ScienceDaily: Top Health News

Scientists determined that 9/11 first responders to the World Trade Center have increased levels of mutations that escalate their risk for blood cancers or cardiovascular disease, according to a new study.

Researchers have generated new maps of jet contrails over the United States before and during the COVID-19 pandemic, which show a steep reduction in the area covered by contrails in 2020.

Research shows that traffic accidents decreased by nearly half during the two-month period at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic when residents of most states were under a stay-at-home order.

By employing artificial intelligence (AI) and robotics to formulate therapeutic proteins, a team has successfully stabilized an enzyme able to degrade scar tissue resulting from spinal cord injuries and promote tissue regeneration. The study details the team's ground-breaking stabilization of the enzyme Chondroitinase ABC, (ChABC) offering new hope for patients coping with spinal cord injuries.

A new study -- in mice -- suggests that blocking a major inflammatory pathway that is activated in pancreatic cancer makes the tumors sensitive to chemotherapy and a type of immunotherapy that prompts the immune system's T cells to attack the cancer cells. The therapy more than doubled survival in a mouse model of pancreatic cancer.

Researchers found a unique immune cell plays a key role in the chronic inflammation and scarring in the lungs and skin of people with scleroderma, or systemic sclerosis. After injecting mice with biodegradable PLG nanoparticles, which are used in medical sutures, researchers found that the nanoparticles specifically targeted these inflammatory cells and prevented skin and lung fibrosis. Researchers say it's a promising step towards targeted treatment for patients with early scleroderma.