Wild animals that have acquired adaptions to maximize their reproductive output in some of the world’s most extreme conditions may provide answers to some of the most pressing problems in the field of human reproductive health.

•           A new journal article by Michelle Shero, assistant scientist at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution's Biology Department, examines how the study of seals in particular can benefit human health, and synthesizes various research on the topic.

Several aspects in the life history of seals that could provide significant insight into their reproductive physiology – as well as that of humans – include female seals’ ability to undergo lengthy fasting and lose about 30% of their body weight while nursing a pup. Seals also have an exceptional ability to hold their breath for up to two hours in some species for long dives. Additionally, seals have the ability to ‘pause’ pregnancy, through a process known as embryonic diapause, so they can give birth during benign environmental conditions.

•           In seeking ways to improve human health, we should be looking to the extraordinary feats of wild animals. They have often found the most innovative solutions.

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a primary liver cancer that often occurs in patients with non-viral chronic liver disease (CLD). In order to identify specific pathways that are dysregulated in CLD, researchers compared the gene expression and metabolites of CLD liver tissue from patients with HCC to normal, healthy liver tissue. The study demonstrated that inflammatory and fatty acid oxidation pathways are altered in CLD, providing potential therapeutic targets for HCC prevention.

Natasha D. Sheybani, PhD, is exploring the potential of focused ultrasound to improve the effectiveness and precision of immunotherapy for breast cancer.

In the U.S., credit card fraud costs $5 billion annually, identity theft adds $16.4 billion, and Medicare fraud drains $60 billion each year. A new machine learning breakthrough generates accurate fraud labels from large, imbalanced datasets without costly, time-consuming labeled data. It outperforms traditional methods by reducing false positives and minimizing cases needing further inspection, crucial for sectors like Medicare and credit card fraud, where fast data processing is vital to preventing losses and improving efficiency.

There is still no approved general cure for enterovirus infections, but Norwegian trials appear promising.

In a major leap toward more comfortable and reliable health monitoring, scientists from Sun Yat-sen University have developed a cutting-edge glucose sensor that combines advanced nanomaterials with machine learning to detect glucose without the need for blood samples. The new technology is built around organic electrochemical transistors (OECTs), which are known for their ability to function safely and efficiently in watery environments, making them ideal for wearable and biocompatible devices.

The integration of the high conductivity of MoS₂ and porously structural MOF materials led to a distinct improvement in device transconductance (g_m) from 6.5 mS to 19.34 mS. This approach combined with machine leaning paves the way for advancements in OECT technology and broaden the potential of hybrid materials applied in organic biosensors.