Can a Blood Test Detect Alzheimer’s Disease?

In July, the first direct-to-consumer blood test designed to assess a user’s risk for developing Alzheimer’s disease hit the market. The test, which has not undergone Food and Drug Administration (FDA) review, measures the level of a protein called beta amyloid, a key component of plaques that form in the brains of Alzheimer’s disease patients, disrupting brain function. Zaldy Tan, MD, MPH, medi..(Read More)

NIH Investigates Multidrug-Resistant Bacterium Emerging In Community Settings

New “hypervirulent” strains of the bacterium Klebsiella pneumoniae have emerged in healthy people in community settings, prompting a National Institutes of Health research group to investigate how the human immune system defends against infection. After exposing the strains to components of the human immune system in a laboratory “test tube” setting, scientists found that some strains were more li..(Read More)

Academic Decline Could be a Sign of Hearing Loss

As children across the U.S. head back to school, the American Academy of Audiology recommends that parents and teachers pay close attention to children’s hearing ability. Education is primarily delivered through auditory input and even a mild hearing loss can impact a child’s success in school. Children with untreated hearing loss use more cognitive energy to understand what is being said or ma..(Read More)

A Healthy Diet, Reading, And Doing Sports Promote Reasoning Skills In Children

Reasoning skills are crucial skills in learning, academic performance, and everyday problem-solving. According to a recent study conducted at the University of Eastern Finland, improved overall diet quality and reduced consumption of red meat, as well as increased time spent in reading and organised sports enhanced reasoning skills among children over the first two school years. “Children with he..(Read More)

The Immunotherapy Revolution for Autoimmune Diseases

Autoimmune diseases are a conundrum: Sometimes instead of protecting the body, the immune system turns against it. The target of its wrath varies depending on the condition. To alleviate patients' suffering, doctors must dampen the immune system. However, lacking the means to selectively target only the parts that are misbehaving, they have no choice but to broadly impair the body’s defenses, open..(Read More)

Purdue’s Microwave Technology Could Lead To More Stable Vaccine Supply Chain

The COVID-19 pandemic put a spotlight on the vaccine supply chain and public health impact of vaccine stability. But Purdue University researchers have been working on the problem for years — using rocket science to advance a freeze-drying technology that lengthens product shelf life. And that technology could soon be available in the marketplace. A Purdue-led team has been awarded nearly $1 mill..(Read More)

NIH Establishes Maternal Health Research Centers of Excellence

The National Institutes of Health has awarded $24 million in first-year funding to establish Maternal Health Research Centers of Excellence. Part of NIH’s Implementing a Maternal Health and Pregnancy Outcomes Vision for Everyone (IMPROVE) initiative, the centers will develop and evaluate innovative approaches to reduce pregnancy-related complications and deaths and promote maternal health equity. ..(Read More)