BackgroundSchizophrenia (SCZ) is a highly heritable primary psychotic disorder. The microtubule-associated protein 2 (MAP2) gene is essential for dendritic integrity and synaptic plasticity, positioning it as a key candidate for bridging genetic risk and neuropathology. Nevertheless, the role of common genetic variations within MAP2 in SCZ susceptibility remains to be elucidated.MethodsWe conducted a candidate gene association study of MAP2 in a Han Chinese cohort comprising 418 SCZ patients and 418 matched healthy controls. Targeted sequencing was used to genotype single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). MAP2 mRNA levels were quantified by RT-qPCR and correlated with genotypes and clinical symptoms. Bioinformatic tools (such as GTEx, BrainSeq, 3DSNP, HaploReg, RegulomeDB and SNP2TFBS database) were employed for functional annotation of risk loci.ResultsWe identified multiple MAP2 SNPs associated with SCZ risk in a Han Chinese cohort. Specifically, the AA genotype of rs288057 and the GG genotype of rs288087 were significantly associated with increased disease risk (OR = 2.393 and 2.258, respectively). Expression analysis revealed a marked reduction in peripheral MAP2 mRNA levels in patients compared to controls. This downregulation was genotype-dependent: the risk AA at rs288057 and GG at rs288087 were correlated with lower mRNA levels, a finding supported by its significant eQTL effect in the GTEx and BrainSeq database. In silico annotation suggested rs288087 resides within a putative enhancer region, while rs288057 may affect a promoter-proximal regulatory site. Clinically, MAP2 expression showed a significant positive correlation with the severity of negative symptoms (SANS score). Furthermore, ROC analysis indicated that MAP2 expression levels distinguished patients from controls with an AUC of 0.728.ConclusionThis study identifies MAP2 as a schizophrenia risk gene, wherein non-coding variants likely reduce its expression via distinct regulatory mechanisms, linking this downregulation to core negative symptoms. These findings highlight MAP2’s pathophysiological and translational relevance.
Editorial: Ethical and psychiatric considerations in euthanasia and medically assisted suicide (E/PAS)
Subjective sleepiness and objective sleep propensity in adults with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder referred for multiple sleep latency testing
IntroductionAdults with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) often report excessive daytime sleepiness, but the relationship between subjective sleepiness and objective sleep propensity remains unclear. We examined this relationship in adults referred for Multiple Sleep Latency Test (MSLT) evaluation, using a clinical comparison group with excessive daytime sleepiness (EDS) but without ADHD.MethodsIn this retrospective cross-sectional study, we analyzed medical records of 130 adults aged 18 years or older who underwent MSLT between January and December 2021, including 68 adults in the ADHD group and 62 in the EDS-only group. Subjective sleepiness was assessed by the Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS) and objective sleep propensity by mean MSLT sleep latency, with MSLT positivity defined as mean sleep latency ≤ 480 s. Associations between ESS scores and mean sleep latency were assessed within each group, and correlation coefficients were compared between groups using Fisher’s r-to-z transformation.ResultsESS scores did not differ significantly between groups, with median scores of 14.0 in the ADHD group and 13.0 in the EDS-only group. In contrast, objective sleep propensity differed significantly: median mean sleep latency was longer in the ADHD group than in the EDS-only group (432.0 s vs 322.0 s, p = 0.008), and MSLT positivity was less frequent in the ADHD group (61.8% vs 87.1%, p = 0.001). Within the ADHD group, ESS scores were not significantly correlated with mean sleep latency, including among MSLT-positive cases. A significant inverse correlation was observed in the MSLT-positive EDS-only subgroup, although formal comparison of correlation coefficients did not demonstrate a statistically significant between-group difference in the ESS–MSLT relationship. SOREMP frequencies were numerically higher in the EDS-only group but did not differ significantly between groups.DiscussionThese findings suggest that subjective sleepiness complaints and objective sleep propensity may not closely align in adults with ADHD referred for sleep evaluation, and support the need for integrated psychiatric and sleep-medicine assessment when such patients present with excessive daytime sleepiness.
Associations of TNF-α, MIF, and cortisol with cognitive function in patients with bipolar disorder during acute manic episodes: a short-term follow-up study
BackgroundBipolar disorder (BD) is frequently accompanied by cognitive impairment, and growing evidence suggests that immune-inflammatory activation and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis dysregulation may contribute to its pathophysiology. This study aimed to examine the associations of tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF), and cortisol (COR) with cognitive function in patients with BD during manic episodes and to characterize their short-term changes.MethodsIn this short-term follow-up study, 53 patients with BD during manic episodes and 53 healthy controls (HCs) were enrolled. Plasma TNF-α, MIF, and COR levels were measured using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Cognitive function was assessed using the Chinese Brief Cognitive Test, including information processing speed (IPS), executive function (EF), sustained attention (SAT), and working memory (WM). Patients were evaluated at baseline and after 8 weeks of treatment, whereas HCs were assessed once at baseline. Group comparisons and biomarker–cognition correlation analyses were performed. Multiple testing in the correlation analyses was controlled using the Benjamini–Hochberg false discovery rate (FDR) procedure.ResultsAt both baseline and follow-up, patients with BD had significantly lower IPS, EF, SAT, and WM scores, but significantly higher plasma TNF-α, MIF, and COR levels, than HCs. After 8 weeks of treatment, cognitive scores in the BD group improved significantly, whereas reductions in TNF-α, MIF, and COR did not reach statistical significance. In exploratory unadjusted Pearson analyses, several biomarker–cognition associations survived FDR correction. However, in the primary adjusted partial correlation analyses, only the negative association between TNF-α and WM remained significant after adjustment for covariates and FDR correction at both baseline and follow-up.ConclusionPatients with BD during manic episodes exhibited widespread cognitive impairment accompanied by elevated inflammatory and neuroendocrine markers. TNF-α showed the most robust association with working memory after adjustment for covariates and correction for multiple comparisons. Associations involving MIF or cortisol and executive function should be interpreted as exploratory and require validation in larger longitudinal studies.
Experiment-guided AlphaFold3 resolves measurement-consistent protein ensembles
Nature Biotechnology, Published online: 29 June 2026; doi:10.1038/s41587-026-03166-5
A generative model using AlphaFold3 as prior infers protein conformational ensembles consistent with measured experimental data.
A retargeted recombinase for precise insertion of large DNA
Nature Biotechnology, Published online: 29 June 2026; doi:10.1038/s41587-026-03198-x
An approach to retarget the large serine recombinase Bxb1 enables precise integration of large DNA payloads at desired loci.
Retargeted serine integrases for one-step, precise integration of large DNA sequences in human cells
Nature Biotechnology, Published online: 29 June 2026; doi:10.1038/s41587-026-03186-1
Serine integrases are retargeted to streamline genomic integrations of DNA.
Noninvasive decoding of typed sentences from human brain activity
Nature Neuroscience, Published online: 29 June 2026; doi:10.1038/s41593-026-02303-2
Here the authors introduce Brain2Qwerty, a deep learning model that decodes typed sentences from non-invasive brain activity with character error rate down to 18%. This opens a pathway for non-invasive communication neuroprostheses.
Tecan Integrates Agentic AI Into Its Introspect Lab Analytics Platform
Tecan reported the integration of agentic AI capabilities into its lab analytics platform Introspect, leveraging the NVIDIA BioNeMo Agent Toolkit, which enable AI agents to access scientific AI capabilities within the Introspect platform. The goal is to help laboratories to optimize operations.
According to Tecan, agentic AI will allow laboratories to move beyond traditional monitoring and reactive troubleshooting toward proactive actions that help prevent issues before they impact performance, quality, or scientific outcomes. Early access to the enhanced Introspect platform is available, with applications focused on pharmaceutical, biotechnology, and clinical laboratory environments.
A milestone in the collaboration announced in 2026, this agentic AI development demonstrates advancement of Tecan and Nvidia’s shared vision of enabling data-driven laboratories with AI-powered platforms designed to accelerate scientific discovery and improve laboratory productivity, notes a company spokesperson, who adds that agentic AI introduces a new paradigm for laboratory operations.
Rather than identifying problems after they occur, intelligent agents can continuously analyze laboratory data, workflows, and system performance to uncover hidden patterns that limit throughput, constrain scalability, or reduce operational efficiency, explains Mukta Acharya, executive vice president and head of the life sciences business division at Tecan. By transforming data into recommended actions, laboratories can accelerate decision-making, optimize resource utilization, and proactively improve overall productivity, she continues.
“Agentic AI has the potential to reshape how laboratories operate. By combining Tecan’s laboratory expertise with NVIDIA’s BioNeMo Agent Toolkit, we are enabling a new generation of intelligent laboratory solutions that can proactively support scientists, improve productivity, and help accelerate scientific outcomes,” says Acharya.
The work with Nvidia reportedly also focuses on the agentic guardrails required for the responsible and reliable deployment of AI in laboratory environments. These safeguards are designed to support transparency, reliability, and controlled automation, helping in the establishment of agentic AI as a technology to support key research and operational workflows.
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STAT+: Sword Health contracted to provide AI-supported physical therapy for an entire country
Can artificial intelligence-powered care solve medical problems at national scale? A modest-sized European country is about to find out.
Portugal’s National Health Service this month inked a deal with digital health company Sword to make its physical therapy care available to the country’s entire population of 10 million people. After receiving a referral from a doctor, patients will receive unlimited access to Sword’s virtual therapy, which leans heavily on artificial intelligence to help guide and supervise care.
Founded a decade ago in Portugal, Sword Health has become one of the most prominent digital health companies offering chronic condition care in the United States. The new deal comes amid growing debate about how the government should support and pay for AI-based care stateside.