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Clinical-grade wearables provide continuous on-body sensing for COVID-19

Although it might be tempting to rely on your fitness tracker to catch early signs of COVID-19, Northwestern University researchers caution that consumer wearables are not sophisticated enough to monitor the complicated illness.

1 Jul 2020

Inflammatory changes in tumors can cause drug resistance in cancer blood vessels

Scientists at Hokkaido University and collaborators have identified how inflammatory changes in tumors caused by chemotherapy trigger blood vessel anomalies and thus drug-resistance, resulting in the poor prognosis of cancer patients.

1 Jul 2020

Pain relief drugs offer more choices for women during childbirth

Choice and control are important factors for ensuring a positive childbirth experience, yet until recently, little was known about the impact of alternative administrations of fentanyl – one of the pain relief drugs used during labour– on both mother and baby.

1 Jul 2020

BMI should be assessed in management of COVID-19 patients

A new study published on the preprint server medRxiv* in June 2020 reports that obesity is a risk factor of composite poor outcome of COVID-19 disease. On the other hand, COVID-19 patients with 'composite poor outcome' have higher BMI. Therefore, BMI should be assessed in the management of COVID-19 patients, and special attention should be given to patients with obesity.

1 Jul 2020

Oral hygiene and severity of COVID-19 – the connection

Their study titled, “Could there be a link between oral hygiene and the severity of SARS-CoV-2 infections?” was published in the latest issue of the journal British Dental Journal.

30 Jun 2020

Researchers develop technique for personalizing stomach cancer therapy

Researchers from the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology and their colleagues have developed the first technique for personalizing stomach cancer therapy based on RNA sequencing of tumor cells. The study, supported by the Russian Science Foundation, was published in Cold Spring Harbor Molecular Case Studies.

30 Jun 2020

SARS-CoV-2 can infect heart cells in a lab dish, study shows

A new study shows that SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19 (coronavirus), can infect heart cells in a lab dish, indicating it may be possible for heart cells in COVID-19 patients to be directly infected by the virus.

30 Jun 2020

Wearable technology for health-related applications

There is more than cool looks about hip clothing for top performance: Thanks to a variety of smart technologies, high-tech clothing today is capable of analyzing body functions or actively optimizing the microclimate.

29 Jun 2020

Study shows how gut bacteria helps people resist cholera

Cholera can kill within hours if left untreated, and it sickens as many as 4 million people a year. In a new article in the journal Cell, researchers describe how gut bacteria helps people resist the disease.

29 Jun 2020

RCSI begins clinical trial of promising therapy for critically ill COVID-19 patients

Clinician scientists at RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences have begun a clinical trial of a promising therapy for critically ill COVID-19 patients in intensive care.

29 Jun 2020

New steroid compounds from deep-water starfish show anticancer activity

Russian scientists from Far Eastern Federal University, G. B. Elyakov Pacific Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry, and A.V. Zhirmunsky National Scientific Center for Marine Biology have discovered four new steroid substances which target cells of human breast cancer, and colorectal carcinoma.

26 Jun 2020

Understanding dexamethasone’s role in treating COVID-19

While the steroid medicine dexamethasone may help people with serious COVID-19 illness, it should only be given to people very ill in hospital and shouldn’t be taken by anyone to try to prevent COVID-19 or for less severe cases.

26 Jun 2020

Fatalities are very rare in children with COVID-19

Children with COVID-19 generally experience a mild disease and fatalities are very rare, according to a study of 582 patients from across Europe published today in The Lancet Child & Adolescent Health journal.

26 Jun 2020

Researchers perform first X-ray measurements on SARS-CoV-2 main protease

A team of researchers at the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge and Argonne national laboratories has performed the first room-temperature X-ray measurements on the SARS-CoV-2 main protease -- the enzyme that enables the virus to reproduce.

26 Jun 2020

Dysregulated inflammation in severe COVID-19

The continuing COVID-19 pandemic has so far caused 9.58 million cases and more than 488,000 deaths within just six months. The spectrum of disease is broad, from completely asymptomatic cases to critical illness ending in death. Now, a new paper by researchers from Yale University and published on the preprint server medRxiv* in June 2020 identifies an imbalance in immunological response that is linked to poor outcomes and early biomarkers that may help predict the course of the disease.

25 Jun 2020

Researchers discover receptor that makes mice strong and slim

Increasing abdominal girth and shrinking muscles are two common side effects of aging. Researchers at the University of Bonn have discovered a receptor in mice that regulates both effects.

25 Jun 2020

G6PD enzyme offers a promising therapeutic target in autoimmune diseases

A team from the University of Valencia, the La Fe Hospital Health Research Institute, and the INCLIVA Institute have participated in the identification of an enzyme (G6PD) as a possible therapeutic target in autoimmune diseases or in controlling exacerbated inflammatory responses such as the one caused by SARS-CoV-2 infection.

25 Jun 2020

Study assesses impact of anti-SARS-CoV-2 convalescent plasma in COVID-19 disease

The current COVID-19 pandemic is still very much active in most parts of the world. In the absence of effective antiviral drugs or vaccines, scientists are studying the use of blood plasma from convalescent COVID-19 patients, banking on its neutralizing antibody content.

25 Jun 2020