ScienceDaily: Top Health News


Breakthrough COVID-19 infections spur strong antibody responses

Posted: 21 Jan 2022 01:55 PM PST

People vaccinated three times or vaccinated after an earlier COVID-19 infection had comparable neutralizing antibody activity to those with a breakthrough case, according to a new study.

Research finds patients and providers differ in opinions about immediate access to medical records

Posted: 21 Jan 2022 09:49 AM PST

A recent study found that about 63% of clinicians surveyed agree that immediate release of electronic medical records is more confusing than helpful to patients.

In Science, small groups create big ideas

Posted: 21 Jan 2022 09:49 AM PST

To understand the dynamics of emerging topics in science and medicine, researchers looked at researcher participation in articles containing emerging keywords over 50 years. They found that although more human resources are needed for publication, large research groups less frequently generate emerging topics. Moreover, expertise in certain topics has become important for generating emerging topics, and researchers who generate emerging topics now tend to remain in that field.

Late-life exercise shows rejuvenating effects on cellular level

Posted: 21 Jan 2022 09:48 AM PST

When 2-year old mice were studied after two months of progressive weighted wheel running, despite having no prior training, it was determined that they were the epigenetic age of mice eight weeks younger than sedentary mice of the same age.

People who are depressed may be more susceptible to misinformation about COVID-19 vaccines

Posted: 21 Jan 2022 09:48 AM PST

In a 50-state survey-based study, adults with depressive symptoms were twice as likely to support misinformation about COVID-19 vaccines. People who endorsed false statements were half as likely to be vaccinated against COVID-19.

Sex-typical behavior of male, female mice guided by differences in brain’s gene activity

Posted: 21 Jan 2022 09:44 AM PST

Scientists found more than 1,000 gene-activation differences between female and male mice's brains, plus more than 600 between females in different stages of their reproductive cycle.

Oral immunotherapy induces remission of peanut allergy in some young children

Posted: 20 Jan 2022 05:12 PM PST

A clinical trial has found that giving peanut oral immunotherapy to highly peanut-allergic children ages 1 to 3 years safely desensitized most of them to peanut and induced remission of peanut allergy in one-fifth.

New MRI expands access to life-saving imaging

Posted: 20 Jan 2022 01:51 PM PST

MRI is a powerful medical tool that provides detailed images of everything from bones and joints to the brain and spinal cord, but millions of patients can't benefit from the improved care it provides. Implanted devices like defibrillators and pacemakers interfere with the MRI's magnetic signal, while obese and claustrophobic patients are often unable to get into the small opening on a traditional MRI machine.

Researchers highlight COVID-19 neurological symptoms and need for rigorous studies

Posted: 20 Jan 2022 01:50 PM PST

In a new article, experts highlight what is currently known about the effects of SARS-CoV-2 on the brain, the importance of increased research into the underlying causes of Long COVID and possible ways to treat its symptoms.

Poor fidelity may mean effective education strategies never see light of day

Posted: 20 Jan 2022 01:50 PM PST

Promising new education interventions are potentially being 'unnecessarily scrapped' because trials to test their effectiveness are insufficiently faithful to the original research, a study warns. Researchers ran a large-scale computer simulation to examine how much 'fidelity' compromises the results of school-based trials of new learning innovations and strategies. 'Fidelity' is the extent to which these evaluations adhere to the original research on which the educational intervention is based.

Undescended testis: Fate of fertility predicted by blood biomarkers

Posted: 20 Jan 2022 11:07 AM PST

In boys with undescended testis, the risk of developing infertility is traditionally predicted based on a decrease in germ cell count observed using testicular biopsy samples. However, the process of testicular biopsy carries the risk of injury, infection, and developing subfertility. In a new study, researchers from Japan have identified an alternative means of predicting future infertility based on serum sex hormone ratios without performing the testicular biopsy.

Novel nanoantibiotics kill bacteria without harming healthy cells

Posted: 20 Jan 2022 06:12 AM PST

The CDC estimates more than 2.8 million Americans experience antibiotic-resistant infections each year. To address this critical issue, researchers recently investigated whether a series of novel nanoparticles can kill some pathogens that lead to infection without affecting healthy cells.

Calcium: Important not just for your bones but also for your heart

Posted: 19 Jan 2022 11:28 AM PST

Researchers found a previously unknown gene mutation that can cause an incurable heart condition called dilated cardiomyopathy. This gene, BAC5, is important for the movement of calcium ions in the heart muscle and calcium ions are what drives the pumping of the heart. The good news is that the investigators also found a way to fix the mutation through a novel gene therapy approach, demonstrating a potential treatment for this devastating disease.