Plastic serves as a building block for our food packaging, water pipes, rubber tires and synthetic fabrics. But plastic also litters waterways, soil and air so humans and other animals wind up taking in tiny versions with unknown consequences. People unknowingly ingest microplastics from what we eat, drink and breathe. Some scientists fear exposure to microplastics could … Read more
One of the biggest challenges researchers face is making injectable medicines into versions that can be taken orally. Oral medications usually fail because they can’t withstand the harsh environment of the gut, which leads to poor bioavailability – a drug’s ability to be absorbed and exert a therapeutic effect on the body. A class of … Read more
COTONOU, Benin — Benin, Liberia and Sierra Leone launched large-scale malaria vaccine programs on Thursday under an Africa-focused initiative that hopes to save tens of thousands of children’s lives per year across Africa. The three West African countries are the latest to participate after successful rollouts of routine malaria immunization for children in Burkina Faso, … Read more
Adding rat stem cells to a mouse embryo resulted in a ‘hybrid brain’ in which the rat cells stepped in to restore function when the mouse’s sense of smell was removed, new research has shown. It’s the first time one animal’s cells have been used to rescue another’s senses, and it represents a step forward … Read more
MIGORI, Kenya — As the coffin bearing the body of Rosebella Awuor was lowered into the grave, heart-wrenching sobs from mourners filled the air. Her sister Winnie Akinyi, the guardian to Awuor’s orphaned son, fell to the ground, wailing. It was the latest of five deaths in this family attributed to malaria. The disease is … Read more
Paris, France — World wine production dropped 10 percent last year, the biggest fall in more than six decades, because of “extreme” climate changes, the body that monitors the trade said Thursday. “Extreme environmental conditions” including droughts, fires and other problems with climate were mostly to blame for the drastic fall, said the International Organization … Read more
If a giant prehistoric salmon isn’t scary enough for you, how about one with warthog-like tusks? According to a new study, Oncorhynchus rastrosus possessed just such appendages – even though the fish likely fed on tiny plankton. With an estimated length of up to 8.9 ft (2.7 m) and weight of 440 lb (200 kg), … Read more
Train passengers in Germany could soon experience finer journeys after the nation’s state-owned rail firm, Deutsche Bahn, announced plans for significant upgrades to its service. The multibillion-euro investment aims to enhance the privacy element of customers’ journeys greatly. Among the railway operator’s most noteworthy plans is the addition of compartments with frosted glass doors. These … Read more
The fertility rate in the United States dropped in 2023, after a slight two-year rebound that followed the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a report released Thursday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Provisional CDC data show that 3.59 million births were recorded in 2023, amounting to 54.4 live births per 1,000 females ages … Read more
Image: NASA / JPL-Caltech As humanity continues its relentless pursuit of the cosmos, engineers at NASA‘s Jet Propulsion Laboratory are working on an ambitious concept for a journey to one of the most promising locales for extraterrestrial life within our solar system – Jupiter‘s moon Europa. A potential Europa lander would be designed to delve … Read more
