The cerebellum has historically been underrepresented in language research. However, converging evidence from lesion and neuroimaging studies supports its crucial involvement in phonological and semantic aspects of language processing, highlighting the relevance of cerebro-cerebellar circuits in language-related functions. Likewise, cerebellar neurostimulation has emerged as a promising tool for modulating sensorimotor and higher-order cognitive processes. A systematic search was conducted in PubMed and Web of Science following PRISMA guidelines and the present review synthesizes findings from 30 neurostimulation studies probing the causal role of the cerebellum for language processing. It summarizes transcranial electric and magnetic stimulation studies in neurotypical speakers and readers, and individuals with higher-order language disorders. Special emphasis is placed on studies combining cerebellar stimulation with behavioral interventions to assess the potential of improving language-related outcomes in clinical populations. Collectively, these studies support the role of the right posterolateral cerebellum as a key modulator of language functions, especially meaning-related operations.
Occupational burnout and risk of suicidality in healthcare professionals: a PRISMA-guided systematic review
BackgroundBurnout, an occupational phenomenon resulting from chronic workplace stress that has not been successfully managed, is increasingly recognized as a critical threat to the mental health of healthcare professionals. Prolonged exposure to work-related stressors may increase the risk of suicidality, including suicidal ideation, suicide attempts, and suicide deaths. This systematic review aimed to synthesize existing evidence on the association between burnout and suicidality in healthcare professionals and to identify vulnerable subgroups and intervention priorities.MethodsWe conducted a systematic review in accordance with Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) 2020 guidelines (PROSPERO registration: CRD420251037488). PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, and PsycINFO were searched for studies published between January 2005 and December 2024. Eligible studies included healthcare professionals and, where methodologically relevant, closely related high-stress occupational populations used as comparator cohorts assessed with validated burnout instruments and reporting suicidality or closely related suicide-proximal psychological outcomes. Data were extracted independently by two reviewers, and risk of bias was evaluated using the Newcastle–Ottawa Scale. Where appropriate, findings were synthesized narratively and through meta-analysis.ResultsA total of 29 studies met the inclusion criteria and 10 studies were included in the meta-analysis. Strong associations were consistently observed between burnout and suicidality, with emotional exhaustion and depersonalization emerging as the most robust predictors. Reduced personal accomplishment demonstrated weaker or inverse associations. Nurses and physicians were identified as particularly vulnerable, with pandemic-era studies reporting higher effect sizes compared to pre-pandemic research. Overall methodological quality was moderate to high, and heterogeneity was partly explained by profession, region, and burnout instrument used.ConclusionsBurnout, particularly emotional exhaustion and depersonalization, is consistently associated with increased suicidality among healthcare professionals, with supporting evidence from related high-stress occupational populations. Vulnerable groups include women clinicians, younger professionals, and those engaged in rotating or night-shift work. These findings highlight the need for systematic burnout surveillance, confidential access to mental health support, and organizational reforms such as safe staffing ratios and workload regulation. Integrating suicide-prevention strategies into occupational health frameworks is urgently required to protect clinician wellbeing and sustain healthcare system resilience.
A framework for comparative analysis of human and mouse cortical neuron dendrites in corresponding brain regions
Nature Neuroscience, Published online: 14 July 2026; doi:10.1038/s41593-026-02376-z
This study establishes a region-matched framework for comparing single-neuron dendritic morphology in human and mouse cortex, revealing more compact local dendrites and stronger lobe-level morphological specialization in humans.
Oxytocin promotes socially triggered cataplexy
Nature Neuroscience, Published online: 14 July 2026; doi:10.1038/s41593-026-02352-7
In people with narcolepsy, cataplexy is often triggered by strong emotions in social situations. Mahoney et al. show that such cataplexy is mediated by oxytocin-responsive neurons in the amygdala that target brainstem regions regulating motor tone.
Cellares and Sonoma Biotherapeutics Agree to Automate Engineered Treg Cell Therapy Manufacturing
Officials at Cellares and Sonoma Biotherapeutics say their companies will automate the manufacturing of SBT-77-7101, an engineered regulatory T cell (Treg) therapy for autoimmune and inflammatory diseases. The product is in Phase I clinical development for poly-refractory rheumatoid arthritis (RA) in patients who have exhausted all available treatment options.
Cellares plans to translate SonomaBio’s SBT-77-7101 manufacturing process onto its Cell Shuttle and automate in-process and release testing through the Cell Q
quality control system. The company operates its first commercial-scale Smart Factory in Bridgewater, NJ, with additional facilities under construction in Europe and Japan.
“Tregs are uniquely sensitive to the manufacturing process. Cellares brings the Cell Shuttle platform, and global infrastructure to help us deliver on our clinical ambitions at scale for the hardest-to-treat RA patients.” said Stephen Dilly, PhD, president, CEO, and board chair of Sonoma Biotherapeutics.
“Every new cell therapy modality we bring to the Cell Shuttle and Cell Q expands what is possible for the field and for patients in need,” added Fabian Gerlinghaus, co-founder and CEO of Cellares. “Tregs are among the most technically demanding cell types to manufacture reliably. We are honored to partner with SonomaBio and demonstrate that our platform can directly translate to Tregs.
“SonomaBio has developed one of the most advanced Treg programs in the clinic, and we look forward to contributing to their clinical success as they bring this groundbreaking therapy to patients.”
The post Cellares and Sonoma Biotherapeutics Agree to Automate Engineered Treg Cell Therapy Manufacturing appeared first on GEN – Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology News.
Pressure mounts from MPs on Palantir’s role in the NHS
Jon Hoeksma says the question is no longer about whether Palantir will have its FDP contract terminated but when and how it will be done.
FDA authorized Zyn nicotine pouches without knowing what they were made of, says former agency scientist
Four years into the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s review of Zyn nicotine pouches, and not long before the agency approved them for sale, an FDA toxicologist ran some informal tests in her kitchen that led her to question whether the agency truly understood the addictive product it was about to green-light.
Christy Leppanen worked for the FDA’s Center for Tobacco Products, where she led a project examining the potential for microplastics exposure. A scientist who had worked on an environmental assessment of Zyn had repeatedly told her that the nicotine pouches melt in the mouth. But during a public health conference in late 2024, Leppanen said, she talked to an academic who reinforced her understanding that they don’t.
Opinion: It looks like your doctor and talks like your doctor. But it’s not your doctor
Imagine a patient who arrives at her doctor’s clinic furious. She shows her doctor a video of him — white coat, plausible exam room, familiar cadence — endorsing an over-the-counter hormone supplement for menopausal symptoms, dismissing standard therapies as “pharma scams,” and offering a discount code.
But the physician never recorded that message. Someone built a deepfake from online recordings, including interviews, webinars, and patient-facing videos, and used the synthetic likeness to sell an unregulated product. This scenario is no longer hypothetical. Investigations have documented AI-generated videos impersonating specific clinicians whom they name to promote supplements and other dubious treatments on major platforms.
STAT+: 10 charts that explain America’s hidden alcohol epidemic
“The Deadliest Drug,” a multipart series by STAT, spotlights an epidemic hidden in plain sight: excessive alcohol use. Alcohol kills more Americans each year than all illicit drugs combined, and yet health officials, industry leaders, and the public rarely focus on it. STAT reporters Isabella Cueto and Lev Facher examined the epidemic’s human cost and the complex causes — from personal to political — of the most harmful substance use crisis in the U.S. STAT data editor J. Emory Parker amplified many of the findings in data-rich charts.
These charts capture the toll, emerging risks, shifting usage, and economic stakes of America’s relationship to alcohol.
1. Alcohol-related emergency department visits nearly doubled in the U.S. between 2003 and 2022
Drinking-related adverse events, including emergency room visits, have soared in recent decades. American emergency rooms recorded roughly 5.4 million visits due to alcohol in 2022, and in many states, alcohol-related hospitalizations dwarf those stemming from other substances, like opioids.
12 ideas for tackling the U.S. alcohol epidemic
Alcohol kills more than 178,000 Americans each year. It doesn’t have to.
Drinking’s deadly toll in the U.S. is the result of decades of policy decisions, industry influence, and cultural inertia, as STAT shows in its investigative series, The Deadliest Drug. The U.S. has not made a concerted effort to reduce heavy drinking since Prohibition ended nearly a century ago.