Scientists have identified that the COVID-19 virus could be transmitted through fecal-contaminated river water. A team of researchers, including water quality, epidemiology, remote sensing and modeling experts, led by Dr. Jamie Shutler at the University of Exeter, have developed a fast and simple way to assess the potential risk of water-borne transmission of the COVID-19 […]
Research team profiles histone mutational landscape of human cancers
Researchers in the Muir Lab at Princeton University’s Department of Chemistry have completed the first comprehensive analysis of cancer-associated histone mutations in the human genome, featuring both biochemical and cellular characterizations of these substrates. Their study reports that histone mutations that perturb nucleosome remodeling may contribute to the development or progression of a wide range […]
The Best Online Dating Apps Of 2021
Despite how much everyone loves to hate it, more people online date than you may think. That’s right, according to the Pew Research Center, three in 10 adults in the United States report having used a dating site or app at some point in their lives. Of course, usage varies significantly by age and sexual orientation, […]
Neanderthal-derived protein may reduce the severity of COVID-19
Researchers at the Lady Davis Institute (LDI) at the Jewish General Hospital have discovered that increased levels of the protein OAS1 are associated with reduced mortality and less severe disease requiring ventilation among patients with COVID-19. Using drugs that boost OAS1 levels could be explored to try to improve these outcomes. The findings are published […]
Single dose of Pfizer BioNTech vaccine reduces asymptomatic infections and potential for SARS-CoV-2 transmission
New data from Addenbrooke’s Hospital in Cambridge suggests that a single dose of the Pfizer BioNTech vaccine can reduce by four-fold the number of asymptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infections. This implies that the vaccine could significantly reduce the risk of transmission of the virus from people who are asymptomatic, as well as protecting others from getting ill. […]
Study shows mother’s diet may boost immune systems of premature infants
Medical researchers have long understood that a pregnant mother’s diet has a profound impact on her developing fetus’s immune system and that babies—especially those born prematurely—who are fed breast milk have a more robust ability to fight disease, suggesting that even after childbirth, a mother’s diet matters. However, the biological mechanisms underlying these connections have […]
A new microchip could help scientists uncover secrets of heart regeneration in baby mice
Baby mice might be small, but they’re tough, too. For their first seven days of life, they have the special ability to regenerate damaged heart tissue. Humans, on the other hand, aren’t so lucky: any heart injuries we suffer could lead to permanent damage. But what if we could learn to repair our hearts, just […]
Discovery offers potential for stripping tumors of T cell protection
Immunologists at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital have discovered that tumors use a unique mechanism to switch on regulatory T cells to protect themselves from attack by the immune system. Surprisingly, the mechanism does not affect regulatory T cell function outside the tumor and may therefore limit the immune-associated toxicities of targeting regulatory T cells. […]
Building a brain: Pioneering study reveals principles of brain tissue structure, assembly
Understanding how the brain works is a paramount goal of medical science. But with its billions of tightly packed, intermingled neurons, the human brain is dauntingly difficult to visualize and map, which can provide the route to therapies for long-intractable disorders. In a major advance published next week in Nature, scientists for the first time […]
Russia detects first case of H5N8 avian flu in humans
Russia said Saturday that its scientists had detected the world’s first case of transmission of the H5N8 strain of avian flu from birds to humans and had alerted the World Health Organization. In televised remarks, the head of Russia’s health watchdog Rospotrebnadzor, Anna Popova, said scientists at the Vektor laboratory had isolated the strain’s genetic […]