When most of us hear the words “carbon monoxide,” our first instinct is to probably hold our breath. Yes, the colorless, odorless gas can kill you if you breathe too much of it, but according to Dr. Binghe Wang, Regents’ Professor of Chemistry and director of the Center for Diagnostics & Therapeutics, carbon monoxide gets...
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Nanoparticles carry drug duo into the brain to fight cancer
Glioblastoma is one of the most deadly forms of cancer. Affecting the brain, those unlucky enough to receive a diagnosis don’t have many treatment options – and usually a median life expectancy of just over a year. Now, researchers at MIT have developed nanoparticles that could provide hope, crossing the blood-brain barrier and delivering two types of...
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Lung-on-a-chip simulates pulmonary fibrosis
Developing new medicines to treat pulmonary fibrosis, one of the most common and serious forms of lung disease, is not easy. The image above shows collagen from a healthy engineered lung tissue. One reason: it’s difficult to mimic how the disease damages and scars lung tissue over time, often forcing scientists to employ a hodgepodge of time-consuming...
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Advantages and disadvantages of humidity for health
A house with the proper humidity level of between 40-60% is positively very healthy and comfortable for living. In comparison to very dry or very moisturized air, you can feel all the advantages of such a healthy environment almost at once. Controlling the air in the room is not very difficult though. You have probably...
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New ‘unified theory’ of childhood leukemia raises possibility of preventing the disease
Kids who develop acute lymphoblastic leukemia may be the victims of a triple-whammy stroke of bad luck, according to a provocative new theory from a respected British cancer researcher. If the explanation turns out to be correct, it would be good news for the most common type of childhood cancer: Doctors could prevent cases of...
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52 People In Utah Were Poisoned By Fake Cannabis Oil, CDC Claims
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention published a report focused on a severe poisoning case that took place in Utah. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention claimed that 52 Utah residents were poisoned after they consumed fake cannabis oil. The drug that made them sick was a synthetic cannabinoid known as 4-cyano CUMYL-BUTINACA. ...
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Fitbit is getting into the smartwatch groove, with the Versa
After the basic Blaze and the angular Ionic, Fitbit has finally got the smartwatch formula right. The new Fitbit Versa works well, looks good, and is comfortable to wear for extended periods of time, though it’s not without its problems. Here’s our hands-on experience of using the wearable. Perhaps most importantly when compared with previous smartwatches from the...
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Diabetes type 2 symptoms: Blood sugar levels this high could mean you have the condition
DIABETES type 2 symptoms include increased thirst and hunger, tiredness and unexplained weight loss. If not treated, the condition could lead to heart disease and vision problems. Having blood sugar levels this high could mean you have the condition. Diabetes type 2 symptoms occur due to problems with the hormone insulin, meaning the body cannot regulate...
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Cognitive training reduces depression, rebuilds injured brain structure & connectivity after traumatic brain injury
New research from the Center for BrainHealth at The University of Texas at Dallas shows that certain cognitive training exercises can help reduce depression and improve brain health in individuals years after they have suffered a traumatic brain injury (TBI). The recent study, published in Human Brain Mapping, revealed significant reductions in the severity of depressive symptoms, increased...
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The bugs we carry and how our immune system fights them
Human beings are large, complex, multicellular, multi-organ systems. We reproduce slowly and rely on a breadth of mechanisms that allow us to control the myriad of rapidly replicating, simple life forms that have evolved to live in or on us. The immune system has to establish which cells belong to us and which are foreign,...