Health & Medicine

  1. Health & Medicine

    Pregnancy spurs a tumor suppressor

    Pregnancy hormones may prime breast cells to maintain a supply of p53, a cancer suppressor protein, thus accounting for why women who have undergone pregnancy generally have a lower breast cancer risk than do others.

    By Nathan Seppa
  2. Health & Medicine

    Hormone wards off immune cells in womb

    A hormone known for its involvement in the brain's response to stress also plays a key role in shielding the developing embryo from its mother's immune system.

    By Ben Harder
  3. Health & Medicine

    AMA: Drugs are for anthrax, not fear

    Doctors should not use antibiotics prophylactically against anthrax unless there is good reason to believe the individual had encountered the germs directly, the American Medical Association advises.

    By Janet Raloff
  4. Health & Medicine

    Retail meats host drug-resistant bacteria

    Three studies appear to tie livestock growth promoters to risk of serious human disease.

    By Janet Raloff
  5. Health & Medicine

    Nobel prize: Physiology or medicine

    The 2001 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine goes to three researchers who pioneered work in cell division.

    By Nathan Seppa
  6. Health & Medicine

    Sperm Protein May Lead to Male Pill

    A protein that helps sperm move their tails may be a perfect target for a male contraceptive.

    By John Travis
  7. Health & Medicine

    Mushrooming Concerns

    For chefs who savor the flavor of fresh, organic ingredients, what could be better than cooking just-picked mushrooms for dinner? Tricholoma flavovirens–sometimes known in the United States and elsewhere as Tricholoma equestre. Its common name: Man on Horseback. Fred Steven That attitude appears to have gotten a few French gourmands in trouble–big trouble, according to […]

    By Janet Raloff
  8. Health & Medicine

    Vitamin relative may aid stroke repair

    Dehydroascorbic acid, a precursor of vitamin C, may help stroke patients retain use of parts of their brain at risk from the blood shut-off caused by strokes.

    By Nathan Seppa
  9. Health & Medicine

    Detecting cancer risk with a chip

    Researchers can use microcantilevers studded with antibodies that react to prostate specific antigen, or PSA, to analyze blood samples for signs of prostate cancer.

    By Nathan Seppa
  10. Health & Medicine

    EMFs in home may limit night hormone

    A pair of studies suggests a link, at least in some women, between elevated residential exposure to electromagnetic fields and reduced production of the hormone melatonin.

    By Ben Harder
  11. Health & Medicine

    Aging cells may promote tumors nearby

    Cells that enter a state called senescence in older individuals may stimulate nearby cells to become tumors.

    By John Travis
  12. Health & Medicine

    Chemical Neutralizes Anthrax Toxin

    Scientists have created a synthetic compound that, when tested in rats, disables the toxin that makes anthrax lethal.

    By Nathan Seppa