The US Food and Drug Administration has approved TNKase or Tenecteplase, which is a thrombolytic or clot-dissolving agent, for the treatment of acute ischemic stroke in adults.

Ischemic strokes happen when a blood clot blocks a blood vessel in your brain. It can cause permanent brain damage and death. If enough brain cells die, you can also lose the abilities or body functions those cells control. They are also the most common types of stroke, with 80% of all strokes being ischemic strokes.

How is TNKase administered?

It is delivered as a single five-second intravenous bolus, which is faster than the standard of care Activase or alteplase, which is administered as an intravenous bolus followed by a 60-minute infusion. The manufacturer of TNKase, Genetech said a new 25-mg vial configuration will also be available in the coming months.

How Was TNKase approved?

The approval came at the backdrop of a study that compared TNKase to Activase in patients with acute ischemic stroke. These patients also presented with a disabling neurological deficit. Results show that TNKase was comparable to Activase in terms of efficacy and safety.

How Common Are These Strokes?

In the United States it self, it affects more than 795,000 people each year and is the leading cause of long-term disability. It is also the fifth leading cause of death. Since brain damage can happen if this progresses rapidly, one needs an immediate, fast-acting medical care.

TNKase thus provide a faster and simpler administration which can be critical for anyone. The chief medical officer and head of global product development at Genetech, Levi Garraway, MD., PhD., said, "Today's approval is a significant step forward and underscores our commitment to advancing stroke treatment options for patients."

What Are The Symptoms Of Ischemic Strokes?

Some of the most common symptoms include weakness or paralysis on one side of your face and body. You may also feel trouble speaking or have loss of speech, also known as aphasia. You may faced slurred or garbled speaking, also known as dysarthria. Other symptoms include loss of muscle control on one side of your face, or sudden worsening or loss of your senses, including vision, hearing, smell, taste, and touch.

Other symptoms include:

• Loss of coordination or clumsiness
• Blurry vision or double vision
• Dizziness or vertigo
• Nausea and vomiting
• Neck stiffness
• Mood swings or sudden personality changes
• Confusion or agitation
• Seizures
• Memory loss (amnesia)
• Headaches which are sudden and severe
• Passing out or fainting
• Coma

Are There Any Warning Signs?

While these are symptoms one has who is prone to this condition. However, often, many may confuse it with other illnesses. It is best to keep an eye out for warning signs. These could be looking out for yourself or your loved one. Note if there is a sudden loss of balance. Look out for sudden vision loss or changes in one or both eyes. Look for a droop on one or both sides of your face, especially when you smile. Raise both arms and see if one arm sags or drops in a way it usually does not. Note for your speech. Are you as fluent? Are you have trouble speaking? If you see any of such signs, start tracking it and talk to your healthcare provider.

Barbados recently joined the list of 26 countries and territories that have been certified by the World Health Organization for eliminating mother-to-child-transmission (EMTCT) of HIV, syphilis or hepatitis B. 15 of these countries are in the Americas, which makes the region a global leader to achieve this feat.

The major public health milestone comes after years of sustained efforts to prevent mother-to-child-transmission of HIV.

Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General, said, “I congratulate Barbados on protecting a generation of children from HIV,” said “Barbados has shown what universal health coverage looks like in practice: free services for every pregnant woman, regardless of nationality, and care that respects her rights and privacy. With 15 countries and territories in the Americas now recognized, the region continues to show the world the way.”

How Did Barbados Prevent Mother-To-Child HIV Transmission?

Also read: Exclusive With Leading HIV Expert: What's Driving Rising HIV Cases Among India's Youth And How To Prevent It

The Caribbean country's achievement was backed by widespread coverage of antenatal care, HIV testing and antiretroviral treatment.

“Barbados has shown that eliminating mother-to-child transmission of HIV is possible when women and children have access to quality health services without barriers,” said Dr Jarbas Barbosa, Director of the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) and WHO Regional Director for the Americas.

“This achievement means that children are born free of HIV and that women living with HIV can access the care and treatment they need. It is a proud moment for Barbados, the Caribbean, and the global effort to end AIDS in children.”

During the three-year period, 98% of pregnant women received antenatal care, 98% were tested for HIV, and 98% of pregnant women living with HIV received antiretroviral treatment.

An essential step in Barbados' HIV elimination strategy is making HIV testing and treatment accessible to all pregnant women. Free HIV testing and treatment are available to all pregnant women regardless of race and nationality. These services are available through public clinics and hospitals.

“This is incredible for us, and it allows us to be able to see our children living their full, best lives. It allows mothers to be able to have the benefit of treatment during pregnancy, before treatment, but also, it means that we're able to ensure that we have a healthier population, and we're able to join the other countries around the globe that have also equally been able to achieve this historic milestone,” said Lisa Cummins, Minister of Health and Wellness of Barbados.

Additionally, pregnant women are offered voluntary and confidential HIV testing. Those who test positive are provided specialised care and treatment to reduce the risk of passing the virus to their babies.

Antiretroviral therapy (ART) is central to preventing mother-to-child HIV transmission. These medicines suppress HIV in the body, reducing the amount of virus in the blood. When an HIV+ pregnant woman receives ART, the risk of transmission to her baby can be reduced significantly.

Barbados also provides early testing and follow-up care for babies at risk of contracting HIV from their mothers.

Also read: 1 In 60 Adults In Fiji May Now Have HIV As Meth Use, Unsafe Injecting And Treatment Gaps Fuel Surge

How Does HIV Pass From Mother To Child?

HIV can be transmitted from a woman living with HIV to her child during pregnancy, childbirth or breastfeeding. This is known as vertical transmission or mother-to-child transmission.

Without preventive interventions, the risk of transmission can be significant. However, timely diagnosis, antiretroviral treatment during pregnancy and appropriate care around childbirth can substantially reduce this risk.

With effective treatment and appropriate medical support, women living with HIV can have children who are born without the infection.

The WHO certification recognises that Barbados has brought transmission down to a level at which it is no longer considered a public health problem. It does not mean that HIV has been eliminated from the country.

In a world first, scientists have administered AI-designed viruses to a human patient to treat a serious antibiotic-resistant bacterial infection. The experimental treatment marks a milestone in the development of personalized therapies that use artificial intelligence (AI) to design viruses capable of targeting drug-resistant bacteria.

California-based AI startup Radical Numerics announced the development in a blog post, saying a patient with a serious bacterial infection received an experimental treatment containing viruses generated by its AI model, Omnii-1.

How AI Helped Design the Viruses

Also read: AI Creates 16 Viruses To Kill Drug-Resistant E. coli, Raises Biosafety Concerns

The treatment uses bacteriophages, or phages, which are viruses that infect and kill bacteria. Phage therapy is being explored as an alternative when antibiotics fail, particularly in drug-resistant infections.

However, identifying phages that can effectively target the specific bacteria causing an individual patient's infection remains a major challenge.

Antibiotic resistance is a growing global health threat. A 2024 study published in The Lancet projected that bacterial antimicrobial resistance could directly cause 39.1 million deaths globally between 2025 and 2050.

Radical Numerics said it trained Omnii-1, its multimodal genome language model, to address the challenge of identifying and designing effective phages.

"We trained Omnii-1, our multimodal genome language model, to help bridge this gap. We demonstrate that it can generate viable phages, prioritize variants, and predict phage-host interactions," the company said.

"In the world's first clinical use of AI-generated phages, Omnii-1 designs were administered to a human patient under compassionate use," it added.

How Did the AI-Designed Phage Treatment Work?

Read More: Anthropic Says Claude Blocked Bird Flu, Chikungunya Research: How AI Could Enable Biological Misuse

According to the company, researchers tested the AI-designed viruses against bacteria obtained from the patient before administering the treatment. The resulting phage cocktail eliminated the patient's antibiotic-resistant bacterial sample in laboratory testing.

The treatment was administered under an authorized, physician-led compassionate-use pathway. Compassionate use allows patients with serious conditions to access investigational treatments outside clinical trials when satisfactory alternatives are unavailable, subject to regulatory authorization and appropriate oversight.

The report has not been peer-reviewed or published in a scientific journal. Company officials said the trial had been authorized by the Food and Drug Administration, the New York Times reported.

The company has not disclosed the patient's diagnosis, clinical course or treatment outcome, citing privacy concerns. It is therefore unclear whether the treatment successfully cleared the infection.

Eric Nguyen, chief executive officer of Radical Numerics, said the company was prioritizing patient confidentiality and intended to publish its findings through peer-reviewed research.

"We intend to publish our scientific findings through peer-reviewed research, with any future disclosure of clinical details subject to appropriate consent," he added.

The company said making phage therapy accessible to more patients would require reliable workflows for designing effective phages against individual bacterial infections.

Previous Research Used AI to Design Bacteria-Killing Viruses

The development comes amid growing interest in using AI to accelerate medical research, including the design of new biological therapies.

In August 2026, researchers at Stanford University and the Arc Institute announced that they had used AI to design previously unseen bacteriophages capable of killing E. coli bacteria in laboratory experiments.

Of nearly 300 AI-designed phages synthesized and tested, 16 produced functional viruses. However, these experiments were conducted in bacteria and did not involve human patients.

The Radical Numerics development goes a step further by reporting the clinical administration of AI-designed phages to a human patient.

The share of US children aged 5–17 who had ever received an attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) diagnosis increased from 9.9% in 2019 to 13.8% in 2025, according to new CDC data.

Nearly 1 in 7 children and adolescents aged 5–17 in the US have received an ADHD diagnosis, according to a QuickStats report published in the CDC's latest Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR).

The National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) found that the percentage of children who had ever been diagnosed with ADHD increased by 3.9 percentage points over the seven years, representing a relative rise of approximately 39%.

More boys received the diagnoses than girls throughout the period, although the trends fluctuated from year to year.

ADHD Diagnoses Among US Children: Trends From 2019 to 2025

Also read: ADHD Linked To 71% Higher Risk Of Death; Suicide And Injuries Among Top Concerns

According to the CDC data, the percentage of US children and adolescents aged 5–17 who had ever received an ADHD diagnosis rose from 9.9% in 2019 to 11.6% in 2020. It dipped to 10.8% in 2021 before increasing to 11.5% in 2022.

The figure climbed to 13.4% in 2023, 13.6% in 2024 and 13.8% in 2025.

Among boys, the percentage increased from 13.2% in 2019 to 17.5% in 2025, reaching a high of 17.6% in 2024.

Among girls, it rose from 6.5% in 2019 to 9.9% in 2025, although it dipped from 9.9% in 2023 to 9.3% in 2024.

The estimates are based on household interviews with a sample of the civilian, noninstitutionalised US population. The survey considered children to have an ADHD diagnosis if a parent or respondent answered yes to whether a doctor or health professional had ever told them the child had ADHD or attention-deficit disorder (ADD).

What Is ADHD?

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a neurodevelopmental condition that affects attention, executive function, impulse control and activity levels. It typically begins in childhood, with symptoms appearing before age 12, and can persist into adulthood.

Read More: Attention Deficit May Be The Wrong Way To Understand ADHD, Says US Psychiatrist

What Are the Symptoms of ADHD?

According to the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), ADHD symptoms fall into two primary categories:

• Inattention: Difficulty sustaining focus, missing details, making careless mistakes, forgetfulness in daily routines and struggling to stay organised.
• Hyperactivity and impulsivity: Fidgeting, excessive talking, restlessness, interrupting others and acting without thinking. In adults, hyperactivity may also manifest as internal restlessness.

AAP Guidance on ADHD Evaluation and Treatment in Children

The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) 2019 clinical practice guideline recommends that primary care clinicians initiate an ADHD evaluation for children and adolescents aged 4–18 who present with academic or behavioural problems and symptoms of inattention, hyperactivity or impulsivity.

The guideline recommends assessing children using the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-5) criteria, based on information from parents, teachers and other school personnel.

It also calls for screening for coexisting emotional, behavioural, developmental and physical conditions.

For preschool-aged children, parent training in behaviour management is recommended as a first-line approach.

For school-aged children and adolescents, the AAP recommends FDA-approved medication alongside behavioural and school-based interventions. It also emphasises managing ADHD as a chronic condition, with ongoing monitoring and follow-up.