Weekly Health Digest: Microplastics and Bones, NIH Firings, Female Longevity, New Huntington’s Treatment

Microplastics Could Be Weakening Your Bones, Research Suggests

       By Fernanda González, WIRED

Microplastics are found everywhere: in the food we eat, the water we drink, and even within our human bodies. They are tiny fragments of plastic ranging from 1 micrometer to 5 millimeters. These plastic particles are inescapable. 

Researchers reviewed 62 scientific studies, including both laboratory and animal research, which investigated the impact of micro- and nanoplastics on bone health. They concluded that microplastics have the power to weaken your bones. In laboratory experiments, microplastics stimulated bone breakdown at a higher rate. This can cause premature cellular aging, as it reduces both the function and lifespan of bone-related cells. In animal cells, exposure to microplastics leads to altered bone microstructure and, in some cases, weaker or deformed bones. 

Microplastic exposure shows a strong correlation to bone weakening and osteoporosis. Osteoporosis is already known to be easily influenced by age, sex, diet, and one’s lifestyle. However, microplastics are quickly becoming a new and even greater influential contributor to the problem. 

The necessity of being informed and aware of what goes into your body has just entered a new level of importance. Plastic exposure affects more than just the obvious bodily systems, but also deeper systems such as our bones.

— by Michelle Arauz 

Kennedy Fires N.I.H. Scientist Who Filed Whistle-Blower Complaint

By Benjamin Mueller, New York Times 

Dr. Jean Marrazzo, former director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, was fired by Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy earlier this week. This marks a new flare in the growing conflict between scientists and the Trump administration.  

The firing of Marrazzo comes after she filed a complaint last month attesting that federal officials are undermining vaccine research and endangering the public health of Americans. Her attorney, Debra Katz, believes that the firing is a retaliation against Marrazzo’s decision to defend vaccine research and the integrity and infrastructure of health research. 

Marrazzo’s voice is not alone. It was accompanied by a complaint by Dr. Kathleen Neuzil, former director of the National Institutes for Health’s Fogarty International Center. She too has been released from her position. 

The firings of Marrazzo and Katz are not the first instances of the Trump administration firing expert senior federal health officials, who are dedicated to truthful research and the health of Americans. Earlier this year, the Trump administration dismissed many other senior federal health officials, including health experts at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 

The Department of Health and Human Services rejected the allegations, but the dismissals of health experts is a part of a larger pattern — the silencing of scientists whose work challenges the priorities of the Trump administration. 

— by Collin France 

Why do women outlive men? A study of 1,176 species points to an answer

By Dino Grandoni, The Washington Post 

Researchers have observed that across many nations, women have longer life expectancy than men. While there are many health behaviors that can contribute to this explanation, there could be other factors in play.  

New research has led to the theory that the chromosome makeup of women and men could be the reason behind this difference in longevity. Women have two X chromosomes, whereas men only have one X chromosome. The reinforcement of the extra X chromosome can protect women from dangerous mutations of genes.  

A recent study further supports the hypothesis of the relationship between chromosomal makeup and longevity. Researchers observed and collected data on the lifespans of 528 mammal species and 648 bird species in zoos. Results showed that female mammals, like humans, were outliving males.  

But in birds, the chromosomal makeup is reversed, males having a duplicate of the Z chromosome while females have only one Z chromosome. The study observed that male birds lived longer lives — evidence for the original hypothesis.  

The field of longevity and chromosome differences between males and females continues to be studied. Scientists emphasize that this hypothesis is just the beginning and that there is still much to discover.   

— by Talia Gordon Wexler

How Scientists Finally Found a Treatment That Slows Huntington’s Disease

By Allison Parshall, Scientific American

Scientists may have found a way to slow down Huntington’s disease. This rare genetic disorder damages the brain and causes individuals to lose control of their thinking and movement. Until now, there have only been symptom easing drugs, and no promising treatments.

In a new study, an experimental treatment called AMT-130 showed that patients who received therapy had their disease progress 75 percent more slowly compared to a control group. The treatment uses a harmless virus to deliver genetic material to the brain. The microRNA placed by this material degrades the messages that tell the brain to make damaging Huntington’s protein, which helps slow the disease. 

The treatment is in its early clinical trial stage, and only 24 patients have received it so far. It is not yet FDA-approved. However, this is the first time a therapy has shown the ability to change the course of the fatal Huntington’s disease. Patients and researchers are optimistic after decades of failed trails, including a setback in 2021 from a drug that worsened symptoms. The downside is that the procedure is invasive and expensive, requiring eight hours of brain surgery.

If the developer uniQure receives accelerated FDA approval, AMT-130 could be approved by 2026 without a full phase 3 trial. Scientists say this breakthrough could influence research for other gene-based treatments for neurological diseases. 

— by Yasemin Isbilir

Items summarized by: Collin France, Talia Gordon Wexler, Yasemin Isbilir, Michelle Arauz