A new international study suggests that ancient viral DNA embedded in our genome, which were long dismissed as genetic “junk,” may actually play powerful roles in regulating gene expression. Focusing on a family of sequences called MER11, researchers from Japan, China, Canada, and the US have shown that these elements have evolved to influence how genes turn on and off, particularly in early human development.
Transposable elements (TEs) are repetitive DNA sequences in the genome that originated from ancient viruses. Over millions of years, they spread throughout the genome via copy-and-paste mechanisms. Today, TEs make up nearly half of the human genome. While they were once thought to serve no useful function, recent research has found that some of them act like “genetic switches,” controlling the activity of nearby genes in specific cell types.
However, because TEs are highly repetitive and often nearly identical in sequence, they can be difficult to study. In particular, younger TE families like MER11 have been poorly categorized in existing genomic databases, limiting our ability to understand their role.
To overcome this, the researchers developed a new method for classifying TEs. Instead of using standard annotation tools, they grouped MER11 sequences based on their evolutionary relationships and how well they were conserved in the primate genomes. This new approach allowed them to divide MER11A/B/C into four distinct subfamilies, namely, MER11_G1 through G4, ranging from oldest to youngest.
This new classification revealed previously hidden patterns of gene regulatory potential. The researchers compared the new MER11 subfamilies to various epigenetic markers, which are chemical tags on DNA and associated proteins that influence gene activity. This showed that this new classification aligned more closely with actual regulatory function compared with previous methods.
To directly test whether MER11 sequences can control gene expression, the team used a technique called lentiMPRA (lentiviral massively parallel reporter assay). This method allows thousands of DNA sequences to be tested at once by inserting them into cells and measuring how much each one boosts gene activity. The researchers applied this method to nearly 7000 MER11 sequences from humans and other primates, and measured their effects in human stem cells and early-stage neural cells.
The results showed that MER11_G4 (the youngest subfamily) exhibited a strong ability to activate gene expression. It also had a distinct set of regulatory “motifs,” which are short stretches of DNA that serve as docking sites for transcription factors, the proteins that control when genes are turned on. These motifs can dramatically influence how genes respond to developmental signals or environmental cues.
Further analysis revealed that the MER11_G4 sequences in humans, chimpanzees, and macaques had each accumulated slightly different changes over time. In humans and chimpanzees, some sequences gained mutations that could increase their regulatory potential during in human stem cells.Young MER11_G4 binds to a distinct set of transcription factors, indicating that this group gained different regulatory functions through sequence changes and contributes to speciation,leading researcher Dr. Xun Chen explains.
The study offers a model for understanding how “junk” DNA can evolve into regulatory elements with important biological roles. By tracing the evolution of these sequences and directly testing their function, the researchers have demonstrated how ancient viral DNA has been co-opted into shaping gene activity in primates.
“Our genome was sequenced long ago, but the function of many of its parts remain unknown,” co-responding auther Dr. Inoue notes. Transposable elements are thought to play important roles in genome evolution, and their significance is expected to become clearer as research continues to advance.

1 day agoShareSaveHannah KarpelBBC NewsShareSaveAmrit PaulAmrit Paul was in the middle of his computer science exams when he was told by doctors he would need a kidney transplant.”It was a shock. I didn’t really know how to handle it and, in all honesty, I went into a shell,” he said.He was placed on the organ donation register almost five years ago, having been diagnosed with a chronic kidney disease aged four.Amrit undergoes nine hours of peritoneal dialysis each night, a method of blood purification used when kidneys fail. “People say I look fine, but under the hood there are a lot of problems,” the 24-year-old said.Now he and his parents are appealing for a living kidney donor from the South Asian community to come forward.’Debunk myths'”Feeling your body change as your organs start to decline is tough,” added Amrit, who works remotely in software sales.”My family are my motivation, they’ve been so supportive.”Amrit’s mum Jatinder Paul is leading their campaign. Their poster reads: “Please, help us find an angel for Amrit.”Their appeal comes as NHS Blood and Transplant reveals that a record number of people are waiting for a life-saving transplant in the UK.When Amrit’s immediate family, who are Indian Punjabi, discovered they were unable to donate, they also became aware of the shortage of matching donors from global majority backgrounds.”As a parent, it’s hard not being able to donate because of your own health issues,” said Jatinder.”So you reach out to the wider community and ask if there’s someone who can help give him his life back.”Dr Rhys Evans, clinical lead for kidney transplantation at Royal Free London, where Amrit is receiving care, said ethnicity can play a significant role in how long a patient waits.”Unfortunately, for patients like Amrit who has blood group B, which is more common in South Asian and Black ethnic groups it often means a longer wait, because there are fewer donors from those communities,” he said.As of 31 March 2025, more than 8,000 people were on the active transplant waiting list across the UK – the highest number ever recorded. Over 1,300 of those patients are based in London.In the capital, the number of deceased organ donors fell last year to 130, down from 154 the previous year.Amrit PaulFiona Loud, policy director at charity Kidney Care UK, said greater awareness and conversation within ethnic minority communities is vital.”Sadly, every day at least one person dies waiting for a transplant. This has to change,” she said.”People from Black and South Asian communities are more likely to need a donor from the same background as them so that the organ is less likely to be rejected. “Talking about it and sharing your decision helps debunk myths and makes your wishes clear to loved ones.”Anthony Clarkson, director of organ and tissue donation and transplantation at NHS Blood and Transplant, is also urging people to register their wishes.”We are facing an incredibly concerning situation. More people than ever are waiting for transplants, but fewer donations are taking place,” he said.”We need to act across all areas – modernising the Organ Donor Register, improving understanding of the law, and investing in technologies that preserve and treat organs.”

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If there is a small red heart with the words “organ donor” at the bottom of your driver’s license, that puts you in a group of over 173 million Americans who are in the national organ donor registry.Organ donation has wide public support, but medical ethicists say there is still confusion about what it looks like and how it affects patients and families.How do you become an organ donor?Any adult can register. In most states, teenagers as young as 15 may also express their intent to donate, though parents can revoke that decision.Today, around 90 percent of donors join their state registry at their local D.M.V. Others sign up while registering to vote, or through an online form linked to their local organ procurement organizations, known as O.P.O.s, which are nonprofit federal contractors in each state that coordinate transplants.Donate Life America, an advocacy organization, maintains a nationwide list of online registries.Donors can sign up or change their status at the D.M.V. or online, though residents of some states have had trouble removing themselves from the registry.Is the decision legally binding?It depends on how you die.If you are declared legally dead after testing shows no signs of neurological activity — known colloquially as being “brain-dead” — then the organ donor status on your license is legally binding, even if your family disagrees. In these cases, patients are kept on a ventilator until their organs are retrieved.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe.

People across the United States have endured rushed or premature attempts to remove their organs. Some were gasping, crying or showing other signs of life.Last spring at a small Alabama hospital, a team of transplant surgeons prepared to cut into Misty Hawkins. The clock was ticking. Her organs wouldn’t be usable for much longer.Days earlier, she had been a vibrant 42-year-old with a playful sense of humor and a love for the Thunder Beach Motorcycle Rally. But after Ms. Hawkins choked while eating and fell into a coma, her mother decided to take her off life support and donate her organs. She was removed from a ventilator and, after 103 minutes, declared dead.Listen to this article with reporter commentaryA surgeon made an incision in her chest and sawed through her breastbone.That’s when the doctors discovered her heart was beating. She appeared to be breathing. They were slicing into Ms. Hawkins while she was alive.Across the United States, an intricate system of hospitals, doctors and nonprofit donation coordinators carries out tens of thousands of lifesaving transplants each year. At every step, it relies on carefully calibrated protocols to protect both donors and recipients.But in recent years, as the system has pushed to increase transplants, a growing number of patients have endured premature or bungled attempts to retrieve their organs. Though Ms. Hawkins’s case is an extreme example of what can go wrong, a New York Times examination revealed a pattern of rushed decision-making that has prioritized the need for more organs over the safety of potential donors.Share your story about the organ transplant systemWe will not publish any part of your submission without contacting you first. We may use your contact information to follow up with you.

We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe.

From low-carb ice cream to keto protein bars to “sugar-free” soda, the decades-old sweetener erythritol is everywhere.
But new University of Colorado Boulder research shows the popular sugar substitute and specialty food additive comes with serious downsides, impacting brain cells in numerous ways that can boost risk of stroke.
The study was published in the Journal of Applied Physiology.
“Our study adds to the evidence suggesting that non-nutritive sweeteners that have generally been purported to be safe, may not come without negative health consequences,” said senior author Christopher DeSouza, professor of integrative physiology and director of the Integrative Vascular Biology Lab.
First approved by the Food and Drug Administration in 2001, erythritol is a sugar alcohol, often produced by fermenting corn and found in hundreds of products. It has almost no calories, is about 80% as sweet as table sugar, and has negligible impact on insulin levels, making it a favorite for people trying to lose weight, keep their blood sugar in check or avoid carbohydrates.
But recent research has begun to shed light on its risks.
One recent study involving 4,000 people in the U.S. and Europe found that men and women with higher circulating levels of erythritol were significantly more likely to have a heart attack or stroke within the next three years.

DeSouza and first author Auburn Berry, a graduate student in his lab, set out to understand what might be driving that increased risk.
Researchers in the lab treated human cells that line blood vessels in the brain for three hours with about the same amount of erythritol contained in a typical sugar-free beverage.
They observed that the treated cells were altered in numerous ways: They expressed significantly less nitric oxide, a molecule that relaxes and widens blood vessels, and more endothelin-1, a protein that constricts blood vessels. Meanwhile, when challenged with a clot-forming compound called thrombin, cellular production of the natural clot-busting compound t-PA was “markedly blunted.” The erythritol-treated cells also produced more reactive oxygen species (ROS), a.k.a. “free radicals,” metabolic byproducts which can age and damage cells and inflame tissue.
“Big picture, if your vessels are more constricted and your ability to break down blood clots is lowered, your risk of stroke goes up,” said Berry. “Our research demonstrates not only that, but how erythritol has the potential to increase stroke risk.”
DeSouza notes that their study used only a serving-size worth of the sugar substitute. For those who consume multiple servings per day, the impact, presumably, could be worse.
The authors caution that their study was a laboratory study, conducted on cells, and larger studies in people are needed.
That said, De Souza encourages consumers to read labels, looking for erythritol or “sugar alcohol” on the label.
“Given the epidemiological study that inspired our work, and now our cellular findings, we believe it would be prudent for people to monitor their consumption of non-nutrient-sweeteners such as this one,” he said.

E. coli outbreaks in romaine lettuce have long been a public health concern. and now a new Cornell University paper suggests that a combination of efforts in the field, and even postharvest techniques, can minimize risk to human health.
Co-authored by Renata Ivanek, a professor in the department of population medicine and diagnostic sciences, and Martin Wiedmann, professor in food safety, the paper outlines interventions likely to make a concrete difference in the safety of the nation’s romaine.
“This study supports that interventions should focus on reducing produce contamination via contaminated irrigation water, on assuring that produce washes applied during processing consistently deliver reasonably high reductions of bacterial numbers, and on improving temperature control during distribution,” Wiedmann said.
“We tried to describe the system as holistically as possible to account for different risk factors and how they could have interactions,” Ivanek said. “There’s not just one intervention that will save us all. We spent a lot of time trying to understand the preharvest component, especially the irrigation water piece and how much risk can be explained by that.”
Study results suggested that much contamination originates from irrigation with untreated surface water applied through overhead spray irrigation systems. They found that risk from irrigation was reduced either through water treatments or by switching to furrow or drip irrigation.
“While not the most common system, spray irrigation is used in a number of fields for its benefits during germination, its cooling effect on plants and other reasons. But drip or furrow irrigation reduces the probability that water directly touches the leaves,” Ivanek said, acknowledging that switching to these other irrigation systems introduces significant potential additional costs to grower.
Ivanek and her co-authors also explored the importance of maintaining proper cold storage temperatures along the entire supply chain to romaine’s final destination.
“Time and temperature play a role in food safety, and also in food quality and shelf life,” she said, describing a “perfect storm” if contamination happens at the farm or processing level and then improper transportation temperatures allow bacteria to grow.
The comprehensive practices and interventions explored in this study intend to aid decision-makers in establishing and enhancing food safety best management practices, Ivanek said.
“The big message is the American food supply chain is extremely safe compared to other countries,” she said. “We’re exploring how can we make it even safer and where we should put additional effort.”

A new treatment that uses music therapy on dementia wards could improve care and support for some of the NHS’s most vulnerable patients.
Researchers at Anglia Ruskin University (ARU) and Cambridgeshire and Peterborough NHS Foundation Trust have piloted a music therapy approach called MELODIC, across two NHS dementia wards.
More alternatives to psychotropic medication are needed to support dementia patients who experience severe distress.
The pilot study involved a music therapist being embedded on hospital wards, the delivery of clinical music sessions and the implementation of musical care plans for each patient, and results from the research have now been published in the journal Frontiers in Psychiatry.
Music therapy, delivered by trained therapists, can include singing, playing or listening to music. The therapist can also identify specific ways that music can be used by families and carers in an individual’s daily care routine.
During the study, patient data suggested a slight improvement in quality-of-life scores among patients and a reduction in the severity of distress symptoms and disruptiveness, although agitation scores increased slightly.
There were no increases in routinely reported incidents, and no adverse events related to music therapy interventions were reported. This is relevant for future research on mental health dementia wards where limited studies have been conducted to date.

Lead author Naomi Thompson, a researcher at the Cambridge Institute for Music Therapy Research at Anglia Ruskin University (ARU), said: “People with dementia on inpatient mental health wards are often experiencing very high levels of distress, and staff are under immense pressure to manage this in ways that are safe and compassionate.
“Our study yielded promising results and importantly showed that the MELODIC tool can be used effectively in these highly complex settings, giving an alternative option to current ways of managing severe distress, such as psychotropic medication.”
The approach was shaped by interviews with 49 healthcare professionals, patients, and their families about their experiences managing distress on dementia wards and using music in everyday care and life to help develop the intervention, with findings published in the Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry.
Importantly, the intervention — which has been co-designed by clinicians, researchers, and people with lived experience – cost just £2,025 per month for the therapist and £400 initial outlay for equipment, suggesting a low-cost, scalable model.
Dr Ben Underwood, Research and Development Director and Honorary Consultant Psychiatrist at CPFT said: “Some people with dementia can get so confused and distressed that we need to admit them to hospital to keep them safe. It can be difficult to manage distress in a ward environment and hard for patients, families and staff.
“I am very excited that it may now be possible for NHS staff to improve their experience on dementia wards using the power of music, and we look forward to working with ARU to develop this further.”
The current study was funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR), and is published in the journal Frontiers in Psychiatry.

People who can delay gratification and master their impulses thrive in life. And experts say that you can learn skills to rein in bad habits.We tend to respect and even idolize those who exhibit a lot of willpower. The friend who hits up the gym five times a week. The social media influencer who maintains a meticulously decorated, camera-ready home. That colleague who manages to stay calm and focused in nearly every situation.Research suggests that these people are not only viewed as trustworthy but also morally superior. How can we mere mortals compare? Polls show that many Americans are feeling heightened levels of anxiety and stress, which can make delaying gratification and inhibiting impulses even harder.But willpower shouldn’t be confused with self-control. While you can use willpower to manage your emotions or fight temptation, research suggests that it may not be the most effective method.To improve willpower, it boils down to “just try harder,” said Kentaro Fujita, a professor of psychology at Ohio State University who studies self-regulation and decision making. But self-control involves a set of skills that can be learned, he added.Preparation, mind-set and the ability to either avoid or reframe temptation can be far more effective than trying to “force that desire down,” Dr. Fujita said.First, what is ‘self-control’ and why does it matter?Traditionally, psychologists have defined self-control as the ability to wait for later, larger rewards. But it can also be thought of as a way to alter your thoughts, feelings and behaviors to reach a specific goal. When we have self-control, we can resist unhealthy impulses and persevere when we feel like quitting, experts say.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe.

A little-noticed plan for an “infertility training center” signals that the administration intends to take a new approach with Title X, which has long helped low-income women access contraception.The Trump administration intends to use funds from a decades-old federal program that provides birth control to low-income women to ramp up efforts to help aspiring mothers get pregnant, signaling a shift in policy that will appease both religious conservatives and adherents of its Make America Healthy Again agenda.The first sign of the change appeared on a little-noticed government website last week, in a post offering a $1.5 million grant to start an “infertility training center.” The center would promote “holistic” approaches to combating infertility, such as menstrual cycle education classes that women also take to try to prevent pregnancy without using birth control.The announcement of the training center is the clearest sign yet that the administration plans to take a new approach with the federal family planning program known as Title X, and point it more toward combating infertility, a goal that President Trump has made part of his agenda.The announcement is also an early indication that the administration is backing an alternative approach to infertility — one supported by conservative and religious policy groups that are skeptical of in vitro fertilization, even after Mr. Trump promised as a candidate last year to make I.V.F. free. A formal White House report on infertility was delivered to the president in May, several months after Mr. Trump pledged in an executive order to lower the cost of I.V.F., but has not yet been released to the public.While Title X has historically focused primarily on providing contraception, the program already offers a wide range of services beyond birth control, including testing for sexually transmitted diseases and pregnancy tests, as well as basic infertility care. But the vast majority of patients who come to Title X clinics are looking for birth control or S.T.D.-related services, several experts and grant administrators said.Advocates who provide contraception to low-income women said they were surprised and concerned when they noticed the announcement on the government website.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe.