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Medicine & Health

Updates every hour. Last Updated: 20-Jun-2026 12:15 ET (20-Jun-2026 16:15 GMT/UTC)

ACCESS-AD: a new European initiative to accelerate timely and equitable AD diagnosis, treatment and care

Alzheimer Europe
Grant and Award Announcement

Developed by a consortium of 30 public and private partners, ACCESS-AD (“Advancing Clinical Care and Equity through Scalable Solutions in Alzheimer’s Disease diagnosis and treatment”) is focused on bringing innovations to routine clinical practice for Alzheimer’s disease, supporting timely diagnosis, treatment and monitoring across diverse healthcare settings. Launching on 13 January 2026, ACCESS-AD is funded for a period of 5 years by the Innovative Health Initiative (IHI), an EU Public-Private Partnership supporting health research and innovation.

Funder: Innovative Health Initiative

Mercury exposure in northern communities linked to eating waterfowl

University of Waterloo
Peer-Reviewed Publication

A new study led by researchers at the University of Waterloo found that members of many Indigenous communities who eat certain types of locally harvested waterfowl, especially ducks with mixed or fish-based diets, may have higher levels of both mercury and healthy omega-3 fatty acids in their blood.

Journal: International Journal of Hygiene and Environmental Health

New Zealand researchers identify brain link to high blood pressure

University of Auckland
Peer-Reviewed Publication

University of Auckland researchers have discovered that a part of the brain may be behind high blood pressure

Journal: Circulation Research

Work hard, play hard?

Flinders University
Peer-Reviewed Publication

As Australians return to work after the holidays, many will be reflecting on their health and wellbeing goals for the year ahead. New research reveals that while workplace factors like long hours, work-related stress and shift work do influence high-risk drinking, personal and social factors play an even bigger role.

Journal: Drug and Alcohol Review
Funder: Australian Government Department of Health, Disability and Ageing

Changes in genetic structure of yeast lead to disease-causing genomic instabilities

The University of Osaka
Peer-Reviewed Publication

A research team at The University of Osaka revealed that the loss of heterochromatin can cause a chain reaction leading to genetic changes and the subsequent development of diseases including cancer. Using fission yeast, the study specifically found that loss of Clr4, which encodes a methyltransferase, can induce an increase in R-loop levels at pericentromeric repeats, and the later conversion of R-loops into ADR-loops can prompt gross chromosomal rearrangements.

Journal: Nucleic Acids Research
Funder: Japan Society for the Promotion of Science, Japan Science and Technology Agency, Uehara Memorial Foundation, Takeda Science Foundation

The Lancet: COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy decreased over time, though mistrust persists among certain groups, study of over 1 million people in England suggests

The Lancet
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Findings reveal a general decline in vaccine hesitancy during the 15 months following the COVID-19 vaccine roll-out in 2021-2022, with almost two-thirds of those initially hesitant going on to receive one or more COVID-19 vaccinations.

The most common reasons for original COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy were concerns around vaccine effectiveness and side effects. But people who cited these reasons for hesitancy were more likely to change their minds and subsequently get vaccinated.

In contrast, participants who reported being hesitant because of a generalised anti-vaccine sentiment, a mistrust of vaccine developers, or having a low perceived risk from COVID-19 remained more reluctant to receive a COVID-19 vaccine.

The authors say that public health officials and policymakers need to recognise that certain types of vaccine hesitancy are highly context-specific and may be more readily addressed, while others are more resistant to change.

Journal: The Lancet
Funder: National Institute for Health Research, Department of Health and Social Care

Psychosis patients ‘living in metaphor’ -- new study radically shifts ideas about delusions

University of Birmingham
Peer-Reviewed Publication

People experiencing delusions during an episode of psychosis may be ‘living out’ a deeply held emotion, according to new research that provides a ‘radically different perspective’ on one of the most puzzling elements of psychosis.

Journal: The Lancet Psychiatry

UC San Diego Health Sciences Grant Writing Course helps launch successful research careers

University of California - San Diego
Peer-Reviewed Publication

According to a new study, 79% of participants in the UC San Diego Health Sciences Grant Writing Course have received grant funding for their research since taking the course, which emphasizes peer review and collaboration.

Journal: Academic Medicine

Getting a grip on aging

University of California - Riverside
Peer-Reviewed Publication

A new study suggests that a little-known region deep in the brain could be crucial for preserving physical strength as we age. The findings could help detect and prevent frailty before it begins.

Journal: Frontiers in Neuroscience