During periods of low energy—such as intermittent fasting or exercise—immune cells step in to regulate blood sugar levels, acting as the “postman” in a previously unknown three-way conversation between the nervous, immune and hormonal systems. These findings open up new approaches for managing conditions like diabetes, obesity, and cancer.

Osteosarcoma is a type of aggressive bone cancer that most commonly affects children and young adults between the ages of 10 and 20, during times of rapid bone growth. Although rare, it has a significant impact on young people and their families as treatment can require surgery or amputation. The cancer also has the potential to spread to other organs, most commonly the lungs. Because osteosarcoma is so genomically complex, it has been challenging to identify what genetic mutations drive the disease.

Water is the matrix of our planet. Not only human societies, but all forms of life, are dependent on water. And while we still take its availability largely for granted, it is a resource which is becoming scarcer by the minute owing to climate change,  intensive agriculture, and access inequalities to water for drinking, cooking, and personal hygiene.

Higher calorie foods were preferred among individuals with and without obesity despite similar taste and texture, according to a study published December 17th in the open-access journal PLOS Biology by Albino Oliveira-Maia from the Champalimaud Foundation, Portugal, and colleagues.

Precursor lesions of pancreatic cancer are very difficult to characterise with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). But now, in a new study, researchers led by Noam Shemesh and Carlos Bilreiro – respectively head of the Preclinical MRI lab at Champalimaud Research and a doctor at the Champalimaud Clinical Centre’s Radiology Department – have shown, for the first time, that a particular form of MRI, called Diffusion Tensor Imaging (DTI), is capable of robustly detecting pre-malignant lesions in the pancreas.

Psychedelic substances like psilocybin (found in magic mushrooms), MDMA (commonly known as ecstasy), LSD (commonly known as acid), and ayahuasca have shown potential in treating conditions such as depression, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and addiction. These substances can induce profound psychological experiences that, when paired with psychotherapy — a form of talk therapy — have been proposed to lead to significant therapeutic benefits.

Female mammals, such as rodents, accept mating attempts only during their fertile phase, and actively reject males outside this period. While the brain areas controlling sexual receptivity are well-studied, the mechanisms behind active rejection are less so.

The reasons why one animal chooses one path over another, or behaves differently from others, can often seem enigmatic. But a team led by Claire Wyart’s group at the Paris Brain Institute (ICM), in collaboration with Michael Orger’s lab at the Champalimaud Foundation (CF), has shed light on these differences, revealing the dynamic relationship between an animal’s internal states and its surroundings.

Parkinson's disease (PD) is a progressive neurological disorder known for its characteristic motor symptoms: tremor, rigidity, and slowness of movement. Among these, rest tremor—a shaking that occurs when muscles are relaxed—is one of the most recognisable yet least understood.

For this edition of the contest, a total of nine groundbreaking biomedical and health projects spearheaded by research institutions in Portugal were selected. Alongside CF, GIMM, and i3S, awards were also granted to projects from the Instituto de Tecnologia Química e Biológica António Xavier da Universidade Nova de Lisboa (ITQB NOVA), Instituto de Investigação em Ciências da Vida e da Saúde (ICVS) and Instituto de Biomedicina (iBiMED). These nine selected projects will receive more than €7.6 million in support.