|
|
The first bit of advice my physical therapist gave me last week during a visit to address some aches and pains was to get up from my desk every half-hour. It turns out her prescription is backed up by research. In one of our most popular stories over the past week, professor of behavioral medicine Keith Diaz describes results of a new study that found that taking a five-minute walk every half-hour counteracts the harmful effects of sitting all day – which, as
many of us know, are numerous. “People who sit for hours on end develop chronic diseases including diabetes, heart disease, dementia and several types of cancer at much higher rates than people who move throughout their day,” Diaz writes.
At the start of every year, our editors publish articles that take on beginning-of-year themes, such as New Year’s resolutions to adopt healthy practices. That led to this article on the long list of benefits from meditation by Wayne State University neuroscientist Hilary Marusak. She walks us through some highlights of the many scientific studies on meditation and notes that there are some 600 clinical trials currently recruiting participants for various
conditions, such as pain, cancer and depression. If actually taking up a meditation practice sounds daunting, she has some tips to get started, along with some encouraging news: Even five minutes a day can have
positive health effects.
The pandemic introduced hundreds of millions of people to mRNA vaccines, but this technology can be applied to many health conditions. University at Buffalo biochemist and molecular biologist Mark O’Brian explains the results of a recent clinical trial that found that melanoma patients who took both an mRNA vaccine to fight against tumors and another cancer drug saw positive results compared with people who took only the cancer drug. He writes about how the vaccine
functioned in this test and notes how this one experimental immunotherapy, which is customized to each individual, is a sign of the potential for personalized medicine now taking shape.
Also in this week’s science news:
If there’s a subject you’d like our team of science editors to investigate, please reply to this email.
|
|
Martin La Monica
Director of Editorial Projects and Newsletters
|
|
Researchers have long known that sitting at your desk hour after hour is an unhealthy habit.
Morsa Images/Digital Vision via Getty Images
Keith Diaz, Columbia University
Short, frequent walks throughout the day are key to helping prevent the harmful effects of a sedentary lifestyle.
|
People of any age or walk of life can access and benefit from meditation.
Daniel de la Hoz/iStock via Getty Images Plus
Hilary A. Marusak, Wayne State University
Mindfulness, one of the most common forms of meditation, is a skill that must be cultivated and practiced. With some training and discipline, it can help anyone live more fully in the moment.
|
Moderna is testing an mRNA vaccine in combination with pembrolizumab to treat melanoma.
Javier Zayas Photography/Moment via Getty Images
Mark R. O'Brian, University at Buffalo
Preventive and therapeutic vaccines both train the immune system to fight disease, but they are used in different ways.
|
|
Catherine Tylan, Penn State; Tracy Langkilde, Penn State
The ways eastern fence lizards have changed in response to red imported fire ants demonstrate how species can adapt to survive the presence of invasive predators.
| |
Chris Impey, University of Arizona
NASA has been gaining momentum in recent years as investment into space has ramped up in the US. In 2022, missions dealt with the farthest, closest, hottest and coldest conditions in the universe.
|
Taylor Grasso, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus
Detox diets and cleanses supposedly clear the body of allegedly toxic substances. But the evidence suggests otherwise.
| |
Scott Shackelford, Indiana University; Christiana Ochoa, Indiana University; David Bosco, Indiana University; Kerry Krutilla, Indiana University
Mining nodules from the deep ocean seabed could provide the metals crucial for today’s EV batteries and renewable energy technology, but little is known about the harm it could cause.
|
Blake Earle, Texas A&M University
To fish the oceans sustainably, nations must reduce bycatch, or accidental catches. But fishermen often resist changing gear or techniques that kill nontargeted species.
| |
Andrew Bubak, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus; Diego Restrepo, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus; Maria Nagel, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus
Inflammation and damage to the olfactory system from shingles, COVID-19 and herpes infections may contribute to Alzheimer’s disease.
|
Chengsheng Wu, University of California, San Diego; David Cheresh, University of California, San Diego; Sara Weis, University of California, San Diego
Some cancers are notoriously resistant to chemotherapy and not curable with surgery. Stopping tumors from adapting to the harsh microenvironments of the body could be a potential treatment avenue.
| |
Valeriy Ivanov, University of Michigan
The majority of flood-related deaths involve vehicles in water. What if flood models could warn of the risks street by street using real-time storm forecasts?
|
|
|
|
-
James E. Galvin, University of Miami
In clinical trials, lecanemab slowed disease progression by 27% and reduced the amount of plaque found in the brains of those with Alzheimer’s disease.
-
Jyoti Mishra, University of California, San Diego
A new neuropsychology study on California wildfire survivors found chronic cognitive problems in addition to anxiety and PTSD.
-
Huanhuan Joyce Chen, University of Chicago Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering; Abhimanyu Thakur, University of Chicago Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering
Many tumors have cancer stem cells that help them grow and evade treatments. Differentiation therapy forces these cells to mature, stopping growth with less toxicity than traditional treatments.
-
Lucy (Kathleen) McGoron, Wayne State University
One way to prevent mental health challenges in children: Recognize and treat the mental health issues of their parents.
|
|
| |
| |
|
|
|
|
|