Hello Health Rounds readers! Today we report on genetic differences that help explain higher rates of depression among girls and women. We also feature two studies presented at a large meeting of gastroenterologists in Berlin. One looked at the potential effects of microplastics on microbes in the intestines, while the other studied the connection between artificially-sweetened and low-sugar beverages and fatty liver disease.

Among the breaking news stories from our Reuters colleagues: US health official calls for separating measles combination shots; measles-free status in jeopardy in the Americas; Trump voters balk at restricting traditional vaccines; US Supreme Court to examine gay 'conversion therapy' ban; and immune system breakthrough wins Nobel medicine prize.

Also: Gaza babies forced to share oxygen masks as Israel blocks equipment; dengue cases surge across Bangladesh; police in India launch manslaughter probe into cough syrup deaths; and at least 15 million teens use e-cigarettes worldwide.

Mary Brunkow, Fred Ramsdell and Shimon Sakaguchi have won the 2025 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for work shedding light on how the immune system spares healthy cells, creating openings for possible new treatments for autoimmune diseases and cancer.

Genetic factors contribute more to depression risk in females than in males, according to a large Australian study that may help further understanding of why women are more likely to suffer from the condition.

Analyzing DNA samples from nearly half a million people, researchers found roughly twice as many genetic ‘flags’ for depression in females compared with males, the research team reported in Nature Communications.

“We already know that females are twice as likely to suffer from depression in their lifetime than males,” study leader Dr. Brittany Mitchell of QIMR Berghofer Medical Research Institute in Brisbane said in a statement.

“Until now, there hasn’t been much consistent research to explain why depression affects females and males differently, including the possible role of genetics,” Mitchell said.

The team identified about 7,000 changes in DNA that could cause depression in both sexes, and about a further 6,000 DNA changes that could cause depression in females only.

The researchers also found that the genetic factors linked to depression overlap more with genes for metabolic traits in females than in males.

The differences may help explain why females with depression more often experience metabolic symptoms such as weight changes or altered energy levels, they said.

The researchers say most drug trials and therapies are tested on males, and they hope their work will also translate to a greater clinical understanding of female depression.

“These findings underscore the importance of considering sex-specific genetic (factors) in the study of health conditions, including major depressive disorder, paving the way for more targeted treatment strategies,” the researchers concluded.