Fine air particles, less than 2.5 micrometers in diameter (PM2.5), are a major air pollutant linked to various health problems. These particles can travel deep into the lungs and even enter the bloodstream when inhaled. Recent research suggests a major health concern: PM2.5 exposure can also damage the digestive system, including the liver, pancreas, and intestines.
The human genome consists of around 3 billion base pairs and humans are all 99.6% identical in their genetic makeup. That small 0.4% accounts for any difference between one person and another. Specific combinations of mutations in those base pairs hold important clues about the causes of complex health issues, including heart disease and neurodegenerative diseases like schizophrenia.
With IT systems down, staff at Ascension have to use manual processes they left behind some 20 years ago. It’s the latest in a string of attacks on health care systems that house private patient data.
Elon Musk traveled to Bali this weekend to officially launch Starlink, the SpaceX satellite internet service, in Indonesia this Sunday.
At a launch event with ministers in a health clinic in Indonesia, Musk stressed the significance of providing internet access to far-reaching corners of the vast archipelago, comprised of 17,000 islands across three time zones.
Researchers at the Francis Crick Institute, the National Cancer Institute (NCI) of the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) and Aalborg University in Denmark have found that vitamin D encourages the growth of a type of gut bacteria in mice which improves immunity to cancer.
Reported today in Science, the researchers found that mice given a diet rich in vitamin D had better immune resistance to experimentally transplanted cancers and improved responses to immunotherapy treatment. This effect was also seen when gene editing was used to remove a protein that binds to vitamin D in the blood and keeps it away from tissues.
Surprisingly, the team found that vitamin D acts on epithelial cells in the intestine, which in turn increase the amount of a bacteria called Bacteroides fragilis. This microbe gave mice better immunity to cancer as the transplanted tumours didn’t grow as much, but the researchers are not yet sure how.
A new AI-based analytical technique reveals that specific language phrasing in Reddit misinformation posts foretold people rejecting COVID vaccinations.
The founders of Perelel, which sells prenatal vitamins, say charitable giving is baked into their business model. Today they’re making good on that promise.
UCLA Health researchers have identified a process that memories while reducing metabolic costs, even during sleep. This efficient memory is found in a brain region essential for learning and memory, which is also where Alzheimer’s disease originates.
The discovery is published in the journal Nature Communications.
Does this sound familiar: You go to the kitchen to fetch something, but when you get there, you forget what you wanted. This is your working memory failing. Working memory is defined as remembering some information for a short period while you go about doing other things. We use working memory virtually all the time. Alzheimer’s and dementia patients have working memory deficits and it also shows up in mild cognitive impairment (MCI). Hence, considerable effort has been devoted to understanding the mechanisms by which the vast networks of neurons in the brain create working memory.
Cells in the human body chat with each other all the time. One major way they communicate is by releasing tiny spheres called exosomes. These carry fats, proteins, and genetic material that help regulate everything from pregnancy and immune responses to heart health and kidney function.
Now, a new Columbia University study in Nature Nanotechnology demonstrated that these “nanobubbles” can deliver potent immunotherapy directly to tough-to-treat lung cancer tumors via inhalation.
“Exosomes work like text messages between cells, sending and receiving information,” said lead researcher Ke Cheng, PhD, professor of biomedical engineering at Columbia. “The significance of this study is that exosomes can bring mRNA-based treatment to lung cancer cells locally, unlike systemic chemotherapy that can have side effects throughout the body. And inhalation is totally noninvasive. You don’t need a nurse to use an IV needle to pierce your skin.”
