Medicine

A research team in the United States has developed a nanoparticle-based dual vaccine against Bacillus anthracis and Yersinia pestis — pathogens that cause anthrax and plague, respectively. This scanning electron micrograph shows macrophages infected with Bacillus anthracis. Image credit: Max Planck Institute for Infection Biology. Vaccines are one of the …

A team of researchers in China has developed drug-delivering contact lenses that could self-report the drug release process by color change. The team’s work appears in the journal ACS Applied Materials Interfaces. Color-changing contact lenses could help doctors determine whether drugs are being delivered to the intended treatment site. Image …

Multiple sclerosis is an immune-mediated autoimmune disease of the central nervous system that develops in genetically susceptible individuals and requires environmental triggers. A new study, published in the journal Science Translational Medicine, shows that gut microbiota could play a big role in the pathogenesis of this disease. Under a high …

Asthma is one of the most common lung diseases, affecting 241 million people worldwide. This disease is characterized by airflow limitation caused by inflammation, excess mucous secretion, remodeling changes, such as goblet cell metaplasia and increased smooth muscle mass and acute conducting airway constriction in response to stimuli, usually allergens. …

New research, conducted by scientists from Korea and Australia, paves the way for a new treatment for atopic dermatitis, by testing the effect of bee venom and its major component, melittin, on mice and human cells. Hyun-Jin An et al found that bee venom and melittin possess potent anti-atopic activities. …

Losing just one night of sleep can have a tissue-specific impact on the regulation of gene expression and metabolism, according to new study. The findings, published in the journal Science Advances, may explain how long-term shift work and chronic sleep loss can impair metabolism and adversely affect human body composition. …

A new study led by the National Institute on Aging shows that a long daily period of fasting improves the health and survival of male mice, regardless of caloric intake, diet composition, and body weight. Increasing daily fasting times made mice healthier and live longer compared to mice who ate …

A team of researchers at Michigan State University has developed an iPhone X app that measures blood pressure via the ‘oscillometric finger pressing method.’ Chandrasekhar et al invented a proof-of-concept blood pressure app that can give accurate readings using an iPhone. Image credit: Michigan State University. “By leveraging optical and …

A team of scientists from the Scripps Research Institute and the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center has demonstrated that adding an ‘adjuvant’ molecule called diprovocim to a new vaccine can draw cancer-fighting cells to tumor sites. An experimental vaccine that boosts the immune system’s ability to fight cancers could …

A traditional non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) called diclofenac poses a cardiovascular health risk compared with no use, paracetamol use, and use of other traditional NSAIDs, according to a study led by Aarhus University Hospital researchers. Diclofenac is associated with an increased risk of major cardiovascular events. Image credit: Petr Vnukko. …