Newly discovered organ may be lurking under your skin
(National Geographic) — Most people who’ve been jabbed by a needle know the drill: First the pierce, then the sharp, searing pain and an urge to pull away, or at least wince. While the exact circuitry behind this nearly universal reaction is not fully understood, scientists may have just found an important piece of the […]
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Scientists develop 3D printed pill that samples bacteria found in the gut
(Angela Betsaida B. Laguipo/ Medical Life Science News) — The gut microbiome is made up of trillions of living microbes, and more than a thousand species of bacteria. It has been known that the gut plays major roles in the body’s health. A team of university engineers may have developed a way to study and […]
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Are our brains addicted to information?
(Maria Cohut/ Medical News Today) — According to new research, human brains really are hungry for information, and this hunger can devolve into unhealthful snacking-like behaviors now that we have unfettered access to random information. Humans are naturally curious beings. We constantly seek to learn, explore, and understand. However, curiosity may not always be a […]
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We finally know why arteries harden with age, and there could be a surprising fix for it
(David Nield/ Science Alert) — The hardening of our ageing arteries has been a tricky process to pin down, but new research might finally have the answer. It might even take us closer to treatments that limit this blood vessel condition, which can increase the risk of heart attack, dementia and stroke. While it’s already […]
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How 3-D printing could help shape surgery
(Sarah Webb/ Knowable Magazine) — What you see in the image above is a lobe of a liver, times two — on the right, a flesh-and-blood one, removed from a transplant donor, and on the left, one created from plastic to represent bile ducts, arteries and veins, laid down, layer by layer, by a 3-D […]
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Scientists discovered how to convert Type A blood into Type O
(Roxana Ion/ TechTheLead) — Statistically speaking, every two seconds, an American needs a blood transfusion. However, for a successful one, the patient and donor blood types must be compatible. Nowadays, researchers have discovered that microbes in the human gut produce two enzymes able to convert type A into a more universally accepted type, type O. […]
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Enzyme in blood of young mice slows aging in older ones
(Julia Evangelou Strait-Wustl/ Futurity) — Scientists have discovered a potential way to stave off the detrimental effects of aging, according to their research in mice. The study suggests that a protein that is abundant in the blood of young mice plays a vital role in keeping them healthy. With age, levels of this protein decline […]
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AI beats radiologists for accuracy in lung cancer screening
(Roxanne Nelson, RN, BSN/ Medscape) — Lung cancer screening using low-dose computed tomography (LDCT) is now recommended for certain populations, and while it has been shown to reduce mortality, there are persistent challenges with this technology, including inter-grader variability and high rates of false-positive and false-negative results. Artificial intelligence (AI) may be able to help […]
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Study reveals how general anesthetics affect the brain
(Catharine Paddock/ Medical News Today) — New research in mice reveals for the first time that diverse drugs that induce general anesthesia activate a brain circuit that brings on sleep. The scientists at Duke University in Durham, NC who carried out the study, suggest that the findings will help to develop better drugs that can […]
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Researchers in Israel create first 3D-printed heart
(Bryan Lynne/VOA News) — Israeli researchers say they have created the world’s first three-dimensional-printed heart using a patient’s own cells. The researchers, from Tel Aviv University, recently announced the experiment and showed off the new 3D-printed heart. Their findings were published in the journal Advanced Science. They described the experiment as “a major medical breakthrough.” […]
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