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Hepatitis Mystery Raising Alarms

A rising number of severe hepatitis cases among young children has raised alarms in the US and Europe, prompting warnings from major health organizations. CBS News reported this week that the Wisconsin Department of Health Services has issued a health alert as it investigates a handful of cases in the state, adding that there is speculation about the possible role of adenovirus in the illnesses.

Wired, meanwhile, said that Scottish health authorities have recorded 11 cases of severe hepatitis in children and that other cases have been noted across Europe including in Denmark, France, the Netherlands, Ireland, Romania, and Spain. The publication also reported that adenovirus has been detected in many of the sick children, although questions remain as adenovirus infections are typically mild. "Even if you find adenovirus in such relatively high numbers in these children, it's hard to say what's a causal association," Anders Koch, an infectious disease specialist at Statens Serum Institut, is quoted as saying.

 

The Scan

ChatGPT Does As Well As Humans Answering Genetics Questions, Study Finds

Researchers in the European Journal of Human Genetics had ChatGPT answer genetics-related questions, finding it was about 68 percent accurate, but sometimes gave different answers to the same question.

Sequencing Analysis Examines Gene Regulatory Networks of Honeybee Soldier, Forager Brains

Researchers in Nature Ecology & Evolution find gene regulatory network differences between soldiers and foragers, suggesting bees can take on either role.

Analysis of Ashkenazi Jewish Cohort Uncovers New Genetic Loci Linked to Alzheimer's Disease

The study in Alzheimer's & Dementia highlighted known genes, but also novel ones with biological ties to Alzheimer's disease.

Tara Pacific Expedition Project Team Finds High Diversity Within Coral Reef Microbiome

In papers appearing in Nature Communications and elsewhere, the team reports on findings from the two-year excursion examining coral reefs.