ScienceDaily: Top Health News

COVID-19 pandemic linked to an increase in intimate partner aggression, study shows

Posted: 17 Aug 2021 04:30 PM PDT

Rates of physical and psychological aggression among couples increased significantly after the implementation of shelter-in-place restrictions at the outset of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a new study. The findings indicate that stress related to the pandemic was strongly associated with perpetration of intimate partner aggression, even among individuals considered at low risk.

Use your team’s emotions to boost creativity

Posted: 17 Aug 2021 04:30 PM PDT

If you're putting together a team for a project, you might be inclined to pick people with cheerful, optimistic dispositions and flexible thinking. But a new management study indicates your team might also benefit from people who are exactly the opposite.

New study reveals that children of mothers with diabetes during pregnancy have an increased risk of eye problems

Posted: 17 Aug 2021 04:30 PM PDT

A new study finds that mothers who have diabetes before or during their pregnancy are more likely to have children who go on to develop eye problems.

Vaccine stockpiling by nations could lead to increase in COVID-19 cases, novel variant emergence, study finds

Posted: 17 Aug 2021 12:25 PM PDT

The extent of vaccine nationalism, wherein countries stockpile vaccines to prioritize access for their citizenry over equitable vaccine sharing, may strongly impact global trajectories of COVID-19 case numbers and increase the potential emergence of novel variants, according to a new study.

Dieting: Villain or scapegoat?

Posted: 17 Aug 2021 10:14 AM PDT

For decades, there has been an accepted definition of dieting in academia, and in society as a whole. Researchers recently reevaluated the decades of dieting research to redefine the way researchers and the public define -- and therefore understand - dieting and the culture of weight loss.

Antibodies elicited by COVID-19 vaccination effective against delta variant

Posted: 17 Aug 2021 10:14 AM PDT

Researchers have found that the delta variant of the virus that causes COVID-19 is largely unable to evade antibodies elicited by vaccination. The findings help explain why vaccinated people have been at low risk of getting seriously ill with COVID-19 despite a surge in cases caused by the delta variant.

Engineers grow 3D bioprinted blood vessel

Posted: 17 Aug 2021 10:14 AM PDT

Scientists have designed a 3D-bioprinted model of a blood vessel that mimics its state of health and disease, thus paving the way for possible cardiovascular drug advancements with better precision.

How microbes can exacerbate cognitive decline

Posted: 17 Aug 2021 10:13 AM PDT

Recent research has found that changes in the gut microbiota -- the trillions of bacteria and other microbes that live in the intestines -- can alter the brain and behavior. A new study could elucidate how and why that phenomenon occurs.

Contact tracing is key to suppressing COVID-19, research shows

Posted: 17 Aug 2021 10:13 AM PDT

New research suggests that officials should prioritize contact tracing and quarantine.

Genome-editing strategy developed for potential Alzheimer’s disease therapy

Posted: 17 Aug 2021 09:15 AM PDT

Scientists have developed a novel strategy using brain-wide genome-editing technology that can reduce Alzheimer's disease(AD) pathologies in genetically modified AD mouse models. This advanced technology offers immense potential to be translated as a novel long-acting therapeutic treatment for AD patients.

Pregnant women do well with COVID vaccine, survey finds

Posted: 17 Aug 2021 08:30 AM PDT

A survey of more than 17,000 pregnant and lactating women who received the COVID-19 vaccine showed that they did not experience symptoms any more severe than their non-pregnant counterparts.

Benefits of time-restricted eating depend on age and sex

Posted: 17 Aug 2021 08:14 AM PDT

Time-restricted eating (TRE), a dietary regimen that restricts eating to specific hours, has garnered increased attention in weight-loss circles. A new study further shows that TRE confers multiple health benefits besides weight loss. The study also shows that these benefits may depend on sex and age.

Gender revolutions in who holds the purse strings

Posted: 17 Aug 2021 08:14 AM PDT

New research has uncovered considerable class differences in the gender revolution of who holds the purse strings among British couples. Low-earning and high-earning women are taking more control of the finances in their relationships, but in different ways, says the research.

Histamine could be a key player in depression, according to study in mice

Posted: 17 Aug 2021 08:14 AM PDT

Bodily inflammation dampens levels of a 'feel-good molecule' and antidepressants' ability to boost them, according to new research in mice.

Brain organoids develop optic cups that respond to light

Posted: 17 Aug 2021 08:13 AM PDT

Human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) can be used to generate brain organoids containing an eye structure called the optic cup, according to a new study. The organoids spontaneously developed bilaterally symmetric optic cups from the front of the brain-like region, demonstrating the intrinsic self-patterning ability of iPSCs in a highly complex biological process.

Hamster study evaluates airborne and fomite transmission of SARS-CoV-2

Posted: 17 Aug 2021 07:43 AM PDT

Scientists studying SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, have defined in Syrian hamsters how different routes of virus exposure are linked to disease severity. Their study details the efficiency of airborne transmission between hamsters and examines how the virus replicates and causes disease throughout the respiratory system.

Researchers uncover evolutionary forces at play in the aging of the blood system and identify people at increased risk of blood cancer

Posted: 17 Aug 2021 06:41 AM PDT

Study shows how the interplay of positive, neutral and negative evolutionary selection acting on mutations in aging blood stem cells can lead to acute myeloid leukemia (AML) in some individuals with age-related clonal hematopoiesis (ARCH).

Vitamin D may protect against young-onset colorectal cancer

Posted: 17 Aug 2021 06:41 AM PDT

Consuming higher amounts of Vitamin D -- mainly from dietary sources -- may help protect against developing young-onset colorectal cancer or precancerous colon polyps, according to a new study.

New research provides clues to developing better intranasal vaccines for COVID-19 and flu

Posted: 17 Aug 2021 05:46 AM PDT

While gut microbiota play a critical role in the induction of adaptive immune responses to influenza virus infection, the role of nasal bacteria in the induction of virus-specific adaptive immunity is less clear. New research explores the role of nasal bacteria and provides clues to developing better intranasal vaccines for flu and COVID-19.

Mutated enzyme weakens connection between brain cells that help control movement

Posted: 17 Aug 2021 05:46 AM PDT

In one type of a rare, inherited genetic disorder that affects control of body movement, scientists have found a mutation in an enzyme impairs communication between neurons and what should be the inherent ability to pick up our pace when we need to run, instead of walk, across the street.

Researchers confirm speed, simplicity and sensitivity for new COVID-19 test

Posted: 16 Aug 2021 04:13 PM PDT

Researchers have published a three way comparison study to confirm that the Reverse Transcriptase Free Exponential Amplification Reaction (RTF-EXPAR) method is just as sensitive, but faster, than both PCR and LAMP tests. The study revealed that the RTF-EXPAR method converts under 10 strands of RNA into billions of copies of DNA in under 10 minutes, using a one-pot assay that is compatible with more basic, benchtop equipment than that used with current testing methods.

Small protein protects pancreatic cells in model of type 1 diabetes

Posted: 16 Aug 2021 03:49 PM PDT

A new study has shown that treating type 1 diabetes-prone mice with the small protein MOTS-c prevented the immune system from destroying insulin-producing pancreatic cells, effectively preventing the onset of the autoimmune disease. The small protein that first made headlines as an 'exercise mimetic' increasingly appears to also have a big role in regulating the immune system.

Blind people can’t see color but understand it the same way as sighted people

Posted: 16 Aug 2021 09:57 AM PDT

People born blind have never seen that bananas are yellow but researchers find that like any sighted person, they understand two bananas are likely to be the same color and why. Questioning the belief that dates back to philosopher John Locke that people born blind could never truly understand color, the team of cognitive neuroscientists demonstrated that congenitally blind and sighted individuals actually understand it quite similarly.

Researchers develop new way to study neurodegenerative diseases

Posted: 13 Aug 2021 12:19 PM PDT

Some proteins in cells can separate into small droplets like oil droplets in water, but faults in this process may underlie neurodegenerative diseases in the brains of older people. Now, researchers have developed a new method to quantify protein droplets involved in these diseases.