Scouting for the Next Top Model (Organism)
Here’s a valid question: if it’s a human condition or disease we’re interested in, why do we study flies, plants or bacteria? It’s a question that researchers often have to […]
Category Archives: Medicine
From Social Stigma to Health Sensor: Scientific Tattooing
Tattoos, the artistic insertion of pigment into the skin as a form of body modification, has been around for quite a while, with the earliest preserved example from around 3300 […]
Malaria: From Miasma to Elimination
Life on Earth is full of dynamic and complex interactions between organisms. Some of these interactions are mutualistic, where all parties benefit from the relationship. Others are commensalistic, where one […]
Preventing the Next Epidemic: Scientists Take a Closer Look at Rift Valley Fever
In 2015, Zika virus resulted in a global public health emergency. The epidemic caused severe brain defects in thousands of Brazilian newborns after the virus was transmitted to pregnant mothers […]
Science Behind Bars: A Bioethics Case Study
The “salt wars” have been raging for decades, with medical science still embroiled over whether there is a direct link between sodium consumption and heart disease. Last year, a group […]
Cancer and Us – Are You Safe?
On February 4th, we celebrated World Cancer Day to remember those affected by cancer, standing by them in their fight against it. Known as the big “C,” cancer is a […]
Emerging Diseases and Wildlife: How Small Changes Can Have Big Consequences
On my walk home from work, I almost always encounter what I affectionately call “trash creatures”: squirrels that pop out of dumpsters carrying slices of pizza or crows pulling apart […]
The Tiny Wiggly Molecular World of Medicine
Medicine has been important to humans since our earliest days, but for the majority of our history, we’ve had very little idea of how medicine works. We used to attribute […]
The Cold Truth About Cryopreservation
Recently, I was in the lab doing some routine work with cells. In order to start growing my own stock of cells I took a small vial out of a […]
Cystic Fibrosis and Your Genes
Disease alters lives in permanent and often heartbreaking ways. Most people have a story about how they have been affected by disease, either firsthand, through a family member, or looking […]
