Watch Our Video Summary Capturing Top Public Health News from the Last Two Weeks
From vitamin B3 reducing skin cancer recurrence and CRISPRa restoring brain function in SCN2A disorders to AI predicting over a thousand diseases—this week’s signals are robust. We span genomics, digital health, neuroscience, aging, and more, with actionable clinical insights and emerging therapeutic advances in Public Health, underscoring prevention-focused strategies and precision medicine trends.
Top Stories Covered in This Video
☀️ Vitamin B3 reduces skin cancer recurrence [1][US • 17 Sep 2025]
Context: US Veterans study (~34,000 participants) tracked non-melanoma skin cancer risk.
Key point: Nicotinamide (500 mg twice daily) reduced new skin cancers in high-risk patients, strongest in squamous cell carcinoma.
Implication: Could inform practice and payer discussions; interpretation depends on study design and confounding control.
🤖 Delphi-2M forecasts 1,000+ diseases [2][UK • 17 Sep 2025]
Context: Built from UK Biobank (~400k) + Danish (~1.9M) health records.
Key point: Predicts disease risk trajectories up to 20 years, accuracy comparable to single-disease calculators.
Implication: Signals pipeline investment and modality expansion.
🧬 CRISPRa restores brain function in SCN2A disorder [3][US • 17 Sep 2025]
https://medicalxpress.com/news/2025-09-crispr-approach-severe-childhood-brain.html
Context: UCSF study in mice with SCN2A haploinsufficiency (rare neurodevelopmental disorder).
Key point: CRISPRa boosted expression from healthy gene copy, prevented seizures, restored brain signaling.
Implication: Signals pipeline investment and modality expansion.
👵 Longevity lessons from Maria Branyas Morera [4][ES • 24 Sep 2025]
Context: Extensive omics profiling of world’s oldest woman (117).
Key point: Protective variants, low inflammation, efficient fat metabolism, youthful microbiome despite short telomeres.
Implication: Could inform practice and payer discussions; interpretation depends on study design and confounding control.
💤 Gut microbes influence sleep [5][US • 24 Sep 2025]
https://neurosciencenews.com/sleep-microbiome-neuroscience-29730/
Context: Washington State Univ. found bacterial peptidoglycan fluctuating in mouse brains with sleep cycles.
Key point: Supports hypothesis that microbiome co-regulates sleep with brain systems.
Implication: Could inform practice and payer discussions; interpretation depends on study design and confounding control.
🍷 Alcohol linked to higher dementia risk [6]
https://www.sciencealert.com/there-may-be-no-safe-amount-of-booze-when-it-comes-to-dementia-risk
Context: Combined observational (559k adults) + genetic (2.4M people) analysis.
Key point: Even light drinking raised dementia risk; no protective effect at low levels.
Implication: Could inform practice and payer discussions; interpretation depends on study design and confounding control.
🧪 SPP1 identified as pancreatic cancer driver [7][UK • 24 Sep 2025]
Context: ICR London analysis (644 PDAC patients + organoids + mice).
Key point: Blocking SPP1 reduced tumor spread, improved survival; antibody therapies promising.
Implication: Signals pipeline investment and modality expansion.
👁 Cleaner air slows childhood myopia [8][UK • 23 Sep 2025]
https://neurosciencenews.com/air-pollution-myopia-vision-29726/
Context: Univ. Birmingham used machine learning on children’s vision, adjusting for genetics + screen use.
Key point: Lower NO₂/PM2.5 exposure slowed myopia progression, especially in primary school children.
Implication: Could inform practice and payer discussions; interpretation depends on study design and confounding control.
Why it matters
- Low-cost supplement may reduce skin cancer recurrence in high-risk groups [1].
- Generative AI expands from single-disease prediction to system-wide health planning [2].
- Gene regulation strategies like CRISPRa show promise in rare neurodevelopmental disorders [3].
- Longevity outliers guide biology-driven approaches to healthspan extension [4].
- Environmental interventions may reduce burdens in vision and dementia risk [6][8].
📢 Stay Ahead in Public Health research!
✅ Make sure to like, share, and subscribe to our YouTube channel to catch all future highlights. You can also check out our weekly newsletters for more in-depth stories.
✅ Contact LucidQuest at info@lqventures.com for strategic guidance on advancements across multiple therapy areas.
FAQ
How does nicotinamide reduce skin cancer risk?
Nicotinamide supports DNA repair and immune surveillance against UV damage. In veterans, it reduced non-melanoma skin cancer recurrence, especially squamous cell carcinoma [1].
What makes Delphi-2M different from other risk calculators?
Delphi-2M forecasts probabilities for >1,000 conditions up to 20 years, integrating diagnoses, lifestyle, and genetic factors, unlike calculators designed for single diseases [2].
What is SCN2A haploinsufficiency, and how did CRISPRa help?
SCN2A haploinsufficiency disrupts neuronal signaling, causing seizures and developmental issues. UCSF used CRISPRa to boost the working gene copy, restoring brain function in mice [3].
What protective traits did Maria Branyas Morera show?
She had genetic protection for brain/heart, low systemic inflammation, efficient metabolism, and a youthful microbiome—factors linked to healthy longevity [4].
Why is alcohol considered unsafe for dementia prevention?
Large-scale genetic and observational data showed dementia risk increases with any alcohol intake; prior suggestions of benefit appear due to bias among “non-drinkers” [6].
Entities / Keywords
Skin cancer — nicotinamide, vitamin B3, squamous cell carcinoma
AI in healthcare — Delphi-2M, UK Biobank, Danish health records
Neurodevelopmental disorders — SCN2A haploinsufficiency, CRISPRa, UCSF
Longevity — Maria Branyas Morera, telomeres, microbiome, epigenetics
Sleep & microbiome — Washington State Univ., peptidoglycan, holobiont
Alcohol & dementia — Mendelian randomization, neurotoxicity
Pancreatic cancer — PDAC, SPP1, GREM1, ICR London
Childhood myopia — University of Birmingham, NO₂, PM2.5, air pollution
References
https://medicalxpress.com/news/2025-09-crispr-approach-severe-childhood-brain.html
https://neurosciencenews.com/sleep-microbiome-neuroscience-29730/
https://www.sciencealert.com/there-may-be-no-safe-amount-of-booze-when-it-comes-to-dementia-risk
https://neurosciencenews.com/air-pollution-myopia-vision-29726/