Researchers at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa John A. Burns School of Medicine have uncovered a connection between a mother's weight before pregnancy and autism-like behaviors in her offspring. The study marks a significant advance in understanding how early life factors influence brain development.

Led by Professors Alika K. Maunakea and Monika Ward from JABSOM's Department of Anatomy, Biochemistry & Physiology and the Yanagimachi Institute for Biogenesis Research, the research shows that maternal obesity triggers metabolic shifts that cause lasting epigenetic changes in a mother’s eggs. These changes are passed on to the developing embryo and affect genes involved in brain development, including Homer1, a protein important for regulating synaptic signaling, learning, memory and response to neural activity.</p>

Researchers demonstrate that Synthetic Biological Intelligence (SBI) systems react faster, more effectively to stimuli than state-of-the-art RL (reinforcement learning) algorithms. To access these properties, Cortical Labs - which led the research - built the world’s first biological computer, the CL1. With the establishment of a new approach, Bioengineered Intelligence (BI), researchers will seek to establish that engineered biological systems can surpass natural physiological limits, unlocking capabilities beyond those previously demonstrated

Cornell University researchers developed machine-learning models that can sift through cell-free RNA and identify key biomarkers for myalgic encephalomyelitis, also known as chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS). The approach could lead to the development of diagnostic testing for a debilitating disease that has proved challenging to confirm in patients because its symptoms can be easily confused with those of other illnesses.