Cancer uses antioxidants to disarm the immune system, scientists discover

from ScienceDaily

Scientists have discovered that tumors release natural antioxidants to shut down the immune cells responsible for destroying cancer, exploiting a surprising weakness in the body's defenses. Blocking this mechanism in mice restored immune activity and improved immunotherapy responses, potentially opening a new path toward more effective cancer treatments.

explained

The immune system is a network of biological systems that protects an organism from disease. It detects and responds to pathogens such as viruses, bacteria, and parasites, as well as cancer cells and foreign objects, while distinguishing them from the body's own healthy tissue. Its innate branch gives a preconfigured response to broad groups of threats, while the adaptive branch learns to recognize specific molecules it has encountered before. This memory is the basis of vaccination.

Background adapted from Wikipedia: Immune system ↗ · text CC BY-SA 4.0

how it works

Immune cells such as T cells use short bursts of reactive oxygen species as signals to activate and kill. Tumours secrete antioxidants that mop these signals up, leaving the cells inactive. Blocking the antioxidant release lets the signal through again.

so what

It points to a new way to boost immunotherapy, which still fails in many patients. It also hints that blanket antioxidant supplements deserve caution in cancer, though this finding comes from mice and is not yet tested in people.

fun fact

Immunotherapy drugs that release the immune system's brakes won the 2018 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.

Indonesia's vice president Gibran Rakabuming Raka resigns over eligibility and credentials questions

the gist

Indonesian Vice President Gibran Rakabuming Raka handed his resignation to parliament after questions were raised about his eligibility for office and his academic credentials. Gibran is the son of former president Joko Widodo, and his resignation came as Widodo publicly backed the president, Prabowo Subianto. Gibran had been elected vice president in 2024 as Prabowo's running mate. His candidacy was made possible by a 2023 Constitutional Court ruling on the minimum age for candidates, which was itself controversial. Parliament will now consider the resignation.

so what

The vice presidency is the constitutional successor role to the presidency, so the vacancy matters for who would stand in if the president could not serve.

fun fact

Indonesia is the world's largest archipelagic state, with more than 17,000 islands.

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Data: GDELT Project

Illustrative photo · Jayakatwang, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

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supplementary video · Epimetheus on YouTube ↗

world cultures & travelWikivoyageclassic9th–15th century · Siem Reap, Cambodia

Angkor was the largest pre-industrial city on Earth, covering about 3,000 square kilometres

the gist

Angkor, near Siem Reap in northern Cambodia, was the capital of the Khmer Empire, which ruled much of mainland Southeast Asia between roughly the 9th and 15th centuries. At its height the city spread across about 3,000 square kilometres, making it the largest pre-industrial city on Earth by area. Its growth depended on water: huge reservoirs called barays, along with canals and embankments, stored monsoon rain and carried it to rice fields. That system let farmers harvest more than once a year and fed a very large population through the dry season. The temple complex of Angkor Wat, built in the early 12th century, is the best-known monument and still stands at the heart of the park.

how it works

The Khmer kings built enormous rectangular reservoirs that caught monsoon rain during the wet season. Earthen dykes and canals moved that water into rice paddies, so farmers could grow crops across much of the year. The surplus food supported craftsmen, builders and the workforce that raised the temples.

so what

Angkor shows how a society without industrial machinery could build a city on a scale that rivals modern metropolises, using engineering and water management instead. Some historians link its decline to drought, flooding and shifts in its water systems, which makes it a long-running case study in how cities depend on managing water. The site is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the most important archaeological landscapes in Southeast Asia.

fun fact

The outline of Angkor Wat appears on the national flag of Cambodia.