John Hamilton

Many psychedelics come from natural sources, like mushrooms, medicinal plants, or the skin of a Sonoran desert toad.

But a team in Israel thought there must be an easier way to obtain large quantities of mind-bending compounds, including psilocybin and DMT.

So, they studied how living organisms make these substances.

Then, they genetically altered a tobacco plant to give it the same ability.

The result?

A tobacco plant capable of simultaneously producing five different psychedelics.

These products aren't intended for recreational use, though.

The goal is a better source of psychedelics for experimental treatments of psychiatric conditions, including depression, anxiety, and PTSD.

John Hamilton, NPR News.

The families carry very rare gene mutations that cause Alzheimer's to appear in middle age.

For nearly two decades, the National Institutes of Health has funded research on these families through a group called the Dominantly Inherited Alzheimer's Network.

Dr. Tammy Benzinger of WashU Medicine says it's unclear whether that will continue amid cuts in research by the Trump administration.

In 2025, the NIH rejected a grant application that would have brought about $13 million in the first year.

Instead, the network got about $8 million and no money for international sites, which account for about half of its families.

The current funding is scheduled to run out on June 30th.

John Hamilton, NPR News.

For much of the world, normal is gone.

It's called the Independent Autism Coordinating Committee.

It was formed just weeks after HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

replaced every member of a similar committee that advises the federal government on autism research priorities.