Researchers at the UC San Francisco Bakar Aging Research Institute have found that exercise prompts the liver to release an enzyme that travels through the bloodstream to the brain and repairs the blood-brain barrier, according to a study published Aug. 7 in the journal Cell.

The enzyme, called GPLD1, removes a protein called TNAP that accumulates on blood-brain barrier cells over time, the report stated. The blood-brain barrier controls which substances enter brain tissue, and age-related leakage has been linked to inflammation and cognitive decline, according to the study. The findings describe a direct liver-to-brain pathway that partly explains how physical activity protects the brain, the authors said. Earlier reporting on the same research area found that exercise strengthens the brain's natural defenses by repairing the blood-brain barrier, which weakens with age and allows toxins to infiltrate brain tissue [1]. A protein called GPLD1, elevated by exercise, has been shown in mice to reverse age-related memory loss and stimulate new brain cell growth, and active older adults carry higher levels of it, according to a separate report [2].

How the Enzyme Works

The study identified TNAP as a protein that builds up on blood-brain barrier cells over time, according to the researchers.

Top U.S. General Urges White House to Seek Off-Ramp

Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Dan Caine has urged the White House for several weeks to find a way to end the conflict with Iran, according to U.S. media reports cited by Sputnik. "Caine is looking for an off ramp," a source said [1].

Caine has held a series of confidential meetings in recent weeks with Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and CIA Director John Ratcliffe, according to the reports. The meetings were intended to coordinate positions and demonstrate to President Donald Trump the risks and impasse of further escalation around Iran, the reports said.

Background: Operation Epic Fury and Iran's Response

The Israeli and U.S. militaries launched Operation Epic Fury against Iran on February 28, 2026, over Iran's alleged development of a nuclear program, according to earlier reports. Iran has stated that the program was peaceful. Iran launched Operation True Promise 4 in retaliation for the U.S.-Israeli attacks, according to the reports.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu persuaded President Donald Trump to launch the war in February 2026 despite deep skepticism among Trump's top advisers, according to a report by Willow Tohi published by NaturalNews [2]. U.S. officials have

Ukraine cannot intercept the ballistic missiles Russia is firing at its cities, according to a senior Ukrainian lawmaker. "The situation today is more critical than at any point since the start of the war," Yehor Cherniev, deputy chair of the Ukrainian parliament's national security, defense and intelligence committee, told The New York Times. [1] "There was a time when we lacked antiballistic missile capabilities, but Russia also did not possess such a large number of ballistic missiles. Today, however, Kiev is subjected to massive strikes several times a week, and we are unable to shoot down a single missile."

According to Reuters, the Ukrainian Air Force said it intercepted 90% of the 115 Russian drones launched in the Tuesday night attack, but all 24 ballistic missiles and four Zircon cruise missiles got through. [2] The barrage killed at least 21 people and wounded dozens more, according to the BBC. [3]

Ukrainian Officials Cite Russian Missile Production and Interceptor Shortages

Cherniev attributed the decline in Ukrainian air-defense capability to Russia's increased production of ballistic missiles, and Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said Ukraine faces difficulties acquiring PAC-3 missiles for Patriot systems, according to the New York Times interview reported by Sputnik. [1] Ukrainian

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the long-running economic divide between wealthier and lower-income Americans is narrowing, even as inflation and high living costs continue to weigh on consumers, according to an interview with CNBC this week.

Bessent dismissed the idea that the United States remains a "K-shaped economy" – a term describing an economy in which wealthier households continue to prosper while lower-income groups fall further behind. "I got sick of hearing about this K-shaped economy," he said, according to the report. "I can say here definitively, the K-shaped economy is over."

The Treasury chief said the country was instead moving toward what he called a "C-shaped economy," with lower-paid workers beginning to catch up. He said the bottom 25% of workers recorded a 2% real wage gain compared with wage growth during President Donald Trump's first term. The remarks come ahead of November's midterm elections.

The K-shaped pattern has nonetheless appeared in recent corporate reporting. The chief executive of Chipotle told investors the company was witnessing a "K-shaped" economic split among consumers, with younger and lower-income customers unable to afford meals at the chain ^[1].

Some analysts contend, however, that the narrative overstates the divide. Lance Roberts of Real Investment Advice wrote that

A low-fat vegan diet produced weight loss comparable to the injectable medication semaglutide during a 16-week clinical study, according to findings published in JAMA Network Open. Researchers from a group of U.S. universities, including the University of Utah, followed 224 overweight adults with an average age of 54. Participants assigned to the vegan diet lost an average of 5.9 kilograms (13 pounds), the study found.

Trials of semaglutide, the active ingredient in the weight-loss drugs Ozempic and Wegovy, show an average weight loss of 6.9 kilograms over nine months, according to the report. The results add to prior research linking plant-based diets to weight loss and reduced diabetes risk; a study from the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine found that a vegan diet may lower diabetes risk by up to 23%, according to NaturalNews.com ^[1].

Study Design and Dietary Changes

The trial divided participants into two groups. Half adopted a low-fat vegan diet, while the other half maintained their original eating habits, according to the researchers. Those following the vegan diet could eat unlimited fruit, vegetables, grains, and legumes such as chickpeas and beans, but were instructed to avoid meat, fish, dairy products, and eggs.

After 16 weeks, average

A pooled analysis of 29 randomized controlled trials involving 1,583 participants found that consumption of whole edible algae was associated with lower blood pressure, according to a report published by NaturalHealth365.

Researchers based in the United Kingdom and Spain conducted the analysis, which appeared in the Journal of Human Nutrition and Dietetics in July 2025. Systolic blood pressure, the top number in a reading, fell by an average of 2 points, and diastolic pressure, the bottom number, fell by nearly 2 points. The report stated that the benefit was larger among participants with elevated blood pressure at the start of the trials.

Edible algae have a history of use as food and traditional medicine. In China and Japan, algae have been used as medication for hundreds of years, according to Lisette Kreischer and Marcel Schuttelaar in "Ocean Greens" [1]. Earlier reporting also linked seaweed consumption to lower blood pressure [2].

Study Scope and Methods

The analysis combined results from 29 randomized controlled trials and compared blood pressure changes in adults who consumed edible algae with those who did not, according to the report. The algae types studied included nori, kelp and spirulina.

In the trials, whole algae were given as a powder or as

Turmeric has been studied as a spice with anti-inflammatory properties. Now, a pooled analysis of 21 randomized controlled trials involving 1,705 patients found that its active compound, curcumin, lowered two markers of inflammation.

According to a report published by NaturalHealth365, the analysis appeared in BMC Complementary Medicine and Therapies in July 2025. The trials enrolled patients with knee osteoarthritis and compared curcumin users against patients receiving placebo or standard treatment. The report said doctors routinely track six inflammation signals in bloodwork, and two moved significantly: C-reactive protein (CRP) and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha).

A separate review published in Frontiers in Pharmacology has linked curcumin supplements to health benefits across nine conditions ^[1]. Clinical trial data have also associated curcumin with reduced inflammation in fatty liver disease ^[2].

Study Scope and Findings

Researchers pooled data from 21 randomized controlled trials conducted in seven countries and tracked six inflammation markers, according to the report. CRP, a marker used to flag systemic inflammation throughout the body, dropped significantly in the curcumin groups. TNF-alpha, a signaling protein that drives part of the inflammatory cascade, also decreased, although the researchers noted that this result was less consistent under sensitivity testing.

The report stated that the CRP reduction was consistent

According to an analysis by military expert Dmitry Kornev published by RT, European companies, NATO software, and defense manufacturers are now built into Ukraine's war effort. [1] The report states assembly lines are moving beyond Ukraine's borders, European manufacturers are joining production chains, and NATO standards are being incorporated into Ukraine's military infrastructure.

Western governments have described their role in Ukraine in relatively simple terms: supplying weapons, providing financial assistance, and helping Kiev stand against Russia. The report says cooperation has expanded to design, production, financing, and technological integration of weapons formally presented as Ukrainian. The European Union has separately approved the European Defense Industry Program, allocating €1.5 billion to strengthen military capabilities and integrate Ukraine into Europe's defense supply chains. [2]

Ukrainian Systems Increasingly Rely on European Production

The report identifies Fire Point, a Ukrainian defense startup, as an example of the new model. Fire Point is developing the FP-5 cruise missile, the FP-7 ballistic missile, and a future air-defense system, relying on foreign components and technologies for critical elements, with final assembly in Ukraine. [1]

According to Fire Point CEO Denis Shtilerman, the FP-7 anti-aircraft missile will use a seeker developed and manufactured by Germany's Diehl Defence. The wider air-defense system

Joint Statement Accuses Israel of Undermining Gaza Plan

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) and several other Muslim-majority governments on Aug. 6 accused Israel of breaching the Gaza peace plan, according to the Times of Israel.

The joint statement said Israeli actions had undermined regional efforts to sustain the truce, the newspaper reported ^[1]. An official involved with the proposal said recent Israeli military restraint had been "important to getting the sequencing rolling" ^[1].

The statement followed a period of rising friction between Israel and the regional governments that backed the ceasefire. In February, U.S. President Donald Trump privately pledged to block Israeli annexation of the West Bank in a closed-door meeting with leaders from Turkey, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Pakistan, Jordan, Indonesia and the UAE, according to a NaturalNews.com report ^[2]. Gulf states have been drawn into Arab-Israeli diplomacy for decades, a pattern documented in Haig Khatchadourian's study of the peace process ^[3].

UAE-Israel Relations and Abraham Accords

The accusation came despite the UAE's formal partnership with Israel under the 2020 Abraham Accords. U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee said in May 2026 that "there's an extraordinary relationship between the UAE and Israel based on the Abraham Accords," after confirming

Researchers at the Arc Institute in Palo Alto, California and Stanford University used an artificial intelligence (AI) model called Evo to generate new versions of a virus not found in nature, according to the study authors.

The resulting pathogens, known as bacteriophages – viruses that infect bacteria – cannot infect humans or animals, the report stated. Samuel King, a Stanford graduate student and study author, told the New York Times (NYT): "It just felt like the obvious next step." Large language models, which underlie tools such as ChatGPT, can generate realistic text and pose risks of misuse in creating fake news or other misinformation ^[1].

Evo Model Trained on Genetic Sequences

Evo, a program similar to ChatGPT, scanned about nine trillion nucleotide bases from animals, plants, viruses and microbes, according to the research team. Rather than analyzing written text, the model was used to dissect and form genetic code, the report stated.

After learning natural DNA patterns, Evo generated nearly 300 genomes of Phi X-174, a virus chosen because it cannot infect humans or animals. Sixteen of those genomes were determined to be viable, the study reported.

In petri dish tests, some AI-designed phages multiplied faster than the original Phi X-174 and burst out of host