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Magazine
In the Feb. 16 SN: Robots roll into the classroom, brain zaps for severe depression, particle colliders of the future, how to walk like a tetrapod, sleepless nights boost Alzheimer's proteins and more.
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Feature
Brain-zapping implants that fight depression are inching closer to reality
02/10/2019 - 06:00 Mental Health, Clinical Trials, BiomedicineLike seismic sensors planted in quiet ground, hundreds of tiny electrodes rested in the outer layer of the 44-year-old woman’s brain. These sensors, each slightly larger than a sesame seed, had been implanted under her skull to listen for the first rumblings of epileptic seizures.
The electrodes gave researchers unprecedented access to the patient’s brain. With the woman’s permission,...
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Feature
Vitamin D supplements aren’t living up to their hype
01/27/2019 - 06:00 Clinical Trials, Nutrition, CancerIn the supplement world, vitamin D is a bit like a Kardashian. Its fame seemed to come out of nowhere about a decade ago, garnering so much press so fast that it’s hard to remember a time when people weren’t talking about it.
Vitamin D had long been known for protecting bones, but its star began to rise in the early 2000s after researchers made connections hinting that vitamin D was good...
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News
A potent fish oil drug may protect high-risk patients against heart attacks
11/10/2018 - 15:00 Health, Clinical TrialsCholesterol-lowering drugs may one day gain a sidekick in the battle against heart disease. Taking a potent drug derived from fish oil along with a statin lowers the risk of heart attack and stroke in some high-risk people, researchers report.
A clinical trial called REDUCE-IT tested the approach in more than 8,000 participants who either had cardiovascular disease or were at high risk...
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News
Vitamin D supplements don’t prevent heart disease or cancer
11/10/2018 - 15:00 Health, Clinical TrialsCHICAGO — Taking a vitamin D supplement does not reduce the risk of having a potentially fatal heart attack or stroke or for getting an invasive cancer, according to highly anticipated results of a large clinical trial.
The VITAL trial found no significant difference in cancer or heart health risk between people taking 2,000 international units, or IU, of vitamin D a day and those who...
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News in Brief
A new drug may boost dwindling treatment options for gonorrhea
11/07/2018 - 17:00 Health, Clinical TrialsGonorrhea is a wily foe. But doctors may soon have another drug to fight the sexually transmitted infection that’s become resistant to nearly every antibiotic thrown its way. In clinical trials, a new antibiotic was effective at stopping the bacteria that causes the disease.
A single oral dose of the drug, called zoliflodacin, cured 96 percent of people who had gonorrhea infections in...
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Feature
How to make organ transplants last
10/21/2018 - 05:00 Immune Science, Cells, Clinical TrialsTrent Jackson’s life changed abruptly in early 2015. The computer engineer thought he had the flu. His then-wife, Donna Sylvia, thought differently. His skin was turning a dark golden yellow, almost brown, “like he was getting some kind of weird tan,” she says. On Wednesday, January 28, Sylvia and Jackson’s brother Todd finally persuaded Jackson to see a doctor.
Sylvia’s suspicions were...
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News
New therapies pack a triple-drug punch to treat cystic fibrosis
10/19/2018 - 12:39 Health, Clinical TrialsFor years, scientists have struggled to find a therapy that works for most cystic fibrosis sufferers. Now, two new triple-drug approaches, still undergoing testing, are offering hope.
Cystic fibrosis is caused by mutations in a gene called CFTR. These mutations mean the body either makes defective versions of a protein, also called CFTR, or none of the protein at all. The new therapies...
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News
A new vaccine raises hopes of someday curbing the tuberculosis epidemic
09/25/2018 - 18:04 Health, Clinical TrialsA new tuberculosis vaccine shows promise in preventing the bacteria from causing disease in people who are infected, but aren’t sick. If approved, it could help control the spread of a disease considered one of the world’s top killers, responsible for 1.6 million deaths in 2017, according to the World Health Organization.
In a clinical trial, the new vaccine halved the number of people...
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News
Daily low-dose aspirin is not a panacea for the elderly
09/19/2018 - 09:30 Health, Clinical TrialsA daily dose of aspirin? Not a good idea if you’re a healthy elderly adult.
A trio of papers based on a large-scale clinical trial finds that the drug doesn’t help to stave off heart attacks, strokes, dementia or physical disability. In fact, those in their golden years who took a low dose of aspirin daily were more likely to suffer serious internal bleeding than those who took a placebo...
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News
Brain features may reveal if placebo pills could treat chronic pain
09/13/2018 - 13:00 Neuroscience, Health, Clinical TrialsCertain brain and personality characteristics may help predict whether a sugar pill can provide relief to someone suffering from chronic pain.
In a small study, patients with persistent back pain who responded to a placebo treatment benefited from up to a 33 percent reduction in their pain intensity. These people had distinctive features in their brains and certain personality traits,...