A toast to the future – of universal vaccines

Ice, juice, the exact measure of liquor, a few drops of Angostura... What goes into a good New Year’s Eve cocktail? According to researchers working on vaccines for the most elusive viruses, it will be time soon to toast next-generation vaccines. If 2020 was the year of the COVID-19 pandemic, and in 2021 the year of mRNA vaccinations, 2022 brought polyvalent designs of antigens, evaluated highly neutralizing antibodies, and fine-tuned mRNA technology against SARS-CoV-2, HIV and the flu.

Progress in cancer, from brain metastases to cancer’s brain

In 2022, neuroscience research made significant advances by understanding the role of large-scale neuronal connections in disorders. So did cancer research.

In brain research, connecting the dots

2021 was the year Aduhelm (aducanumab, Biogen Inc.) was approved as the first amyloid-β-busting drug for Alzheimer’s disease. And in 2022, there was as much need for an effective AD drug as ever. Aduhelm’s commercial fate was sealed with the decision of the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) that the drug would only be reimbursed in clinical trials approved by the CMS or the NIH.

As weight loss medicine advances, its relevance recedes

Metabolic health is at an odd juncture. With the advent of glucagon-like peptide agonists, pharmacologically induced weight loss has matured into a viable therapeutic option at long last. And research into the drug class is continuing apace.