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Category: biotech/medical – Page 741

New rapid prototyping method for microscale spiral devices

A team of researchers from Tohoku University and Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology (OIST) has achieved significant advancement in the field of microfluidics, allowing for precise and efficient manipulation of fluids in three-dimensional microscale environments. This work opens up new possibilities for bioanalytical applications, such as cell separations in the realm of medical diagnostics.

Details of their breakthrough were published in the journal Microsystems & Nanoengineering on January 22, 2024.

Microfluidic devices are designed to handle minuscule fluid volumes, allowing researchers to perform analyses and processes with remarkable precision and efficiency.

Exercise’s Dopamine-Driven Cognitive Boost

An exciting study reveals how exercise boosts brain power.

Summary: Recent research has revealed a significant link between exercise and improved cognitive performance, attributing this enhancement to increased dopamine levels. This discovery, involving sophisticated PET scans to monitor dopamine release in the brain during exercise, indicates that dopamine plays a vital role in boosting reaction times and overall brain function.

The study’s implications are far-reaching, suggesting potential therapeutic applications for conditions influenced by dopamine, like Parkinson’s disease and ADHD. The research underscores the importance of voluntary exercise for cognitive health, differentiating it from involuntary muscle stimulation.

Sick of being sick? As respiratory viruses roar back, experts offer guidance

It crept up slowly, almost imperceptibly. A vague rawness at the back of my throat. A thrumming malaise. On Thanksgiving Day, it lunged.

For two weeks, I was in the grip of an unusually malevolent respiratory illness. But I was in good company: Nationwide, the percentage of health care visits for flulike symptoms ticked up above the baseline at the start of November and has remained elevated ever since, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

“All the respiratory viruses are back in full force,” Anne Liu, MD, a Stanford Medicine immunologist and infectious disease specialist confirmed. The main reasons, she said, are fairly straightforward: Social distancing and masking are not popular choices in the wake of the pandemic.

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