{"id":17130,"date":"2025-09-12T10:41:29","date_gmt":"2025-09-12T14:41:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.purdue.edu\/newsroom\/?p=17130"},"modified":"2025-09-12T11:19:07","modified_gmt":"2025-09-12T15:19:07","slug":"top-5-stories-from-purdue-university-19","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.purdue.edu\/newsroom\/2025\/Q3\/top-5-stories-from-purdue-university-19","title":{"rendered":"Top 5 stories from Purdue University\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\u2018Purdue News Now\u2019<\/a><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Purdue researchers are exploring how targeting excess fat in the brain\u2019s immune cells could reshape treatment for neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer\u2019s. Trevor Peters has that story in this week\u2019s edition of \u201cPurdue News Now,\u201d as well as a preview of Saturday\u2019s football game honoring the 25th anniversary of the Rose Bowl team.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Plus, check out five good stories below you may have missed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Purdue-led study shows how fat disables the brain\u2019s immune shield in Alzheimer\u2019s disease<\/a><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

It was long thought that fat in the brain played no role in neurodegenerative diseases, but Purdue University researchers are challenging that assumption. The research findings, published in Immunity, show that excess fat in the brain\u2019s resident immune cells, called microglia, impairs their ability to combat disease. This insight opens a path to lipid biology-based neuroimmune therapies that could treat diseases like Alzheimer\u2019s by enhancing microglial function and neuronal health. This work was led by Gaurav Chopra, the James Tarpo Jr. and Margaret Tarpo Professor of Chemistry and (by courtesy) of Computer Science at Purdue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Media contact:<\/strong> Trevor Peters, peter237@purdue.edu<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2018More than just an image\u2019: Purdue tech extracts hyperspectral info from conventional photos<\/a><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Professionals in agriculture, defense and security, environmental monitoring, food quality analysis, industrial quality control, and medical diagnostics could benefit from a patent-pending innovation that opens new possibilities of conventional photography for optical spectroscopy and hyperspectral imaging. Young Kim, Purdue University professor, University Faculty Scholar and Showalter Faculty Scholar, and postdoctoral research associate Semin Kwon of the Weldon School of Biomedical Engineering created an algorithm that recovers detailed spectral information from photographs taken by conventional cameras. The research combines computer vision, color science and optical spectroscopy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Media contact:<\/strong> Trevor Peters, peter237@purdue.edu<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Purdue\u2019s SCALE and SCALE K-12 programs partner with Arm to form EducateAI Coalition<\/a><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Purdue University\u2019s Scalable Asymmetric Lifecycle Engagement and SCALE K-12 programs will continue to prepare America\u2019s youth for careers in emerging technologies thanks to a new partnership with high-performing compute platform Arm to launch the Arm EducateAI Coalition. SCALE, led by Purdue, partners with universities, government and industry to prepare a highly skilled microelectronics workforce. The Arm EducateAI Coalition is a nationwide initiative focused on advancing AI literacy and providing students and educators with the knowledge and tools needed to succeed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Media contact:<\/strong> Trevor Peters, peter237@purdue.edu<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

AP video \u2014 NASA rover: Potential biosignatures found on Mars<\/a><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Roger Wiens is a professor of planetary science at Purdue University and leads the SuperCam instrument team on NASA\u2019s Mars Perseverance rover. In this video, he explains the potential signs of ancient life that were discovered on Mars and why this new find is so significant. A sample collected by the Perseverance rover from Jezero Crater may contain signs of ancient microbial life. The rock sample contained small, bleach-white dots called reduction spots. On Earth, reduction spots are left behind by bacteria living on rocks, and these markings on Mars look to be very similar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Media contact:<\/strong> Trevor Peters, peter237@purdue.edu<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Consumers mostly support AI tools to improve food and agriculture<\/a><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Consumers generally support using artificial intelligence to improve food and agricultural production, according to the August Consumer Food Insights Report (CFI). The survey-based report from Purdue University\u2019s Center for Food Demand Analysis and Sustainability assesses food spending, consumer satisfaction and values, support of agricultural and food policies, and trust in information sources. The CFI first addressed AI in food and agriculture in June 2023<\/a>, when ChatGPT was a relatively new tool. Since then, consumers have become more familiar with AI; many use it weekly or even daily. From June 2023 to August 2025, consumers were asked about their support, neutrality or opposition to six applications of AI to food and agriculture, such as reducing food waste on farms by determining how to breed plants for optimal production.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Media contact:<\/strong> Trevor Peters, peter237@purdue.edu<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

MORE: Recent AP video stories<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The AP Newsroom<\/a> (for AP members) and Purdue News YouTube channel<\/a> (for all reporters) provide comments from Purdue experts on timely topics.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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