Shelley Hayden, who suffers from long COVID, joined a monoclonal antibody study at the University of California at San Francisco as the third patient, participating in one of several ongoing trials designed to target the lingering SARS-CoV-2 reservoir thought to trigger chronic inflammation or other abnormalities that lead to long COVID. However, the lack of a biomarker makes it difficult to monitor treatment efficacy and provide validation for patients, with some doctors still believing the condition is psychosomatic, said infectious disease physician Dominique Salmon.

Researchers are working to develop artificial wombs that could one day reduce complications and improve the survival of premature babies, with demonstrated success in sustaining a pig fetus for about a week and a sheep fetus for four weeks. "If this artificial womb technology could sustain a patient even for a period of weeks and get them to a later stage and a bigger size, that could potentially be quite a dramatic change in our field," said associate professor of pediatrics Mike Seed, who is working on the artificial womb technology.

Patients with early-stage Parkinson's disease who received a fecal microbiota transplant from healthy donors showed improvements in motor symptoms for more than 12 months, according to a study in eClinicalMedicine. This adds to research that suggests the formation of alpha-synuclein protein clumps in PD can be influenced by gut bacteria, and the researchers hope to determine which specific bacteria can benefit PD patients.

Genialis' krasID uses machine learning to analyze lung cancer patients' RNA sequencing data to predict tumor responses to KRAS inhibitor drugs. After training krasID on tumor tissues, it successfully identified a group of patients that were more likely to respond to KRAS inhibitor drugs and show improved survival outcomes, according to data presented at the American Association for Cancer Research 2024 conference.

Two studies released ahead of the ESCMID Global Congress suggested ChatGPT may help reduce vaccine hesitancy and provide accurate information on sexually transmitted infections. "Our findings showed that ChatGPT displayed a remarkable ability to accurately respond to a wide breadth of commonly asked questions, encompassing topics such as misconceptions around mRNA vaccination and the importance of testing for STIs," said researcher Matthew Koh.

Africa needs pharmacogenetic research tailored to its populations to prevent side effects for drugs like efavirenz, an HIV/AIDS drug that was used successfully in the US but had side effects in Africans who carry a variant of the CYP2B6 gene, write pharmacogenetic researchers with the Ersilia Open Source Initiative and the Holistic Drug Discovery and Development Centre. AI offers a promising solution to accelerate pharmacogenetic research, but more genomics data is needed, along with investments in infrastructure and training for African scientists in AI and pharmacogenetics, the researchers write.

The 2024 World Health Organization Global Hepatitis Report reveals a rise in viral hepatitis-related deaths, making it the second-leading infectious cause of death worldwide, with over 6,000 new infections and 3,500 deaths daily. This is attributed to lacking diagnosis and treatment in many countries, although the WHO hepatitis elimination goal of 2030 may still be possible with expanded access to diagnostics, simplified service delivery and increased funding for priority countries.

The Center to Reduce Cancer Health Disparities within the NCI has appointed 13 leaders of medical schools and cancer centers to its Cancer Equity Leaders group, with directives to assess cancer equity infrastructure gaps, evaluate institutional capacity gaps and guide strategy around the National Cancer Plan. The group will convene an event in 2025 focused on the NCI's health equity work, incorporating the perspectives of people in the cancer community.

The National Academy of Medicine's draft framework for the responsible use of artificial intelligence in health care emphasizes the need for inclusive collaboration, safety, efficiency and environmental protection. The framework's 10 code principles and six code commitments aim to guide decision-making, promote ethical AI integration and address concerns about potential risks.

Senator Bernie Sanders has proposed legislation to allocate $1 billion annually over a decade to combat long COVID, including provisions for a centralized NIH research body, a new grant process for clinical trials and the creation of a long COVID database. "Congress must act now to ensure a treatment is found for this terrible disease that affects millions of Americans and their families," Sanders said.