Author: healthadmin

Scientists have identified brain circuits that help worker bees decide what tasks to perform within the colony. Biologists from the Heinrich-Heine University (HHU) in Düsseldorf and the universities in Cologne and Frankfurt/Main have discovered that they can change the behavior of honeybees by manipulating specific genes and selectively reducing the activity of specific neural circuits. Research results published in scientific journals Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), provides new insights into how colonies organize their workforces without leaders assigning tasks. How do bees divide work without a leader? The success of a community depends on its members completing…

If a parent contracts an infection while breastfeeding, their body can transmit biological stress signals to the newborn through tiny particles hidden in the breast milk. Recent research has revealed that changing the parental environment to be more engaging and supportive can block these stress signals and protect infants’ developing brains and future behavior. The study was published in the journal Molecular Psychiatry. Breast milk provides more than just calories and basic nutrition. It contains a wide variety of hormones, immune cells, and microscopic bubbles called extracellular vesicles. These tiny membrane-covered packages act like biological mail carriers. They safely travel…

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WVLT) – When her son Orion was a baby, Lauren Quinn started making small changes in her home to reduce her family’s exposure to microplastics, like replacing plastic baby bottles with glass ones, switching to glass cutting boards and stainless steel cups.Orion is currently 4 years old. Quinn said the online community guided her through the process.”Just change his eating silverware and other items from plastic to stainless steel, and his drinking cups to durable glass, stainless steel or ceramic cups,” Quinn said.What is microplastic?Microplastics are tiny particles that are found in almost everything people use, eat and…

Recent research published in scientific progress They found that increasing levels of certain protective proteins in the brain can reduce the toxic buildup of tau, a protein associated with Alzheimer’s disease. The findings suggest that increasing this protein can help maintain brain connectivity and reduce harmful inflammation. These findings provide new insights into how the brain protects against neurodegenerative conditions and point to potential new therapeutic targets. Alzheimer’s disease and several other neurodegenerative conditions are characterized by an abnormal accumulation of certain proteins in the brain. One of these proteins is tau, which normally helps stabilize the internal framework of…

BoulderCare, the de facto substance use disorder (SUD) provider, has been awarded $1.8 million in National Institutes of Health funding to design and test care pathways across marginalized settings. Millions of Americans suffer from opioid use disorder. Medications to treat opioid use disorder (MOUD), such as buprenorphine and naltrexone, are considered the gold standard of treatment, but fewer than one in five people receive them. The disparities are even greater in underserved settings, which Boulder plans to focus his grant on. Participants must be Medicaid enrolled. “We have all the tools in place to provide this excellent health care across…

The McMurdo Arid Valleys in Antarctica are one of the most remote and pristine environments on Earth, but even the soil is not free of plastic.Researchers found both microplastics and nanoplastics, including particles buried beneath the surface, in soil collected across the Antarctic region. The findings show how widespread plastic pollution is reaching some of the most isolated areas on Earth.The discovery raises new concerns about what it means for fragile polar ecosystems.The research was carried out by an international team of scientists led by Lancaster University.Samples collected in January 2023 revealed the presence of a wide range…

New data from human studies provide further support for the idea that Merck’s Ebola virus vaccine Elvevo, which was licensed to target the Zaire strain of Ebola, may also provide some protection against another species currently circulating in a rapidly expanding outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The new paper, published online in the New England Journal of Medicine on Wednesday after being posted online ahead of peer review, is one of a growing number of studies pointing to the possibility that a vaccine could be used to target the Bundibugyo strain of the Ebola virus. These studies…

Visana Health, a virtual women’s health care provider, has redesigned its annual visit to be more comprehensive and personalized. Visana’s Complete Women’s Health Visit combines preventive care, symptom assessment, gynecology, primary care, and endocrinology expertise to provide personalized care for each patient. Telemedicine visits are 45 minutes long and include assessments of hormonal, metabolic, cardiovascular, reproductive, sexual and emotional health, as well as pap smears and mammograms. “This is really a personalized visit, optimized for that person’s risks and questions,” Dr. Barbara Levy, Visana’s chief medical officer, told Fierce Healthcare. Under the Affordable Care Act, most women are entitled to…

A recent daily diary study revealed that how people with narcissistic personality traits perceive their success on social media is primarily driven by their internal expectations rather than their actual posting routines. The study, published in the Journal of Research in Personality, highlights that unmet online goals can actively reduce the day-to-day psychological well-being of individuals who exhibit more vulnerable forms of narcissism. These findings help shed light on how different aspects of personality shape the daily digital experiences of frequent Internet users. Psychologists conceptualize narcissism as a personality system aimed at managing self-esteem through constant feedback from others. It…

Most Americans either don’t know or aren’t sure which vaccines the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends during pregnancy, according to a nationally representative survey of U.S. adults conducted by the Annenberg Public Policy Center (APPC) at the University of Pennsylvania. Almost half of those surveyed knew that the CDC recommends seasonal influenza vaccines during pregnancy, but less than one-third knew that the CDC recommends Tdap (tetanus, diphtheria, pertussis), RSV (responsive virus), and hepatitis B vaccines when these vaccines are not up-to-date. When it comes to coronavirus vaccines, more than half of those surveyed don’t know whether the…