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Image for Representation. | Photo Credit: AP A large clinical trial in South Africa and Uganda has shown that a twice-yearly injection of a new pre-exposure prophylaxis drug gives young women total protection from HIV infection. The trial tested whether the six-month injection of lenacapavir would provide better protection against HIV infection than two other…
Mosquitoes cling to the inside of a jar loaded with repellent during a test as part of a tour of the Center for Disease Control laboratory, Thursday, April 4, 2024, in Fort Collins, Colo. | Photo Credit: AP The spread of the mosquito species Anopheles stephensi across Africa poses a significant problem to a continent already heavily…
Read More “Mosquito species from Asia pose growing risk to Africa’s anti-malaria efforts” »
Twelve breast cancer genes identified in women of African ancestry in a large study published on Monday may one day help better predict their risk for the disease and highlights potential risk differences from women of European descent. | Photo Credit: Getty Images/iStockphoto Twelve breast cancer genes identified in women of African ancestry in a…
This 2014 photo made available by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows a feeding female Anopheles gambiae mosquito. | Photo Credit: AP Malaria incidents are on the rise. There were 249 million cases of this parasitic disease in 2022, five million more than in 2021. Africa suffers more than any other region from malaria,…
Parkinson’s disease is a neurodegenerative movement disorder that progresses relentlessly. It gradually impairs a person’s ability to function until they ultimately become immobile and often develop dementia. In the U.S. alone, over a million people are afflicted with Parkinson’s, and new cases and overall numbers are steadily increasing. There is currently no treatment to slow or halt Parkinson’s disease. Available…
Read More “Newfound genetic variant that causes Parkinson’s shows a way to beat it” »
Most health care-associated infections are caused by previously harmless bacteria that patients already had on their bodies before they even entered the hospital. Image for Representation. | Photo Credit: AP Health care providers and patients have traditionally thought that infections patients get while in the hospital are caused by superbugs they’re exposed to while they’re in a medical facility….
The world is on the brink of a public health triumph as it closes in on eradicating Guinea worm disease. There were more than 3.5 million cases of this disease in the 1980s, but according to the World Health Organization’s (WHO) weekly epidemiological report, they dwindled to 14 cases in 2021, 13 in 2022, and…
Read More “Race to global eradication of Guinea worm disease nears finish line” »
Many tiny organisms including bacteria, fungi and viruses normally live on our bodies, and even inside us. These are called the microbiome. The large number of these organisms living in the gastrointestinal tract are collectively known as the gut microbiome. Increasingly the gut microbiome is recognised as playing a large part in health and disease, particularly relating…
Read More “Could gut fungi be linked to severe COVID? What to make of new research findings” »
Laura Jackson became seriously concerned about her daughter and math when the girl was in third grade. While many of her classmates flew through multiplication tests, Jackson’s daughter relied on her fingers to count, had difficulty reading clocks and burst into tears when asked at home to practice math flashcards. At school, the 9-year-old had…
Read More “Math disabilities hold many students back. Schools often don’t screen for them” »
This image from video, provided by UPMC/Pitt Health Sciences, taken Oct. 26, 2015, shows University of Pittsburgh researcher Robert Gaunt preparing Nathan Copeland for research testing if brain implants could help the paralyzed man feel sensation in his own hand while using a mind-controlled robotic arm. Recently, a paralysed Swiss man became the first person…
Read More “Brain implants could restore paralysed patients’ arm movements” »