Reminding yourself to smile often can not only help you form more friendships but also make you feel better.

Researchers at LSU's Pennington Biomedical Research Center have developed and validated a new genetic animal model that gives scientists a more precise way to study brown and beige fat, specialized tissues that use energy to produce heat and play an important role in metabolism. The paper is published in the journal Scientific Reports.

The same substances that can alter perception and shift moods are now drawing scientific interest for their potential therapeutic abilities. Researchers across the globe are investigating whether psychedelics, such as psilocybin from magic mushrooms or LSD, could help treat mental health and brain-related disorders. In a recent study, researchers gathered many such studies and carried out a systematic review and meta-analysis focusing on the anti-inflammatory and immune-modulating properties of serotonergic psychedelics.

In many studies, it appears that women who have more children have a higher risk of heart disease and a shorter life span, but this effect is inconsistent across populations and no good explanation for it exists. Against this backdrop, new tools to assess biological age—the age reflected by one's biological state, rather than simply the number of years they have been alive—have revealed that pregnancy temporarily elevates biological age, while postpartum recovery can return it closer to baseline.

The Regenerative Medicine Project at our institute is advancing therapeutic strategies for various diseases by introducing a range of modifications to human induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells.

Among 3,834 members of weight-management programs, greater recent weight loss was associated with less emotional eating, fewer food cravings, and better mood. Participants identified distraction, meal planning, healthier food swaps, and group support as helpful strategies, but the observational study could not establish whether these approaches caused weight loss.

Researchers analyzed data from 340,924 UK Biobank participants and found that high total alcohol consumption was associated with greater all-cause, cardiovascular, and cancer mortality, while moderate consumption was linked to increased cancer mortality. Beer/cider and spirits showed associations with higher mortality across several outcomes, whereas low-to-moderate wine consumption was linked to lower mortality for certain outcomes, though the observational study cannot establish causation.

Researchers reviewed 21 studies involving 24,523 women and found that perimenopausal and postmenopausal women had higher odds of reporting anxiety symptoms than premenopausal women. Their meta-analysis of 15 studies found the highest odds during perimenopause, but the cross-sectional evidence cannot establish that menopause causes anxiety.

Researchers analyzed ancient DNA from 243 individuals who lived in Iberia between 100 and 800 CE, alongside data from 58 previously studied individuals, to examine how Roman rule and early medieval migrations affected population ancestry. They found substantial Eastern Mediterranean- and North African-related ancestry contributions during Roman times, while later migrations introduced Central-Northern European ancestry without widespread replacement of the Hispano-Roman population.

Adding a personalized mRNA-based cancer vaccine to immunotherapy after surgery for high-risk melanoma reduced the risk of recurrence or death by 42%, according to results from the phase 3 INTerpath-001 trial presented at the ESMO Congress 2026.