Humans

  1. Archaeology

    Ancient birth brick emerges in Egypt

    Investigations at a 3,700-year-old Egyptian town have yielded a painted brick that was used in childbirth rituals.

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  2. Health & Medicine

    No worry that this secret will leak

    The recently discovered protein angiopoietin-1 appears to protect blood vessels from leaking, a finding with implications for research into diseases that involve swelling, such as arthritis and asthma.

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  3. Health & Medicine

    Lung cancer gene has gender bias

    The X chromosome's gastrin-releasing peptide receptor gene is turned on by nicotine to produce a protein that promotes lung cancer, a combination of factors that could explain why women are more susceptible to the disease than men are.

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  4. Health & Medicine

    Novel diabetes strain has rapid onset

    Japanese researchers have confirmed that some patients with type 1 diabetes have a novel form of the disease that's not caused by immune cells attacking the pancreas.

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  5. Anthropology

    Ancient populations were game for growth

    Archaeological evidence of a Stone Age shift in dietary preferences, from slow to swift small game, suggests that the human population rose sharply sometime between 100,000 and 50,000 years ago.

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  6. Anthropology

    Drowned land holds clue to first Americans

    A map of a now-flooded region charts the path that Asians may have taken to first reach the Americas.

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  7. Humans

    Treaty Nears on Gene-Altered Exports

    In an effort to help preserve biodiversity, negotiators from 130 nations crafted rules of conduct for international trade in living, genetically engineered organisms.

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  8. Health & Medicine

    Diet Pills: It’s Still Buyer Beware

    With some half of the adult U.S. population overweight–many individuals severely so–is it any wonder that the fastest growing segment of the dietary supplement industry is weight-loss aids? Since 1997, sales of diet pills and related supplements have been increasing 10 to 20 percent annually to the point where last year they reached $2 billion. […]

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  9. Health & Medicine

    New Antidote to Botulism: Drug neutralizes toxin in mouse tests

    An experimental drug disables deadly botulism toxin much better than current treatment does.

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  10. Health & Medicine

    Fullness Factor: Gut hormone tells brain the stomach is well fed

    A hormone produced by the intestines could be the primary satiety signal sent to the brain.

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  11. Health & Medicine

    Ulcer bug linked to stroke

    Potent strains of an ulcer-causing bacterium may also trigger strokes.

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  12. Health & Medicine

    Lab tool may spawn new antiviral drugs

    Short strands of RNA can be used to stop viruses such as HIV.

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