Author: healthadmin

A major international collaboration between researchers at the University of Huddersfield and the University of Southampton has provided new insights into when and how modern humans, Homo sapiens, first settled in New Guinea and Australia. The project brings together experts in archaeogenetics and marine archaeology, and was funded by the European Research Council awarded to Professor Helen Farr from the University of Southampton. The genetic analysis was led by Professor Martin Richards from the University of Huddersfield. Ancient Sahul and early human migration During the last ice age, global sea levels were much lower than they are today. At that…

Virica Biotech (“Virica”), a cell enhancer company specializing in viral sensitizers (VSE™) for the production of viral vectors, today announced that it will receive advisory services and funding from Canada’s National Research Council Industrial Research Assistance Program (NRC IRAP) under the Japan-Canada Collaborative Innovation Program in partnership with Fujifilm Biosciences. This collaboration will focus on optimizing the VSE formulation of FUJIFILM Biosciences BalanCD® HEK293 medium to support academic and commercial AAV producers worldwide. AAV vectors are alive Gene delivery for gene therapy, but remains difficult and expensive to manufacture at scale. As the pipeline expands to more indications and broader…

Consumers’ experience with insurers’ digital platforms is improving as they become more familiar with the tools, and supporting their adoption represents a major opportunity for the industry, new research finds. JD Power released its annual study examining customer attitudes toward digital channels, finding that more than a third (38%) of people enrolled in commercial plans use their insurer’s digital apps. This represents a notable increase from last year, when 31% were actively using health plan apps. However, the survey found that usage is declining among Medicare Advantage enrollees. Just 10% of MA members use their plan’s mobile app, down 4…

Tara Banau covers hospitals, health care providers, and insurance companies. You can access Tara with the signal tarabannow.70.At first glance, Charleston, West Virginia, New York, New York, and Janesville, Wisconsin may seem to have little in common. But these three metros have some of the highest per capita healthcare costs in the country, a new report found. There are other surprises as well. California’s three metros, which are notoriously expensive, have the lowest spending, while West Virginia’s two metros are among the highest spending. STAT Plus: Health-care job growth has stagnated at the largest for-profit companies. The Health Care Cost…

The correlation between smoking and neurodegeneration is well established, with one 2011 study finding that heavy smoking in midlife was associated with a more than 100% increased risk of dementia, Alzheimer’s disease, and vascular dementia more than 20 years later. Dementia is an understudied effect of smoking, and the reason is simple and frightening. It develops later in life, and smokers tend to die younger. Many of the theories about smoking and dementia revolve around the effects of smoking on the vascular and respiratory systems, essentially blocking the flow of oxygen to the brain after decades of continuous smoking. But…

Eating a high-quality plant-based diet is associated with a lower risk of Alzheimer’s disease and other related dementias compared to eating a lower-quality plant-based diet, according to a study published in the journal Science on April 8, 2026. Neurology®Medical Journal of the American Academy of Neurology. Although this study shows an observational association, it does not prove that a high-quality plant-based diet reduces the risk of dementia. Researchers investigated three plant-based diets. A holistic plant-based diet prioritizes plant foods over animal products such as meat, milk, and eggs, regardless of quality. A healthy plant-based diet prioritizes healthy plant foods such…

The state of Florida relies on UCF experts to find better ways to prevent domestic violence and give victims a stronger voice in the services they need. Through a $257,384 two-year grant from the Florida Partnership to End Domestic Violence, faculty in UCF’s Violence Against Women Research Cluster are conducting a statewide domestic violence needs assessment. Their findings will help policy makers and local agencies develop better strategies to fund and support domestic violence prevention programs that empower victims. “A common goal of our work is to give a voice to the people who work in these programs and the…

Researchers at the University of Minnesota Medical School have developed a new method called PARTAGE that can provide a clearer picture of how genomes are regulated and disrupted in diseases such as cancer. The results of this research have recently Genome research. PARTAGE allows researchers to measure three key features of the genome from the same sample: when DNA is replicated, changes in DNA copy number, and gene activity. Traditionally, these processes have been studied in separate experiments, making it difficult to understand how cells coordinate these processes. PARTAGE allows researchers to connect DNA replication, genomic changes, and gene activity…

Autism Brainnet has published new research revealing a significant gap between public support for autism research and perceptions of how that research is conducted. While most Americans recognize the importance of studying autism brains, far fewer understand the role postmortem brain donation plays in advancing scientific discoveries. The survey found that 92 percent of respondents thought it was very or very important to analyze the brains of people with autism. However, 70% said they had never heard of brain donation. This disconnect suggests that many people evaluate progress in autism research without understanding what makes it possible. Brain donation and…

Last June, multiple mainstream media outlets reported that the number of drug overdose deaths in the United States would skyrocket in early 2025, based on data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). A new study from Northwestern University finds that the surge is not real and that the apparent spike is an artifact of statistical modeling and not a true reversal of the overdose trend. In fact, the study found that overdose deaths have continued to decline since peaking in August 2023, marking the longest sustained decline in more than 40 years. Lead author Lorie Ann Post…