Humans
We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Health & Medicine
RSV wasn’t as hard on U.S. babies last winter. This may be why
Two preventive tools — a maternal vaccine and a monoclonal antibody — were tied to a recent drop in RSV hospitalization rates for U.S. babies.
- Health & Medicine
FDA plan to ban fluoride supplements baffles and alarms dental experts
Fluoride supplements have been used in the United States for decades and have proven to be safe and effective for decreasing cavities.
- Health & Medicine
An at-home cervical cancer screening device was OK‘d by the FDA
The Teal Wand, an at-home HPV testing device that could replace a Pap smear, could broaden access to cervical cancer screening.
- Health & Medicine
HHS says new vaccines should be tested against placebos. They already are
Placebo testing has been part of the process since the 1940s. It’s unclear what additional measures would achieve — but it may slow development.
- Animals
Wild chimpanzees give first aid to each other
A study in Uganda shows how often chimps use medicinal plants and other forms of health care — and what that says about the roots of human medicine.
- Health & Medicine
Humans have shockingly few ways to treat fungal infections
It's not quite as bad as The Last of Us. But progress has been achingly slow in developing new antifungal vaccines and drugs.
- Chemistry
A chemical in plastics is tied to heart disease deaths
In 2018, over 350,000 excess heart disease deaths were linked to phthalates. More research is needed to fully understand the chemicals' effects.
- Archaeology
Neandertals may have hunted in horse-trapping teams 200,000 years ago
A revised age for a German site indicates that our evolutionary cousins organized horse ambushes around 200,000 years ago.
- Health & Medicine
How to fight Lyme may lie in the biology of its disease-causing bacteria
The unusual molecular makeup of Borrelia burgdorferi, which causes Lyme disease, may hold clues for understanding and treating the tick-borne disease.
- Science & Society
$1.8 billion in NIH grant cuts hit minority health research the hardest
News of NIH funding cuts have trickled out in recent months. A new study tallies what’s been terminated.
- Health & Medicine
Teens who want to quit vaping have another medication option
The drug varenicline, paired with counseling and text messaging support, helped teens and young adults abstain from vaping in a clinical trial.
- Health & Medicine
Do cold-water plunges really speed post-workout muscle recovery?
A new study is among the first to look at whether cold or hot soaks help women’s muscles rebound from extreme exercise.
