About them we say that they are the best friend we can have. Loyal, helpful, empathetic, affectionate, they occupy a very special place in the history of humanity and are the most common pet in our homes. And yet, we still don't know since when, where, or how dogs stopped being wolves to become inseparable companions. Now two new studies published in Nature get a little closer to solving this mystery.

When Gauden Galea (Malta, 1960) was studying medicine at the University of Malta, he was drawn to the idea of implementing measures to improve the health of an entire population instead of focusing on a single patient. And he has dedicated the last thirty years of his career to defending and working for this idea. Today he is one of the most authoritative voices in prevention and public health at the World Health Organization (WHO), from where he has led the fight against chronic non-communicable diseases on a global scale. Furthermore, he has been a key figure in responding to international health crises, such as during the covid pandemic.

It's still not entirely clear why, as we accumulate gray hair, we lose cognitive abilities and our memory begins to fail us. Neuroscience points to decreased blood flow to the brain; to the natural loss of gray matter volume with age; or to the fact that neuronal repair mechanisms, like everything else, are no longer as efficient and begin to fail. To all these potential reasons, scientists now add another: the gut microbiotaIn a study conducted with mice, a team from Stanford University has found that a bacterium that proliferates in the rodents' gut with age plays a key role in the animals' cognitive decline. They have observed that this bacterium, called P. Goldsteinii, It produces molecules that prevent the neurons connecting the gut and brain from communicating. This, in turn, reduces activity in the hippocampus, a seahorse-shaped region of the brain responsible for learning and forming new memories.

After more than two years of conflict, the social chamber of the Court of First Instance of Girona has ruled in favor of the 18 researchers María Zambrano in its dispute with the University of Girona. According to the now final ruling, it was unjustified for the University of Girona to use the money from this now-cancelled state talent recruitment program, which was intended for scientists' salaries, to pay the employer's social security contributions. The court now requires the university to return the amounts withheld improperly.

In the office ofEva Miranda (Reus, 1973), you're welcomed by a sea of ​​rubber duckies of different sizes and outfits; a very curious orange plush toy; and a suspiciously Newtonian plastic apple. In the background, blackboards are covered in mathematical formulas, indecipherable to those outside the field. A professor at the Polytechnic University of Catalonia and a member of the Center for Mathematical Research, she has been distinguished as an ICREA Academia member and has received the most prestigious international awards. Her research focuses on the areas of geometry and topology, the study of shapes, and their interactions with mathematical physics.

One of the first things Diana and Carlos changed at home was their daily cosmetic products, such as deodorants, shampoos, hand soaps, and shower gels, replacing them with healthier options. Little by little, they replaced their kitchen utensils: they threw away plastic water bottles and lunchboxes, buying stainless steel and glass ones; then it was the turn of the frying pans, opting for non-stick versions, and wooden spoons to replace their silicone ones. They also implemented frequent handwashing.

With an insatiable curiosity, Ricard Solé (Barcelona, ​​1962) devoured every secondhand book that arrived at the family library. Those readings further spurred his imagination, and questions piled up in his mind. Perhaps that's why the questions he now tries to answer move between disciplines, between science and the humanities, between physics and neuroscience, chemistry and philosophy, and science fiction.

Exposure to high levels of air pollution increases the risk of developing Alzheimer's disease, according to a study from Emory University in the United States. After analyzing the medical records of nearly 30 million people over the age of 65 from 2000 to 2018, researchers concluded that exposure to high levels of environmental pollution is directly associated with a greater likelihood of developing this dementia. The link established by this study holds true regardless of whether people suffer from other chronic illnesses—such as hypertension—although they observed that having had a stroke also makes one more vulnerable to the impact of pollution. The results, which They are published in the open access journal PLOS Medicine, They highlight that interventions to improve air quality in municipalities could contribute to the prevention of dementia and protect the overall health of the population.

Try it. Ask a child to draw a scientist. The vast majority will draw a man, most likely with glasses, a white coat, and wild hair, like Einstein. It's the image most often repeated in books, comics, TV series, and movies they watch, even in textbooks. A stereotype that shapes children's imaginations, despite the efforts of recent years to combat it, and that has a detrimental effect on children, especially girls, who still grow up thinking that science isn't for them.

It's a little after 6:30 in the morning. The American paleoanthropologist Ashley Hammond She woke up a while ago, breastfeeding her two-month-old son. She has everything planned to catch the train in Terrassa, where she has lived since autumn, and arrive in the center of Barcelona on time. Today, Hammond is attending a very special celebration: the 25th anniversary of ICREA, Catalonia's 100% public strategy to attract and retain top scientific talent. This researcher is one of the latest to join this league of excellence, a pioneering initiative worldwide that has proven highly successful for the country's research system.

When supercentenarians are asked what their secret to a long life is, some claim it's having a life purpose, the famous ikigai of the Japanese; while others, more pragmatic, maintain that the recipe for longevity involves a daily yogurt. Until now, the science of aging had indicated that, to reach centenarian status, it was necessary to follow a healthy lifestyle: healthy food, no smoking or alcohol, exercise, rest, and stress under control. But now a new work published in Science It puts another factor ahead of all this: our genetic inheritance.

Tumors can have thousands of mutations, but only a few are significant and cause disease. Understanding which ones trigger cancer is crucial for targeting precise and effective treatments. And yet, it remains a major and often insurmountable challenge in biology. This could now begin to change thanks to an AI developed by the Google DeepMind lab, which will allow for a better understanding of the genome and a more efficient and rapid interpretation of differences in DNA sequences.

"It's changed our lives," Imma Santiago Die affirms with conviction and a genuine smile. "Not just mine, but everyone who's participated. We're not the same as before," she insists, giving her sister Carme a knowing look, who nods in agreement. "Now we take care of our diet, we exercise, do cognitive stimulation, and go for walks and do activities together. In fact, we're meeting up for lunch today," she explains.

In DystociaPilar Membrillo It tells the love story of two cows. It does so with delightful prose and delicacy, recounting the relationships that develop between them and dedicating pages to describing behaviors we have long believed to be exclusive to primates, such as mourning the loss of a beloved companion. Now, to the emotional complexity portrayed by this veterinarian from Banyoles in her novel, we must add a cognition far more complex than previously thought, as Veronika, a 13-year-old cow grazing in southern Austria, has shown us.

Thalidomide It has gone down in history as one of the worst cases of devastating side effects caused by a drug. Although there is no official figure for how many people were affected globally, it is estimated that more than 10,000 babies were born with terrible birth defects during the years this drug was marketed.

Humans are by no means the only animals that practice sex just for pleasure. Nor are those of us who engage in it with individuals of the opposite sex as well as the same. In fact, at least 1,500 animal species have been documented with homosexual behavior. And in some, such as giraffes, males copulate primarily with other males. Others, like albatrosses or penguins, have stable homosexual partners for a significant part of their lives.

Nothing could have led Francisco Juan Martínez Mojica to foresee, or Francis MojicaAs is popularly known (Elche, 1963), the hours and hours he spent in the Santa Pola salt flats inspecting microorganisms that gave the water its peculiar pink color would eventually lead him to a discovery that would revolutionize biology.

That life is full of coincidences and that it's about knowing how to seize them is something Tomàs Marquès Bonet (Barcelona, ​​1975), one of the world's leading experts in primate genomics and evolution, knows well. Although he wanted to dedicate himself to studying bats and Pyrenean frogs, he ended up at IBM performing banking transactions and learning to program. A few years later, life presented him with an opportunity to return to science, which he seized by writing a computational thesis at Pompeu Fabra University (UPF) comparing humans and chimpanzees. And so, it all began again. Since then, Marquès, a professor at UPF and ICREA researcher, and head of the comparative genomics group at the Institute of Evolutionary Biology (IBE UPF-CSIC), has dedicated himself to the molecular study of primates to learn about humans as a species. He argues that the genomes of our closest evolutionary relatives are key to understanding human biology. Also to combat the illegal trafficking of these animals and help their conservation.

In one way or another, humans have always processed food. We started by cooking it over fire; we dried, cured, salted, or fermented it to preserve it better. And later, we canned it. With all these processes, we gained in food safety and were also able to keep food in good condition for longer periods. These products also saved us time, effort, and money.

Just a few days ago, the prosecutor of San Francisco, in the United States, made history: David Chiu publicly announced who would file a lawsuit against some of the world's leading food companies, such as Kraft, Heinz, Coca-Cola, Pepsi, Kellogg's, and Nestlé USA. He accused them of producing ultra-processed foods, "food that isn't really food," in the words of this lawyer, products "designed to be harmful and addictive." These multinationals market them, Chiu continued, with the goal of "maximizing their profits" despite knowing that "they make people sick." These products, which are exponentially gaining more and more space in shopping baskets around the world, are comparable to tobacco and opioids, the California prosecutor argued. The manufacturing companies, he pointed out, "hide the truth about the harm they cause from society in order to earn billions of dollars." And there is growing scientific evidence that Consuming these foods is detrimental to human health.It harms each and every organ in our body and is linked to the current epidemic of chronic diseases, such as obesity, overweight, and type 2 diabetes; also heart disease, cancer, and depression.