An article in Health Care Science provides an in-depth analysis of the changes made to the diagnosis and treatment protocol for COVID-19 in China over the course of the pandemic. The authors compare and summarize each of the 10 versions of the protocol issued by the National Health Commission of China over 3 years, highlighting the evolving scientific evidence and disease situation that informed these changes. The summary provides valuable insights into the adaptive healthcare management and response to COVID-19 in China, which can inform the global response to the pandemic. “Clinical ...

Brepocitinib is an oral drug that inhibits certain enzymes involved in inflammation—called tyrosine kinase 2 and Janus kinase 1—and is being tested for the treatment of several immunological diseases. A phase IIb randomized clinical trial published in Arthritis & Rheumatology recently generated promising efficacy and safety data for the use of brepocitinib in adults with moderately-to-severely active psoriatic arthritis. Overall, 218 participants were randomized and received brepocitinib or placebo for 1 year. After 16 weeks of treatment, 30 and 60 mg daily doses of brepocitinib were superior to placebo at reducing signs and symptoms ...

A vegan diet does not affect maternal breastmilk concentrations of vitamin B2 and carnitine, nutrients essential for the developing infant. These are the results of an Amsterdam UMC study, presented today at the 55th Annual Meeting of the European Society for Paediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition (ESPGHAN).    Research has found that lactating mothers following a vegan diet compared to mothers with an omnivorous diet showed no difference in the human milk concentrations of vitamin B2 or carnitine, despite these nutrients being found in highest concentrations in animal products.  Using ...

A study of eelgrass meadows planted by researchers from the University of Gothenburg shows that fauna return rapidly once the eelgrass has started to grow. Already after the second summer, the biodiversity in the planted meadow was almost the same as in old established eelgrass meadows. Eelgrass meadows have declined heavily in southern Bohus county in recent decades and in many places have disappeared altogether. Researchers at the University of Gothenburg have been working on the restoration of eelgrass meadows for twelve years. ...

Patients with rheumatic and musculoskeletal conditions are vulnerable to long term opioid use, with up to 1 in 3 of those with rheumatoid arthritis or fibromyalgia, who take these drugs for the first time, potentially at risk, suggest the findings of a research letter, published online in the Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases. People with rheumatic and musculoskeletal conditions are often prescribed opioids to manage their pain, and a proportion of them will become long term users with the attendant risks of dependence and harmful side effects, ...

Regular aerobic exercise, popularly known as “cardio,” is linked to a significantly lower risk of death from flu or pneumonia, even at weekly levels below those recommended, finds US research published online in the British Journal of Sports Medicine. But there may be a level above which the effects plateau or—in the case of muscle strengthening activities—become potentially harmful, the findings suggest.  Adults are advised to clock up at least 150 minutes/week of moderate intensity, ...

Education systems need major reform in the light of lessons learned from Covid, according to a leading education academic. Klaus Zierer, Professor of Education at the University of Augsburg, Germany, and an associate research fellow at the University of Oxford, UK, has revealed ways in which the ‘collateral damage’ from school closures is still hitting children and young people particularly hard. He examines the evidence in his new book, Educating the Covid Generation, publishing on May 17. The author believes policymakers are turning a blind eye ...

Study of search trends from Google and Yandex shows an absence of “rally round the flag” effect in the Russian population, as claimed by state-sanctioned polling. Wellbeing among Russians is at lowest since invasion and close to ten-year low of pandemic, while military mobilisations saw huge spikes in anti-regime web searches. Search trends track official polling for years preceding invasion, then diverge wildly from early 2022, suggesting Russian polling is now highly unreliable.  A new study analysing online search terms used every day by millions of Russians suggests that – contrary to official data from ...

A new study from North Carolina State University finds carrying pollen is a workout that significantly increases the body temperature of bumble bees. This new understanding of active bumble bee body temperatures raises questions about how these species will be impacted by a warmer world due to climate change. Spend a bit of time at a nearby flower patch and you will spot a fuzzy bumble bee with yellow bumps on her back legs. These yellow bumps are solid packets of pollen that have been carefully collected during the bees’ foraging trip for transport back to their nests. And while bees may seem to move from flower to flower with ease, these pollen packets ...

International aid for pre-primary education has fallen further behind an agreed 10% spending target since the COVID-19 outbreak, according to new research.   The report, compiled by academics at the University of Cambridge for the global children’s charity, Theirworld, highlights “continued, chronic” underfunding of pre-primary education in many of the world’s poorest nations, after years of slow progress and pandemic-related cuts.   Early childhood education is widely understood to be essential to children’s successful cognitive and social development and to breaking cycles of poverty in poorer countries. ...

Researchers have developed a chicken egg that may be safe for people with egg white allergies. Chicken egg allergies are one of the most common allergies in children. Though most children outgrow this allergy by age 16, some will still have an egg allergy into adulthood. Egg white allergies can cause a variety of symptoms, including vomiting, stomach cramps, breathing problems, hives, and swelling and some people with egg white allergies are unable to receive certain flu vaccines. Using genome editing technology, researchers have produced an egg without ...

By combining the scientific powerhouses of genetics and geology, University of Otago researchers have identified a new area of coastal uplift, which had been hiding in plain sight.   The previously unknown region of earthquake uplift, in Rarangi, Marlborough, was discovered using a combination of new data from laser mapping and kelp genetics.     Co-author Professor Jon Waters, of the Department of Zoology, says the study gives new insights into the changes in Aotearoa’s landscapes and the recent history of earthquake impacts.   “In a geologically well studied country like New Zealand, there ...

Political and legislative action is urgently needed to respond to threats posed by the link between environmental factors and widespread infertility, says the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology (ESHRE) today (Wednesday). This is one of the (8) recommendations outlined in a list of statements published by ESHRE for the first time. The aim is to draw attention to the growing threat from climate change, pollutants, hormone-disrupting chemicals, toxic substances, and other related risks. The ...

A new framework developed by University of Waterloo researchers demonstrates the significant economic health savings and benefits from urban park investments. In the first case study of its kind in Canada, researchers looked at Peterborough’s new Quaker Foods City Square park, which cost taxpayers $6.4 million, and have estimated the economic value of physical and mental health benefits that could come from it at more than $4 million per year. The framework considers the health savings associated with improved mental health and better air quality, the ...

New liquid biopsy method offers potential for noninvasive Parkinson’s disease testing EVtrap technology identifies proteins from brain cells in urine samples WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – A team led by researchers at Purdue University and Purdue spinoff company Tymora Analytical Operations has developed a technique that may reveal signs of Parkinson’s disease in urine samples. The technique gives researchers a chance to see if LRRK2 (leucine-rich repeat kinase 2) proteins, which are linked to Parkinson’s disease, and their downstream pathways are altered in samples from Parkinson’s patients. The method could eventually lead ...

WASHINGTON (May 16, 2023) - The George Washington University is co-leading a multi-institutional effort supported by the National Science Foundation (NSF) that will develop new artificial intelligence (AI) technologies designed to promote trust and mitigate risks, while simultaneously empowering and educating the public. The NSF Institute for Trustworthy AI in Law & Society (TRAILS) announced on May 4, 2023, unites specialists in AI and machine learning with systems engineers, social scientists, legal ...

Black adults – particularly Black women – with higher levels of education and experiences of discrimination and crime are more likely to own a firearm, according to a study by the New Jersey Gun Violence Research Center at Rutgers. In a new study appearing in the Journal of Clinical Psychology, researchers found that Black adults who endorsed firearm ownership were more likely to grow up in homes with firearms, had previously shot a firearm and planned to acquire a firearm in the coming year. “The higher rates of firearm ownership among highly educated Black women were somewhat surprising to us,” said Michael Anestis, executive director ...

Mean age at diagnosis of heart failure was 32 years old First study to estimate risk of heart failure among young adult cancer survivors treated with this category of chemotherapy  Study raises awareness for patients, clinicians to monitor for heart failure symptoms, consider strategies for prevention CHICAGO --- Imagine surviving cancer only to learn the drug that saved your life has introduced a completely different health risk: heart failure. A new Northwestern Medicine study has found young adult cancer survivors (between 18 and 39 years old at diagnosis) were at higher risk (2.6 times) of heart failure when treated with anthracyclines, a specific category ...

Only four weeks of shift work-like patterns in female mice are enough to disrupt their biological clock and reduce fertility, according to research presented at the 25th European Congress of Endocrinology. The findings help scientists better understand how circadian disturbances impact female fertility, which could eventually lead to future prevention strategies for women working in non-standard work schedules. The circadian rhythm is generated by the body’s internal clocks which are synchronised to a 24-hour period, mostly by changes in light across days. These clocks regulate various biological functions and processes, including the sleep-wake cycle, ...

The board of governors of the SWOG Cancer Research Network has elected Primo N. Lara, Jr., MD, and Dawn L. Hershman, MD, MS, as group co-chairs-elect. The two will serve in that capacity until the term of the current group chair, Charles D. Blanke, MD, ends in spring 2025. They will then begin a six-year term as SWOG’s first group co-chairs. In a joint statement, Hershman and Lara said, “We both understand that the success of SWOG has been fundamentally anchored in collaborative interdisciplinary team science. We are convinced ...

Boulder, Colo., USA: The Geological Society of America (GSA) is pleased to announce the upcoming 2023 GSA Rocky Mountain Section Meeting to be held from 23–25 May in Fort Collins, Colorado, USA. This highly anticipated event will provide a dynamic platform for scientists, researchers, industry professionals, and students to exchange ideas, present research findings, and foster collaborations. The meeting will feature a wide range of engaging sessions, a plenary lecture on climate intervention, scientific field trips, informative short courses, and impactful mentoring programs ...

COMBINEDBrain’s Founder and Director, Dr. Terry Jo Bichell, understands the power of collaboration. In her years as a neuroscientist, advocate, and rare patient parent, she has witnessed the field of neurodevelopment transform from a broad focus on autism  or intellectual disability,  to an era based on rare genetic  disorders.  When new disorders are identified, Patient Advocacy Organizations spring up, led by passionate parents with the drive and determination to cure their children. Some of these organizations represent as many as 10,000 patients, some as few as 10.  No matter their size, each organization must follow a similar path to ...

Liquid biopsy is increasingly stepping up as a non-invasive approach in detecting and tracking circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) in blood and providing crucial insights into the dynamics of cancer evolution and intra-tumor heterogeneity as drivers of cancer drug resistance.   One main limitation of liquid biopsy to-date is the low sensitivity of current approaches in tumor types that do not shed enough DNA into the bloodstream, including pancreatic cancer.   Co-led by VHIO’s Rodrigo A. Toledo, a study published in Genome Medicine (1) reports on the development of a novel ctDNA-based approach, Aneuploidy in Circulating Tumor DNA ...

Researchers at Rutgers University have found a major flaw in the way that algorithms designed to detect "fake news" evaluate the credibility of online news stories. Most of these algorithms rely on a credibility score for the "source" of the article, rather than assessing the credibility of each individual article, the researchers said. "It is not the case that all news articles published by sources labeled 'credible' (e.g., The New York Times) are accurate, nor is it the case that every article published by sources labeled 'noncredible' publications are 'fake news,'" ...

Spooked by volatile reports from the Silicon Valley Bank in early March, many customers panicked and withdrew their money, creating the largest bank failure since the 2007-2008 financial crisis. The problem — investors and customers lost confidence in the bank, proving the perception of a banks’ reliability can significantly impact its success. Investors tend to respond negatively to volatility in firms’ performance. To mitigate investors’ concerns, when some banks receive extremely high income, they occasionally delay reporting that amount until a later date when the income ...