by Fiona Tyrrell, Trinity College Dublin The two control systems. Credit: Trends in Cognitive Sciences (2024). DOI: 10.1016/j.tics.2024.10.006 Cognitive neuroscientists at Trinity College Dublin have published new research describing a brand new approach to making habit change achievable and lasting. This innovative framework has the potential to significantly improve approaches to personal development, as well as the clinical...
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Fluctuations in blood pressure over time may be linked to higher sudden cardiac death risk
by American Heart Association Credit: Pavel Danilyuk from Pexels Middle-aged adults with long-term fluctuations in blood pressure may face a higher risk for sudden cardiac death than their peers with more consistent blood pressure readings, a large new study suggests. The findings, which showed people with the greatest variability in blood pressure faced up to a...
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Scientists analyze virus protein structure to advance RSV vaccines
by The Scripps Research Institute Comparative in vitro characterization of previously reported RSV-F designs. Credit: Nature Communications (2024). DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-54287-x In most people, the lung-infecting pathogens known as respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and human metapneumovirus (hMPV) trigger mild cold-like symptoms. But in infants and seniors, these viruses can cause severe pneumonia and even death. Vaccines against both viruses,...
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You Could Be Treating Your Cuts the Wrong Way
Don’t “air it out.” Put down the hydrogen peroxide. Here’s what to do to prevent infection and hasten healing. By Ashley Abramson October 26, 2024 Photo: Getty Images Cuts, or wounds that break the skin, are one of the most common injuries. They can vary in severity, but most minor wounds can usually be treated at home without...
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What delusions can tell us about the cognitive nature of belief
by Michael Connors, Peter W Halligan, The Conversation Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain Beliefs are convictions of reality that we accept as true. They provide us with the basic mental scaffolding to understand and engage meaningfully in our world. Beliefs remain fundamental to our behavior and identity, but are not well understood. Delusions, on the other hand,...
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Developing an antibody to combat age-related muscle atrophy
by Kyushu University HGF nitration disrupts muscle homeostasis as an organism age. The new rat anti-HGF monoclonal antibody the research team developed, called 1H41C10, specially binds to the nitration sites of HGF and blocks nitration. The team hopes that this can eventually lead to therapies that can treat age-related muscle atrophy and impaired muscle regeneration. Credit:...
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Public humiliation is still a common teaching tool in medical education—here’s how it leaves patients worse off
by Carolyn Heward, Luisa Wigg and Wendy Li, The Conversation Credit: Unsplash/CC0 Public Domain Imagine being questioned about complex technical knowledge in front of your peers, supervisors, and members of the public—knowing that a wrong answer could lead to public ridicule. This is the reality for many medical students, with up to 90% of medical students experiencing public humiliation...
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Colchicine no benefit for painful knee osteoarthritis
by Lori Solomon Colchicine fails to improve knee pain, function, or size of synovial effusions with painful knee osteoarthritis (OA), according to a study presented at the annual meeting of the American College of Rheumatology, held from Nov. 14 to 19 in Washington, D.C. Jonathan Samuels, M.D., from NYU Langone in Rye Brook, New York, and...
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Now carrots too? Expert discusses why there have been so many food recalls lately
by Erin Kayata, Northeastern University Credit: Unsplash/CC0 Public Domain It seems like every day there is a new food recall. This time, it’s carrots. Multiple brands of the vegetable sold across 18 states have been recalled due to possible E.coli contamination, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The 39 cases were reported across 18 states, resulting...
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AI advice influences radiologist and physician diagnostic decisions incorrectly, according to new study
by Radiological Society of North America Chest radiograph (CXR) examples of (A, C) local (feature-based) AI explanations and (B, D) global (prototype-based) AI explanations from a simulated AI tool, ChestAId, presented to physicians in the study. In all examples, the correct diagnostic impression for the radiograph case in question is “right upper lobe pneumonia,” and the...