Medical Research News

RSS

Single-dose vaccine provides complete protection against Andes hantavirus

In a study published in The Lancet, researchers at The University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB) report the development of new vaccines that, in animal testing, provided full protection against the deadly Andes hantavirus after a single dose.

11 Jun 2026

ChatGPT fills gaps like a confabulator, not a hallucinating mind

A Perspective article argues that large language model errors more closely resemble confabulations, while speech recognition errors, such as unsupported Whisper transcriptions, are functionally closer to hallucinations. The authors stress that these parallels are behavioral and provisional, not evidence of shared consciousness, and suggest that psychiatric concepts could help improve AI reliability.

11 Jun 2026

Scientists uncover protein-folding mechanism linked to diabetes progression

Origami masters turn simple sheets of paper into ornate sculptures. In the origami of life, our cells must fold proteins into specific three-dimensional shapes before they can carry out their biological jobs.

11 Jun 2026

Childhood lead exposure declines but disparities persist nationwide

Blood lead levels in young children in the United States declined in the last decade, but state data reveal that children of color and children from low-wealth families are still exposed to higher levels of lead, according to a new study in the American Journal of Public Health.

11 Jun 2026

Mesothelioma remains deadly despite declining asbestos exposure rates

Mesothelioma deaths and diagnoses continue to rise in the United States despite decades of asbestos regulation and reduced industrial use, according to a new national analysis from Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center, part of the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine.

11 Jun 2026

The cerebellum may help aging brains stay sharper

A large MRI study of more than 47,000 adults found that cerebellar aging is uneven, with posterior association regions and some motor-related areas showing steeper age-related changes. Larger cerebellar volumes were linked to better cognitive performance, supporting a threshold-reserve model in which the cerebellum may help sustain cognition before Alzheimer’s pathology becomes widespread.

11 Jun 2026

Boston Children's joins landmark initiative to advance autism therapies

Boston Children's Hospital has been awarded up to $17.25 million to serve as a participating site within the Innovative Medicine and Precision Approaches to Clinical Trials (IMPACT) Network, an international effort funded through Aligning Research to Impact Autism (ARIA).

11 Jun 2026

Oral semaglutide improves blood sugar, weight, and liver markers in real-world diabetes care

A nationwide Finnish registry study of 7,249 GLP-1RA-naïve adults with type 2 diabetes found that once-daily oral semaglutide was associated with 12-month improvements in HbA1c, body weight, lipid markers, and ALT.

11 Jun 2026

Trial finds prunes do not outperform calcium and vitamin D for male bone density

A one-year randomized trial found that daily prune supplementation did not improve total or lumbar spine bone mineral density in older men susceptible to, or with, osteopenia. Although some bone turnover biomarkers differed between prune and control groups, these changes did not translate into measurable bone density benefits beyond calcium and vitamin D3 supplementation.

11 Jun 2026

Oral GLP-1 drug elecoglipron helps adults lose up to 11.8% body weight

Once-daily oral elecoglipron produced dose-dependent weight loss in adults with obesity or overweight without diabetes, with mean reductions reaching 10.5% at 26 weeks and 11.8% at 36 weeks in the highest-dose weekly-titration group. The phase 2 trial found no evidence of a weight-loss plateau by 36 weeks, while gastrointestinal adverse events were common but generally manageable.

11 Jun 2026

Increased stress, reduced sleep alter brain structure and function in children

A new study suggests that variables linked to socioeconomic status (SES) – such as increased stress and reduced sleep – have strong relationships to brain structure and function in children.

11 Jun 2026

Brain histamine neurons control moment-to-moment memory accessibility

The same memory can feel vivid and accessible one moment, yet stubbornly out of reach the next - even when the memory itself remains intact.

11 Jun 2026

Researchers track how chronic wasting disease spreads to other species

Chronic wasting disease (CWD) is generally associated with animals. But a new study by researchers from the University of Calgary and international collaborators explored the potential for CWD to spread from deer, elk and other cervid (hooved, plant-eating) animals to other species.

11 Jun 2026

Study: Employer points systems drive workers to show up sick

A new study finds that employer points systems, which penalize workers for absences regardless of the reason, are strongly associated with presenteeism, the practice of showing up to work while sick, and that these systems undermine the public health benefits of paid sick leave laws even in jurisdictions where such protections are on the books.

11 Jun 2026

Texas Children’s Hospital and Baylor researcher joins ARIA IMPACT Network to advance autism therapies

Dr. Jimmy Holder, associate professor in pediatrics at Baylor College of Medicine and Principal investigator at the Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute at Texas Children's Hospital, and his team have received a grant for up to $17.25 million from Aligning Research to Impact Autism (ARIA) to become a part of the Innovative Medicine and Precision Approaches to Clinical Trials (IMPACT) Network.

11 Jun 2026

Multiple screening methods protect integrity of online health research

While online research is a useful way to reach people who may not take part in in-person studies, researchers are increasingly concerned that fake, automated, and duplicate survey responses can reduce data quality and compromise findings.

11 Jun 2026

BU professor to examine the role of postpartum hypertension on recurrent HDP risk

Samantha Parker Kelleher, along with researchers at BU School of Public Health and Boston Medical Center, will examine the role of high blood pressure during the postpartum period on the risk of developing recurrent hypertensive disorders of pregnancy, such as preeclampsia and gestational hypertension.

11 Jun 2026