School of Science - Te Kura Pūtaiao

Permanent link for this collectionhttps://hdl.handle.net/10292/1333

Research at AUT's School of Science - Te Kura Pūtaiao is focused on key scientific issues with regional and global significance. The common theme connecting all research areas is sustainability – in the broadest sense as it relates to environmental and human health. Our research is closely allied to teaching and learning opportunities at undergraduate and postgraduate level within the school. Research is organised in six main areas:

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‘I didn’t want to go home’ Patient-identified Modifiable Risk Factors Associated With Hospital Readmission: A Qualitative Study
(Informa UK Limited, 2024-08-20) Wilson, Holly; Donkin, Liesje; Harrison, Jeff; Brackley, Kim; Lim, Anecita Gigi; Chan, Amy Hai Yan
Background: Hospital readmissions are costly for patients, their families and healthcare systems. Identifying and addressing risk factors can reduce the number of people who experience readmission. Few studies have explored modifiable risk factors such as health beliefs from patients’ perspective to explore the complexity of risk factors for readmission. This study aimed to identify modifiable readmission risk factors from the perspectives of patients who have experienced readmission and their families. Methods: Adults (≥18 years) readmitted within 30 days of discharge to a general medical or surgical ward at a large urban hospital in New Zealand were invited to participate in a semi-structured interview to explore their readmission experience. Interviews were conducted during the readmission and were analysed using inductive thematic analysis. Results: A total of 30 participants were interviewed. Six themes relating to readmission were identified: inadequate communication between health professionals and patients, misalignment between patient illness perceptions and treatment, unclear or missing information, poor health literacy, poor medication mismanagement, and health system factors. Conclusions: These findings highlight the importance of considering patient experiences, such as their expectations, illness and treatment beliefs, to reduce readmissions. Ensuring communication is patient centred and quality professional-patient relationships could reduce readmissions.
Combined Effects of Microplastics and Nitrogen on Bivalve-mediated Biogeochemical Cycling
(Wiley, 2026-02-25) Foreman, SE; Allan, BJM; Sabadel, A; Savage, C
Estuary health is declining globally due to an increase in anthropogenic stressors including microplastics and nutrient loading. These stressors are often studied individually; however, it is vital to understand their combined effects on coastal ecosystems to inform ecosystem-based management. This is the first study to evaluate the multi-stressor responses of microplastics (polyethylene microbeads) and nitrogen loading in intertidal soft sediment communities. In this laboratory experiment, the individual and combined effects of microplastics and nitrogen were assessed on biogeochemical processes mediated by the bivalve, Macomona liliana. This deep-dwelling bivalve feeds on microphytobenthos at the sediment surface and augments porewater nutrients through its behavior. Ammonium porewater concentrations increased ~ 260% with the addition of nitrogen; however, this porewater increase did not carry over to the multiple stressor treatment. Further, sediment-water nitrogen effluxes tended to be higher with the addition of single stressors under light conditions, with a significant increase in the multiple stressor treatments. These findings suggest that nitrogen processing responses emerge under multiple stressor conditions. Furthermore, sediment profile image analysis revealed a significant negative effect of multiple stressors on sediment redox conditions. Lastly, bivalves exposed to multiple stressors had approximately 1% more docosahexaenoic acid (DHA, 22:6n-3) as a proportion of their total fatty acids in their tissue compared to those under control conditions, reflecting the low levels of DHA found in the microphytobenthos under multiple stressor conditions. The study highlights the complex interactions between subtle shifts in food quality and infaunal behavior that affect nutrient cycling at the sediment–water interface in coastal ecosystems.
Digital Taboo: A Qualitative Study on Pacific Male Experiences of and Attitudes to Pornography in Aotearoa New Zealand
(Wiley, 2026-02-03) Kito, Bale; Erickson, Simon; Kennedy, Rebekah; Treharne, Gareth; Rodda, Simone; Fehoko, Edmond
Pornography use among young Pacific males in New Zealand remains an under‐explored and culturally sensitive issue. This qualitative article explores how Pacific men view and experience porn use, with a focus on how their cultural values and spiritual beliefs influence those experiences. Employing the Talanoa research method, we conducted six kava‐based focus groups with 50 Pacific males (18–30 years), fostering relational spaces for open dialogue grounded in Pacific worldviews. Thematic analysis identified three major themes amongst young Pacific adults. The themes identified include: (i) deep‐rooted taboos that reinforce silence and shame, (ii) the quiet acceptance of addictive behaviours within peer networks, and (iii) tension between digital identities and traditional responsibilities. Findings underscore the urgent need for culturally responsive sexual‐health education and intergenerational conversations to support Pacific youth wellbeing. By centring Pacific voices, this research fills a critical gap and informs community‐led strategies addressing pornography use.
Early Contact Experiences Between Embryo Donors and Recipients (Parents) in Aotearoa New Zealand
(Taylor & Francis, 2026-02-23) Hurley, Emma; Goedeke, Sonja
In New Zealand, embryo donors and recipients meet in a joint counselling session before donation where their needs and expectations for future contact are discussed. However, the extent and experience of contact - including that occurring before the mandated age of identity release at 18 - has received little international research attention and has not been explored in New Zealand. This study, based on interviews with nine participants who had donated or received embryos, examined donor and recipient expectations and experiences of early contact, including the nature of their relationships, how boundaries and expectations are managed and their role in each other's lives. Thematic analysis identified that contact was experienced as overwhelmingly positive, with many participants describing strong, meaningful connections between families. Relationships between children in both families were particularly valued, and extended family often became part of these networks. Contact arrangements were flexible, combining in-person and digital communication. Joint counselling was viewed as instrumental in establishing contact expectations and fostering positive relationships. Although participants were satisfied with the pre-donation counselling process, findings suggest the value of ongoing access to support for issues which may emerge after donation.
Cryptic Biodiversity in the Commercial Diamondback Squid Thysanoteuthis rhombus Troschel 1857
(Springer Science and Business Media LLC, 2023-11-14) Deville, Diego; Mori, Souta; Kawai, Kentaro; Escánez, Alejandro; Macali, Armando; Lishchenko, Fedor; Braid, Heather; Githaiga-Mwicigi, Jean; Mohamed, Kolliyil S; Bolstad, Kathrin SR; Miyahara, Kazutaka; Sugimoto, Chikatoshi; Fernández-Álvarez, Fernando Á; Sanchez, Gustavo
Cephalopod fisheries are increasing, but little is known about the cryptic diversity of some key commercial species. Recent studies have shown that cryptic speciation is common in cephalopods, including several oceanic squids formerly considered ‘cosmopolitan species.’ Further efforts are needed to investigate the cryptic diversity of commercial species, to inform management and support sustainable fisheries practices. Thysanoteuthis rhombus is an oceanic squid, currently recognized as the single species of the family Thysanoteuthidae. Thysanoteuthis. rhombus has a global distribution in tropical and subtropical waters and is an economically important species, with the highest catches occurring off Okinawa in Japan and of potential fishery resource for other countries due to its high abundance and large size. Here, we used sequences from 12S rRNA, 16S rRNA, and cytochrome c oxidase I to characterize its cryptic diversity using samples collected throughout most of its known geographic range. We identified three different putative species whose distributions are concordant with main ocean basins: Thysanoteuthis major, the most abundant species, is widely distributed in the North Pacific Ocean, North Indian Ocean, and limits of the South Atlantic Ocean; Thysanoteuthis rhombus is distributed in the North and South Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea; and Thysanoteuthis cf. filiferum, likely the least sampled to date, is found in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. A sister relationship was observed between T. rhombus and T. major, and T. cf. filiferum was found to be the most divergent species. Based on our divergence estimation, we hypothesize that the closure of the Isthmus of Panama during the early Pliocene played a significant role in the split of T. rhombus and T. major, while the split of their ancestor from T. cf. filiferum coincided with an increase in the Pacific Walker Circulation and the longitudinal gradient of surface temperatures in the Pacific Ocean during the Late Oligocene and Early Miocene. Our work identifies three different putative species within Thysanoteuthis and has potential use for improving fishery management and conserving the diversity in these species.
Discovery of 1,3,5-triazine-based LSD1 Inhibitors to Activate Immune Response in Gastric Cancer
(Elsevier BV, 2026-02-12) Dai, Xing-Jie; Li, Ying; Xiong, Xiao-Peng; Wang, Jun-Jie; Lu, Guo-Liang; Li, Yan; Liu, Cong-Jun; Wang, Ning; Zheng, Yi-Chao; Yang, Zheng-Hong; Wang, Bo
Lysine-specific demethylase 1 (LSD1), the first identified histone lysine-specific demethylase, plays a crucial role in mediating immune responses in gastric cancer. Most LSD1 inhibitors undergoing clinical trials are irreversible, which has driven significant interest in developing structurally diverse reversible inhibitors. In this study, we present a potent 1,3,5-triazine-based LSD1 inhibitor, XP-2, discovered through high-throughput screening (HTS) of our in-house compound library and subsequent structure-activity relationship (SAR) studies, exhibiting a half maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50) of 0.116 μmol/L. XP-2 enhanced the susceptibility of gastric cancer cells to T cell-mediated cytotoxicity by downregulating programmed cell death ligand 1 (PD-L1) expression, thereby disrupting the programmed cell death protein 1 (PD-1)/PD-L1 interaction. Furthermore, XP-2 significantly inhibited the proliferation of gastric cancer cells without inducing notable toxicity. Pharmacokinetic evaluation revealed favorable oral exposure and a moderate half-life in mice. In conclusion, this study provided a promising LSD1 inhibitor with a novel scaffold and promising pharmacokinetic properties, supporting its further development as an immunomodulator for gastric cancer treatment.
New Zealand Military Veterans’ Perceptions on Health and Well-being: A Qualitative Study
(University of Toronto Press Inc. (UTPress), 2026-01-20) O’Regan, Margo; McBride, David; Rodda, Simone; Shepherd, Daniel
Introduction: The study “The psychological and physical health and well-being of New Zealand contemporary Veterans” represents one of the few large population studies conducted on contemporary Veterans in New Zealand. Included in this survey was an open-ended question allowing respondents to articulate their thoughts, opinions, or feedback on the Veteran experience. Methods: Responses were analyzed using qualitative content analysis framework informed by Mayring’s (2022) eight-step content analysis process. A hybrid deductive–inductive approach was used to generate sub-themes from participants’ responses, which were categorized under the World Health Organization’s four domains of well-being (psychological, social, environmental, and physical). Results: In this study, responses from 1,037 Veterans were analyzed and put into 22 sub-themes and four overarching themes. While many participants expressed positive gains due to their military service, challenges in psychological, social, environmental, and physical well-being were evident. Positive outcomes included gaining educational achievements, career skills, and personal growth and development. Challenges included issues such as posttraumatic stress disorder, depression, anxiety, moral injury, identity confusion, internalized stigma, stereotyping, the strain of demanding work on family life, hearing loss, musculoskeletal problems, and concerns regarding toxic chemical exposure. Discussion: Veterans face challenges in all four domains of well-being. Despite encountering difficulties, there is a reluctance or social stigma associated with Veterans seeking help for their well-being concerns, compounding the challenges they face. Additionally, Veterans perceive a need for more accessible and effective support services.
Integrating Explainable Artificial Intelligence (AI) to Evaluate Fermented-Roasted Avocado Seed Powder as a Natural Antioxidant in Beef Patties
(Elsevier BV, 2026-02-13) Zhao, Zhiyu; Toulon, Elphege; Ejorh, Uche; Chen, Tony; Kantono, Kevin; Kam, Rothman; Hamid, Nazimah
This study evaluates fermented–roasted avocado seed powder (ASP) as a sustainable antioxidant for beef patties and integrates explainable artificial intelligence (AI) to provide mechanistic insights into lipid oxidation control. ASP was produced via controlled fermentation with Lactobacillus plantarum followed by roasting and incorporated into beef patties (0.95 g/kg). Its performance was compared with butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT) and untreated controls during 10-day refrigerated storage at 4 °C. ASP exhibited the highest initial reducing antioxidant capacity (0.283 mg ascorbic acid equivalents (AAE)/g) measured by cupric reducing antioxidant capacity (CUPRAC) and maintained significantly greater activity than BHT and control throughout storage (p < 0.05). Thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) analysis showed ASP reduced lipid oxidation by 21% relative to control, approaching BHT efficacy. ASP also improved colour stability and preserved key fatty acids, notably oleic acid. Volatile profiling revealed distinct antioxidant behaviour, with ASP generating Maillard-derived compounds rather than relying on synthetic additives. Shapley Additive Explanations (SHAP) analysis, applied to an extreme gradient boosting model (XGBoost), identified γ-linolenic acid, oleic acid, pentanal, and 2-heptanone as major predictors of oxidative stability, highlighting ASP's broad-spectrum protective effect. These findings demonstrate that ASP not only valorises avocado seed waste but also offers a viable alternative to synthetic antioxidants, supporting sustainability goals. The integration of explainable AI with multivariate analysis provides new understanding of lipid oxidation pathways and antioxidant performance in meat systems.
Environmental Impact of Exposed Salmon Farms: Transect Reveals Matching Gradients in Seafloor Ecosystem Structural and Functional Proxies
(Inter-Research Science Center, 2025-11-25) Vopel, Kay C; Plew, David; Simone, Michelle N; Davey, Adam; Ross, D Jeff
Exposure of fish pens to strong currents in the open ocean facilitates the dispersion of farm-derived organic-rich solid wastes (faeces, uneaten feed) and thus lessens the effect of waste deposition on the seafloor ecosystem. Quantifying this effect requires tools that can detect deviations in seafloor ecosystem functioning, including trends that, if left unattended, accumulate to cause adverse effects. Here, we demonstrate a spatial gradient in the seafloor O₂ demand, maintained by local deposition of farm-derived organic waste, that could be used as such a tool. To detect this gradient, we measured the in situ sediment-seawater O₂ flux with 2 seafloor landers, a benthic chamber lander and an aquatic eddy covariance lander, deployed at 19 sites along a 3000 m transect heading towards a salmon farm in the D’Entrecasteaux Channel, Tasmania, Australia. We found that the seafloor O₂ demand gradually increased within approximately 500 m of the farm from a background level of 220-560 to 1922 µmol m⁻² h⁻¹. The observed gradient was consistent with a gradient in the biological structure of the seafloor, demonstrated by traditional analyses of benthic macrofaunal assemblages. We discuss how regular monitoring of the seafloor O₂ demand with autonomous benthic landers can support proactive ecosystem-based management of open-ocean fish farms.
Achieving 30×30: How Different Nations Report Their Contributions to International Marine Conservation Targets
(Springer Science and Business Media LLC, 2026-02-11) Henneker, Caitlin R; Hinchliffe, Graham; Jarvis, Rebecca M
In 2022, the Convention on Biological Diversity’s Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework was adopted. This framework includes Target 3—commonly referred to as ‘30×30’—which calls for at least 30% of land and sea to be effectively conserved and managed by 2030. Of all the nations listed on the Marine Conservation Institute’s Marine Protection Atlas (MPAtlas), 52 nations show progress towards their nations 30×30 targets through fully or highly protected Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) within 200 nautical miles of their own coastline (in their direct waters). However, six nations: the United Kingdom, United States, Australia, Argentina, France, and Aotearoa New Zealand, claim progress towards their 30×30 target through MPAs in their direct waters and in waters they claim as overseas territories, such as the waters around remote islands and other nations, further offshore (wider waters). This research raises important questions about where and why nations designate MPAs in particular locations, and what this means for equitable and effective action towards global conservation targets.
Effects of Litter Inputs on Soil Aggregate C Turnover and Flow Differ Among Three Natural Forest Ecosystems Along a Climate Gradient in China
(Springer Science and Business Media LLC, 2026-02-02) Xu, Q; Zhang, W; Hu, J; Wang, X; Leuzinger, S; Zheng, Y; Hong, X; Hu, Y
Background: Plant litter input plays an important role in controlling soil organic carbon (SOC) turnover and the flow of carbon (C) among different pools. However, the relative effects of aboveground and belowground root litter on soil aggregate C dynamics across different forest types and along climate gradients remain poorly understood. In this study, we examined changes in soil aggregate mass proportion, litter-derived and native C contents of macro-aggregate, micro-aggregate and silt + clay fractions, and C flow among these fractions during 2 years of litter input, using ¹³C isotope tracing technique in tropical, temperate and boreal forests along a climate gradient in China. Results: The results showed that belowground root litter input enhanced soil aggregation across all three forests, but aboveground litter input had no significant effect. Belowground root litter input increased total and litter-derived C content across aggregate fractions compared to aboveground litter input in the tropical forest, while it decreased native C content in the same forest. However, the effects of litter input on total and litter-derived C contents were minimal in the boreal and temperate forests. In addition, patterns of soil C flow among aggregates varied depending on both litter input type and forest type. Conclusions: Our results imply that belowground root litter enhances soil aggregation and aggregate C turnover compared to aboveground litter input. Moreover, the effects of root litter input on soil aggregate C turnover and C flow depend on forest types along the climatic gradient.
Predictive Coding and Neurocomputational Psychiatry: A Mechanistic Framework for Understanding Mental Disorders
(Frontiers Media SA, 2026-01-07) Shaw, AD; Sumner, RL; Berndt, LCS
Predictive coding offers a powerful computational framework for understanding brain function and psychiatric disorders at a mechanistic level. This perspective synthesizes advances in computational psychiatry, proposing that mental disorders can be conceptualized as specific alterations in the brain’s predictive inference machinery. We first outline the theoretical foundations of predictive coding, including Bayesian inference, free-energy minimization, and neural population dynamics, illustrating how these abstract computational principles map onto specific neural circuits and biophysical mechanisms. We then argue that diverse psychiatric conditions can be understood within this unified framework. Taken together, these links between theory, generative models and empirical data suggest a route by which predictive coding might be rendered a testable, modifiable, falsifiable construct within biological psychiatry. Beyond offering conceptual clarity, this framework has significant clinical implications, including the development of mechanistic biomarkers, personalized treatment approaches based on computational phenotypes, and novel therapeutic interventions targeting specific inferential abnormalities. By grounding psychiatric symptoms in aberrant predictive processes implemented in neural circuitry, this approach promises a more mechanistic understanding of mental disorders and a path toward more targeted, effective interventions.
Release of β-casomorphin-7 in A1/A1 and A2/A2 Dairy Systems: Insights From Simulated Semi-dynamic Gastrointestinal Digestion
(Elsevier BV, 2026-01-23) Daniloski, D; McCarthy, NA; Vasiljevic, T; Sharma, N; Fitzpatrick, CJ; Brodkorb, A; Le, TT; Knudsen, LJ; Larsen, LB; Poulsen, NA
The study aimed to determine the amount of β-casomorphin-7 released during semi-dynamic in vitro gastrointestinal digestion of A1/A1 and A2/A2 milk, yogurt, and Cheddar cheese. Samples were collected at 10 and 120 min during the intestinal phase for each of the four gastric emptying points, following the INFOGEST digestion model. β-Casomorphin-7 was quantified using liquid chromatography coupled to triple quadrupole mass spectrometry. The levels of β-casomorphin-7 were similar in A1/A1 (8.65–11.72 μg/100 g protein) and A2/A2 (9.64–15.29 μg/100 g protein) milk digests, higher in A1/A1 yogurt, while A1/A1 cheese digest exhibited the highest levels among all samples (36.19–62.73 μg/100 g protein), nearly ten times higher than A2/A2 cheese digest. After in vitro gastrointestinal digestion of a serving size of the studied dairy products the released amounts may not align with levels required for in vivo opioid activity. However, further human clinical trials are warranted.
A Benchmark of Expert-level Academic Questions to Assess AI Capabilities
(Springer Science and Business Media LLC, 2026-01-28) Phan, Long; Gatti, Alice; Li, Nathaniel; Khoja, Adam; Kim, Ryan; Ren, Richard; Hausenloy, Jason; Zhang, Oliver; Mazeika, Mantas; Hendrycks, Dan; Han, Ziwen; Hu, Josephina; Zhang, Hugh; Zhang, Chen Bo Calvin; Shaaban, Mohamed; Ling, John; Shi, Sean; Choi, Michael; Agrawal, Anish; Chopra, Arnav; Nattanmai, Aakaash; McKellips, Gordon; Cheraku, Anish; Suhail, Asim; Luo, Ethan; Deng, Marvin; Luo, Jason; Zhang, Ashley; Jindel, Kavin; Paek, Jay; Halevy, Kasper; Baranov, Allen; Liu, Michael; Avadhanam, Advaith; Zhang, David; Cheng, Vincent; Ma, Brad; Fu, Evan; Do, Liam; Lass, Joshua; Yang, Hubert; Sunkari, Surya; Bharath, Vishruth; Ai, Violet; Leung, James; Agrawal, Rishit; Zhou, Alan; Chen, Kevin; Kalpathi, Tejas; Xu, Ziqi; Wang, Gavin; Xiao, Tyler; Maung, Erik; Lee, Sam; Yang, Ryan; Yue, Roy; Zhao, Ben; Yoon, Julia; Sun, Xiangwan; Singh, Aryan; Peng, Clark; Osbey, Tyler; Wang, Taozhi; Echeazu, Daryl; Wu, Timothy; Patel, Spandan; Kulkarni, Vidhi; Sundarapandiyan, Vijaykaarti; Le, Andrew; Nasim, Zafir; Yalam, Srikar; Kasamsetty, Ritesh; Samal, Soham; Sun, David; Shah, Nihar; Saha, Abhijeet; Zhang, Alex; Nguyen, Leon; Nagumalli, Laasya; Wang, Kaixin; Wu, Aidan; Telluri, Anwith; Yue, Summer; Wang, Alexandr; Dodonov, Dmitry; Nguyen, Tung; Lee, Jaeho; Anderson, Daron; Doroshenko, Mikhail; Stokes, Alun Cennyth; Mahmood, Mobeen; Pokutnyi, Oleksandr; Iskra, Oleg; Wang, Jessica P; Levin, John-Clark; Kazakov, Mstyslav; Feng, Fiona; Feng, Steven Y; Zhao, Haoran; Yu, Michael; Gangal, Varun; Zou, Chelsea; Wang, Zihan; Popov, Serguei; Gerbicz, Robert; Galgon, Geoff; Schmitt, Johannes; Yeadon, Will; Lee, Yongki; Sauers, Scott; Sanchez, Alvaro; Giska, Fabian; Roth, Marc; Riis, Søren; Utpala, Saiteja; Burns, Noah; Goshu, Gashaw M; Naiya, Mohinder Maheshbhai; Agu, Chidozie; Giboney, Zachary; Cheatom, Antrell; Fournier-Facio, Francesco; Crowson, Sarah-Jane; Finke, Lennart; Cheng, Zerui; Zampese, Jennifer; Hoerr, Ryan G; Nandor, Mark; Park, Hyunwoo; Gehrunger, Tim; Cai, Jiaqi; McCarty, Ben; Garretson, Alexis C; Taylor, Edwin; Sileo, Damien; Ren, Qiuyu; Qazi, Usman; Li, Lianghui; Nam, Jungbae; Wydallis, John B; Arkhipov, Pavel; Shi, Jack Wei Lun; Bacho, Aras; Willcocks, Chris G; Cao, Hangrui; Motwani, Sumeet; de Oliveira Santos, Emily; Veith, Johannes; Vendrow, Edward; Cojoc, Doru; Zenitani, Kengo; Robinson, Joshua; Tang, Longke; Li, Yuqi; Vendrow, Joshua; Fraga, Natanael Wildner; Kuchkin, Vladyslav; Maksimov, Andrey Pupasov; Marion, Pierre; Efremov, Denis; Lynch, Jayson; Liang, Kaiqu; Mikov, Aleksandar; Gritsevskiy, Andrew; Guillod, Julien; Demir, Gözdenur; Martinez, Dakotah; Pageler, Ben; Zhou, Kevin; Soori, Saeed; Press, Ori; Tang, Henry; Rissone, Paolo; Green, Sean R; Brüssel, Lina; Twayana, Moon; Dieuleveut, Aymeric; Imperial, Joseph Marvin; Prabhu, Ameya; Yang, Jinzhou; Crispino, Nick; Rao, Arun; Zvonkine, Dimitri; Loiseau, Gabriel; Kalinin, Mikhail; Lukas, Marco; Manolescu, Ciprian; Stambaugh, Nate; Mishra, Subrata; Hogg, Tad; Bosio, Carlo; Coppola, Brian P; Salazar, Julian; Jin, Jaehyeok; Sayous, Rafael; Ivanov, Stefan; Schwaller, Philippe; Senthilkumar, Shaipranesh; Bran, Andres M; Algaba, Andres; Van den Houte, Kelsey; Van Der Sypt, Lynn; Verbeken, Brecht; Noever, David; Kopylov, Alexei; Myklebust, Benjamin; Li, Bikun; Schut, Lisa; Zheltonozhskii, Evgenii; Yuan, Qiaochu; Lim, Derek; Stanley, Richard; Yang, Tong; Maar, John; Wykowski, Julian; Oller, Mart; Sahu, Anmol; Ardito, Cesare Giulio; Hu, Yuzheng; Kamdoum, Ariel Ghislain Kemogne; Jin, Alvin; Vilchis, Tobias Garcia; Zu, Yuexuan; Lackner, Martin; Koppel, James; Sun, Gongbo; Antonenko, Daniil S; Chern, Steffi; Zhao, Bingchen; Arsene, Pierrot; Cavanagh, Joseph M; Li, Daofeng; Shen, Jiawei; Crisostomi, Donato; Zhang, Wenjin; Dehghan, Ali; Ivanov, Sergey; Perrella, David; Kaparov, Nurdin; Zang, Allen; Sucholutsky, Ilia; Kharlamova, Arina; Orel, Daniil; Poritski, Vladislav; Ben-David, Shalev; Berger, Zachary; Whitfill, Parker; Foster, Michael; Munro, Daniel; Ho, Linh; Sivarajan, Shankar; Hava, Dan Bar; Kuchkin, Aleksey; Holmes, David; Rodriguez-Romero, Alexandra; Sommerhage, Frank; Zhang, Anji; Moat, Richard; Schneider, Keith; Kazibwe, Zakayo; Clarke, Don; Kim, Dae Hyun; Dias, Felipe Meneguitti; Fish, Sara; Elser, Veit; Kreiman, Tobias; Vilchis, Victor Efren Guadarrama; Klose, Immo; Anantheswaran, Ujjwala; Zweiger, Adam; Rawal, Kaivalya; Li, Jeffery; Nguyen, Jeremy; Daans, Nicolas; Heidinger, Haline; Radionov, Maksim; Rozhoň, Václav; Ginis, Vincent; Stump, Christian; Cohen, Niv; Poświata, Rafał; Tkadlec, Josef; Goldfarb, Alan; Wang, Chenguang; Padlewski, Piotr; Barzowski, Stanislaw; Montgomery, Kyle; Stendall, Ryan; Tucker-Foltz, Jamie; Stade, Jack; Rogers, T Ryan; Goertzen, Tom; Grabb, Declan; Shukla, Abhishek; Givré, Alan; Ambay, John Arnold; Sen, Archan; Aziz, Muhammad Fayez; Inlow, Mark H; He, Hao; Zhang, Ling; Kaddar, Younesse; Ängquist, Ivar; Chen, Yanxu; Wang, Harrison K; Ramakrishnan, Kalyan; Thornley, Elliott; Terpin, Antonio; Schoelkopf, Hailey; Zheng, Eric; Carmi, Avishy; Brown, Ethan DL; Zhu, Kelin; Bartolo, Max; Wheeler, Richard; Stehberger, Martin; Bradshaw, Peter; Heimonen, JP; Sridhar, Kaustubh; Akov, Ido; Sandlin, Jennifer; Makarychev, Yury; Tam, Joanna; Hoang, Hieu; Cunningham, David M; Goryachev, Vladimir; Patramanis, Demosthenes; Krause, Michael; Redenti, Andrew; Aldous, David; Lai, Jesyin; Coleman, Shannon; Xu, Jiangnan; Lee, Sangwon; Magoulas, Ilias; Zhao, Sandy; Tang, Ning; Cohen, Michael K; Paradise, Orr; Kirchner, Jan Hendrik; Ovchynnikov, Maksym; Matos, Jason O; Shenoy, Adithya; Wang, Michael; Nie, Yuzhou; Sztyber-Betley, Anna; Faraboschi, Paolo; Riblet, Robin; Crozier, Jonathan; Halasyamani, Shiv; Verma, Shreyas; Joshi, Prashant; Meril, Eli; Ma, Ziqiao; Andréoletti, Jérémy; Singhal, Raghav; Platnick, Jacob; Nevirkovets, Volodymyr; Basler, Luke; Ivanov, Alexander; Khoury, Seri; Gustafsson, Nils; Piccardo, Marco; Mostaghimi, Hamid; Chen, Qijia; Singh, Virendra; Khánh, Tran Quoc; Rosu, Paul; Szlyk, Hannah; Brown, Zachary; Narayan, Himanshu; Menezes, Aline; Roberts, Jonathan; Alley, William; Sun, Kunyang; Patel, Arkil; Lamparth, Max; Reuel, Anka; Xin, Linwei; Xu, Hanmeng; Loader, Jacob; Martin, Freddie; Wang, Zixuan; Achilleos, Andrea; Preu, Thomas; Korbak, Tomek; Bosio, Ida; Kazemi, Fereshteh; Chen, Ziye; Bálint, Biró; Lo, Eve JY; Wang, Jiaqi; Nunes, Maria Inês S; Milbauer, Jeremiah; Bari, M Saiful; Wang, Zihao; Ansarinejad, Behzad; Sun, Yewen; Durand, Stephane; Elgnainy, Hossam; Douville, Guillaume; Tordera, Daniel; Balabanian, George; Wolff, Hew; Kvistad, Lynna; Milliron, Hsiaoyun; Sakor, Ahmad; Eron, Murat; Andrew Favre, DO; Shah, Shailesh; Zhou, Xiaoxiang; Kamalov, Firuz; Abdoli, Sherwin; Santens, Tim; Barkan, Shaul; Tee, Allison; Zhang, Robin; Tomasiello, Alessandro; De Luca, G Bruno; Looi, Shi-Zhuo; Le, Vinh-Kha; Kolt, Noam; Pan, Jiayi; Rodman, Emma; Drori, Jacob; Fossum, Carl J; Muennighoff, Niklas; Jagota, Milind; Pradeep, Ronak; Fan, Honglu; Eicher, Jonathan; Chen, Michael; Thaman, Kushal; Merrill, William; Firsching, Moritz; Harris, Carter; Ciobâcă, Stefan; Gross, Jason; Pandey, Rohan; Gusev, Ilya; Jones, Adam; Agnihotri, Shashank; Zhelnov, Pavel; Mofayezi, Mohammadreza; Piperski, Alexander; Zhang, David K; Dobarskyi, Kostiantyn; Leventov, Roman; Soroko, Ignat; Duersch, Joshua; Taamazyan, Vage; Ho, Andrew; Ma, Wenjie; Held, William; Xian, Ruicheng; Zebaze, Armel Randy; Mohamed, Mohanad; Leser, Julian Noah; Yuan, Michelle X; Yacar, Laila; Lengler, Johannes; Olszewska, Katarzyna; Di Fratta, Claudio; Oliveira, Edson; Jackson, Joseph W; Zou, Andy; Chidambaram, Muthu; Manik, Timothy; Haffenden, Hector; Stander, Dashiell; Dasouqi, Ali; Shen, Alexander; Golshani, Bita; Stap, David; Kretov, Egor; Uzhou, Mikalai; Zhidkovskaya, Alina Borisovna; Winter, Nick; Rodriguez, Miguel Orbegozo; Lauff, Robert; Wehr, Dustin; Tang, Colin; Hossain, Zaki; Phillips, Shaun; Samuele, Fortuna; Ekström, Fredrik; Hammon, Angela; Patel, Oam; Farhidi, Faraz; Medley, George; Mohammadzadeh, Forough; Peñaflor, Madellene; Kassahun, Haile; Friedrich, Alena; Perez, Rayner Hernandez; Pyda, Daniel; Sakal, Taom; Dhamane, Omkar; Mirabadi, Ali Khajegili; Hallman, Eric; Okutsu, Kenchi; Battaglia, Mike; Maghsoudimehrabani, Mohammad; Amit, Alon; Hulbert, Dave; Pereira, Roberto; Weber, Simon; Handoko; Peristyy, Anton; Malina, Stephen; Mehkary, Mustafa; Aly, Rami; Reidegeld, Frank; Dick, Anna-Katharina; Friday, Cary; Singh, Mukhwinder; Shapourian, Hassan; Kim, Wanyoung; Costa, Mariana; Gurdogan, Hubeyb; Kumar, Harsh; Ceconello, Chiara; Zhuang, Chao; Park, Haon; Carroll, Micah; Tawfeek, Andrew R; Steinerberger, Stefan; Aggarwal, Daattavya; Kirchhof, Michael; Dai, Linjie; Kim, Evan; Ferret, Johan; Shah, Jainam; Wang, Yuzhou; Yan, Minghao; Burdzy, Krzysztof; Zhang, Lixin; Franca, Antonio; Pham, Diana T; Loh, Kang Yong; Robinson, Joshua; Jackson, Abram; Giordano, Paolo; Petersen, Philipp; Cosma, Adrian; Colino, Jesus; White, Colin; Votava, Jacob; Vinnikov, Vladimir; Delaney, Ethan; Spelda, Petr; Stritecky, Vit; Shahid, Syed M; Mourrat, Jean-Christophe; Vetoshkin, Lavr; Sponselee, Koen; Bacho, Renas; Yong, Zheng-Xin; de la Rosa, Florencia; Cho, Nathan; Li, Xiuyu; Malod, Guillaume; Weller, Orion; Albani, Guglielmo; Lang, Leon; Laurendeau, Julien; Kazakov, Dmitry; Adesanya, Fatimah; Portier, Julien; Hollom, Lawrence; Souza, Victor; Zhou, Yuchen Anna; Degorre, Julien; Yaln, Yiğit; Obikoya, Gbenga Daniel; Michael Pokorny, Rai; Bigi, Filippo; Boscá, MC; Shumar, Oleg; Bacho, Kaniuar; Recchia, Gabriel; Popescu, Mara; Shulga, Nikita; Tanwie, Ngefor Mildred; Lux, Thomas CH; Rank, Ben; Ni, Colin; Brooks, Matthew; Yakimchyk, Alesia; Quinn Liu, Huanxu; Cavalleri, Stefano; Häggström, Olle; Verkama, Emil; Newbould, Joshua; Gundlach, Hans; Brito-Santana, Leonor; Amaro, Brian; Vajipey, Vivek; Grover, Rynaa; Wang, Ting; Kratish, Yosi; Li, Wen-Ding; Gopi, Sivakanth; Caciolai, Andrea; de Witt, Christian Schroeder; Hernández-Cámara, Pablo; Rodolà, Emanuele; Robins, Jules; Williamson, Dominic; Raynor, Brad; Qi, Hao; Segev, Ben; Fan, Jingxuan; Martinson, Sarah; Wang, Erik Y; Hausknecht, Kaylie; Brenner, Michael P; Mao, Mao; Demian, Christoph; Kassani, Peyman; Zhang, Xinyu; Avagian, David; Scipio, Eshawn Jessica; Ragoler, Alon; Tan, Justin; Sims, Blake; Plecnik, Rebeka; Kirtland, Aaron; Bodur, Omer Faruk; Shinde, DP; Labrador, Yan Carlos Leyva; Adoul, Zahra; Zekry, Mohamed; Karakoc, Ali; Santos, Tania CB; Shamseldeen, Samir; Karim, Loukmane; Liakhovitskaia, Anna; Resman, Nate; Farina, Nicholas; Gonzalez, Juan Carlos; Maayan, Gabe; Anderson, Earth; De Oliveira Pena, Rodrigo; Kelley, Elizabeth; Mariji, Hodjat; Pouriamanesh, Rasoul; Wu, Wentao; Finocchio, Ross; Alarab, Ismail; Cole, Joshua; Ferreira, Danyelle; Johnson, Bryan; Safdari, Mohammad; Dai, Liangti; Arthornthurasuk, Siriphan; McAlister, Isaac C; Moyano, Alejandro José; Pronin, Alexey; Fan, Jing; Ramirez-Trinidad, Angel; Malysheva, Yana; Pottmaier, Daphiny; Taheri, Omid; Stepanic, Stanley; Perry, Samuel; Askew, Luke; Rodrguez, Raúl Adrián Huerta; Minissi, Ali MR; Lorena, Ricardo; Iyer, Krishnamurthy; Fasiludeen, Arshad Anil; Clark, Ronald; Ducey, Josh; Piza, Matheus; Somrak, Maja; Vergo, Eric; Qin, Juehang; Borbás, Benjámin; Chu, Eric; Lindsey, Jack; Jallon, Antoine; McInnis, IMJ; Chen, Evan; Semler, Avi; Gloor, Luk; Shah, Tej; Carauleanu, Marc; Lauer, Pascal; Huy, Tran Duc; Shahrtash, Hossein; Duc, Emilien; Lewark, Lukas; Brown, Assaf; Albanie, Samuel; Weber, Brian; Vaz, Warren S; Clavier, Pierre; Fan, Yiyang; Poesia Reis e Silva, Gabriel; Tony Lian, Long; Abramovitch, Marcus; Jiang, Xi; Mendoza, Sandra; Islam, Murat; Gonzalez, Juan; Mavroudis, Vasilios; Xu, Justin; Kumar, Pawan; Goswami, Laxman Prasad; Bugas, Daniel; Heydari, Nasser; Jeanplong, Ferenc; Jansen, Thorben; Pinto, Antonella; Apronti, Archimedes; Galal, Abdallah; Ze-An, Ng; Singh, Ankit; Jiang, Tong; of Arc Xavier, Joan; Agarwal, Kanu Priya; Berkani, Mohammed; Zhang, Gang; Du, Zhehang; de Oliveira Junior, Benedito Alves; Malishev, Dmitry; Remy, Nicolas; Hartman, Taylor D; Tarver, Tim; Mensah, Stephen; Loume, Gautier Abou; Morak, Wiktor; Habibi, Farzad; Hoback, Sarah; Cai, Will; Gimenez, Javier; Montecillo, Roselynn Grace; Łucki, Jakub; Campbell, Russell; Sharma, Asankhaya; Meer, Khalida; Gul, Shreen; Gonzalez, Daniel Espinosa; Alapont, Xavier; Hoover, Alex; Chhablani, Gunjan; Vargus, Freddie; Agarwal, Arunim; Jiang, Yibo; Patil, Deepakkumar; Outevsky, David; Scaria, Kevin Joseph; Maheshwari, Rajat; Dendane, Abdelkader; Shukla, Priti; Cartwright, Ashley; Bogdanov, Sergei; Mündler, Niels; Möller, Sören; Arnaboldi, Luca; Thaman, Kunvar; Siddiqi, Muhammad Rehan; Saxena, Prajvi; Gupta, Himanshu; Fruhauff, Tony; Sherman, Glen; Vincze, Mátyás; Usawasutsakorn, Siranut; Ler, Dylan; Radhakrishnan, Anil; Enyekwe, Innocent; Salauddin, Sk Md; Muzhen, Jiang; Maksapetyan, Aleksandr; Rossbach, Vivien; Harjadi, Chris; Bahaloohoreh, Mohsen; Sparrow, Claire; Sidhu, Jasdeep; Ali, Sam; Bian, Song; Lai, John; Singer, Eric; Uro, Justine Leon; Bateman, Greg; Sayed, Mohamed; Menshawy, Ahmed; Duclosel, Darling; Bezzi, Dario; Jain, Yashaswini; Aaron, Ashley; Tiryakioglu, Murat; Siddh, Sheeshram; Krenek, Keith; Shah, Imad Ali; Jin, Jun; Creighton, Scott; Peskoff, Denis; EL-Wasif, Zienab; P, Ragavendran; Richmond, Michael; McGowan, Joseph; Patwardhan, Tejal; Sun, Hao-Yu; Sun, Ting; Zubić, Nikola; Sala, Samuele; Ebert, Stephen; Kaddour, Jean; Schottdorf, Manuel; Wang, Dianzhuo; Petruzella, Gerol; Meiburg, Alex; Medved, Tilen; ElSheikh, Ali; Hebbar, S Ashwin; Vaquero, Lorenzo; Yang, Xianjun; Poulos, Jason; Zouhar, Vilém; Bogdanik, Sergey; Zhang, Mingfang; Sanz-Ros, Jorge; Anugraha, David; Dai, Yinwei; Nhu, Anh N; Wang, Xue; Demircali, Ali Anil; Jia, Zhibai; Zhou, Yuyin; Wu, Juncheng; He, Mike; Chandok, Nitin; Sinha, Aarush; Luo, Gaoxiang; Le, Long; Noyé, Mickaël; Perełkiewicz, Michał; Pantidis, Ioannis; Qi, Tianbo; Purohit, Soham Sachin; Parcalabescu, Letitia; Nguyen, Thai-Hoa; Winata, Genta Indra; Ponti, Edoardo M; Li, Hanchen; Dhole, Kaustubh; Park, Jongee; Abbondanza, Dario; Wang, Yuanli; Nayak, Anupam; Caetano, Diogo M; Wong, Antonio AWL; del Rio-Chanona, Maria; Kondor, Dániel; Francois, Pieter; Chalstrey, Ed; Zsambok, Jakob; Hoyer, Dan; Reddish, Jenny; Hauser, Jakob; Rodrigo-Ginés, Francisco-Javier; Datta, Suchandra; Shepherd, Maxwell; Kamphuis, Thom; Zhang, Qizheng; Kim, Hyunjun; Sun, Ruiji; Yao, Jianzhu; Dernoncourt, Franck; Krishna, Satyapriya; Rismanchian, Sina; Pu, Bonan; Pinto, Francesco; Wang, Yingheng; Shridhar, Kumar; Overholt, Kalon J; Briia, Glib; Nguyen, Hieu; Quod Soler Bartomeu, David; Pang, Tony CY; Wecker, Adam; Xiong, Yifan; Li, Fanfei; Huber, Lukas S; Jaeger, Joshua; De Maddalena, Romano; Lù, Xing Han; Zhang, Yuhui; Beger, Claas; Kon, Patrick Tser Jern; Li, Sean; Sanker, Vivek; Yin, Ming; Liang, Yihao; Zhang, Xinlu; Agrawal, Ankit; Yifei, Li S; Zhang, Zechen; Cai, Mu; Sonmez, Yasin; Cozianu, Costin; Li, Changhao; Slen, Alex; Yu, Shoubin; Park, Hyun Kyu; Sarti, Gabriele; Briański, Marcin; Stolfo, Alessandro; Nguyen, Truong An; Zhang, Mike; Perlitz, Yotam; Hernandez-Orallo, Jose; Li, Runjia; Shabani, Amin; Juefei-Xu, Felix; Dhingra, Shikhar; Zohar, Orr; Nguyen, My Chiffon; Pondaven, Alexander; Yilmaz, Abdurrahim; Zhao, Xuandong; Jin, Chuanyang; Jiang, Muyan; Todoran, Stefan; Han, Xinyao; Kreuer, Jules; Rabern, Brian; Plassart, Anna; Maggetti, Martino; Yap, Luther; Geirhos, Robert; Kean, Jonathon; Wang, Dingsu; Mollaei, Sina; Sun, Chenkai; Yin, Yifan; Wang, Shiqi; Li, Rui; Chang, Yaowen; Wei, Anjiang; Bizeul, Alice; Wang, Xiaohan; Arrais, Alexandre Oliveira; Mukherjee, Kushin; Chamorro-Padial, Jorge; Liu, Jiachen; Qu, Xingyu; Guan, Junyi; Bouyamourn, Adam; Wu, Shuyu; Plomecka, Martyna; Chen, Junda; Tang, Mengze; Deng, Jiaqi; Subramanian, Shreyas; Xi, Haocheng; Chen, Haoxuan; Zhang, Weizhi; Ren, Yinuo; Tu, Haoqin; Kim, Sejong; Chen, Yushun; Marjanović, Sara Vera; Ha, Junwoo; Luczyna, Grzegorz; Ma, Jeff J; Shen, Zewen; Song, Dawn; Zhang, Cedegao E; Wang, Zhun; Gendron, Gaël; Xiao, Yunze; Smucker, Leo; Weng, Erica; Lee, Kwok Hao; Ye, Zhe; Ermon, Stefano; Lopez-Miguel, Ignacio D; Knights, Theo; Gitter, Anthony; Park, Namkyu; Wei, Boyi; Chen, Hongzheng; Pai, Kunal; Elkhanany, Ahmed; Lin, Han; Siedler, Philipp D; Fang, Jichao; Mishra, Ritwik; Zsolnai-Fehér, Károly; Jiang, Xilin; Khan, Shadab; Yuan, Jun; Jain, Rishab Kumar; Lin, Xi; Peterson, Mike; Wang, Zhe; Malusare, Aditya; Tang, Maosen; Gupta, Isha; Fosin, Ivan; Kang, Timothy; Dworakowska, Barbara; Matsumoto, Kazuki; Zheng, Guangyao; Sewuster, Gerben; Villanueva, Jorge Pretel; Rannev, Ivan; Chernyavsky, Igor; Chen, Jiale; Banik, Deepayan; Racz, Ben; Dong, Wenchao; Wang, Jianxin; Bashmal, Laila; Gonçalves, Duarte V; Hu, Wei; Bar, Kaushik; Bohdal, Ondrej; Patlan, Atharv Singh; Dhuliawala, Shehzaad; Geirhos, Caroline; Wist, Julien; Kansal, Yuval; Chen, Bingsen; Tire, Kutay; Yücel, Atak Talay; Christof, Brandon; Singla, Veerupaksh; Song, Zijian; Chen, Sanxing; Ge, Jiaxin; Ponkshe, Kaustubh; Park, Isaac; Shi, Tianneng; Ma, Martin Q; Mak, Joshua; Lai, Sherwin; Moulin, Antoine; Cheng, Zhuo; Zhu, Zhanda; Zhang, Ziyi; Patil, Vaidehi; Jha, Ketan; Men, Qiutong; Wu, Jiaxuan; Zhang, Tianchi; Vieira, Bruno Hebling; Aji, Alham Fikri; Chung, Jae-Won; Mahfoud, Mohammed; Thi Hoang, Ha; Sperzel, Marc; Hao, Wei; Meding, Kristof; Xu, Sihan; Kostakos, Vassilis; Manini, Davide; Liu, Yueying; Toukmaji, Christopher; Yu, Eunmi; Demircali, Arif Engin; Sun, Zhiyi; Dewerpe, Ivan; Qin, Hongsen; Pflugfelder, Roman; Bailey, James; Morris, Johnathan; Heilala, Ville; Rosset, Sybille; Yu, Zishun; Chen, Peter E; Yeo, Woongyeong; Jain, Eeshaan; Chigurupati, Sreekar; Chernyavsky, Julia; Reddy, Sai Prajwal; Venugopalan, Subhashini; Batra, Hunar; Park, Core Francisco; Tran, Hieu; Maximiano, Guilherme; Zhang, Genghan; Liang, Yizhuo; Shiyu, Hu; Xu, Rongwu; Pan, Rui; Suresh, Siddharth; Liu, Ziqi; Gulati, Samaksh; Zhang, Songyang; Turchin, Peter; Bartlett, Christopher W; Scotese, Christopher R; Cao, Phuong M; Wu, Ben; Karwowski, Jacek; Scaramuzza, Davide
Benchmarks are important tools for tracking the rapid advancements in large language model (LLM) capabilities. However, benchmarks are not keeping pace in difficulty: LLMs now achieve more than 90% accuracy on popular benchmarks such as Measuring Massive Multitask Language Understanding1, limiting informed measurement of state-of-the-art LLM capabilities. Here, in response, we introduce Humanity’s Last Exam (HLE), a multi-modal benchmark at the frontier of human knowledge, designed to be an expert-level closed-ended academic benchmark with broad subject coverage. HLE consists of 2,500 questions across dozens of subjects, including mathematics, humanities and the natural sciences. HLE is developed globally by subject-matter experts and consists of multiple-choice and short-answer questions suitable for automated grading. Each question has a known solution that is unambiguous and easily verifiable but cannot be quickly answered by internet retrieval. State-of-the-art LLMs demonstrate low accuracy and calibration on HLE, highlighting a marked gap between current LLM capabilities and the expert human frontier on closed-ended academic questions. To inform research and policymaking upon a clear understanding of model capabilities, we publicly release HLE at https://lastexam.ai.
A Symptom Network Approach to Schizophrenia in the CATIE Study: Processing Speed as the Central Cognitive Impairment
(Royal College of Psychiatrists, 2026-01-20) Buchwald, Khan; Siegert, Richard J; Vignes, Matthieu; Narayanan, Ajit; Sandham, Margaret
BACKGROUND: People diagnosed with schizophrenia can have functional impairments in multiple domains. Cognitive impairment is central to schizophrenia and has substantial prognostic value compared with other symptoms of schizophrenia. However, no study has previously investigated directed relationships in a complex system of cognitive, sociodemographic, clinical and quality of life (QOL) variables in people diagnosed with schizophrenia. AIMS: To identify the complex relationships of components of cognition with other cognitive components, as well as with clinical and QOL variables. METHOD: This study included data from 1450 participants in the Clinical Antipsychotic Trials of Intervention Effectiveness (CATIE) study. The present study reconstructed a Bayesian network from this data using cognition, clinical, sociodemographic and QOL variables. RESULTS: Processing speed was centrally associated with all other cognitive domains. Cognitive domains were conditionally independent of positive symptoms but moderately associated with negative symptoms (β = -0.25; P < 0.001). The positive symptoms subscale was independent of QOL, conditioning on third variables. Negative symptoms were moderately associated with QOL (β = -0.33; P < 0.001), and processing speed had a weak association with QOL (β = -0.12; P < 0.001). Processing speed was a central variable in the network. CONCLUSIONS: Intervening with respect to processing speed may be the most beneficial way of improving other cognitive functions. More research is needed on directed networks that include social cognition and global levels of functioning.
Structural Brain Differences in Professional Australian Rules Footballers Following Mild Traumatic Brain Injury: When Head Size Matters
(Frontiers Media SA, 2026-01-16) Lee, Jackson M; Pardoe, Heath R; Parker, Donna M; Pedersen, Mangor; Makdissi, Michael; Abbott, David F; Jackson, Graeme D; Mito, Remika
Introduction Concussion, a type of mild traumatic brain injury common in collision sports, is thought to be associated with subtle brain changes that are not visually appreciable on conventional neuroimaging. This study quantified differences in subcortical volumes from structural MRI between 31 recently concussed professional Australian rules footballers (within 3 months of injury) and 37 healthy, non-athlete controls. Methods T1-weighted MRI were acquired at 3 T and processed using FreeSurfer. Hippocampal and amygdala volumes were normalized by estimated total intracranial volume (eTIV). Longitudinal changes were assessed in a subset of 12 footballers with follow-up MRI. Cortical thickness differences were also explored using vertex-wise analysis. Results Footballers exhibited lower proportional hippocampal and amygdala volumes, and reduced cortical thickness compared to controls. However, after exploring different methodological approaches for estimating intracranial volume (ICV), volumetric findings were seen to vary based on the ICV estimation method used for normalization. Discussion This study demonstrates subtle, likely persistent neuroanatomical differences between professional Australian rules footballers and non-athlete controls. Importantly, we advocate for cautious clinical interpretation of volumetric MRI findings considering methodological variabilities, particularly when inherent cohort differences (such as ICV) may bias results, and provide recommendations for future studies that examine volumetric changes in concussion cohorts.
Donor Conception and Psychosocial Support Provisions Across Jurisdictions - What's Out There?
(Informa UK Limited, 2026-02-01) Goedeke, Sonja; Indekeu, Astrid; Crawshaw, Marilyn
As demand for donor conception (DC) rises the landscape is becoming increasingly complex. DC-linking now occurs through various means, including direct-to-consumer DNA testing, which may reveal DC where this has not been disclosed and make those genetically related known to each other, including earlier than is possible through identity-release provisions in many jurisdictions. Early contact between donors and recipient parents, as well as same-donor siblings is becoming more common. Large sibling groups within and across jurisdictions are increasingly being identified and there is also growing reliance on imported gametes and online donor recruitment platforms. These developments can be associated with challenges for donor-conceived people (DCP), parents, donors and their families, and have led to calls for more accessible and responsive psycho-social support services. This paper maps the DC context in ten Western countries, including the availability of psychosocial support and counselling. Given the growing complexity of DC and its lifelong impact on all involved, we pay particular attention to post-donation counselling support related to disclosure, long-term psychosocial wellbeing, and DC-linking. We identify key challenges in existing DC provisions and support systems and propose improvements that support DCP, donors, parents, siblings, and their families in managing the longer-term implications of DC.
Neuroimaging Correlates of Symptom Burden and Functional Recovery Following Mild Traumatic Brain Injury: A Systematic Review
(Elsevier BV, 2025-11-19) McGeown, Joshua P; Pedersen, Mangor; Mito, Remika; Theadom, Alice; Maller, Jerome J; Condron, Paul; Holdsworth, Samantha J
BACKGROUND: Mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) represents 95% of all traumatic brain injuries. Despite being classified as "mild," mTBI can lead to persistent symptoms that impact quality of life. Diagnostic and management strategies rely heavily on subjective symptom reporting due to a lack of validated biomarkers. Identifying neuroimaging biomarkers to characterise the pathophysiological features underlying symptom burden and poor recovery is critical for improving mTBI management. OBJECTIVE: To synthesise evidence on cross-sectional, longitudinal, and prognostic links between Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) features and mTBI symptom burden and functional recovery. METHODS: The review followed PRISMA guidelines. Systematic searches of MEDLINE, SCOPUS, and Cochrane Library identified mTBI studies with acute MRI data, measures of symptom burden or functional recovery, and at least one follow-up clinical timepoint, covering publications to July 18, 2025. Risk of bias was evaluated using the Quality in Prognostic Studies tool, and findings were synthesised narratively. RESULTS: Sixty-two of 7,232 articles were included. The review identified heterogeneous evidence across MRI modalities. Structural MRI findings showed limited correlation with clinical outcomes, while changes in white matter and functional connectivity were more strongly associated with symptom burden and recovery. Disruptions of integrative regions and association pathways such as the thalamus, superior longitudinal fasciculus, and cingulate cortex were linked to worse symptom burden and recovery outcomes. CONCLUSIONS: Acute MRI, when contextualised with clinical data, helps delineate correlates of mTBI symptom burden and functional recovery. To strengthen inference, future neuroimaging studies should prespecify and report symptom burden and functional recovery as core endpoints.
"It's never ending and overwhelmingly difficult": A Mixed-Methods Survey of the Impact of Caregiving for a Loved One With an Eating Disorder in New Zealand
(BMC, 2025-11-29) Donkin, Liesje; Sinclair, Rebecca; Rowland, Sarah; McDougall, Kahlia; Landon, Jason
BACKGROUND: Caregivers of people with eating disorders (EDs) often support refeeding, behavioural monitoring, and co-ordinate therapeutic and medical appointments. Available support is often focused on the person with the ED and rarely on the caregiver. This study examined the impact of caregiving in New Zealand (NZ). METHODS: Current and previous caregivers completed an online, anonymous survey exploring their experience of caregiving and its psychological impact using the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale (DASS-21), the Eating Disorders Symptom Impact Scale (EDSIS), and questions about the long-term impact of caregiving on caregivers' mental health. A comparison was made with data on Australian caregivers. RESULTS: Current caregivers reported higher levels of depression and stress than those not currently caregiving, as well as higher levels of depressive symptoms than Australian caregivers. The impact of ED symptoms were also generally higher in NZ participants compared with Australian caregivers.The perceived impact of the ED was associated with the psychological distress experienced by caregivers with greater impact being linked to more distress. Of those whose loved ones were in recovery, more than 25% experienced ongoing post-traumatic symptoms related to their caregiving experience. CONCLUSION: NZ caregivers reported ongoing effects related to caregiving even when the person with the ED had recovered. NZ caregivers experience a high level of distress and burden that can persist once recovery is achieved. Comprehensive ED support should include interventions to improve caregivers' wellbeing.
Conceptualising Pro-Environmental Behaviour and the Experiences of Anthropogenic Environmental Degradation
(New Zealand Psychological Society Inc., 2024-12-31) Van Kessel, Kirsten; Ashwell, Dana Y; Feather, Jacqueline S
There is growing recognition of the psychological effects of the experience of anthropogenic environmental degradation. Pro-environmental behaviour (PEB) can be an adaptive response and may be influenced by value orientations and psychological processes. Using a mixed-methods approach, quantitative data from 205 New Zealand adults was collected to determine how well value orientations and stress appraisals of anthropogenic environmental degradation predict PEB. Results showed biospheric values and primary appraisals predicted greater engagement in PEB. Qualitative data from 269 New Zealand adults showed that experiences of anthropogenic environmental degradation are multi-dimensional and reflected five themes: depressive emotions; anxious emotions; dissatisfaction and outrage; impact on behaviour and functioning; and hope. The generalisability of the findings is limited given our samples (predominantly female, Pākeha and young) do not reflect the diversity of the wider New Zealand population. Relevance of findings are discussed in promoting wellbeing of individuals and communities whilst maximising mitigation strategies.

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