Humans
We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Health & Medicine
Mouse brain cells live long and prosper
Mouse neurons live twice as long as usual when transplanted into rat brain, suggesting that brain deterioration may not necessarily accompany long life.
- Health & Medicine
Tracing pollution links to asthma, allergy
Excessive exposure to air high in diesel exhaust and wood smoke is tied to disabled immune-regulating cells in children.
- Life
Insulin levels wax and wane daily
Modern life may clash with the hormone’s natural cycle, new mouse research suggests.
- Health & Medicine
Novel drug candidates fight flu in mice
The compounds halt even drug-resistant strains of the virus in lab studies
- Humans
Exploring NASA’s quirky places
Best known for its role in crafting and commanding spacecraft such as Curiosity, JPL is also home to decades’ worth of accumulated oddities.
- Humans
A Cancer Patient’s Best Friend
Similarities between tumors in people and dogs mean canine studies can inform human disease.
- Humans
Radial routes ran outside Mesopotamia
Cold War–era imagery reveals transportation networks extended throughout Middle East.
- Health & Medicine
Surgery shows promise in treating persistent heartburn
Ring-shaped device around esophagus prevents acid reflux so that patients can stop taking drugs.
- Health & Medicine
Smoking damages mouse brains
Signs of Alzheimer’s disease appear after the rodents breathe cigarette smoke.
- Humans
Origins of alcohol consumption traced to ape ancestor
Eating fermented fruit off the ground may have paved way for ability to digest ethanol.
- Health & Medicine
A surprise makes memories wobbly
Drug that interferes with recollection works only when people face the unexpected.
- Health & Medicine
Smoking ban cuts preterm births
Belgium sees drop in preterm births after initiating no-smoking policies.
