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Medicine

An illustration of the winners of the 2018 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine: James Allison (left) and Tasuku Honjo (right).

Trending Today

Two Scientists Earn Nobel for Discovering a New Pillar in Cancer Therapy

The award recognizes work that figured out how to encourage the immune system to fight cancer

Pain surging from the right side of the abdomen is often an indication of appendicitis, which is typically treated with surgical removal of the organ. Researchers were able to use antibiotics to relieve symptoms and avoid surgery in some patients, a new study suggests.

Antibiotics May Treat Appendicitis Without Surgery

A new study has found that around 60 percent of patients who were treated with antibiotics did not have a recurrence of appendicitis within five years

Study participants Kelly Thomas, who was paralyzed in a truck crash and Jeff Marquis, who was injured while mountain biking.

New Research

How Implanted Electrodes Helped Paralyzed People Stand and Walk Again

Two new studies demonstrate that epidural stimulation and intensive therapy can help people overcome paralysis from spinal cord injuries

Lines of cocaine.

Genetic Skin Graft Helps Mice Kick Cocaine Habit

A new treatment using CRISPR helps reduce cocaine cravings in mice, and it may be able to treat human addiction in the future

The FDA calls teen vaping an "epidemic"

Trending Today

FDA Cracks Down on Underage Use of E-Cigarettes

FDA’s largest enforcement action to date gave warnings and fines to 1,300 retailers and requested plans to prevent teen vaping from five manufacturers

Ketamine syringe, 10mg held by a healthcare professional.

Ketamine Works as a Fast-Acting Antidepressant, But the Full Effects Are Still Unknown

A new study suggests that ketamine activates the brain’s opioid receptors, complicating its use to treat clinical depression

The airways inside the human lung.

Tracking Down the Origins of Cystic Fibrosis in Ancient Europe

CF is the most common genetic disease among Caucasians, and how it became so widespread is something of a mystery

Still the enigma

New Research

Was Mona Lisa’s Enigmatic Smile Caused by a Thyroid Condition?

Doctor theorizes that the sitter’s lank hair, weak smile and yellowing skin point to post-pregnancy hypothyroidism

The human gut is filled with trillions of microbes.

The Benefits of Probiotics Might Not Be So Clear Cut

An individual’s natural gut bacteria determine whether the so-called dietary supplements help or do nothing at all

In acoustophoretic printing, sound waves generate a controllable force that pulls each droplet off of the nozzle when it reaches a specific size and ejects it towards the printing target.

Watch This New Device Print Using Sound Waves

Harvard scientists develop a printing technique that could impact a slew of industries, from biopharmaceuticals to food and cosmetics

Could This Brain Implant Stop Epilepsy Seizures?

A new approach, which involves an implantable device delivering neurotransmitters to the brain, proves effective in mice

This shape, dubbed the scutoid, had no name until researchers found it while modeling how skin cells pack together.

New Research

Introducing the Scutoid, Geometry’s Newest Shape

The scutoid allows skin cells to remain packed tightly together even over curved surfaces

A fruit fly (Drosophila melanogaster) feeding off a banana.

How Fruit Flies Stay Young at Heart

Researchers link structural alterations to fruit fly hearts to longevity-promoting changes in metabolism

A human wrist (and wristwatch) imaged with the new 3D, color x-ray machine developed by MARS Bioimaging.

Cool Finds

Check Out These Awesome New 3D, Full-Color X-Rays

The scanner uses technology developed for the Large Hadron Collider

The document actually consisted of multiple sheets of papyrus that had been glued together, perhaps to be used as book binding in a common form of medieval “recycling”

Researchers Unlock Secrets of Basel Papyrus

Now identified as a late antiquity medical document, the 2,000-year-old papyrus describes the phenomenon of female “hysterical apnea”

A rendering of the venipuncture robot

A Robot May One Day Draw Your Blood

Scientists have developed a “venipuncture robot” that can automatically draw blood and perform lab tests, no humans needed

Soft tumors make life hard for sea turtles.

Should We Share Human Cancer Treatments With Tumorous Turtles?

They may be key to saving wild sea turtles from tumors associated with turtle-specific herpes

The antibiotic-resistant superbug MRSA

New Research

New “Immunobiotic” Could Treat Antibiotic-Resistant Superbugs

The drug, which combines antibiotics and the body’s immune system, shows promise in early stages of testing

Before she tackled tuberculosis, Sabin helped rethink the lymphatic system and wrote an acclaimed anatomy textbook.

Florence Sabin Pioneered Her Way in Medical Science, Then Made Sure Other Women Could Do the Same

A scientist and so much more, she helped lay the groundwork for curing tuberculosis but still found time to promote women doctors

The Fountain of Youth, Lucas Cranach the Elder

New Research

Study Suggests There’s No Limit on Longevity, But Getting Super Old Is Still Tough

After the age of 105, the odds of dying plateau, meaning it’s possible to live beyond the current record of 123 years

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