EurekAlert! News by Subject: Medicine & Health - News by Subject: Medicine & Health

Medicine & Health

Updates every hour. Last Updated: 11-Jan-2026 19:11 ET (12-Jan-2026 00:11 GMT/UTC)

How bad are micro- and nanoplastics for our health? It depends on their concentrations and how you measure them

University of Massachusetts Amherst
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Collecting and analyzing the amount of toxic micro- and nanoplastics (MNPs) in water is comparatively easy: fill a bucket from your source, evaporate the water and count and characterize the plastics that are left behind. But what if you want to know how many MNPs are in that apple you’re about to eat, the tree in your backyard, or even in your brain?

Journal: Nature Reviews Bioengineering

Exercise may slow epigenetic aging

Impact Journals LLC
Peer-Reviewed Publication

BUFFALO, NY — August 12, 2025 — A new research perspective was published in Aging (Aging-US) on July 8, 2025, titled “Exercise as a geroprotector: focusing on epigenetic aging.”

Journal: Aging-US

Autoimmune diseases linked to cancers of the digestive tract

University of Augsburg
Peer-Reviewed Publication

In a comprehensive study, researchers from the Department of Epidemiology at the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Augsburg have provided reliable evidence for a link between chronic inflammatory diseases and the development of tumours in the digestive tract. The results were recently published in eClinicalMedicine, which is part of the Lancet Group.

Journal: EClinicalMedicine

Neural navigation: FAU engineers, sensing institute map brain’s blood flow

Florida Atlantic University
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Not all blood vessels play equal roles in brain health. To uncover how the brain regulates its complex circulation, researchers built a detailed computer model of mouse brain vasculature. Focusing on transitional zone vessels—crucial links between arteries and capillaries—the model simulates how each segment adjusts like a tiny valve. It reveals how the brain stabilizes blood flow during pressure shifts or heightened activity, offering new insights into brain protection and potential breakthroughs in diagnosing stroke, Alzheimer’s, and traumatic brain injuries.

Journal: PLOS One

Scientists find a microbial molecule that restores liver and gut health

University of California - Davis Health
Peer-Reviewed Publication

UC Davis Health researchers have discovered a natural molecule made by gut bacteria that can reverse liver damage and repair the gut lining caused by exposure to aflatoxin, a toxic substance made by mold on crops.

Journal: mBio
Funder: NIH/National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases

BU researchers awarded $2.1 million to train scientists in biomolecular pharmacology

Boston University School of Medicine
Grant and Award Announcement

Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine researchers Hui Feng, MD, PhD, and Venetia Zachariou, PhD, have received $2.1M from the NIH’s National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS) to fund their five-year, T32 grant project, “Training in Biomolecular Pharmacology.” It will allow support for four new trainees each year for two-year terms.

Why common blood pressure readings may be misleading – and how to fix them

University of Cambridge
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Researchers have found why common cuff-based blood pressure readings are inaccurate and how they might be improved, which could improve health outcomes for patients.

Journal: PNAS Nexus