Medicine

The Trump administration is retreating from a planned executive order that would have given the White House greater control over National Institutes of Health grant decisions. Semafor reports the proposal is now considered effectively dead after widespread pushback from scientists, universities, and lawmakers who argued it would politicise biomedical research funding. Observers are watching whether further attempts to centralise NIH grant approvals will follow.

A new blood test can tell apart bacterial and viral infections in newborns, according to a report by Inside Precision Medicine. If confirmed in wider use, the test could help doctors avoid unnecessary antibiotics in babies with fever, a long-standing challenge in neonatal care where distinguishing infection types quickly is difficult. Details on the study's size, accuracy and developers were not provided.

Ellis Medicine will host a community forum in Schenectady, New York, giving residents a chance to discuss and learn about the future of healthcare services in the area. The hospital system is opening the conversation to the public as questions about local healthcare access and hospital services continue to concern the community.

Stanford Medicine is reported to have revealed that the human brain functions as two separate organs rather than one. The claim, picked up by KRON 4, is drawing wide attention as it would challenge the standard understanding of the brain as a single unified organ. Details of the research, its methods and peer review have not been made clear in available reporting.

A federal bill has been proposed that would ban the corporate practice of medicine across the United States. If enacted, the legislation would restrict corporations from owning or employing physicians, a model that has expanded rapidly through private equity investment in healthcare. Law firms and healthcare industry observers are examining the proposal's potential effects on hospital ownership, staffing companies and patient care.

A thyroid medication has been recalled and the recall has been classified at the FDA's most serious risk level, meaning the agency considers the issue potentially life-threatening. The announcement is drawing attention as patients who rely on thyroid medicine are urged to check whether their supply is affected and follow FDA guidance on returning or replacing it.

New reporting indicates that heart and kidney complications in people with type 2 diabetes increase as the disease progresses over time. The findings highlight the cumulative burden of cardiovascular and renal disease among diabetes patients, a group already at elevated risk. Medical observers are likely weighing the implications for earlier treatment and long-term monitoring of organ health in these patients.

Top-ranked Texas, No. 7 Ohio State and No. 11 Texas Tech all remained undefeated in the latest round of college football results, while No. 16 Louisville suffered its first loss. The wins keep the three unbeaten powers firmly in the national championship conversation, while Louisville's defeat is expected to knock the Cardinals down or out of the next rankings.

The University of Nebraska Board of Regents has approved the university's representatives to serve on the Nebraska Medicine board. The move formalizes university leadership's role in the governance of the state's major academic health system. Details about the individual appointees and terms were not immediately available, but the decision advances coordination between the university and Nebraska Medicine.

Wake Forest beat 16th-ranked Louisville 30-27 in an away game, pulling off one of the notable upsets of the college football weekend. The Demon Deacons took down the ranked Cardinals on their home field, a result that could shake up the Atlantic Coast Conference race and the national rankings.

Southern Cross University is pursuing a strategy in India aimed at building a stronger evidence base for traditional medicine. The initiative, reported by BioSpectrum Asia, signals growing scientific and academic interest in validating traditional healing practices through research, reflecting broader collaboration between Australian institutions and India's traditional medicine sector.

The pairings for Sunday's singles matches at the Presidents Cup at Medinah have been released, setting up the final-day matchups between the United States and the International team. Golf fans are following the announcement closely, as the singles lineup can decide which side lifts the trophy.

The Second Ibero-American Symposium on Ethnoveterinary Medicine is drawing attention, with the Food and Agriculture Organization among those highlighting the event. The gathering brings together researchers and practitioners from across Ibero-America to discuss traditional and plant-based approaches to animal health, and how such knowledge can complement conventional veterinary practice.

Moderna has begun a Phase 1 clinical trial of an Ebola vaccine targeting the Zaire strain responsible for the outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The trial marks the first human testing of the candidate, which uses the same mRNA technology behind Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine. Coverage is highlighting the company's growing pipeline and the urgent need for new Ebola countermeasures in central Africa.

The Competition and Markets Authority has raised the cap on veterinary prescriptions, but concerns over access to pet medicines remain. According to Vet Times, animal owners and vets say worries persist that practices may still restrict prescriptions, leaving pet owners paying more for medicines directly from clinics rather than sourcing them elsewhere at lower cost.

The University of Nebraska Board of Regents has voted to approve the university's representatives to the Nebraska Medicine board. The move formalises which officials will sit on the governing body of the health system that works closely with the university's medical centre. Details on the individual representatives and the terms of the arrangement were not immediately available.

Insilico Medicine has signed a co-development deal worth tens of millions of dollars with an unnamed foundation-model laboratory, joining forces to apply large AI models to drug discovery. The Hong Kong-based biotech, known for using generative AI to design drug candidates, has not disclosed its partner or the exact terms, leaving observers speculating about which AI lab is behind the agreement.

The New York Times has published an opinion piece examining why clinical trials for cancer drugs take so long to complete. The article addresses the lengthy timelines between developing experimental cancer therapies and making them available to patients, a source of ongoing frustration for patients, families and researchers. Discussion centers on whether regulatory processes, patient recruitment and trial design could be accelerated without compromising safety.