Tag: featured
Antibiotic overuse reduces immune system’s effectivity against infections
Researchers at the University of Virginia School of Medicine have found that overuse of antibiotics lessens the immune system’s effectivity against infections and weakens the intestinal barrier against invading bugs. They found that antibiotic use reduces the effectivity of neutrophils, a type of immune cell, that play an important role as a first-line ‘innate immune [...]
Chronic lung diseases due to smoking, pollution killed 3.6 mn in 2015
Around 3.6 million people all over the world were killed by two of the most common chronic lung diseases in 2015, according to a study. Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), caused mainly by smoking and pollution, was responsible for 3.2 million deaths, while 400,000 people died from asthma. COPD is a group of lung conditions [...]
Oral peanut allergy treatment found to offer protection even after four years
Researchers from Australia have found that an oral peanut allergy treatment given to kids was still effective even after four years from its administration. A probiotic containing peanut protein was given to children every day for 18 months. When tested one month later, 80% could tolerate peanuts without any allergic symptoms and after four years, [...]
WHO: Yemen cholera cases reach 500,000
The recent cholera outbreak in the war-torn Yemen has already affected half a million people in the country, with 5,000 people being infected every day, the World Health Organization (WHO) reported. At least 1,975 people have died since the waterborne disease began to spread rapidly at the end of April. Even though the overall caseload [...]
Injectable tissue bandage can help repair damaged hearts
Biomedical engineering Professor Milica Radisic and her colleagues at the University of Toronto Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering in Canada have developed a new technique that can repair damaged heart tissues without the need for invasive open-heart surgeries. The technique uses a new biomaterial, an expanding tissue bandage a little smaller than a postage [...]
Asia’s factory farms pose major global health threats, report says
Factory farming in Asian countries could lead to major global health risks, according to the report “Factory Farming in Asia: Assessing Investment Risks”. In over just a decade, the use of antibiotics in factory farms in Asia is set to more than, with potentially damaging effects on antibiotic resistance around the world. Factory farming of [...]
Scientists use plants in new polio vaccine breakthrough
The world may have taken a step towards a polio-free future as researchers make a breakthrough in vaccine development against the disease. An international consortium of scientists at the John Innes Centre in Norwich, UK was able to produce a new poliovirus vaccine by growing virus-like particles (VLPs), which are non-pathogenic mimics of the virus, [...]
First skin-to-skin contact between mother, infant can prevent newborn death
In the Western Pacific Region, a newborn dies every two minutes because of inappropriate clinical practices at the time of birth and during the first few days of life. However, newborn mortalitycan easily be prevented through Early Essential Newborn Care (EENC), a set of simple, cost-effective interventions that can save newborn lives and give them [...]
Modified plastic films prevent contamination in food, biomedical industries
Plastic films that have been specially designed and integrated with “N-halamines”, special chemical groups, within the polymer matrix of the plastic can prevent bacterial contamination in the food and biomedical industries, according to a recently published research. The plastic films work by killing bacteria in biofilms, and preventing bacteria from forming biofilms in the first [...]
New device developed to measure systolic blood pressure more accurately
Researchers from the Jerusalem College of Technology and the ShaareZedek Medical Center in Israel have developed a new device using a technique called photoplethysmography to more accurately measure systolic blood pressure. An estimated 1 in 3 US adults have high blood pressure. Blood pressure levels are often assessed by using automatic blood pressure devices. But [...]
