Young, female and scientist: exploring barriers, challenges and opportunities.

Different societal, systemic and personal barriers exist at various stages along a female researcher's career that can potentially undermine their success. The equation for women to reach higher positions in STEM is a multivariable one, and while there has been considerable progress towards addressing some of these compared with the past, current solutions are inadequate and do not address all facets. Here, we asked female winners of the FEBS Open Bio poster prize about their experiences regarding barriers they have faced at the predoctoral and postdoctoral stages, their opinions on how these can be addressed and their advice to new students entering a PhD degree.

Developing active learning activities for didactic perfusion courses.

Background: In the world of academia, traditional lecturing has been the most common pedagogical approach for centuries. However, it can create an environment for students to be passive learners in the classroom. Alternatively, active learning is a pedagogical approach intended to encourage students to engage with content in manners which have been associated with improved exam performance, final course grades, clinical reasoning skills, and critical thinking skills.

An open chat between Prof Asifa Akhtar and Klaudia Jaczynska.

To mark the International Day of Women and Girls in Science 2025, we invited Prof Asifa Akhtar, Vice President of the Max Planck Society's Biology and Medicine section, Director at the Max Planck Institute of Immunobiology and Epigenetics in Freiburg, Honorary Professor at the Albert Ludwigs University and recipient of the 2025 FEBS | EMBO Women in Science Award to meet and chat with Klaudia Jaczynska, final year PhD student at Jose Rizo's laboratory in UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, and 2024 FEBS Open Bio Article Prize winner. We invited them to talk about challenges limiting equal representation in science, technology, engineering and mathematics, initiatives to foster supportive environments as a research institute and the importance of highlighting diverse examples of success.

Lipreading as a communication strategy to enhance speech recognition in individuals with hearing impairment: a scoping review.

This article explores the existing research evidence on the potential effectiveness of lipreading as a communication strategy to enhance speech recognition in individuals with hearing impairment. A scoping review was conducted, involving a search of six electronic databases (MEDLINE, Embase, Web of Science, Engineering Village, CINAHL, and PsycINFO) for research papers published between January 2013 and June 2023. This study included original research papers with full texts available in English, covering all study designs: qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods.

An alternatively translated isoform of PPARG proposes AF-1 domain inhibition as an insulin sensitization target.

PPARγ is the pharmacological target of thiazolidinediones (TZDs), potent insulin sensitizers that prevent metabolic disease morbidity but are accompanied by side effects such as weight gain, in part due to non-physiological transcriptional agonism. Using high throughput genome engineering, we targeted nonsense mutations to every exon of PPARG, finding an ATG in Exon 2 (chr3:12381414, CCDS2609 c.A403) that functions as an alternative translational start site.

Eating disorder treatment experiences among racially/ethnically minoritized samples.

Although eating disorders (EDs) affect individuals of all races and ethnicities, racially/ethnically minoritized individuals are less likely to receive ED treatment than White individuals. The present study aimed to compare ED treatment experiences in a sample of racially/ethnically minoritized individuals vs. White participants.

Improving Social Determinants of Health via the Workplace.

: Social determinants of health (SDOH), such as food security and healthcare access, are key to maintaining and improving health. Publicly funded safety-net programs, such as Medicaid and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, address SDOH. Many low-wage employees are program-eligible, but there are substantial participation gaps.

Benefits of spaced learning are predicted by the re-encoding of past experience in ventromedial prefrontal cortex.

More than a century of research shows that spaced learning improves long-term memory. However, there remains debate concerning why that is. A major limitation to resolving theoretical debates is the lack of evidence for how neural representations change as a function of spacing.

Protocol for real-time assessment of energy metabolism in dissociated mouse retinal photoreceptors using a SeahorseXFe24 analyzer.

Defects in retinal metabolism have been linked to the onset and progression of various retinal diseases. Herein, we provide a protocol for measuring bioenergetics in dissociated mouse retinal photoreceptors. We outline detailed instructions for obtaining morphologically intact and viable photoreceptor cells from adult mice and preparing the cells for metabolic analysis using a SeahorseXFe24 analyzer.

Optimized protocol for single-cell isolation and alkaline comet assay to detect DNA damage in cells of Drosophila wing imaginal discs.

Reduced expression of nucleolar genes induces stress and DNA damage. Here, we present a protocol to analyze DNA fragmentation at the single-cell level in Drosophila imaginal discs using an optimized alkaline comet assay. We describe steps for larvae development, tissue disaggregation, and single-cell dissociation.

Artificial Intelligence for Optical Coherence Tomography in Glaucoma.

Purpose: The integration of artificial intelligence (AI), particularly deep learning (DL), with optical coherence tomography (OCT) offers significant opportunities in the diagnosis and management of glaucoma. This article explores the application of various DL models in enhancing OCT capabilities and addresses the challenges associated with their clinical implementation.

Methods: A review of articles utilizing DL models was conducted, including convolutional neural networks (CNNs), recurrent neural networks (RNNs), generative adversarial networks (GANs), autoencoders, and large language models (LLMs).

Determinants of Human Corneal Mechanical Wave Dispersion for In Vivo Optical Coherence Elastography.

Purpose: To characterize frequency-dependent wave speed dispersion in the human cornea using microliter air-pulse optical coherence elastography (OCE), and to evaluate the applicability of Lamb wave theory for determining corneal elastic modulus using high-frequency symmetric (S0) and anti-symmetric (A0) guided waves in cornea.

Methods: Wave speed dispersion analysis for transient (0.5 ms) microliter air-pulse stimulation was performed in four rabbit eyes ex vivo and compared to air-coupled ultrasound excitation.

Laboratory and in-home evaluations of consumer- and professional-grade cockroach baits.

German cockroaches (Blattella germanica (L.)) are a persistent pest in affordable housing and studies indicate that residents implement control on their own to deal with cockroaches within their homes. While many do-it-yourself (DIY) control options have proven ineffective, baits are widely considered to be a viable DIY solution for residents who do not have access to professional pest control services.

Immune Dysregulation in Obesity.

The immune system plays fundamental roles in maintaining physiological homeostasis. With the increasing prevalence of obesity-a state characterized by chronic inflammation and systemic dyshomeostasis-there is growing scientific and clinical interest in understanding how obesity reshapes immune function. In this review, we propose that obesity is not merely an altered metabolic state but also a fundamentally altered immunological state.

Apoptosis in Cancer Biology and Therapy.

Since its inception, the study of apoptosis has been intricately linked to the field of cancer. The term apoptosis was coined more than five decades ago following its identification in both healthy tissues and malignant neoplasms. The subsequent elucidation of its molecular mechanisms has significantly enhanced our understanding of how cancer cells hijack physiological processes to evade cell death.

Roles of Cellular Neighborhoods in Hepatocellular Carcinoma Pathogenesis.

The development of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) involves an intricate interplay among various cell types within the liver. Unraveling the orchestration of these cells, particularly in the context of various etiologies, may hold the key to deciphering the underlying mechanisms of this complex disease. The advancement of single-cell and spatial technologies has revolutionized our ability to determine cellular neighborhoods and understand their crucial roles in disease pathogenesis.

Targeting Protein-Protein Interactions in Hematologic Malignancies.

Over the last two decades, there have been extensive efforts to develop small-molecule inhibitors of protein-protein interactions (PPIs) as novel therapeutics for cancer, including hematologic malignancies. Despite the numerous challenges associated with developing PPI inhibitors, a significant number of them have advanced to clinical studies in hematologic patients in recent years. The US Food and Drug Administration approval of the very first PPI inhibitor, venetoclax, demonstrated the real clinical value of blocking protein-protein interfaces.

Unraveling Mechanisms of Genetic Risks in Metabolic Dysfunction-Associated Steatotic Liver Diseases: A Pathway to Precision Medicine.

Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) is a growing global health problem, affecting ∼1 billion people. This condition is well established to have a heritable component with strong familial clustering. With the extraordinary breakthroughs in genetic research techniques coupled with their application to large-scale biobanks, the field of genetics in MASLD has expanded rapidly.

Role of Fungi in Tumorigenesis: Promises and Challenges.

The mycobiome plays a key role in the host immune responses in homeostasis and inflammation. Recent studies suggest that an imbalance in the gut's fungi contributes to chronic, noninfectious diseases such as obesity, metabolic disorders, and cancers. Pathogenic fungi can colonize specific organs, and the gut mycobiome has been linked to the development and progression of various cancers, including colorectal, breast, head and neck, and pancreatic cancers.

Pathogenesis of Focal Segmental Glomerulosclerosis and Related Disorders.

Focal segmental glomerulosclerosis (FSGS) is the morphologic manifestation of a spectrum of kidney diseases that primarily impact podocytes, cells that create the filtration barrier of the glomerulus. As its name implies, only parts of the kidney and glomeruli are affected, and only a portion of the affected glomerulus may be sclerosed. Although the diagnosis is based primarily on microscopic features, patient stratification relies on clinical data such as proteinuria and etiological criteria.

The impact of resective epilepsy surgery on the brain network: evidence from post-surgical imaging.

Resective epilepsy surgery can be an effective treatment for patients with medication-resistant focal epilepsy. Epilepsy resection consists of the surgical removal of an epileptic focus to stop seizure generation and disrupt the epileptic network. However, even focal surgical resections for epilepsy lead to widespread brain network changes.

How Often Is Rifampin Therapy Initiated and Completed in Patients With Periprosthetic Joint Infections?

Background: Rifampin therapy is indicated for the treatment of staphylococcal periprosthetic joint infection (PJI) in patients who have undergone debridement, antibiotics, and implant retention (DAIR) or one-stage revision as per the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) guideline. Given the well-established effectiveness of rifampin as adjunctive therapy in staphylococcal PJI, it is crucial to evaluate its utilization in practice and identify factors that contribute to its underuse or incomplete administration, as these deviations may undermine treatment efficacy and patient outcomes.

Questions/purposes: Among patients who met clear indications for rifampin use having undergone DAIR or one-stage revision for staphylococcal PJI, (1) what proportion of patients did not receive it? (2) What proportion of patients started it but did not complete the planned course? (3) Where documented in the medical record, what were the common reasons for not using it or prematurely discontinuing it, and in what percentage of the patients' charts was no reason given? (4) What proportion of patients were taking a medication that put them at risk for a drug-drug interaction (DDI)?

Methods: Using an institutional database, patients who underwent DAIR or revision arthroplasty for PJI from January 2013 to April 2023 were identified (n = 935).

Biofield Therapies Clinical Research Landscape: A Scoping Review and Interactive Evidence Map.

Biofield Therapies, with a historical lineage spanning millennia and continuing relevance in contemporary practices, have been used to address various health conditions and promote wellbeing. The scientific study and adoption of these therapies have been hindered by cultural challenges and institutional barriers. In addition, the current research landscape for Biofield Therapies is insufficiently documented.

Exosome's Implications in Age-Related Macular Degeneration.

Purpose: This study aims to conduct a mini review of published literature concerning the role of exosomes in the field of ophthalmology, with a specific focus on Age-Related Macular Degeneration (AMD).

Methods: In this study, a comprehensive search was conducted using PubMed and Google Scholar to identify relevant publications. Additionally, trials submitted to clinicaltrials.