‘Deaths of despair’ among Black Americans surpassed those of white Americans in 2022

HMN 2024 – A new analysis by researchers at UCLA Health found that mortality rates of middle-aged Black Americans caused by the “deaths of despair”—suicide, drug overdose and alcoholic liver disease—surpassed the rate of white Americans in 2022. Native Americans also had more than double the rate of both Black and white Americans that year. The results of […]
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Industry gifts may influence which cardiac device is used in common lifesaving procedure

HMN 2024 – Physicians who received payments from the manufacturer of a specific set of cardiac devices are more likely to use those devices, often during a common procedure to unblock coronary arteries, according to a research letter published in JAMA authored by researchers from the University of Pittsburgh, University of California, San Francisco, Yale University and the […]
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Researchers identify protein that controls CAR T cell longevity

HMN 2024 – Like a lightbulb, CAR T cells designed to kill cancer often burn out due to exhaustion and poor persistence. Doan et al. discovered that a transcription factor called FOXO1 is responsible for keeping the CAR T lightbulb energized by activating genes which counteract exhaustion, promote persistence, and enhance CAR T cell antitumor activity. (Artwork by […]
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Researchers explore role of androgens in shaping sex differences

HMN 2024 – Sex differences are widespread across human development, physiological processes, and diseases, making it important to characterize the impact of sex differences in these areas. Understanding the regulatory mechanisms associated with these differences, including the role of androgens, is also vital for clinical translation—especially for diseases more prevalent in one sex. To answer these questions, a […]
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Living near green space associated with fewer emotional problems in preschool-age kids, study finds

HMN 2024 – Children who live in areas with natural spaces (e.g., forests, parks, backyards) from birth may experience fewer emotional issues between the ages of 2 and 5, according to a study published in JAMA Network Open. While research has suggested that time in nature is important for mental health, studies examining the effects on young children […]
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Serious flu damage prevented by compound that blocks unnecessary cell death

HMN 2024 – As lung cells are killed by the influenza virus, they burst open, releasing molecular signals that trigger the immune cells that can combat the infection. This strategy can be an important red flag that something is wrong; however, if one cell death response, called necroptosis, continues unchecked, it can cause life-threatening injury to lung tissue. […]
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New mechanism discovered for life-threatening arrhythmias in Andersen-Tawil syndrome

HMN 2024 – The mutated Kir2.1 channel is unable to interact normally with PIP2, resulting in reduced potassium (K+) flux. The energetic instability of mutated Kir2.1 additionally alters the stability and expression of the cardiac sodium channel NaV1.5. Credit: CNIC A team at the Centro Nacional de Investigaciones Cardiovasculares (CNIC) has made a breakthrough discovery in the understanding […]
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Looking at the environment around tumors could help predict how cancer spreads

HMN 2024 – Representative images of high granulocyte infiltration in the tumor nest and stroma for LUAD (left) and LUSC (right). Credit: Cancer Discovery (2024). DOI: 10.1158/2159-8290.CD-23-1380 Examining the immune cells in the environment around a tumor could help to predict how a person’s cancer might progress and respond to treatment, according to new research led by UCL […]
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Researchers identify neurons responsible for key activity transition in brain development

HMN 2024 – Credit: Neuron (2024). DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2024.03.014 Scientists at the Center for Developmental Neurobiology and MRC Center for Neurodevelopmental Disorders published a study titled “Somatostatin interneurons control the timing of developmental desynchronization in cortical networks” in Neuron that identified two types of interneurons, the inhibitory neurons of the brain, as instructors of a key developmental process in […]
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Neuroscience study taps into brain network patterns to understand deep focus, attention

HMN 2024 – From completing puzzles and playing music, to reading and exercising, growing up Dolly Seeburger loved activities that demanded her full attention. “It was in those times that I felt most content, like I was in the zone,” she remembers. “Hours would pass, but it would feel like minutes.” While this deep focus state is essential […]
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Researchers find current evidence for puberty blockers and hormone treatment for gender transition is inadequate

HMN 2024 – The evidence on the use of puberty blockers and hormones for children and young people experiencing gender related distress is wholly inadequate, making it impossible to gauge their effectiveness or their impact on mental and physical health, find two systematic reviews of the available research, published in the Archives of Disease in Childhood. Of the […]
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Xylazine has infiltrated the UK’s illicit drug market

HMN 2024 – Xylazine, a powerful animal tranquilizer linked to horrific side effects, is now widespread in the UK illicit drug market. In most cases, xylazine is mixed with strong opioids, such as heroin or fentanyl, which is a common combination in the United States. However, xylazine was also detected in the absence of strong opioids alongside stimulant […]
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Popular diabetes drugs do not increase thyroid cancer risk, study suggests

HMN 2024 – Drugs known as GLP-1 analogs have become increasingly popular to treat diabetes and obesity, but there have been concerns that they might increase the risk of thyroid cancer. Now an extensive Scandinavian study led by researchers at Karolinska Institutet has found no evidence of such a link. The study is published in The BMJ. GLP-1 […]
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‘Be prepared,’ CDC tells state leaders after bird flu found in Texas dairy worker

HMN 2024 – The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention officials said Monday they have met with state health leaders in Georgia and around the country, telling them to be prepared for more human cases of bird flu after a dairy worker in Texas was being treated for the virus. While stating the risk to the public is […]
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Video educates and connects men to prostate cancer screening options

HMN 2024 – As part of a comprehensive effort to improve cancer screenings among diverse communities, Penn Medicine’s Abramson Cancer Center (ACC) Community Outreach and Engagement team developed a culturally sensitive educational video to address prostate cancer screening disparities. In findings shared today at the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Annual Meeting 2024, the team showed that […]
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Scientists say blood protein could help detect delayed concussion recovery in children

HMN 2024 – Researchers have discovered a blood protein that could help detect which children will experience ongoing concussion symptoms more than two weeks after an injury. The research, led by Murdoch Children’s Research Institute (MCRI) and published in the Journal of Neurotrauma, found the protein was a potential biomarker for delayed recovery from concussion in children. For […]
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Dubin-Johnson Syndrome in twins linked to novel genetic mutations

HMN 2024 – (A) Localization of the R393 and L1211 in a predicted topology model of MRP2 protein. The full-length model was generated by the open-source tool Protter (http://wlab.ethz.ch/protter/start/). (B) Sequencing analysis of the ABCC2 gene indicates the disease-associated variant of probands (II-2, II-3), the missense mutation 1177C>T predicated to cause the mutation Arg393Trp (R393W) in the amino-acid […]
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Dubin-Johnson Syndrome in twins linked to novel genetic mutations

HMN 2024 – (A) Localization of the R393 and L1211 in a predicted topology model of MRP2 protein. The full-length model was generated by the open-source tool Protter (http://wlab.ethz.ch/protter/start/). (B) Sequencing analysis of the ABCC2 gene indicates the disease-associated variant of probands (II-2, II-3), the missense mutation 1177C>T predicated to cause the mutation Arg393Trp (R393W) in the amino-acid […]
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Novel mechanism supports antitumor response and T-cell survival

HMN 2024 – Representative composite image of a breast cancer specimen stained by multi-color IHC comprising CD8, Ki67, GCLC, GPX4, 923 A2AR, PanCK and DAPI. Representative CD8+GPX4+ (blue arrow), CD8+GCLC+ (blue arrowhead), CD8+GPX4+GCLC+ 924 (red arrow), and CD8+Ki67+ GPX4+GCLC+ (red arrowhead) cells. Credit: Bin Zhang, PhD A recent Northwestern Medicine study has discovered a previously unknown molecular mechanism […]
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Experts give recommendations for longer and better lives for patients with atrial fibrillation

HMN 2024 – by Angelika Leute Geschäftsstelle, Kompetenznetz Vorhofflimmern e.V. (AFNET) Graphical Abstract. Credit: (2024). DOI: 10.1093/europace/euae070 An international panel of experts published recommendations to improve management of atrial fibrillation (AF). The position paper summarizes the results of the 9th AFNET/EHRA consensus conference—a two-day expert meeting which was jointly organized by the German Atrial Fibrillation Network (AFNET) and […]
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