Commentary: Want to understand health disparities? Get your antiracist goggles on

When it comes to understanding why children from non-white race groups have such poor health outcomes compared with their white counterparts, it's time for researchers to look beyond their genes and delve deeper into social factors, according to a commentary published today in the journal Pediatrics.

Study questions blood pressure drug guidance based on age and ethnicity

No evidence found to support differing advice according to age and ethnicity

Birds of a feather do flock together

Nearly 200 years ago, Charles Darwin noted striking diversity among the finches of the Galapagos Islands, and his observations helped him propose the role of natural selection in shaping species. Today, some biologists focus their attention on a related group of birds, the finch-like capuchino seedeaters of South America, and their studies are deepening our understanding of the forces that drive evolution.

Farms, tables and vast impacts between and beyond

Bountiful harvests in one location can mean empty water reservoirs and environmental woes far from farmlands. A unique study in this week's Nature Communications examines how food, energy, water and greenhouse gases create a vast front in the battle to feed the planet.

AI may predict response to immune checkpoint blockade in patients with metastatic melanoma

A computational method that combines clinicodemographic variables with deep learning of pre-treatment histology images could predict response to immune checkpoint blockade among patients with advanced melanoma, according to results published in Clinical Cancer Research, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research.

Oil droplet predators chase oil droplet prey

Oil droplets can be made to act like predators, chasing down other droplets that flee like prey. The behavior, which is controlled by chemical signaling produced by the droplets, mimics behavior seen among living organisms but, until now, had not been recreated in synthetic systems. This tunable chemical system could potentially serve a model to help understand interactions in many-body systems such as schools of fish, bacterial colonies, or swarms of insects.

New self-administered digital health tool helps women assess risk for premature delivery

Women who are intending to become pregnant or who have just found out they are pregnant can quickly learn of their risk for preterm birth with a noninvasive, self-administered digital tool called PopNatal.

Chinese COVID vaccine candidate based on inactivated virus appears safe, induces immune response, study finds

Results from an early-phase randomised clinical trial of a Chinese vaccine candidate based on the inactivated whole SARS-CoV-2 virus (CoronaVac) are published today in The Lancet Infectious Diseases journal, finding the formulation appears safe and induces an antibody response in healthy volunteers aged 18 to 59 years.

Tackling food allergies at the source

Food allergies are a big problem. About 7% of children and 2% of adults in the U.S. suffer from some kind of food allergy. These allergies cost a whopping $25 billion in health care each year. Then there's the time lost at school or work. And there's the risk of serious complications, even death.

Surgeons' expectations more accurate in predicting outcomes after lumbar spine surgery

Surgeons' preoperative expectations were more accurate than patients' expectations in predicting patient-reported outcomes two years after lumbar spine surgery, according to a longitudinal study by investigators at Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS). Most patients had higher expectations than their surgeons did, with many anticipating complete improvement after seeking additional information beyond that provided by their surgeons.

Duke University's aggressive COVID testing and surveillance minimized infections

An aggressive COVID-19 surveillance and testing effort at Duke University was highly effective in minimizing the spread of the disease among students on campus, according to a case study appearing Tuesday in the CDC's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.

Small differences, big impact: A Hox paradigm for studying protein evolution

In a new study, researchers at the Stowers Institute for Medical Research have identified a handful of variations in an amino acid sequence critical for retaining the ancestral function of a gene over the course of 600 million years of evolution.

Home oxygen therapy for adults with COPD and ILD: New ATS clinical practice guideline

The latest clinical practice guideline on home oxygen therapy addresses long-term and ambulatory oxygen therapy for adults with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and interstitial lung disease (ILD) and includes the most comprehensive review of the evidence of any oxygen guideline to date.

In vitro fertilization does not increase the risk of ovarian cancer

A new paper in JNCI: Journal of the National Cancer Institute, published by Oxford University Press, indicates that receiving assisted reproductive technology does not increase the risk women have for developing ovarian cancer.

Artificial intelligence-based tool may help diagnose opioid addiction earlier

Researchers have used machine learning, a type of artificial intelligence, to develop a prediction model for the early diagnosis of opioid use disorder. The advance is described in Pharmacology Research & Perspectives.

A regular dose of nature may improve mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic

A study published in Ecological Applications suggests that nature around one's home may help mitigate some of the negative mental health effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.

How fishermen have adapted to change over the past 35+ years

An analysis published in Fish and Fisheries notes that marine fisheries are increasingly exposed to external drivers of social and ecological change, and recent changes have had different impacts upon the livelihood strategies favored by fishermen based on the size of their boats.

Link between periodontitis and cardiovascular disease in individuals with rheumatoid arthritis

Rates of both periodontal disease and cardiovascular disease are elevated in individuals with rheumatoid arthritis. New research published in Arthritis & Rheumatology suggests that immune responses to certain bacteria that cause periodontal disease may play a role in patients' higher cardiovascular disease risk.

Diagnosing the cause of exercise-induced respiratory symptoms

Exercise-induced respiratory symptoms are common in childhood, and it can be difficult to diagnose their cause. A study published in Pediatric Pulmonology found that the diagnoses proposed by primary care physicians are often not the same as the final diagnoses after specialist referrals.

Does air pollution affect mental health later in life?

In a study of women aged 80 years and older, living in locations with higher exposures to air pollution was associated with increased depressive symptoms. The findings are published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society.

Review examines sexual aggression in mammals

A recent review of published studies in non-human mammals examines "sexual disturbance," or male behavior towards a female around mating that can be costly for the female—for example, that might inflict physical harm or cause mother-offspring separation. The findings are published in Mammal Review.