Spotlight On... Cannabinoid drug reduces epileptic seizures in hard-to-treat children; Gladstone team creates functional pancreatic cells; Early exercise linked to a healthy gut; and more...

In a study involving 162 children and young adults, investigators at UCSF Benioff Children's Hospital San Francisco found that a purified cannabinoid reduced the number of seizures suffered by patients with severe epilepsy. There was a 36.2% reduction in monthly motor seizures among the children taking Epidiolex, which eliminates the psychotropic element in cannabis. Release

> Scientists at the Gladstone Institutes and the University of California, San Francisco have converted human skin cells into functional pancreatic cells. Release

> Gut microorganisms have become a subject of intense interest in biotech, with links to a variety of diseases. But researchers at the University of Colorado Boulder say that they have gathered evidence that suggests, not surprisingly, that the best path to a healthy gut--with better mental and metabolic health--starts with exercise early in life. Release