Opposing microbiome-mediated axes link modifiable lifestyles to health and chronic diseases.

November 5, 2026| Source: Nature medicine

Analyses disentangling the role of the gut microbiome in linking lifestyle factors to health outcomes remain limited. Here, using fecal shotgun metagenomics from 6,803 adults in the Japanese 4D cohort, we identified two opposing microbiome-mediated axes linking lifestyle to health and 15 diseases. A health-associated axis enriched in microbial metabolism of dietary components was linked to plant-based, soy and dairy intake. In contrast, a disease-associated axis, enriched in oral-derived bacteria and pathobionts, was linked to refined carbohydrates and sedentary behavior. Starter culture microorganisms used to ferment foods did not show statistically significant mediation of the observed health effects. Alcohol was associated with both health- and disease-oriented mediation patterns involving microbial host-glycan utilization. Microbiome-defined health- and disease-oriented mediator axes were supported by fecal short-chain fatty acids and plasma cytokines from >1,700 individuals, revealing butyrate-associated anti-inflammatory and pro-inflammatory host profiles, respectively. Microbiome-based prediction (MADE) scores captured lifestyle-microbiome-disease mediation patterns and distinguished individual diseases across 13 independent external cohorts from the United States, China, Sweden, Russia and Australia. We identify the gut microbiome as a key mediator linking lifestyle to health and disease, providing a framework for microbiome-based assessment to guide lifestyle interventions for health promotion and disease prevention.

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Spontaneous gas film expansion at an oil-water interface.

Spontaneous interfacial separation of oil and water, by inserting a gas film between the two liquids, is thermodynamically unfavorable because the oil-water interface is replaced by oil-gas and water-gas interfaces with a higher combined interfacial energy. Here, we demonstrate that microstructural confinement enables this transition after bubble introduction through the coupling of wetting, capillarity, and gas transport. Spontaneous oil imbibition into a water-submerged micropillar array, toge

Health & MedicineNovember 10, 2026

Senescent CD8 T effector memory cells are functionally impaired, enriched in aging and disease, and a barrier to immunotherapy.

Senescent cells play important roles in various biological processes that promote fitness and health; however, their timely elimination by immune cells is critical to maintain tissue homeostasis and prevent disease. Despite this, senescent cells accumulate systemically with age, suggesting that certain immune cells also become senescent and dysfunctional during aging. In support of this, we previously demonstrated that CD8 T cells, immune cells capable of targeting senescent cells, increasingly

Health & MedicineNovember 10, 2026

Engineered T cell-agonist chimera for logic-gated STING activation and augmented cancer immunotherapy.

The efficacy of adoptive T cell therapy against solid tumors is markedly hindered by the immunosuppressive microenvironment. Here, we demonstrate that stimulator of interferon genes (STING) activation in tumor-associated macrophages (TAM) enhances the intratumoral infiltration and cytotoxicity of adoptive T cells. We next design a TAM-targeted nanoagonist and engineer a T cell - agonist chimera (SNTC) via covalent surface anchoring, to achieve synchronized biodistribution of STING agonist with a

Health & MedicineNovember 10, 2026

Dysregulation of mechanosensing signaling in monocytes of patients with systemic sclerosis is associated with skin inflammation.

Systemic sclerosis (SSc) is a severe autoimmune connective tissue disease characterized by immune dysregulation and progressive fibrosis of the skin and internal organs, resulting in substantial organ dysfunction and increased mortality. Fibrosis is driven in part by infiltration of immune cells, including monocytes that become activated within fibrotic tissue. However, how the mechanical properties of fibrotic skin regulate their function remains poorly understood. Here, we demonstrate that inc

Health & MedicineNovember 5, 2026

Hydrogen Derivatives Enable Cost-Effective Carbon Neutrality in China.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change recommended 1.5°C carbon reduction target, requiring powerful enforcement from major economies. China, the largest CO 2 emitter, is facing severe difficulties for both variable renewable accommodation and decarbonization of hard-to-abate sectors. Hydrogen, as a critical green energy carrier bridging renewable to end-users, faces significant obstacles in real-world deployment such as costly transportation, storage and fuel-cell adoption. Affordab