Category: News & Discoveries

Microplastics Found in Lung Tissue of Living Humans for First Time: Study

Researchers have discovered microplastics deep in the lungs of living humans for the first time. Scientists at Hull York Medical School in England published their findings in the journal Science of the Total Environment, the first such study to show microplastics in the lung tissue of live people. Microplastics are extremely small plastic particles composed of mixtures of polymers and…


COVID-19 Beware: Cheap and Widely Accessible Drug Could Fight Virus

Researchers from the Australian National University (ANU) have discovered that the cheap and widely used drug, heparin, when inhaled can be a uniquely effective prevention and treatment method for COVID-19. Heparin is currently used to prevent blood from clotting and it is typically administered through an injection. However, early results of an ANU clinical study…


Large Study Finds That Protection Against COVID-19 From 4th Shot Drops Quickly

An Israeli study found that a fourth dose of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine doesn’t offer long-lived protection against the Omicron variant of the CCP virus. Using Ministry of Health data on more than 1.2 million people, researchers found that a second booster dose of the BioNTech-Pfizer vaccine offered protection against significant COVID-19 infections for six weeks….


Large Israeli Study Finds That Protection Against COVID-19 From 4th Shot Drops Quickly

An Israeli study found that a fourth dose of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine doesn’t offer long-lived protection against the Omicron variant of the CCP virus. Using Ministry of Health data on more than 1.2 million people, researchers found that a second booster dose of the BioNTech-Pfizer vaccine offered protection against significant COVID-19 infections for six weeks….


600+ Lawsuits Alleging Syngenta Knew Weedkiller Causes Parkinson’s Set to Move Forward

A hearing last month in federal court will set the stage for upcoming litigation against Syngenta, manufacturer of Paraquat. More than 600 lawsuits alleging the agrochemical giant knew its flagship weedkiller causes Parkinson’s were combined into what is known as multidistrict litigation. As Yogi Berra might say: It’s déjà vu all over again. Five years…


New Way to Blast Kidney Stones Can Be Done in Doctor’s Office

A noninvasive ultrasound technique is capable of quickly pulverizing kidney stones, an early study shows — in what researchers call a first step toward a simpler, anesthesia-free treatment for the painful problem. The study reports on the first 19 patients who’ve had kidney stones treated with the ultrasound “bursts.” So far, it’s been able to…


IgA Antibodies Appear to Protect Unvaccinated Against COVID-19: Study

Findings from a study in Sweden provide one possible explanation for why some health care workers who were in contact with COVID-19 patients every day remain uninfected, even though they were not vaccinated against the disease. “The reason why some of the staff did not contract the disease seems to have been that IgA (immunoglobulin…


Another Tick Bacteria Turns up in New England Blood Samples

Human blood samples from across New England show evidence of Borrelia miyamotoi, a relative of the bacteria that causes Lyme disease. The findings add important new details to understanding the bacteria species, Borrelia miyamotoi, which was only recently found to infect humans. The tiny species is transmitted by the same deer ticks that carry the Lyme disease pathogen, and…


Flashback Friday: Sugar Industry Attempts to Manipulate the Science

“Corporations are legally required to maximise shareholder profits and therefore have to oppose public health policies that could threaten profits.” It’s just how the system is set up. “Unequivocal, longstanding evidence shows that to achieve this, diverse industries with products that can damage health have worked systematically to subvert the scientific process.” Take the sugar…


AstraZeneca COVID Drug Performs Well Against Omicron Subvariants: Study

A COVID-19 drug made by AstraZeneca did nearly as well against subvariants of the Omicron virus variant as the main variant, according to a new study. Researchers with AstraZeneca, the Washington University School of Medicine, and other institutions used mice to test the monoclonal antibody combination, known as Evusheld, and a drug made by Vir Biotechnology,…