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Nanomedicine's giant step into the fight against the COVID-19

A recent editorial in Nature Nanotechnology discusses the enormous feat of scientific innovation, with messenger RNA (mRNA)-based vaccines developed to deliver the gene sequence of specific SARS-CoV-2 viral proteins into host cells using nanotechnology platforms.

1 Dec 2020

First PSMA-targeted PET imaging drug approved for men with prostate cancer

Today, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved Gallium 68 PSMA-11 (Ga 68 PSMA-11) - the first drug for positron emission tomography (PET) imaging of prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA) positive lesions in men with prostate cancer.

1 Dec 2020

Study uncovers a promising therapeutic target for retinal dystrophies

A team of LSU Health New Orleans researchers reports for the first time that deleting one of the inhibitors of the RPE65 gene in a mouse model that carries a human disease mutation prevents degeneration of cone photoreceptors that are used for daytime high-resolution color vision.

1 Dec 2020

Older people in wealthy countries consume more alcohol, finds study

A new global study finds older people in wealthy countries consume more alcohol than their counterparts in middle-income countries, on average, although a higher cost of alcohol is associated with less frequent drinking.

1 Dec 2020

2018 anthrax outbreak in Uganda tied to infected cow meat, study finds

On April 18, 2018, 7 suspected human anthrax cases were reported from the Kween District Health Office in Kween District, Uganda. Ugandan researchers from the Uganda Public Health Fellowship Program, Kampala, Uganda, have now published their findings on the outbreak's source in the latest issue of the CDC's (Centre for Disease Prevention and Control) Emerging Infectious Diseases.

1 Dec 2020

Which dietary supplements can help prevent COVID-19?

Researchers explore dietary supplement usage during the COVID-19 pandemic.

1 Dec 2020

Study finds increasing incidence of cancer among adolescents and young adults

Cancer cases in adolescents and young adults have risen by 30% during the last four decades, with kidney cancer rising at the greatest rate, according to researchers at Penn State College of Medicine.

1 Dec 2020

Amid COVID and racial unrest, Black churches put faith in mental health care

Wilma Mayfield used to visit a senior center in Durham, North Carolina, four days a week and attend Lincoln Memorial Baptist Church on Sundays, a ritual she's maintained for nearly half a century. But over the past 10 months, she's seen only the inside of her home, the grocery store and the pharmacy.

1 Dec 2020

How COVID-19 highlights the uncertainty of medical testing

Dr. Jacqueline Chu considered the man with a negative coronavirus test on the other end of the phone, and knew, her heart dropping, that the test result was not enough to clear him for work.

1 Dec 2020

Where COVID is on the menu: Failed contact tracing leaves diners in the dark

COVID-19 outbreaks have affected restaurants throughout Los Angeles County, from a Panda Express in Sun Valley to the University of California's Bruin Cafe. If you live in Los Angeles, you can access health department reports about these outbreaks online.

1 Dec 2020

COVID-19 restrictions have led to 86 percent drop in norovirus infections in US, finds study

The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic led to the imposition of several non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) across the world. While citizens in the USA have been chafing over the advice to wear masks in public, restricted social interactions, and limited attendance at schools, colleges and workplaces, a new study published on the preprint server medRxiv* in November 2020 reports that these NPIs were linked to a steep reduction in the incidence of the non-respiratory pathogen, noroviruses.

1 Dec 2020

Study shows critically ill patients are not seeking care for fear of COVID-19 infection

During the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic in New England, emergency department visits for medical emergencies - including psychiatric problems, trauma and heart attacks - declined by nearly a third, raising concerns among clinicians that critically ill patients were not seeking the care they needed for fear of coronavirus infection.

1 Dec 2020

Researchers develop recommendations for ethical handling of big data on opioid use disorder

The use of big data to address the opioid epidemic in Massachusetts poses ethical concerns that could undermine its benefits without clear governance guidelines that protect and respect patients and society, a University of Massachusetts Amherst study concludes.

1 Dec 2020

Nucleic acid-hydrolyzing scFv 3D8 exhibits potent antiviral effects on SARS-CoV-2

3D8, a 27-kDa recombinant antibody fragment, was found in autoimmune-prone Murphy Roths Large mice. The single-chain variable fragment (scFv) has the nucleic acid hydrolyzing activity and is shown to degrade DNA or mRNA of viruses in infected cells.

30 Nov 2020

Fibromyalgia during COVID-19, anxiety and pain

Early research on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic found persistent related anxiety in the general population. Researchers in the UK hypothesized that this anxiety would be associated with increased pain in chronic pain patients diagnosed with fibromyalgia (FM).

30 Nov 2020

Politicians and public officials fail to harness young people’s perspectives on COVID-19 recovery

Decision-makers are failing to harness young people's potential to help shape pandemic responses, according to a major study that features the views of young people from around the world.

30 Nov 2020

Financial symptoms could be used as early predictors of dementia

A new study led by researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and the Federal Reserve Board of Governors found that Medicare beneficiaries who go on to be diagnosed with dementia are more likely to miss payments on bills as early as six years before a clinical diagnosis.

30 Nov 2020