First human CRISPR trial passes safety and ethics review
Last week, a proposal representing the first use of CRISPR (Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats) in humans passed a…
Operation Pangea targets unlawful internet sales of illegal prescription drugs
The FDA along with several international regulatory and law enforcement agencies took action this week against over 4,000 websites that…
Green light reduces migraine headaches
Migraine headaches, or migraines, are defined as an intense throbbing or a pulsing sensation in one area of the head,…
Tylenol and other paracetamol painkillers may hinder the brain’s error-correction mechanisms
It’s been known for more than a century that acetaminophen (also known as paracetamol and marketed as Tylenol and Panadol)…
Stimulant drug abuse appears to reduce brain volume in women but not men
Using MRI to study the brains of cocaine and meth users, researchers found that while the women demonstrated widespread brain…
Study questions whether lab-grown cells are a faithful model for human disease
Studies of human diseases such as cancer rely on the use of laboratory-grown cell cultures that have often been grown…
Selfie shots used to monitor mental health
University of Rochester computer scientists have developed innovative software that turns smartphones into mental health monitoring devices. Describing the project…
Gut flora link to Parkinson’s disease
Medical researchers in Finland hope that their discovery of a significant variation in the gut microbiota of Parkinson’s sufferers could…
Near-death experiences: new study finds evidence to back anecdotal claims
A four-year international study of 2,060 cardiac arrest cases in 15 hospitals in the United Kingdom, United States, and Austria…
Medicos find more evidence of baldness and prostate cancer link
A new study, published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, lends weight to the notion that male pattern baldness and…
Antihistamines may be next blockbuster anti-cancer drug
Scientists have established a connection between two diseases that aren’t commonly linked: allergy and cancer. The new research, published in…
Paraplegic men move their legs again after breakthrough therapy
Epidural electrical stimulation, which delivers a continuous electrical current to the lower spinal cord, has allowed four young men who…
A cure for age-related sleep problems?
As the quality of our sleep worsens as we get older, our overall quality of life suffers too. But age-related…
Stress hormone a key player in financial crises
Scientists studying levels of the stress hormone cortisol in financial traders say that appetite for risk may be “physiologically-driven” by…
Study reveals how ecstasy triggers euphoria
A study in the journal Biological Psychiatryreveals for the first time how the illicit drug ecstasy (3,4-methylenedioxy-N-methylamphetamine (MDMA)) produces feelings…
Ultrasound used to enhance senses
Ultrasound is widely used in medicine to reveal what’s happening inside the body, but scientists at Virginia Tech have found…
Stem cells breathe new life into lungs
For the first time, scientists have succeeded in transforming human stem cells into functional lung and airway cells, an advance…
Marijuana memory problems prevented with Advil
The molecular pathways responsible for the learning and memory problems associated with marijuana use have been mapped by scientists for…
Vegetable compound protects against lethal radiation
A compound derived from cruciferous vegetables such as cabbage, cauliflower and broccoli has been found to offer protection from lethal…
Tramadol painkiller found in nature
For the first time ever, a synthetic medication produced by the pharmaceutical industry has been discovered in strong concentrations in…
Down syndrome may be reversible
Scientists say they have identified a compound that dramatically bolsters learning and memory when given to mice with a Down…
Blood test could identify those at risk of suicide
Indiana University researchers say they have found a series of RNA biomarkers in blood that may help identify who is…
Revealing cancer’s deep evolutionary roots
A new way to look at cancer – by tracing its evolutionary roots to the dawn of multicellular life more…
Brain regions where ideas become contagious identified
How do ideas spread? Why do some videos go viral? UCLA scientists have taken a first step toward answering these…
Nil by mouth: oral ingestion blamed for rapid rise of antibiotic resistance
A new study into antibiotic resistance in the journal Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy points the finger of blame squarely at…
Medicinal clays may be new weapon against antibiotic-resistant infections
Arizona State University’s Biodesign Institute is trying a new approach to developing effective, topical antibacterial agents – one that draws…
Marijuana users have smaller waists, better blood sugar control
A new study in The American Journal of Medicine has found that regular marijuana use is associated with beneficial effects…
Nose loses monopoly on sense of smell
In a discovery suggesting that odors may have a far more important role in life than previously supposed, scientists have…
Stroke diagnosed via txt messaging
The inability to write a coherent text message may become an important tool in diagnosing a type of crippling stroke…
Medicos mull possible link between obesity and ADHD
A new University of Illinois study has established a possible link between high-fat diets and childhood cognitive conditions such as…