Eric Topol

HHS's Office of Long COVID Research and Practice has been DOGEd. Closing this week.

The large clinical trial of a new Covid vaccine pill (not shot) was halted by RFK Jr www.aol.com/multimillion...
The Covid nasal vaccines may be next up to be axed.

Multimillion-dollar Biden-era COVID-19 vax project halted by Trump’s HHS

Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. paused a $240 million contract to create a new coronavirus vaccine.

Welcome immigrants from X interested in science to the friendlier skies of @bsky.app, as documented by a new @nature.com survey (but you already knew that 😉)
"Bluesky is much better for science. There is much less toxicity, misinformation, and distractions."
www.nature.com/articles/d41...

This doesn't look good, folks
www.nature.com/articles/d41...

75% of US scientists who answered Nature poll consider leaving

More than 1,600 readers answered our poll; many said they were looking for jobs in Europe and Canada.

The vaccine against Shingles helps protect against dementia, results of a natural experiment, adding to prior evidence
"implications are profound"
New @nature.com
www.nature.com/articles/d41...
nature.com/articles/s41...

A natural experiment on the effect of herpes zoster vaccination on dementia - Nature

Using a natural experiment that avoids common bias concerns, this study finds that the live-attenuated shingles vaccine reduced the probability of a new dementia diagnosis within a follow-up period of...

A pie graph worth keeping in mind as the NIH budget plummets jamanetwork.com/journals/jam... for 356 new FDA drugs approved

This week's cover @thelancet.com

Francis Collins, the NIH Director for 12 years, led the Human Genome Project and other NIH efforts for 32 years, resigned today. Key words from his resignation letter
www.nytimes.com/2025/03/01/u...

In <24 hours, Covid funding is DOGEd across HHS, CDC, NIH as if it and Long Covid didn't exist and there is no worry for future pandemics
www.science.org/content/arti...
www.nbcnews.com/health/healt...
www.science.org/content/arti...

When the word Reckless is not strong enough

This is a FRAUDULENT paper, AI-generated. My name was used as an author and I had nothing to do with it, never saw it until today e-pubmed.co.uk/journals/dig...
The "Editors" Angelo Rossi Mori, David Mensah, and Zarnie Khadjesari and this "Journal" should be reported.

Summary Table of the massive defunding of biomedical research in the United States
www.nytimes.com/interactive/...

Discovery of a 14-protein biomarker that predicts lung cancer 5.6 years before it is diagnosed, even in non-smokers, and an anti-inflammatory medicine that prevents its progression. And, challenging dogma, the proteins are not coming from cancerous cells!

Dirty air, dementia, and other adverse brain effects
www.nature.com/articles/d41...
new Feature @nature.com open-access

Texas measles outbreak now at 400 cases and 41 hospitalizations.
It was at 327 cases 3 days ago. Unclear how many of the hospitalizations are due to Vitamin A liver toxicity, as promoted by RFK Jr. The number of actual cases surely exceeds 1,000 at this point
www.dshs.texas.gov/news-alerts/...

Covid accelerates vascular aging
An 18-country, 38-center study of ~2,000 participants
—Effect predominantly in women, adding 5 years of aging
—Seen with non-hospitalized and mild-moderate Covid
—Reversible in some at 1-year; vaccination link to protection
apps.crossref.org/pendingpub/p...

Texas measles outbreak update today, up 14% since Tuesday (actual cases likely 4-5X reported)
And further spreading in New Mexico and multiple other states throughout the US.

The letter signed by >15,000 physicians re: RFK Jr
www.documentcloud.org/documents/25...

We've just launched the first large, site-less (home, direct to participant) randomized trial for treatment of #LongCovid, testing tirzepatide (a GLP-1 drug) vs placebo. Please help spread the word
www.scripps.edu/news-and-eve...

Scripps Research scientists launch new digital clinical trial to test repurposed drug for long COVID symptom relief

Tylenol during pregnancy is safe without increased risk of autism, ADHD, or intellectual disability of offspring
A new review of the evidence just out
www.thelancet.com/journals/lan...

DOGE ended our wastewater surveillance program for San Diego County

Texas measles update today
309 cases; 40 have been hospitalized (<-which means there are far more than 300 cases diagnosed)
www.dshs.texas.gov/news-alerts/...

Remarkable story of a Georgia high school team who used CRISPR to make a rapid diagnostic test strip for Lyme disease, speeding dx from 2 weeks to days
www.cbsnews.com/news/teens-m...

Teens may have come up with a new way to detect, treat Lyme disease using CRISPR gene editing

To compete at iGEM, a sort of science Olympics, teens at a Georgia high school set their sights on finding a better way to detect and treat Lyme disease. Their approach uses CRISPR gene editing.

The Shingles vaccine is linked w/ reduced risk of Alzheimer's in 4 large natural experiments
Today, the potential of high-dose flu vaccines vs standard dose in a large retrospective age 65+ cohort for less Alzheimer’s. More pronounced in women (like Shingles vaccines)
neurology.org/doi/pdf/10.1...