Author: healthadmin

A striking new image from the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope highlights Messier 88 (M88), a spiral galaxy embarking on a journey that will unfold over hundreds of millions of years. M88, also known as NGC 4501, is located approximately 63 million light-years from Earth in the constellation of Coma. M88 is classified as an active galaxy because the supermassive black hole at its center is actively consuming gas and dust. Scientists estimate that this black hole contains about 100 million times the mass of the Sun. As it feeds, it appears to push streams of gas outward from the galaxy’s…

Walk into a bakery or bookstore in Bavaria’s Chiemgau region and you might find customers paying with colorful banknotes printed with grasshoppers, ladybugs and other insects, a type of play money. “An estimated 10-15% of customers pay this way,” one bookseller told DW. The locals call it “Chiemgauer” and it is a currency they themselves invented. It may sound exotic, but it underpins a microfinance system that has been operating for more than 20 years and has recently evolved into a tool to reduce carbon emissions in this beautiful corner of southeastern Germany. A classroom experiment that has gotten out…

In a groundbreaking study, Stevens researchers have shown how colorectal cancer evolves from mature intestinal cells back to stem cells. These findings explain why colorectal cancer is so resistant to treatment and may help develop effective treatments for intestinal tumors. Colorectal cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death in the United States. Even more worrying is that the incidence of colorectal cancer is rising rapidly in adults under 55. Research has linked a combination of factors, including a Western diet high in processed foods, fats and sugar, a sedentary lifestyle, obesity, and changes in the gut microbiome, all…

More than half of people with HIV will experience chronic pain at some point, which is difficult to treat. new JNeurosci A paper by Hui-Lin Pan and colleagues at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center investigated how HIV causes chronic pain in mice. Previous studies have independently linked a viral protein called glycoprotein 120 (gp120) to increased pain sensitivity and excessive signaling of a type of nerve receptor in the spine to neuralgia. Based on these findings, researchers sought to investigate whether gp120 influences signaling at this neuronal receptor. Injecting gp120 into the spines of mice increased neuroreceptor…

A new PET radiotracer accurately detects deep vein thrombosis in the legs and reveals whether the blood clot has traveled to the lungs. By enabling whole-body imaging of blood clots in a single scan, this approach could support faster and more efficient diagnosis, especially for patients who also need evaluation for potentially life-threatening pulmonary embolism. This research was presented at the Society of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging (SNMMI) 2026 Annual Meeting, and a collection of images showing visualization of blood clots in the legs and lungs was selected as the 2026 SMMMI Henry N. Wagner, Jr. Image of the…

For more than a century, biology has been guided by the principles of heredity, first explained by Gregor Mendel through his famous pea experiment. These rules explain how many genetic traits are passed from parent to child, but scientists also knew that DNA sequence isn’t everything. In addition to the genes themselves, parents can pass on epigenetic changes. These are chemical modifications that affect the function of genes without changing the underlying DNA code. Now, a new federally funded study in mice suggests that some of these genetic epigenetic marks do not follow Mendel’s classical laws. Researchers found that about…

Building on the success of a project that increased strength by adding motors to traditional knee, hip, and ankle braces, a team at the University of Michigan is studying how effective this approach is in reducing knee pain caused by osteoarthritis. “This has the potential to create entirely new types of orthodontic interventions that don’t currently exist, and could potentially delay surgery or prevent people from having surgery,” said Robert Gregg, UM professor of robotics and leader of the project, which received $2 million in funding from the National Institutes of Health. In previous research, the exoskeleton, or exos, developed…

Researchers at VIB, VUB, and an international network of collaborators have created the most comprehensive single-cell atlas of tumor-associated dendritic cells to date. By integrating data from 14 mouse tumor models and 10 human cancer types, this study provides a detailed cross-species view of how these important immune cells are organized and altered in cancer. This work, which appeared in nature communications, It can guide the development of next-generation treatments. Current status of diverse and conserved immunity Using single-cell RNA-sequencing, the research team identified more than 30 different dendritic cell subsets and functional states within tumors. These include well-established populations…

Women who report having more power in their relationships tend to care less about their partner’s financial resources. Instead, they value physical attractiveness more. This suggests that what women seek in a mate adapts to their level of power and control within the partnership. The study was published in Personality and Individual Differences. Evolutionary psychology has long proposed that men and women seek different characteristics in romantic partners. Men often prioritize youth and appearance. Women usually place more importance on their partner’s economic prospects and social status. This classic view is based on the basic biological realities of human reproduction.…

The Government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and the World Health Organization (WHO) reaffirmed their strong partnership and shared commitment to protect the health and well-being of the people of Ituri and the country as a whole, following a joint mission to Bunia led by Minister of Health Dr. Samuel Roger Kamba, Minister of Communications and Media Patrick Muyaya Katembwe, and a visit by WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. The high-level visit comes at a difficult time as the country is dealing with the Ebola outbreak caused by the Bundibugyo virus. The Ministry of Health reports…