Research Highlights in 2025

A phase 1 trial suggests safety, tolerability and immunogenicity of a candidate subunit vaccine against the deadly Nipah virus, for which countermeasures are urgently needed.

In the DECAF trial, daily consumption of a cup of coffee reduced the rate of atrial fibrillation recurrence by almost 40% — challenging the long-held view that caffeine is pro-arrhythmic.

Adjuvant atezolizumab improved survival outcomes in patients with muscle-invasive bladder cancer who had no radiographic disease but had detectable circulating tumor DNA in their blood.

The first month-by-month analysis of malnutrition in children of preschool age in Gaza reveals the acute impact of aid restrictions and conflict — with the most recent estimates showing more than 50,000 children severely malnourished.

A study shows that creativity enhances brain health by improving connectivity in age-vulnerable regions, highlighting the importance of supporting creative activities in public health strategies.

Baby wraps treated with the insecticide permethrin reduced the incidence of malaria in infants by 66%, according to a randomized controlled trial in Uganda.

Patients with obesity achieved significant weight loss and cardiometabolic benefits with oral orforglipron — offering a potential alternative to injectable GLP-1 receptor agonists.

Smoke from 2023 Canadian wildfires led to increased PM_2.5 exposure across North America and Europe, leading to thousands of acute and chronic deaths.

Offering free-of-charge in-hospital influenza vaccination improves survival and reduces changes of readmission in patients with advanced heart failure, according to a large cluster-randomized trial across hospitals in China.

A study challenges previous assumptions that the brain’s body map undergoes reorganization after limb amputation, finding that it remains remarkably stable — with implications for brain–computer interfaces and the treatment of phantom limb pain.

A study of over 1.2 million children found no links between aluminum-adjuvanted childhood vaccines and over 50 chronic diseases, including neurological, autoimmune and allergic conditions.

The recent defunding of USAID could lead to more than 14 million deaths, mostly in low- and middle-income countries, including 4.5 million child deaths — according to a study combining retrospective and forecasting analyses.

Long seen a ‘holy grail’ of transplant research, a first-in-human, single case study marks a step toward immunosuppression-free islet transplantation in patients with diabetes.

A 2-year randomized study shows that a holistic lifestyle intervention — integrating diet and cardiovascular monitoring with physical, social and cognitive activities — can improve cognition in older adults at risk of dementia.

A new analysis shows that more-permissive state-level firearm laws have contributed to thousands of excess firearm-related child deaths, while a few states enacting stricter laws have seen these death rates decrease.

For women carrying pathogenic mitochondrial DNA variants, a novel technique — involving transfer of their nuclear DNA to an enucleated donor egg — resulted in successful pregnancies and healthy children.

A prospective implementation study shows how a low-cost, swallowable capsule sponge could be used for regular monitoring and risk stratification in people with Barrett’s esophagus, offering a minimally invasive alternative to endoscopy.

Merging synthetic organic chemistry and biotechnology, researchers have engineered Escherichia coli that can synthesize small molecules (including paracetamol) from a plastic waste product.

Greater diversity of dietary flavonoid intake correlated with reduced all-cause mortality risk and chronic disease incidence among UK Biobank participants.

Analysis of national survey data reveals large declines in self-reported mental well-being among female parents, which suggests that maternal mental health should be a focal point of public health efforts.