Identifying the cause of an infectious disease is time-consuming and not always easy. So, a company called Karius has developed a blood test that analyzes cell-free DNA to identify 1,250 different human pathogens.
Biomedicine & Biotech
Get this: 5G activists say that wireless technology causes cancer; cardiovascular disease; DNA damage; learning and memory deficits; impaired sperm function and quality; miscarriage; neurological damage; obesity; diabetes; as well as autism; attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD); and asthma in children. That's a pretty scary list. A nuclear bomb can't even do all that.
Two million dollars is a lot of money. It’s enough to buy a fleet of Tesla Model S cars, a large lake’s worth of Swedish Fish or even a private island. One thing this hefty sum won’t get you, however, is a new drug called Zolgensma. But what it does - gene therapy - is astounding.
Roaming through your body is a group of specialized immune cells which act stealthily and authoritatively. They "ask" other body cells to show them identification ("papers please!"). If they fail to provide adequate ID those cells are killed on the spot. No questions asked. Scientists are now recruiting these cells to help in the fight against cancer.
With the hope of increasing accessibility for a burdensome medical issue, can this application actually make a dent as a screening or diagnostic tool?
Promising work just published in the journal Nature Medicine offers hope when antibiotic resistance, in an extremely sick patient, renders limited treatments.
Dr. Henry Miller, a former FDA deputy commissioner, used to be a big fan of the New York Times' coverage of science and medicine. But no longer. He takes issue with an editorial that accuses the agency of reducing its scrutiny of new drugs. Dr. Miller explains why the Times is off-base: the development of precision medicine.
You don't need to purchase an air purifier for your house. You have a built-in air purifier called the respiratory system.
Successful organ transplantation requires that a logistically complex series of events take place well beyond the scope of an ideally-matched donor and recipient. As the applications keep expanding, delivery-focused technology is a boon for healthcare.
Of all the drugs used to treat herpes, acyclovir is the most common. So, how does it work? The devil is in the details ... and the details are fascinating.
Should we turn our nose up at using a dog's keen sense of smell as a cancer screening tool? Or to help identify relevant biomarkers that scientists should be isolating for diagnostic purposes?
A new study that says oral sex can prevent miscarriage predictably has gone viral, thanks mostly to the rather excitable British tabloids. But is it true? If it is, the study doesn't even come close to confirming the hypothesis.