression. Researchers created what Nature describes as the most comprehensive cellular map yet of the adult human hippocampus, a brain region central to memory, learning and emotion. Comparing tissue from people with and without depression revealed fewer immature neurons and alterations in cellular pathways associated with neurogenesis among those with the disorder. The findings strengthen evidence that adult human neurogenesis persists while suggesting depression can interfere with the process. Researchers caution that the study cannot determine whether impaired neuron production causes depression or results from it. Nevertheless, identifying the affected molecular pathways could eventually suggest new therapeutic approaches aimed at restoring hippocampal plasticity rather than solely altering neurotransmitter levels. (Nature)

Mexico Approves World’s First RNA Fungicide: Mexico has become the first country to approve a commercial fungicide that kills a crop pathogen using RNA interference rather than conventional chemical toxicity. Oifirax, developed by GreenLight Biosciences, targets powdery mildew on grapes. Its double-stranded RNA enters the fungus Erysiphe necator and triggers destruction of messenger RNA from the CYP51 gene, preventing production of ergosterol, an essential component of fungal cell membranes. The fungus consequently stops growing and dies. Because RNA sequences can be designed against particular organisms, developers argue the technology could reduce collateral damage to beneficial insects, fungi and other species. Mexican regulators reviewed health, agricultural and environmental data before approving the product. Scientists nevertheless say post-approval monitoring will be important for verifying ecological specificity and watching for resistance. (Science)

COVID Vaccination Linked to Lower Myocarditis Risk: A study involving more than four million children and young adults found that myocarditis, pericarditis and death were more common following SARS-CoV-2 infection than after Pfizer-BioNTech mRNA vaccination. Researchers led by SUNY Upstate Medical University analyzed health records to compare cardiac outcomes following vaccination and infection within the same healthcare network. Myocarditis—the inflammation of heart muscle that became a prominent vaccine-safety concern—was rare following both exposures. But recorded myocarditis and pericarditis occurred more frequently after infection, while all-cause mortality was also consistently higher. The researchers argue that vaccine-risk discussions can become misleading when vaccination is considered in isolation rather than compared with the risks associated with COVID-19 itself. The results add large-scale evidence to the continuing assessment of mRNA vaccine safety among adolescents and young adults. (CIDRAP)

Childhood Sugar Rationing Linked to Lower Dementia Risk: Children exposed to Britain’s World War II sugar rationing appear to have developed dementia less frequently decades later. Researchers analyzed nearly 65,000 UK Biobank participants who were in utero or younger than three between 1942 and 1954, when government rationing limited sugar purchases to roughly 41 grams per person daily. People exposed to rationing during their first two years had a 23 percent lower dementia risk and 28 percent lower Alzheimer’s disease risk than people born after restrictions ended. When dementia did develop, diagnosis occurred almost three years later on average. The observational study cannot prove sugar caused the difference because rationing coincided with other dietary and socioeconomic changes. Nevertheless, the findings strengthen evidence that nutrition during the first 1,000 days of life can influence brain health many decades later. (Science News)

Cells Use Polyamines to Lock Away Dangerous Iron: Scientists have discovered an unexpected cellular defense against iron toxicity: abundant small molecules called polyamines act like molecular storage lockers, binding iron and keeping it chemically inactive. Free iron can generate destructive reactions that damage DNA, proteins and cell membranes, yet researchers have long wondered why cells maintain such enormous concentrations of polyamines. Using genome-wide screening and newly developed fluorescent sensors, MIT and Whitehead Institute researchers found that chemically reactive iron rises sharply when polyamine levels fall. Cells then become heavily dependent on the protective protein GPX4. The discovery suggests a possible cancer strategy: simultaneously lowering polyamines and blocking GPX4 might overwhelm tumor cells with iron-driven damage. The mechanism could also illuminate neurodegenerative diseases, including forms of early-onset Parkinson’s disease involving abnormal polyamine metabolism and iron accumulation in neurons. (MIT News)

Deep Sleep Waves May Buffer Alzheimer’s Damage: Certain brain waves produced during deep sleep may help protect people with Alzheimer’s disease from cognitive decline. Researchers followed 60 adults with mild-to-moderate Alzheimer’s for three years, measuring the wake-promoting neurotransmitter orexin in cerebrospinal fluid while recording overnight brain activity. Higher orexin levels were associated with worse memory and thinking, more severe behavioral symptoms and stronger biological markers of neurodegeneration and inflammation. But participants producing stronger sleep spindles and slow oscillations during non-REM sleep showed less cognitive decline despite elevated orexin. These rhythms are already associated with memory consolidation, suggesting deep sleep may provide neurological resilience against damaging disease processes. Orexin-blocking drugs are currently prescribed for insomnia and are being investigated for Alzheimer’s, raising the possibility that sleep physiology itself could become both a biomarker and therapeutic target. (Medical Xpress)

Historic El Niño Could Reshape Global Weather: A potentially unprecedented El Niño is strengthening in the tropical Pacific and could peak between November 2026 and January 2027. Sea-surface temperature anomalies in the Niño 3.4 region surpassed the threshold for a “very strong” event in July, and current modeling suggests this El Niño could become the strongest measured. Previous major events have triggered destructive combinations of drought, floods, wildfires, heat waves, crop failures and disease outbreaks whose effects sometimes persist for years. Climate change adds another layer of risk because oceans have absorbed roughly 90 percent of the excess heat trapped by greenhouse gases. International agencies are urging governments to prepare, while the United Nations has launched a $202 million anticipatory-action appeal covering 22 vulnerable countries. Researchers emphasize that impacts will vary dramatically by region. (Conservation news)

AI Assistance Appears in Most Biomedical Papers: Artificial intelligence may already be influencing scientific writing far more extensively than previous estimates suggested. An analysis reported by Nature found linguistic signatures consistent with AI assistance in almost nine out of ten biomedical papers published in December 2025 and archived in PubMed. Earlier studies generally estimated much lower rates, partly because they searched for conspicuous AI-associated words rather than subtler statistical changes in language. The new work does not necessarily mean AI generated 90 percent of manuscripts wholesale; researchers could be using large language models for editing, translation, rewriting or polishing portions of papers. Nevertheless, the scale raises difficult questions for journals about disclosure, authorship and accountability. It also complicates efforts to determine whether AI merely improves presentation or subtly homogenizes and potentially distorts the scientific literature itself. (Nature)

Octopus Army Targets Invasive Blue Crabs: Italian researchers have released roughly 130,000 laboratory-reared common octopus hatchlings into the Adriatic Sea in an unconventional attempt to control invasive blue crabs. Originally native to the western Atlantic, blue crabs have expanded dramatically through parts of the Mediterranean during the past decade, damaging shellfish populations, ecosystems and fisheries. Rather than introducing another foreign predator, the Octo-Blu project is boosting an existing native species. Adult common octopuses are formidable crab hunters: under favorable conditions, a one-kilogram animal can consume as many as four medium-sized blue crabs daily. Researchers released millimeter-scale paralarvae near Cesenatico and Riccione and installed artificial dens to improve survival. The experiment is essentially a large-scale test of biological control using native predators, although scientists will need to monitor ecological effects carefully. (Scientific American)

China Delays Mission Hunting Lunar Water: China has abruptly postponed the launch of Chang’e 7, an ambitious mission designed to investigate water ice near the Moon’s south pole. The spacecraft had been scheduled to launch August 24, but Chinese officials announced the delay one day beforehand without immediately providing a new launch date. Chang’e 7 combines an orbiter, lander, rover and small hopping probe intended to investigate permanently shadowed terrain where temperatures are low enough for ancient water ice to survive. Such deposits are scientifically valuable records of lunar history and potentially crucial resources for future bases, where water could support astronauts or be split into hydrogen and oxygen for rocket propellant. The delay adds uncertainty to China’s increasingly ambitious lunar program and the intensifying international race to characterize the south polar region. (Science)