Health

Surgeons perform the pig kidney transplant. The surgery took place last week, and the patient is recovering well and is expected to be discharged from the hospital soon.

Doctors Take Another Step Toward Animal-to-Human Organ Transplants With the First Pig Kidney Transplant

The experimental procedure was done on a man experiencing end-stage kidney failure last week who had been on the transplant waiting list for two years

Air pollution can obscure miles of scenery at Joshua Tree National Park in California and other sites.

These Are the Most Polluted National Parks

Five California sites made the top ten list for unhealthiest air, according to a new report

These digitally edited images show how Victor Sharrah perceives faces.

This Extremely Rare Neurological Condition Makes Faces Appear Distorted or 'Like a Demon'

For the first time, scientists have recreated what one patient suffering from prosopometamorphopsia, or PMO, sees when he looks at faces

Humans produce about 400 million metric tons of plastic waste each year. Some chemicals in plastics have been linked to health problems for humans and animals.

Plastics Contain Thousands More Chemicals Than Thought, and Most Are Unregulated, Report Finds

A new database catalogs 16,000 chemicals found in plastics and identifies more than 4,200 that are potentially hazardous to human health and the environment

Aboard the International Space Station, astronauts experience near-weightlessness—and fluid accumulates in their heads as a result, which could potentially be one cause of headaches.

Most Astronauts Experience 'Space Headaches' While on the ISS, Study Finds

Surveys of 24 astronauts who traveled to the International Space Station found that nearly all of them reported headaches, and many of these occurred past the first week in space

Princess Diana opened the first dedicated ward for patients with AIDS and HIV-related diseases at London's Middlesex Hospital in 1987.

Who Will Design London's First Permanent HIV/AIDS Memorial?

Five artists have been shortlisted for the project, which will be located near the site of the U.K.'s first dedicated AIDS ward

Paul Alexander died on March 11 at age 78.

Texas Man Who Lived 70 Years in an Iron Lung Dies at 78: 'I Never Gave Up'

Paralyzed by polio in 1952, Paul Alexander led a full life despite being confined to a large steel ventilator

Cinnabar powder covered the remains of 20 people, mostly women, in this megalithic tomb at the site of Valencina, Spain.

Ancient Iberians Ingested Red Dust Loaded With Mind-Altering Mercury

Bones in Spain suggest a mercury-rich mineral used for art and hallucinogenic trips poisoned a community 5,000 years ago

The synthetic antibody targets a toxin produced by the Elapidae family of snakes, which includes cobras, kraits and mambas.

Deadly Snake Venom Is No Match for This New Synthetic Antibody

Scientists have created a treatment that targets a toxin produced by cobras, mambas and kraits, laying the foundation for a future universal antivenom against snake bites, according to new research

Boiling and filtering tap water, researchers suggest, could reduce concentrations of microplastics by more than 80 percent.

Boiling Tap Water Could Help Remove 80 Percent of Its Microplastics, Study Suggests

Minerals in some tap water can capture tiny plastic particles when the water is boiled, making them easier to filter away, according to a new study

The proposed changes to isolation guidelines would bring the CDC's approach to Covid-19 closer to California's and Oregon's. Both states amended their isolation guidance within the last year.

CDC Considers Dropping Five-Day Covid Isolation Guideline

While no official decision has been made, symptomatic patients might be able to stop isolating if they are fever-free for 24 hours and are beginning to feel better under the proposed change

University of Nebraska engineer Sean Crimmins loads the robotic arm into its case. A surgeon on Earth will remotely guide the robot through a surgical simulation while it is on the International Space Station.

This Remotely Controlled Robot Will Conduct a Simulated Surgery on the International Space Station

Robot surgeons could treat astronauts on long space missions—but they could also be used on Earth in places where surgeons aren't present, such as rural areas or war zones

Cats can be infected with plague by flea bites or by eating infected rodents.

Oregon Resident Catches Rare Case of Plague, Likely From Their Cat

The patient was treated during the earlier stages of disease, so the community faces little risk, according to health officials

People march in Grand Rapids, Michigan, in 2021, after police in Louisville, Kentucky, killed Breonna Taylor, a Black woman, the year before. Tawanna Gordon, Taylor's cousin, leads the march.

After Police Kill Unarmed Black People, Black Americans Lose Sleep, Study Finds

New research draws a link between unequal exposure to police violence and lack of sleep for Black adults

The 23 pairs of human chromosomes. People who inherit two tall X chromosomes (bottom right) are much more susceptible to autoimmune diseases than people with one X and one short Y chromosome.

Why Do Women Get More Autoimmune Diseases? Study of Mice Hints at Answers

Four in five people with an autoimmune disease are women. New research points to an RNA molecule involved in silencing one of their X chromosomes as a potential culprit

Miniature dachshunds have a median lifespan of 14 years, according to the data.

Which Dogs Live the Longest? Scientists Say Small and Long-Nosed Canines Outlive Others

A new study of more than 500,000 dogs in the United Kingdom adds more nuance to our understanding of their life expectancy based on breed, size, face shape and other factors

An image from an electron microscope of Treponema pallidum, the bacteria that causes syphilis. In 2022, the number of reported cases of syphilis in the United States was the highest it has been since 1950.

Syphilis Cases in the U.S. Are the Highest Since 1950

Diagnoses of the sexually transmitted infection rose by nearly 80 percent between 2018 and 2022, according to a new report from the CDC

Researchers studied climate fluctuations in Roman Italy between 200 B.C.E. and 600 C.E.

Plagues That Ravaged the Roman Empire Were Linked to Periods of Cold Weather

The changing climate may have had ripple effects that made people more susceptible to disease, new research suggests

Patrons drank less wine at bars and pubs in England that removed the largest serving size from their menus.

People Drink Less Wine When Bars Remove the Largest Glass, Study Finds

The simple change could help reduce alcohol consumption and improve health at the population level, U.K. researchers say

People with long Covid sit in the audience at a U.S. Senate hearing about the condition on January 18.

Scientists Find Indicators in Blood Linked to Long Covid, Hinting at Future Treatments

One part of the immune system appeared to be overly active in long Covid patients in a small study, a finding researchers hope could help diagnose or treat the condition

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