Health

a vaccine vial in front of a backdrop of cells

Personalized cancer vaccines are having a moment

Personalized cancer vaccines were a recurring theme at the annual meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research in 2024.

Kristin Houser

Young girl in a colorful knit hat drinking water from a clear glass, possibly containing forever chemicals, with sunlight creating a lens flare across the image.

Sustainability

Scientists have invented a method to break down “forever chemicals” in our drinking water

Researchers have discovered a way to eliminate “forever chemicals,” or PFAS, which usually take hundreds or thousands of years to break down.

Johnny Wood

X-ray image of a human chest showing lungs and rib cage, with visible abnormal dark patches indicating possible tuberculosis.

Medicine

AI can help predict whether a patient will respond to specific tuberculosis treatments

Instead of a one-size-fits-all treatment approach, AI could help personalize treatments for each patient to provide the best outcomes.

Sriram Chandrasekaran

Coronavirus

Your questions about the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine answered

If you have questions about the COVID-19 vaccine approved for use in the U.S., this is your place to find answers.

Kristin Houser

Virology

A universal flu vaccine has aced phase 1 trials

Influenza’s constant genetic shifting means flu vaccines aim at a moving target. But a universal flu vaccine just passed its phase 1 trials.

B. David Zarley

CRISPR

HIV can hide inside human cells for years. Can CRISPR cut it out?

Using CRISPR to stop the replication of SIV, a primate virus closely related to HIV, researchers may have taken a step to wiping the virus out in the body.

B. David Zarley

Genetics

Genetically engineered tomato can grow drug to treat Parkinson’s

The latest biopharmaceutical is a drug for Parkinson’s disease, Levodopa, produced by genetically modified tomato plants.

Kristin Houser

Drugs

MDMA couples therapy could help couples dealing with PTSD

A small study out of Canada investigated the potential of using MDMA-assisted couples therapy to treat PTSD.

B. David Zarley

Coronavirus

FDA authorizes first over-the-counter COVID-19 test

The FDA has authorized the first over-the-counter COVID-19 test for home use, but buyers still have to send their samples to a lab for processing.

Kristin Houser

Drugs

Microdosing mushrooms: Explained

Microdosing mushrooms — taking doses of psilocybin too small to cause a trip to enhance daily life — is gaining momentum. But does science support it?

B. David Zarley

Neuroscience

4 people in the world have a mysterious dementia. Could it hold a key to Alzheimer’s?

Alzheimer’s has proved difficult to treat. But solving the mystery of this ultra-rare frontotemporal dementia may unlock new understanding.

B. David Zarley

Healthcare

Cancer blood test trial to launch in the UK

The UK is trialing a blood test designed to detect 50 types of cancer at once, which could be a gamechanger in cancer screening if proven effective.

Kristin Houser

Genetics

Gene therapy restores youthful eye cells — and vision — to older mice

A team of researchers have achieved sight restoration in older mice and those modeling glaucoma, in what could be an important step in understanding aging.

B. David Zarley

Sections

Video

Freethink

We focus on solutions: the smartest people, the biggest ideas, and the most ground breaking technology shaping our future.