Medical & Biotech2504 articles archived since 1845

U.S. Government Sets Out Alzheimer's Plan

A health-agency windfall includes funding for two promising clinical trials, one focusing on prevention and the other on early treatment

Optical Illusion Relieves Arthritis Pain

Arthritis pain is reduced by mirror reflections of healthier joints

California Considers DNA Privacy Law

If passed, such a law would have a costly and damaging effect on research

What Is It?

Honeycomb lattice

Readers respond to "A Man-made Contagion" and Other Articles

Letters to the editor from the February 2012 issue of Scientific American

Unhurtful Thoughts: A Preoccupied Brain Produces Pain-Killing Compounds

Spinal scans reveal the mechanism by which intense thinking can block pain receptors in the nervous system

Why Polio Isn't Going Away

As the number of cases of the paralytic disease fall, world health officials have to grapple with a vexing problem: a component of the most widely used polio vaccine now causes more disease than the virus it is supposed to fight...

Milestones in the Effort to Eradicate Polio [Timeline]

In Search of the Best (Energy) Ideas: A Q&A with ARPA-E's Arun Majumdar

Majumdar is stepping down after three years at the head of the U.S. Department of Energy's advanced energy research arm

Erasing Painful Memories: Drug and Behavioral Therapies Will Help Us Forget Toxic Thoughts

The caustic imprint of a traumatic memory may fade or vanish with new drug and behavioral therapies

Intel Futurist Discusses Data's Secret Life, the Ghost of Computing and How We Should Attack Fear

Science fiction serves as a key inspiration for the man whose job it is envisage Intel's future and, to a large degree, the future of computing itself

Weighing the Risks

Women who opt for epidurals are more likely to run a fever during labor that can endanger their babies

Return of the Clap

Gonorrhea, once a minor illness, is developing resistance to the last category of drugs that still works against it and could become untreatable

Triple Crown-Bound Horse Breeders Start to Look to Genetics

The latest trend among consultants to horse buyers and breeders is to rely on algorithms involving a "speed gene" and other markers, not just x-rays and endoscopies

Telltale Hearts: What Autopsies Reveal about This Vital Organ

Despite advances in medical imaging, an autopsy still gives experts the best picture of what ails us

Mutant-Flu Paper Published

Controversial study shows how dangerous forms of avian influenza could evolve in the wild

Tomorrow's Medicine

A look at some of the most promising medical devices now in development

South Korea Steps Up Stem-Cell Work

Regenerative medicine gets a cash boost from the nation's health ministry, but stricter regulations are needed to ensure safety

Microbial Mules: Engineering Bacteria to Transport Nanoparticles and Drugs

Scientists are engineering bacteria to transport nanoparticles and drugs

4 Medical Implants That Escaped FDA Scrutiny

A substantial number of risky devices are cleared for medical use without clinical testing, including some hip implants, surgical mesh, heart valve rings and defibrillator leads