Abortion Pill Web Searches Surged After Leaked SCOTUS Decision
Internet searches on abortion medication spiked to “record national highs” following the leak of the draft Supreme Court ruling on Roe v. Wade, researchers reported. In the 72 hours following the leaked draft on May 2, searches related to abortion medications were 162% (95% CI 149-175) higher than expected, with approximately 350,000 searches for abortion […]
Nanoparticles control flow of light like road signs direct traffic
Physicists at The Australian National University (ANU) have developed tiny translucent slides capable of producing two very different images by manipulating the direction in which light travels through them. As light passes through the slide, an image of Australia can be seen, but when you flip the slide and look again, an image of the […]
Prediabetes May Be an Independent Risk Factor for MI
Even prediabetes seemed to spell bad news for heart health, according to a national inpatient sample study. Prediabetes — defined as an Hba1c between 5.7% to 6.4% — among hospitalized patients was associated with 41% higher odds for myocardial infarction (MI, OR 1.41, 95% CI 1.35-1.47) in a general model, reported Geethika Thota, MBBS, of […]
Decoding the language of immune responses: Research has implications for improved immunotherapy treatments
Researchers from McGill University and the US National Cancer Institute (NCI) have made some surprising discoveries about our immune system. By using mathematical modelling to look at specific aspects of immune responses in mice and humans, their data-driven approach, described in a recent article in Science, reveals that immune responses may exist on a finer […]
Highest Efficiency 1-Sun Solar Cell
Researchers at the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) created a solar cell with a record 39.5% efficiency under 1-sun global illumination. This is the highest efficiency solar cell of any type, measured using standard 1-sun conditions. “The new cell is more efficient and has a simpler design that may be useful […]
Study gives animal testing alternatives a confidence boost
As part of a government effort to reduce animal testing, researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have worked with the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) and Inotiv Inc. to produce a new protocol for screening skin allergens. The method is potentially cheaper and faster than animal testing, while maintaining a similar […]
Changing climate impacts biodiversity in protected areas globally: Research underscores importance of adopting climate-smart conservation strategies
Protected areas — such as nature reserves, national parks, and wilderness areas — are essential to conserving biodiversity. New research published in Environmental Research Letters provides insights for developing climate-smart conservation strategies. The study looked at the global network of protected areas, evaluated potential for shifts in where plants and animals occur due to climate […]
Did a Singing-Based Program Hit the Right Notes for Long COVID Patients?
An online singing-based program from the English National Opera (ENO) was associated with improvements in quality of life among adults with long COVID, a pragmatic randomized trial in England showed. Compared with usual care, the 6-week ENO Breathe program was associated with improvements in mental health composite scores on the RAND 36-item short form survey […]
Newly identified cell type could be the key to restoring damaged salivary glands: Scientists make fundamental advance in understanding salivary gland biology
Scientists at Scripps Research and the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research have discovered a special type of cell that resides in salivary glands and is likely crucial for oral health. As the researchers described in Cell Reports on April 12, 2022, the new type of salivary gland cell called “ionocyte” that works to […]
This Is What Happens To Your Brain When You Orgasm
For National Orgasm Day, we know they feel good – but what exactly do they do to our brains? We asked sex therapist and neuroscientist Dr Nan Wise, author of Why Good Sex Matters to explain exactly what happens when we orgasm, from how our brain registers pleasure to the health benefits behind the Big […]