EurekAlert! News by Subject: Medicine & Health

Medicine & Health

Updates every hour. Last Updated: 14-Jun-2026 18:16 ET (14-Jun-2026 22:16 GMT/UTC)

19-May-2026

Proteins that create ice inspire ‘cool’ applications

American Institute of Physics
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Ice-nucleating proteins naturally bind only to organic surfaces, so understanding whether they can bind to human-made materials can help with applications like deicing, creating artificial snow, cryo-medicine, and more. In Biointerphases, researchers found that the proteins connect to a surface in a layer of single molecules with their ice formation side facing out, allowing ice to grow atop the surface, and that they do not seem to care what type of material they are binding to; for both artificial and natural surfaces, the INPs bind in remarkably similar ways.

Journal: Biointerphases

19-May-2026

Study reveals “bet-hedging” strategy that helps gut bacteria survive and recover

The Mount Sinai Hospital / Mount Sinai School of Medicine
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Researchers at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai and collaborators have discovered that many gut bacteria use a flexible survival strategy to withstand disruptions such as antibiotics and diet changes. Published in the May 19 online issue of Cell Host & Microbe (DOI: 10.1016/j.chom.2026.04.019), the study shows microbes can switch between functional states, rather than relying solely on genetic mutations, to try to survive shifting conditions. The findings shed light on a previously hidden layer of microbiome biology and may help explain why probiotics and fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) produce inconsistent benefits across individuals.

Journal: Cell Host & Microbe

19-May-2026

New benchmarks based on top performers aim for achievable excellence in pediatric emergency care

Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago
Peer-Reviewed Publication

A large, multi-center study led by Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago derived “achievable benchmarks of care” (ABCs) using electronic health record data, which allows pediatric emergency departments across the country to set high yet realistic performance goals. The new benchmarks are based on high achievers – a shift away from relying on peer averages in performance metrics. The study is published in JAMA Network Open.

Journal: JAMA Network Open

19-May-2026

Nicotine e-cigarettes reduce harmful chemical exposure, help smokers quit

Penn State
Peer-Reviewed Publication

In the first U.S. randomized placebo-controlled trial of its kind, researchers from Penn State College of Medicine found that smokers who switched from traditional cigarettes to pod-based salt-nicotine e-cigarettes were three times more likely to quit smoking within six weeks and were exposed to lower levels of harmful tobacco-related toxicants.

Journal: JAMA Network Open
Funder: U.S. Food and Drug Administration

19-May-2026

New cholesterol guidelines aim to stop heart disease earlier

Weill Cornell Medicine
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Doctors should consider treating high cholesterol much earlier and more aggressively than they have in the past, according to a new perspective by Weill Cornell Medicine, NewYork-Presbyterian and Yale School of Medicine investigators. The updated 2026 cholesterol management guidelines from the American College of Cardiology and the American Heart Association encourage doctors to identify risk earlier and intervene before heart attacks and strokes happen. Heart disease remains the leading cause of death in the United States.

Journal: Journal of the American College of Cardiology

19-May-2026

The world’s most groundbreaking stem cell advances are coming to San Francisco for ISSCR 2027

International Society for Stem Cell Research
Meeting Announcement

The International Society for Stem Cell Research (ISSCR) today announced that the ISSCR 2027 Annual Meeting is coming back to San Francisco, USA, 15-18 June 2027. Recognized as the premier international forum for stem cell science, the gathering will recognize 25 years of discovery, collaboration, and progress in stem cell science and gather the people, ideas, and work that will shape the next quarter century.

Meeting: ISSCR 2027

19-May-2026

From silkworm to super material

Tufts University
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Scientists fuse silk fibers into solid materials that outperform the strength of bone and wood and come remarkably close to Kevlar in impact resistance

Journal: Nature Sustainability
Funder: Air Force Office of Scientific Research, Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council, UK Research and Innovation, Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council, Major Science and Technology Project of Hainan Province, Key Science & Technology Project of Hainan Province

19-May-2026

Bioinspired nanocomposite for targeted immunoengineering and improved tendon regeneration

Beijing Institute of Technology Press Co., Ltd
Peer-Reviewed Publication

A research paper by scientists from Nanjing Medical University developed a biomimetic nanoparticle (NP) system composed of macrophage-membrane-coated Prussian blue@KGN (KGN@PB@CM) loaded into a thermosensitive Pluronic@F127/hyaluronic acid (HA-F127) hydrogel for synergistic tendon healing.

The new research paper, published on Apr. 23 in the journal Cyborg and Bionic Systems, developed a biomimetic nanoparticle system that simultaneously tackles clinical challenges, accelerating tendon repair through a “dual‑modulation” approach.

Journal: Cyborg and Bionic Systems

19-May-2026

A DNA-organizing protein offers new insight into infertility, IVF and generational health

University of California - Davis
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Understanding the packing and folding of DNA in sperm cells is a fundamental question in modern biology, related to infertility and to genetic and developmental defects. UC Davis researchers have now unveiled an important new piece of this puzzle. They have identified a protein, called DAXX, that guides how sperm DNA is organized, silences numerous genes and keeps some switched on. The work was published recently in Genes & Development.

Journal: Genes & Development