SOCIOBIOLOGY

Curiosity and fearlessness apparent in German Shepherd genes

Uppsala University

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Meeting ‘ghosts’ is one part of the Dog Mentality Assessment test (DMA) that the dogs in the study underwent.

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Credit: Voichita Marinescu

German Shepherd dogs bred for working are more curious and less neurotic than German Shepherds bred for show. A new study from Uppsala University and the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences has shown that the differences are not only apparent in the dogs’ behaviour, but also in their genes. In previous studies, similar genes in humans have been associated with neuroticism.

A German Shepherd dog’s behaviour is very important because they are used as working dogs, for example in the police force or in the defence forces. Breeding dogs with the right traits can be difficult and costly. But with a better understanding of the genetics underlying such traits, breeding can be improved.

In a new study, ethologists and geneticists worked together to investigate how the behaviour of German Shepherd dogs is reflected in their genes. They have shown that the German Shepherd population in Sweden is comprised of two groups: one bred primarily for their appearance and the other bred for functional roles as working dogs.

“Breeders of working dogs have selected and bred the ones that really enjoy working; it’s a bit like a game for them. It’s interesting that we can now see that this selective breeding has indeed led to differences between working dogs and show dogs among German Shepherds – differences that can be seen at both the behavioural and genetic levels,” says Kerstin Lindblad-Toh, Professor of Comparative Genomics at Uppsala University and one of the study’s leaders.

Investigated German Shepherd behaviour and genetics

To measure behaviour in German Shepherd dogs, a standardised behaviour test called the Dog Mentality Assessment (DMA) was used where the dogs were confronted with a variety of situations. The DMA tests how dogs react to an invitation to play, threatening ghost-like figures, and being handled by a stranger. Today, the majority of German Shepherds in Sweden are tested using the DMA. In the study, the researchers looked at data from around 23,000 German Shepherd dogs.

“We could see that, on average, the working dogs showed less fear, more curiosity and were able to socialise well with humans. This shows how important it is to select for behaviour when selecting dogs for breeding for important functional roles in our community,” says Åke Hedhammar, Professor Emeritus at the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences.

The researchers then took blood samples from 373 German Shepherd dogs who had undergone the DMA to be able to map their genomes.

“We could then see that there were areas in the genome where differences could be seen in the dogs depending on how curious or playful they were, for example. That meant that we were able to identify some of the genes in working dogs that are linked to curiosity and playfulness,” says Kerstin Lindblad-Toh.

In humans too, researchers have also found links between genes and behaviour. Some of the genes that have now been linked to the behaviour of German Shepherd dogs have been associated in previous studies with neuroticism in humans.

“It’s interesting that several of the genes that we identified as influencing behaviour in German Shepherds are also linked to that behaviour in humans. So we now have an example of how we might also acquire more knowledge about different behaviours in people with help of dogs in the long term,” says Kerstin Lindblad-Toh.

Bigger studies in the pipeline with the Swedish Armed Forces

Behaviour is not just controlled by individual genes: it is a complex interaction between many different genes. In collaboration with the Swedish Armed Forces, the researchers are now going to proceed with bigger studies in order to better map the genetics of behaviour.

“That would ultimately mean that these findings could be used to select which dogs have the best prospects of becoming good working dogs and which could be used in breeding. But we are not there yet. This study is just a first step and shows that there are actually clear differences in behaviour between working German Shepherd dogs and German Shepherd show dogs,” Åke Hedhammar says.

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Journal

Animal Genetics

DOI

10.1002/age.70221

Method of Research

Observational study

Subject of Research

Animals

Article Title

he Genetic Architecture of Behavior in the German Shepherd Dog

Article Publication Date

10-Nov-2026

The gaze of a German Shepherd bred for working.

Credit

Voichita Marinescu

 

The Eastern Healthy diet: Inheriting traditional Chinese food culture while reducing multiple health risks

A 10-point diet score built from the food culture of China's coastal south is linked to lower obesity, hypertension and mortality risks

Innovation Press

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The Eastern Healthy Diet (EHD) is derived from the Jiangnan and Southeast Coastal Area (JSECA) of China.

The EHD features dietary diversity, plant-predominant, high-quality protein, and healthy cooking.

Higher EHD adherence was associated with lower obesity, central obesity, hypertension and long-term health risks.

The EHD provides a practical, evidence-based strategy for chronic disease prevention in China.

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Credit: He Y., Wang H., Fang Y., et al. (2026). Eastern healthy diet derived from regional food culture is associated with lower long-term health risks in Chinese adults. The Innovation Nutrition 1:100038. https://doi.org/10.59717/j.xinn-nutri.2026.100038

Over the past four decades, Chinese tables have gained meat, eggs and dairy while losing whole grains, vegetables and fruit. Adult obesity rose from 7.1% in 2002 to 16.4% in 2015–2019; by 2021, cardiovascular disease accounted for 43.5% of all deaths. The problem, increasingly, is not how much people eat but how. A study published in The Innovation Nutrition points to one answer drawn from China's own food culture.

Researchers led by Yuna He and Yuexin Yang of the National Institute for Nutrition and Health at the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention focused on the Jiangnan and Southeastern Coastal Areas — Shanghai, Zhejiang, Jiangsu, Guangdong and Fujian — a region with the country's lowest cardiovascular burden attributable to poor diet and some of its highest life expectancy. There, aquatic products, soy foods, seasonal produce and lightly seasoned cooking are part of everyday eating.

Using the 2015 China National Chronic Non-Communicable Disease and Nutrition Surveillance, a nationally representative survey of 54,920 adults, the team quantified the regional difference: residents of the coastal south ate 60.8 grams of aquatic products per day on average, versus 32.0 grams elsewhere, along with more dark-colored vegetables, citrus and soy foods, and less cooking oil and salt. From these patterns, combined with the Chinese Dietary Guidelines, they built a 10-point Eastern Healthy Diet score: seven food groups to eat adequately, oil and salt to keep moderate, and a food-variety component.

Adherence tracked with health. After adjusting for age, sex, energy intake, socioeconomic status, smoking and physical activity, adults scoring 5.5–10 had 24% lower odds of obesity, 22% lower odds of central obesity and 21% lower odds of hypertension than those scoring 0–3.5. Each 1-point increase was associated with roughly 8% lower odds of obesity and central obesity and 6% lower odds of hypertension. Notably, the association held both inside and outside the region of origin.

Whether the pattern protects over the long run was tested in an independent cohort — the China Health and Nutrition Survey, following 28,037 adults from 1989 to 2018. With scores updated over time, high scorers had a 15% lower risk of incident obesity (hazard ratio 0.85, 95% confidence interval 0.75–0.96) and each 1-point increase came with about 5% lower risk of death from any cause (HR 0.95, 0.91–0.99).

The authors are careful about causality: both analyses are observational, residual confounding cannot be excluded, and the hypertension trend in the cohort just grazed statistical significance. Intervention trials and mechanistic work, they note, are needed before the score can be treated as a prescription. Even so, the study gives Chinese dietary guidance something the Mediterranean diet gave Europe — a pattern rooted in local tables, with numbers behind it.

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He Y., Wang H., Fang Y., et al. (2026). Eastern healthy diet derived from regional food culture is associated with lower long-term health risks in Chinese adults. The Innovation Nutrition 1:100038. https://doi.org/10.59717/j.xinn-nutri.2026.100038

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DOI

10.59717/j.xinn-nutri.2026.100038

Method of Research

Data/statistical analysis

Subject of Research

People

Article Title

Eastern healthy diet derived from regional food culture is associated with lower long-term health risks in Chinese adults

Article Publication Date

23-Sep-2026

COI Statement

Xiang Gao is an Editorial Board member of The Innovation Nutrition and was blindedfrom reviewing or making final decisions on the manuscript. Peer review was handledindependently of this member and their research group. The other authors declare no conflicts of interest.

How populist leaders dismantle intelligence agencies from within: New study reveals the 'intelligence cyclone'

Ben-Gurion University of the Negev

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The populist-intelligence nexus

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Credit: Dr. Ofek Riemer and Dr. Daniel Wajner

BEER-SHEVA and JERUSALEM, Israel, November 12, 2026 -- A new joint study from Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (BGU) and The Hebrew University of Jerusalem reveals how populist leaderships systematically undermine, discredit, and ultimately capture intelligence agencies, transforming vital national security bodies into political echo chambers. The peer-reviewed research, published in Contemporary Security Policy (https://doi.org/10.1080/13523260.2026.2722403), warns that when populist politicians treat secret services as "deep state" adversaries, they disrupt objective threat analysis and leave democracies blind to catastrophic surprise attacks.

The study was co-authored by Dr. Ofek Riemer from the Ben-Gurion Research Institute for the Study of Israel and Zionism at BGU and Dr. Daniel F. Wajner from the Department of International Relations and the European Forum at Hebrew University.

From Intelligence Cycle to 'Intelligence Cyclone'

While the impact of populism on courts, election integrity, and the free press has been widely documented, its corrosive effect on secret intelligence services has remained largely unexamined. The authors argue that populists are inherently predisposed to clash with intelligence agencies due to their anti-elitist ideology, suspicion of secrecy, and hostility toward pluralistic dissent.

By tracking how populist executives interact with spy agencies over time, the researchers identify a three-phase "intelligence cyclone" that replaces objective decision-making:

 

• Phase 1: Selective Use: Early in their tenure, populist leaders rely on existing intelligence infrastructure to manage foreign affairs. However, they soon begin cherry-picking classified assessments that flatter their political narrative while leaking or sidelining inconvenient findings.

 

• Phase 2: Systemic Disregard and Slander: When career analysts deliver warnings that contradict government policy, leaders dismiss their input. As friction spills into public view, populist politicians label agencies as part of an illegitimate "deep state" and deploy conspiracy theories to erode public trust in intelligence personnel.

 

• Phase 3: Institutional Usurpation: With prolonged tenure, populist leaders dismantle checks and balances, push out career officers, and install loyalists through political patronage. Leaders create parallel bodies to produce "intelligence to please," neutralizing independent warnings and blinding the state to emerging crises.

 

The Case of Israel: The Road to Strategic Surprise

To test their framework, the researchers examined Israel under Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu—a "hard case" because security scholars historically regarded Israel as a country where intelligence politicization rarely occurred due to constant existential threats.

The authors trace how Netanyahu’s approach evolved over three decades: from pragmatic cooperation punctuated by selective leaks in his early terms, to systemic disregard for explicit intelligence warnings ahead of the October 7, 2023 catastrophe. In July 2023, for example, when the head of the Shin Bet delivered a direct "strategic alert for war" regarding internal societal divisions, intelligence chiefs were largely sidelined while the government focused on judicial overhauls.

Following the October 7 attacks, this pattern escalated into public blame deflection, attempts to oust career security chiefs, and legislative proposals to create alternative intelligence oversight units directly subordinate to the prime minister.
 

Global Repercussions for Democratic Security

"When populist leaders view expert assessments through the prism of political loyalty, the traditional cycle of objective intelligence breaks down into an uncontrollable cyclone," says Dr. Ofek Riemer from Ben-Gurion University, "Sidelining intelligence agencies does not simply erode democratic norms; it degrades early-warning capabilities and dramatically increases the risk of strategic surprise."

"This dynamic is not unique to Israel," emphasizes Dr. Daniel F. Wajner of Hebrew University. "From intense political pressure within the U.S. security community and its eventual cooptation to similar struggles between populist leaderships and security establishments across Europe and Latin America, the pattern of bringing the people-versus-elites fight into the security realm is universal. Protecting the professional independence of security experts and ensuring pluralism and substantive, merit-based deliberation in decision-making processes is not merely a matter of good governance — it is a prerequisite for national survival."

This work was supported by the Israel Science Foundation (ISF) through the research grant "Populism and International (In-)Security" (Grant No. 2450/22) awarded to Dr. Daniel F. Wajner.

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Journal

Contemporary Security Policy

DOI

10.1080/13523260.2026.2722403

Method of Research

Content analysis

Subject of Research

People

Article Title

The intelligence cyclone: How populism reshapes intelligence-policy relations

Article Publication Date

 12-Nov-2026

The evolution of Netanyahu's approach to intelligence

Credit

Dr. Ofek Riemer and Dr. Daniel Wajner

 

Could an erratic sleep schedule be harming your mental health?

Depression and anxiety may be the price you pay for going to bed and waking up at inconsistent times

University of California - San Francisco

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People with irregular sleep-wake schedules may experience more severe symptoms of anxiety, depression, and even loneliness, according to a large study led by UC San Francisco and UC San Diego.  

Although prior sleep research has largely focused on sleep duration and sleep quality, this study examined sleep regularity — how consistently people followed the same sleep-wake patterns each day — using months of data from wearables. 

The study was published in Scientific Reports on Nov. 12.  

“Regular sleep and wake time help keep circadian rhythms aligned,” said senior author Ashley Mason, PhD, of the UCSF Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences. “Irregular sleep-wake timing may weaken circadian alignment, which is associated with depression and other mental health disorders.” 

Irregular sleep schedules can also disrupt the timing of light exposure, meals, exercise, and social activity, all of which help regulate the circadian rhythm, noted Mason, who is also affiliated with the UCSF Osher Center for Integrative Health.  

In this study, researchers analyzed data from approximately 23,000 participants who were enrolled in TemPredict, a study launched in 2020 to investigate whether data from wearables could help identify COVID-19 before people recognized symptoms.  

Participants contributed an average of 154 days of sleep data, which allowed researchers to examine sleep regularity over time. They also created a “typical week” snapshot to compare their findings with previous, much shorter studies on sleep regularity. They discovered that associations between sleep and mental health were stronger with the longer-term data. 

The participants’ average age was 46 and just under half were women. They wore a smart ring that uses sensors to detect movement and measure vital signs. The smart ring used this data to estimate when they fell asleep and woke up. Researchers were then able to calculate each participant’s Sleep Regularity Index (SRI), ranging from 0 to 100, with higher scores indicating more consistent sleep patterns. 

Worsening depression, anxiety tied to progressive sleep irregularity 

Participants’ depression, anxiety, and loneliness were assessed by a monthly self-reported survey. Overall, less regularly timed sleep correlated with greater depression and anxiety. 

In the long-term analysis, participants with few symptoms of depression or none at all had an average SRI of 84, compared with 83 for those with mild depressive symptoms, 81 for moderate symptoms, and 75 for severe symptoms.   

Participants with normal levels of anxiety had an average SRI of 84, compared to 79 for those with severe anxiety. Participants with elevated loneliness also had less regular sleep-wake schedules.  

“Someone with an SRI of 84 might go to bed and wake up roughly an hour earlier or later than the previous day, on average,” said first author Severine Soltani, PhD, formerly of the Bioinformatics and Systems Biology graduate program at UC San Diego. “For someone with an SRI of 75, that shift in sleep schedule might be closer to an hour and a half.” 

Mason said the association between poor sleep and poor mental health could be codirectional: Irregular sleep could also be explained as a symptom of poor mental health. “Other longitudinal research provides some reason to think that irregular sleep may come first and contribute to later poor health, rather than being solely a consequence of it.” 

The authors say future research should test whether helping people establish more regular sleep schedules can improve mental health. 

 

Authors: Wendy Hartogensis, MPH, PhD, and Frederick Hecht, MD, from UCSF; Stephan Dilchert, PhD, from City University of New York; and Benjamin Smarr, PhD, from UC San Diego. 

Funding: Medical Technology Enterprise Consortium (MTEC) and the U.S. Army Medical Research and Development Command (USAMRDC) under the U.S. Department of Defense. Also #StartSmall Foundation and Oura Health Oy. 

Disclosures: Mason has received remuneration for consulting work for Ouraring Inc. Smarr has received remuneration for consulting work and has a financial interest in the company. 

 

About UCSF: The University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) is exclusively focused on the health sciences and is dedicated to promoting health worldwide through advanced biomedical research, graduate-level education in the life sciences and health professions, and excellence in patient care. UCSF Health, which serves as UCSF’s primary academic medical system, includes top-ranked specialty hospitals and other clinical programs, and has affiliations throughout the Bay Area. UCSF School of Medicine also has a regional campus in Fresno. Learn more at ucsf.edu. 
 

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Follow UCSF 

ucsf.edu | Facebook.com/ucsf | Twitter.com/ucsf | YouTube.com/ucsf 

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Journal

Scientific Reports

Article Publication Date

12-Nov-2026

D.E.I.

Three entrepreneurs from the UC3M Science Park recognized as STEAM Role Models by APTE

Universidad Carlos III de Madrid

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Pictured, from left to right: Fateme Baneshi, Isabel Espejo Díaz, and Marta Lacuna Mohedano.

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Credit: UC3M

Three entrepreneurs linked to the Center for Innovation in Entrepreneurship and Artificial Intelligence (C3N-IA) at the Universidad Carlos III de Madrid (UC3M) Science Park—Fateme Baneshi, Isabel Espejo Díaz, and Marta Lacuna Mohedano—have been selected for the second edition of the list of 90 female STEAM role models published by the Association of Science and Technology Parks of Spain (APTE).

This recognition highlights the contributions of female researchers and tech company founders who are transforming the socioeconomic landscape through R&D+i, while also aiming to inspire scientific and technical vocations among secondary school girls.

The list is part of the ninth edition of the "Science and Technology in Female" (Ciencia y Tecnología en femenino) program, an initiative promoted by APTE alongside 17 of its member parks. The program combines visibility exhibitions, technological challenge workshops, and outreach sessions aimed at educational centers. In this edition, the UC3M Science Park ecosystem—located in Leganés Tecnológico—reinforces its position as a hub attracting female talent in complex fields such as artificial intelligence, biotechnology, and engineering.

From the management of the UC3M Entrepreneurship and Innovation Support Service, Ana Acebrón emphasizes the need for role models that young women can look up to: "Giving visibility to the work of our female scientists is one of the most effective tools for breaking down gender gaps in engineering degrees and fostering inclusive leadership right from the classroom."

Three Young STEAM Role Models

Among the professionals recognized in this new list are Fateme Baneshi, Isabel Espejo Díaz, and Marta Lacuna Mohedano, whose career paths exemplify entrepreneurial drive within STEAM disciplines (science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics). Their projects range from advanced software solutions to the development of business models based on high-value-added scientific knowledge.

Fateme Baneshi (Iran, 1995) holds a PhD in Aerospace Engineering from UC3M, with a doctoral thesis focused on using multi-agent reinforcement learning to optimize aircraft trajectories and mitigate their climate impact. She also holds undergraduate and master's degrees in control engineering, as well as research experience at EPFL and UC3M. She is currently CTO of AI Methods, where she leads innovative projects such as VARIANT, HARMONY-MRV, ISSR-Aware, Contrail Aware, and KAIROS, applying artificial intelligence to aeronautical meteorology and climate intelligence. Her distinguished career includes seven scientific publications, eight international conference papers, and prestigious awards such as the 2023 Luis Azcárraga Aeronautical Innovation Award.

Isabel Espejo Díaz (Seville, 1994) holds a PhD in Biomedicine from Universitat Pompeu Fabra and is a biotechnologist specializing in genetics and bioinformatics. She currently heads the Scientific Product Department at Altum Sequencing and is an associate professor at Universidad CEU San Pablo. She has developed her career across the CRG, Institut Curie, and CNIO, working on cancer genomics, epigenetics, next-generation sequencing, and molecular diagnostics. She has participated in over 12 scientific publications and presentations, is the inventor of a pending patent, and has contributed to the development of diagnostic solutions. At Altum, she leads the scientific strategy for liquid biopsy technologies and minimal residual disease monitoring in oncology.

Marta Lacuna Mohedano (Madrid, 2002) is a Research Success Specialist at 60Nd, a UC3M spin-off, where she participates in the development, validation, and commercialization of NeoMag, a platform designed to accelerate the integration of mechanobiology into preclinical phases. She holds a degree in Biotechnology from Imperial College London and a master's degree in Synthetic and Systems Biology. During her academic career, she worked at the Severo Ochoa Molecular Biology Center (CBMSO), contributing to projects that resulted in three scientific publications. Her work combines research, innovation, and technology transfer to bring new tools closer to the scientific community.