NEW ORLEANS – Ochsner Health is proud to announce Abdul Khan, MD, has been named the new chief executive officer of Ochsner River Region, effective June 1. In this role, Dr. Khan will maintain oversight of Ochsner facilities and care offered in Kenner, Luling, Destrehan and LaPlace, including Ochsner Medical Center – Kenner, Ochsner Medical Complex- River Parishes and St. Charles Parish Hospital. “I am deeply honored to serve as CEO of Ochsner River Region. It is a privilege to be part of an organization that is committed to our community and transforming lives through innovative, ...

Vulnerable communities in the Southeastern United States must look to the future, not the past, to prepare for climate disasters, according to researchers at the Feinstein International Center, located at the Gerald J. and Dorothy R. Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy at Tufts University. In a recent paper published in the Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society, the researchers document substantially higher risk of extreme temperatures and flooding in the Southeast U.S.  The researchers' work, which was supported by a NASA cooperative grant, also includes a proposed framework to help these communities better prepare ...

Woods Hole, Mass. (June 5, 2025) -- A team of international scientists, including from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, have tracked over 100 marine megafauna species, identifying the most critical locations in our global oceans for better marine conservation efforts, and the establishment of effective Marine Protected Areas (MPAs), according to new research published in Science. The global UN-endorsed research project, MegaMove, involves almost 400 scientists from over 50 countries, showing where protection could be implemented specifically ...

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Can a small fish help identify possible treatments for an ultra-rare inherited disease found in an Alabama boy? The genetic disease is XMEA, which progressively weakens the muscles and can affect the liver and heart. As of March 2024, only 33 cases had ever been seen worldwide. After the DNA sequence of the boy’s genome showed a mutation in the VMA21 gene, one of the known causes of XMEA, University of Alabama at Birmingham and Children’s of Alabama pediatric neurologist Michael Lopez, M.D., Ph.D., referred the family to the UAB Center for Precision Animal Modeling, or C-PAM. At C-PAM and in collaboration with a Canadian group, research led ...

Long before COVID-19 forced most of the world behind masks and into isolation, viral diseases had been persistently jumping from humans to primate species, with drastic consequences. The problem became particularly stark on Dec. 31, 2016, when a viral outbreak was detected at a field site for research on chimpanzees, called Ngogo, in Uganda's Kibale National Park. The outbreak, from a virus that originated in humans, ultimately killed 25 of the nearly 200 Ngogo chimps, which researchers have studied for 30 years. A new study led by a University of Arizona primatologist, published in the journal Biological Conservation, provides ...

Dr. Warren Johnson, a professor emeritus of medicine and founding director of Weill Cornell Medicine’s Center for Global Health, has been awarded the institution’s Joan and Sanford I. Weill Exemplary Achievement Award. Weill Cornell Medicine established the Weill Award in 2018 in honor of the institution’s preeminent benefactors, Joan and Sanford I. Weill, and to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the institution’s renaming. The award, which carries a $50,000 cash prize, is presented to an exceptional faculty member whose transformational work enhances health care ...

Embargoed for release: Thursday, June 5, 4:00 PM ET Key points: Nearly one-third of nutrition clinical trial participants who adopted and adhered to a healthy diet did not lose any weight, but still saw significant improvements to their cardiometabolic health, including higher HDL cholesterol, lower levels of leptin, and less visceral fat. The findings demonstrate that individuals resistant to weight loss may still achieve meaningful health benefits with lifestyle changes. Cutting-edge omics tools revealed 12 specific DNA methylation sites that strongly predict long-term weight loss—a novel finding that shows how some people may be ...

A new international study involving researchers from Durham University has revealed that climate change is accelerating the rate of development and global abundances of antibiotic resistance bacteria in soils.   The findings, published in the journal Nature Ecology & Evolution, highlight a new and deeply concerning less seen consequence of global warming to public health.   The study shows that rising global temperatures are significantly increasing the abundance of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) and virulence factors in soil microbial ...

An agile, transparent, and ethics-driven oversight system is needed for the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to balance innovation with patient safety when it comes to artificial intelligence-driven medical technologies. That is the takeaway from a new report issued to the FDA, published this week in the open-access journal PLOS Medicine by Leo Celi of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and colleagues.  Artificial intelligence is becoming a powerful force in healthcare, helping doctors diagnose diseases, monitor patients, and even recommend treatments. Unlike traditional medical devices, many AI tools continue ...

EMBARGOED UNTIL Thursday, 5 June 2025 at 14:00 (2:00 pm) U.S. Eastern Time (8pm South Africa time, 7pm UK time) JOINT MEDIA RELEASE Study finds dehorning of rhinos drastically reduces poaching More rhino images and video clips available via the link below An international study published today (5 June 2025) in the prestigious journal Science found that dehorning rhinos resulted in a drastic reduction in poaching of these endangered animals. This is based on the analysis of data across 11 reserves in the Greater Kruger region of South Africa between 2017 and 2023. Poaching for their horn is a major threat to the world’s five rhino species. The project was a collaboration ...

Scientists at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) have found that levels of circulating taurine, a conditionally essential amino acid involved in multiple important biological functions, is unlikely to serve as a good biomarker for the aging process. In blood samples from humans, monkeys, and mice, scientists found that circulating taurine levels often increased or remained constant with age. Analysis of longitudinal data showed that within individual differences in taurine levels often exceeded age-related changes. Researchers also found that taurine levels were inconsistently associated with ...

Researchers led by Kenichiro Itami at the RIKEN Pioneering Research Institute (PRI) / RIKEN Center for Sustainable Resource Science (CSRS) have successfully used insects as mini molecule-making factories, marking a breakthrough in chemical engineering. Referred to as “in-insect synthesis,” this technique offers a new way to create and modify complex molecules, which will generate new opportunities for the discovery, development, and application of non-natural molecules, such as nanocarbons. Molecular nanocarbons are super tiny structures made entirely of carbon atoms. Despite their minuscule size, they can be ...

Research in animals and humans has suggested low levels of taurine may be a driver for aging, which has led to discussions about whether taurine is an aging biomarker. Now, a comprehensive study involving longitudinal data from humans, monkeys, and mice shows that taurine levels in the blood do not consistently decline with age, and that levels of taurine vary more by factors unique to each individual than based on aging. These results lead the study authors – Maria Fernandez and colleagues – to conclude that “the efficacy of taurine supplementation to delay aging ...

Findings from a new archaeological survey challenge long-held assumptions that intensive agriculture in North America was limited to centralized societies or favorable environments. The findings reveal an extensive precolonial agricultural landscape in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, suggesting Indigenous American communities cultivated maize intensively between 1000 and 1600 CE, despite a cold climate and marginal growing conditions. Indigenous American communities across what is now the United States increasingly relied on intensive maize cultivation, ...

Dehorning rhinos proactively removed the incentive for poachers and reduced poaching activity by 78% across 11 Greater Kruger African reserves from 2017 to 2023, a new study has found. Conversely, law enforcement interventions designed to punish poachers retroactively had no statistical effect on poaching. “Our results present a challenge to governments, funders, the private sector, and nongovernmental organizations to reassess their strategic approaches to wildlife crime in general,” Timothy Kuiper and colleagues write. “Although detecting and arresting poachers is essential, ...

A new prosthesis for the retina weaved with nanowires partially restored vision in blind mice and allowed detection of near-infrared light in macaques, according to a new study. The new technology’s feasibility and strong safety profile marks a milestone in the development of artificial vision, which could prove invaluable to patients worldwide who are living with blindness or retinal disease. Currently, there are many approaches to restoring vision in the blind, but almost all of these treatments face obstacles such as electrical interference or a lack of long-term efficacy. At the same time, researchers are also trying ...

With its cold climate, short growing season, and dense forests, Michigan's Upper Peninsula is known as a challenging place for farming. But a new Dartmouth-led study provides evidence of intensive farming by ancestral Native Americans at the Sixty Islands archaeological site along the Menominee River, making it the most complete ancient agricultural site in the eastern half of the United States. The site features a raised ridge field system that dates to around the 10th century to 1600, and much of it is still intact today. The raised fields are comprised of clustered ...

For over a decade, scientists have been growing organoids — small clusters of cells that mimic a particular organ — to serve as miniature biological models. Organoids of the brain have been used to study neurodevelopmental disorders; intestinal organoids, to model celiac disease; and lung organoids, to investigate SARS-CoV-2. Heart organoids have even been sent to space to test the effect of microgravity on cardiac muscle. But there’s a tiny problem — the organoids can’t grow ...

A sweeping new study is helping pinpoint where whales, sharks, turtles, and other ocean giants need the most protection and where current efforts fall short. Led by Ana Sequeira of Australian National University and supported by the United Nations, the research synthesized data from 12,000 satellite-tracked animals across more than 100 species. It reveals how marine megafauna move globally and where their migratory, feeding, and breeding behaviors intersect with human threats such as fishing, shipping, and pollution. Virginia ...

Richmond Hill, Ontario— Amid intensifying trade wars, geopolitical tensions, and surging demand for AI and clean energy technologies, United Nations scientists and global experts have unveiled a bold proposal for a "Global Minerals Trust"—a cooperative, multilateral governance mechanism to ensure fair, sustainable, and conflict-free access to critical minerals.  The Trust would include independent audit mechanisms—similar to those used by the International Atomic Energy Agency—to ensure environmental and social safeguards. Countries would retain full sovereignty over their ...

Where do you go when you’re a fish and you need a skincare treatment? Coral reefs contain natural “beauty salons,” lively social hubs of activity where fish “clients” swim up and wait to be serviced by smaller fish cleaners. The little cleaners dart under and around their much bigger clients — even entering their mouths — cleaning their scales of bacteria and parasites like a team of car washers servicing a Buick. Sometimes cleaners even rub against their clients, providing a soothing massage. But aside from skincare benefits, what role might busy cleaner fish stations play in spreading microbes and bacteria — for good or ill — throughout ...

Pennington Biomedical Research Center publicly introduced its Greaux Healthy initiative, a public service initiative designed to help improve Louisiana kids’ health at every age, during the weekly Red Stick Farmer’s Market on Thursday. Developed in partnership with the State of Louisiana, Greaux Healthy implements 35 years of Pennington Biomedical research and discoveries to inform tools, resources and programing for children, parents, healthcare providers and educators throughout the state.    “Greaux Healthy was created with one clear goal: to make Louisiana’s children healthy again,” said ...

“In GC, CBR3-AS1 and PCA3 may be utilized as therapeutic targets and prognostic biomarkers, respectively.” BUFFALO, NY- June 5, 2025 – A new research paper was published in Volume 16 of Genes & Cancer on May 9, 2025, titled “Evaluation of LncRNAs CBR3-AS1 and PCA3 expression in Gastric cancer and their correlation to clinicopathological variables.” Researchers, led by first author Parisa Najari and corresponding author Reza Safaralizadeh from the University of Tabriz, investigated how two long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs), CBR3-AS1 and ...

About The Study: Health care employment growth decreased amid the pandemic but fully recovered by 2024. This recovery contrasts with non–health care employment trends and may result from health care financing via insurance coverage shielding health care employment from macroeconomic fluctuations.  Corresponding Author: To contact the corresponding author, Thuy Nguyen, PhD, email thuydn@umich.edu. To access the embargoed study: Visit our For The Media website at this link https://media.jamanetwork.com/ (doi:10.1001/jama.2025.8588) Editor’s Note: Please see the article for additional information, including ...

About The Article: This Viewpoint, by Vinay Prasad, MD, MPH, of the Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, Food and Drug Administration, and colleagues discusses a safety communication recommending a pause in the use of live attenuated chikungunya virus vaccine.  Corresponding Author: To contact the corresponding author, Vinay Prasad, MD, MPH, email vinayak.prasad@fda.gov. To access the embargoed study: Visit our For The Media website at this link https://media.jamanetwork.com/ (doi:10.1001/jama.2025.9393) Editor’s ...