Medical Research News

RSS

New antiviral drug could change the way doctors treat COVID-19

Scientists are hopeful that a new drug -- called EIDD-2801 -- could change the way doctors treat COVID-19. The drug shows promise in reducing lung damage, has finished testing in mice and will soon move to human clinical trials.

6 Apr 2020

'Smart toilet' looks for signs of disease

A Stanford study published in the journal Nature Biomedical Engineering in April 2020 reports the development of a new kind of toilet that can pick up signs of an extensive range of diseases, from molecules in stool and urine. This could be extremely useful in repeatedly and inexpensively screening high-risk groups for certain conditions, including those for which a genetic tendency is possible – such as prostate cancer or certain kinds of kidney cancer.

6 Apr 2020

Scientist proposes geroprotective strategies to reduce lethality of COVID-19 in the elderly

The Biogerontology Research Foundation, a registered UK charity supporting and promoting aging and longevity research worldwide since 2008, today announced the publication of a paper titled "Geroprotective and senoremediative strategies to reduce the comorbidity, infection rates, severity, and lethality in gerophilic and gerolavic infections" in the leading journal Aging.

6 Apr 2020

Shorter-course radiotherapy will benefit bowel cancer patients during COVID-19

An international panel of cancer experts has recommended a one-week course of radiotherapy and delaying surgery as the best way to treat patients with bowel cancer during the COVID-19 pandemic.

6 Apr 2020

Fertility apps often inaccurate, study shows

People are tracking their own health more and more using mobile health applications and other personal digital health informatics. One such app line involves tracking menstruation and fertility. However, a new study published in the BMJ of Sexual and Reproductive Health in April 2020 throws doubt on the accuracy of these apps.

6 Apr 2020

Giant viruses may possess the tools of metabolism in their genome

According to researchers from Virginia Tech, genes within viruses possess certain portions that help them make their own tools for metabolism. However, they do not have metabolic processes of their own. The new study with these findings appeared in the latest issue of the journal Nature Communications.

6 Apr 2020

Should US schools close to thwart spread of COVID-19?

A new study used mathematical modeling to explore the benefits and risks of closing down the schools to prevent new cases and the possibility of absenteeism among health care workers because they need to care for their children at home and the ultimate effect of the step on reducing the risk of deaths due to COVID-19.

6 Apr 2020

Discovery of novel brain-digestive link

Scientists across the globe have long studied the link between the brain and the digestive system. Previous studies have tied brain networks and how they influence the gastrointestinal tract or vice versa. Food has a unique effect on humans as food tastes or flavors often dictate food-seeking behaviors. So is the palate the only thing that controls food choices among humans?

6 Apr 2020

Healthy lifestyle, greater disease-free life expectancy

For years, doctors have been advocating a healthy diet, more regular exercise, stress relief, and weight control. However, no study has examined a combination of all these factors with the number of years that one can live free of major chronic disease. This could help communicate the benefits of a healthy lifestyle more convincingly than the commonly reported relative risk of disease with each of these risk factors.

6 Apr 2020

Alzheimer's disease: high amyloid levels linked to early disease

A new study published in the journal JAMA Neurology in April 2020 seems to indicate that higher brain amyloid levels represent early Alzheimer's disease (AD).

6 Apr 2020

Researchers investigate link between air pollution and SARS-CoV-2 lethality in Italy

The world has been hit hard by coronavirus, and health services and authorities everywhere are struggling to reduce the spread, combat the disease and protect the population. Nevertheless, the pandemic will cost lives throughout the world.

6 Apr 2020

DsbA-L gene may play a role in protecting respiratory function of the elderly

The lungs are constantly exposed to the external environment and maintain homeostasis by adapting to stress and tissue damage.

6 Apr 2020

Analysis of causative protein genotype can help predict Alport syndrome severity

A Japanese research team has successfully developed a system to predict the severity of Alport syndrome, a serious hereditary kidney disease that occurs in about 1 out of 5,000 people in the US. Patients with Alport syndrome have abnormalities in the causative protein, type IV collagen, that often lead to chronic renal dysfunction requiring dialysis.

6 Apr 2020