by Zeina Mohammed, University of Virginia Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain A new drug in clinical trials is showing promise in lowering a key genetic risk factor for heart attacks and strokes—something no existing treatment has been able to do. Despite a significant portion of the world’s population having elevated levels of a protein that increases the...
Year: <span>2025</span>
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Skin injury may bring on food allergies
by Rachel Tompa, Yale University Credit: Unsplash/CC0 Public Domain There’s a mysterious connection between our skin and our guts, specifically when it comes to food allergies. For reasons scientists don’t fully understand, chronic skin conditions such as eczema are linked to food allergies; while the national prevalence of childhood food allergies is only around 8%, that...
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Study finds X-rays very helpful for diagnosing low back problems
by Boston University School of Medicine Credit: Kindel Media from Pexels Plain radiographs (X-ray), computed tomography (CT) scans and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) are commonly used in the evaluation of lower back pain. While MRI use has increased most over the past decades (more than 300% from 1994-2005), its use in low back pain (LBP) management...
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More opportunities to test for Alzheimer’s using new analytical method
by Tove Smeds, Lund University Performance of plasma p-tau217 (Lumipulse) for discriminating AD pathology-positive versus AD pathology-negative participants in five independent cohorts. Credit: Nature Medicine (2025). DOI: 10.1038/s41591-025-03622-w A simpler method of analyzing blood samples for Alzheimer’s disease has been tested in a large multicenter study led by Lund University in Sweden. “This is a major step in...
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Scientists complete largest wiring diagram and functional map of the brain to date
by Allen Institute for Brain Science A subset of more than 1,000 of the 120,000 brain cells (neuron + glia) reconstructed in the MICRONS project. Each reconstructed neuron is a different random color. In this image, the glowing neurons are colored. Credit: Forrest Collman/Allen Institute From a tiny sample of tissue no larger than a grain...
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Discovery reveals protein involved in Parkinson’s disease also drives skin cancer
by Oregon Health & Science University Credit: Unsplash/CC0 Public Domain A small protein involved in neurodegeneration leading to Parkinson’s disease also drives a type of skin cancer known as melanoma, new research led by Oregon Health & Science University finds. The study, published in the journal Science Advances, suggests new avenues for drug development to reduce the risk of developing both...
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A new smartphone-sized device can test for tuberculosis: Why that matters for children
by Tulane University Credit: Unsplash/CC0 Public Domain Tulane University researchers have developed a first-of-its-kind handheld diagnostic device that can deliver rapid, accurate tuberculosis diagnoses in under an hour, according to a study published in Science Translational Medicine. The smartphone-sized, battery-powered lab-in-tube assay (LIT) provides a cost-effective tool that can improve TB diagnoses, particularly in resource-limited rural areas where health...
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New study reveals potential biological link between cannabis and psychosis
by Cynthia Fazio, University of Western Ontario Researchers found those with cannabis use disorder exhibited an increase of neuromelanin (blacker spots) in a particular region of the midbrain associated with psychosis –the substantia nigra and ventral tegmental areas. Credit: Jess Ahrens; Image design by Rob Potter/Western Communications A new study published in JAMA Psychiatry sheds light on how cannabis use...
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NEURD: Proofreading the map of the brain
by Graciela Gutierrez, Baylor College of Medicine This image shows a subset of the more than 1,000 of the 120,000 brain cells (neuron + glia) reconstructed in the MICrONS Project. Credit: Allen Institute From the smallest fragment of brain tissue, the intricate blueprint of the entire brain is beginning to emerge. Researchers at Baylor College of...
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Parkinson’s disease researchers develop cellular ‘invisibility cloak’ to protect neural grafts
by Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health Graphical abstract. Credit: Cell Stem Cell (2025). DOI: 10.1016/j.stem.2025.03.008 Florey researchers have engineered a way to fool the immune system into accepting neural grafts as part of the body, rather than attacking them as foreign objects. The research, published in Cell Stem Cell, could signal an end to the reliance on drugs necessary...