Nature Biotechnology, Published online: 23 April 2026; doi:10.1038/s41587-026-03107-2
Intravital imaging is improved by applying deep learning to wave-optics modeling.
Genome editing of phylogenetically distinct bacteria using cross-species retron-mediated recombineering
Nature Biotechnology, Published online: 23 April 2026; doi:10.1038/s41587-026-03076-6
Retron-based systems for genome editing are functional across bacterial species.
How to meaningfully evaluate AI in clinical medicine
Nature Medicine, Published online: 23 April 2026; doi:10.1038/s41591-026-04350-5
How to meaningfully evaluate AI in clinical medicine
Africa’s moment for health security
Nature Medicine, Published online: 23 April 2026; doi:10.1038/s41591-026-04330-9
Advancing pandemic readiness to secure Africa’s health sovereignty.
Intestinal metaplasia is the only precursor to esophageal adenocarcinoma
Nature Medicine, Published online: 23 April 2026; doi:10.1038/s41591-026-04332-7
We integrated large-scale epidemiological and genomic data from patients with esophageal adenocarcinoma to compare cancers with and without Barrett’s esophagus (BE). We found shared risk factors, molecular features, evolutionary trajectories and BE lineage markers in both cancer phenotypes. Our findings support a single intestinal metaplasia-mediated pathway and have direct implications for early detection and prevention strategies.
BOLD fMRI reflects both vascular and metabolic signals
Nature Neuroscience, Published online: 23 April 2026; doi:10.1038/s41593-026-02288-y
A recent study by Epp et al. uses advanced, quantitative functional MRI measures to demonstrate that the ‘canonical’ interpretation of blood-oxygenation-level-dependent (BOLD) functional MRI (fMRI) — that increases and decreases in brain activation are accompanied by corresponding changes in blood flow and oxygen metabolism — does not strictly hold across the human brain. Although the authors provided a balanced interpretation, this has been viewed by others as undermining fMRI. We discuss whether the findings bring into question the validity of fMRI-based measures of brain function.
Early dopamine disruption in the entorhinal cortex of a knock-in model of Alzheimer’s disease
Nature Neuroscience, Published online: 23 April 2026; doi:10.1038/s41593-026-02260-w
The authors reveal entorhinal cortex dopaminergic and behavioral dysfunction in Alzheimer’s model mice, suggesting the possibility that entorhinal dopamine loss may contribute to aspects of Alzheimer’s disease.
Trump reclassifies state-licensed medical marijuana as a less-dangerous drug in a historic shift
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump’s acting attorney general on Thursday signed an order reclassifying state-licensed medical marijuana as a less-dangerous drug, a major policy shift long sought by advocates who said cannabis should never have been treated like heroin by the federal government.
The order signed by Todd Blanche does not legalize marijuana for medical or recreational use under federal law. But it does change the way it’s regulated, shifting licensed medical marijuana from Schedule I — reserved for drugs without medical use and with high potential for abuse — to the less strictly regulated Schedule III. It also gives licensed medical marijuana operators a major tax break and eases some barriers to researching cannabis.
STAT+: Pharmalittle: We’re reading about cheap telehealth visits, pharma withholding meds in Europe, and more
Rise and shine, everyone, another busy day is on the way. Already, the Pharmalot campus has been bustling as the official mascots have been busy chasing assorted creatures in search of their breakfast. As for us, yes, we are firing up the trusty kettle once again and brewing another cuppa stimulation. Our choice today is Earl Gray. Now, though, the time has come to get still busier. On that note, here are some tidbits. Have a lovely day and do keep in touch. …
As links between pharmaceutical companies and telehealth providers grow, health policy experts and legislators are raising concerns over the large fees that telehealth companies can receive from drugmakers each year, STAT explains. Critics have questioned whether those partnerships break federal laws prohibiting financial kickbacks to induce prescribing, highlighting their potential to promote uncoordinated care and overprescriping of unnecessary, and often expensive, branded medications. The same questions apply to coupons extended for a drug-specific telehealth visit. Drugmakers have long used discount coupons to encourage patients to use their high-cost medications. But coupons can influence not just the out-of-pocket price for the drug, but the cost of consulting with a clinician who can prescribe it.
U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. told a Senate hearing on Wednesday that he had nothing to do with a U.S. Food and Drug Administration decision to not approve Replimune’s advanced skin cancer drug, saying it was in the hands of FDA Commissioner Marty Makary, Reuters writes. Earlier this month, the FDA declined to approve the drug after taking issue with the company’s reliance on a single‑arm study for the drug without a control group. In its letter, the FDA said the company must provide data from a well-controlled trial demonstrating adequate evidence of effectiveness. “This decision comes out of FDA, and we trust the process there. And I’ve been told by Marty Makary that every panel that looked at that drug unanimously voted against it … because it does not appear to work,” Kennedy said. An op-ed in The Wall Street Journal maintained Kennedy’s comments were not true and cited cancer doctors who have worked on trials of the drug and said it was effective.
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