Medicine

Henrietta Lacks (HeLa): The Mother of Modern Medicine by Kadir Nelson (detail, above) is on view at the National Portrait Gallery through November 4, 2018.

Famed for “Immortal” Cells, Henrietta Lacks is Immortalized in Portraiture

Lacks's cells gave rise to medical miracles, but ethical questions of propriety and ownership continue to swirl

A Hangover Pill Is Working on Drunk Mice

The new antidote may lower blood alcohol levels, helping a hangover and preventing alcohol overdose deaths

The Legendary Sultan Saladin Was Likely Killed by Typhoid

Reviewing historical accounts of his death, doctors and historians believe his sweating fits and weakness were brought on by the bacterial infection

Watch Cells Move Within Living Animals in This Breathtaking Footage

The new microscope technique incorporates cutting-edge technology to capture spectacular imagery of cellular activity

Did a Prehistoric Surgeon Practice on This Cow?

Though an early human likely created the hole, the reason why remains less clear

Immune system natural killer cell

Human Cell Atlas Releases First Major Data Set

The information includes data from over half a million immune cells from human cord blood and bone marrow

The tiny sensor

This Implantable Chip Could Monitor Alcohol Intake

Engineers have developed a tiny sensor that could potentially replace regular Breathalyzer or blood tests for patients in rehabilitation programs

The structure of herpes virus simplex 2, aka genital herpes

Herpes Is Kind of Beautiful, On the Molecular Level

This detailed visualization of the herpes virus is a step toward finding new treatments

Rare Case of ‘Coffin Birth’ Seen in Medieval Grave

The pregnant woman's remains may also suggest that she underwent cranial surgery due to a life-threatening complication

A vintage ad for patent medicines, which usually didn't list their active ingredients. We now know that many contained morphine, cocaine, opium and more.

How Advertising Shaped the First Opioid Epidemic

And what it can teach us about the second

The above image shows the dermal interstitium with bundles of collagen and fluid (white spaces).

Scientists May Have Identified a New Human Organ

It is called the interstitium, and it consists of fluid-filled cavities that can be found throughout the body

Why We Should Test Heart Drugs On a 'Virtual Human' Instead of Animals

Thousands of animals are used for heart drug tests each year—but research shows that computer-simulated trials are more accurate

Why This Elephant in India Is Blowing Smoke

It's likely the puffing pachyderm is eating ash-covered charcoal as a form of self-medication to flush out toxins

An illustration depicting the life cycle of a cancer cell

This DNA-Based Attack Against Cancer May Just Work

A newly approved treatment is a milestone in gene therapy for cancer

Macrophages begin to fuse with, and inject its toxins into, the cancer cell. The cell starts rounding up and loses its spikes.

Where We Are in the Hunt for a Cancer Vaccine

Two new studies have promising results

Vanessa Brandon worried that her cancer was a burden on her family: “I don’t want my sickness to become their sickness.”

Could Immunotherapy Lead the Way to Fighting Cancer?

A new treatment that uses the body's own immune system to fight cancer is offering hope to patients with advanced disease

Periplaneta Americana

Cockroach Genome Shows Why They Are Impossible to Kill

The massive genome includes code for neutralizing toxins, regrowing limbs and a thousand genes for detecting food and chemicals

This digitally-colorized negative-stained transmission electron microscopic (TEM) image shows recreated 1918 influenza virions that were collected from supernatants of 1918-infected Madin-Darby Canine Kidney (MDCK) cells cultures 18 hours after infection.

Flu Skies: How Influenza Might Spread On a Plane

A new study suggests the chances of contracting a sick passenger's flu virus is surprisingly low

Scientists are using high-powered X-rays to reveal a hidden text beneath a 10th century religious text.

High-Powered X-Rays Reveal What's Beneath 11th-Century Religious Text

The hidden text is a translation of ancient Greek medical philosopher Galen's writing

The artist’s impression of "Self-Conscious Gene."

Sculpture of ‘Zombie Boy’ Fleshes Out London's Science Museum

A giant sculpture of artist and model Rick Genest, who has covered himself in tattoos of the inside of his body, will debut in its new Medicine Galleries

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