The pursuit of a cure for Alzheimer's disease is becoming an increasingly competitive and contentious quest with recent years witnessing several important controversies. In July 2022, Science magazine reported that a key 2006 research paper, published in the prestigious journal Nature, which identified a subtype of brain protein called beta-amyloid as the cause of Alzheimer's, may have been based on fabricated data. One year earlier, in June 2021, the US Food and Drug Administration had approved aducanumab, an antibody-targeting beta-amyloid, as a treatment for Alzheimer's, even though the data supporting its use were incomplete and contradictory.
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love elizabeth s.
– Noor Unnahar, Instagram account "noor_unnahar"
[TEXT ID: / [Lemons] / My father's mother loved lemons. Years after her passing, / we run out of everything, but never / lemons. / Nothing else shelters grief / better than memory. / It's my father way of saying, / even in your absence, you will be / cared by me. / END ID]
Women’s health is a mess, I know this. Research is unthinkably underfunded and doctors seem to do nothing but ignore you and prescribe birth control.
But it’s not all bad, and when you feel hopeless, consider that there are people just as mad as you, who work in research and medicine.
They may have found a cause for morning sickness and hyperemesis gravidarum! Connecticut just announced a new huge research center just for endometriosis! There’s more and more research about the connection between vitamin D and fertility! Diagnostics and hormone tracking gets a little easier every year!
Here are a few of my favorite recent breakthroughs in women’s health:
Hawes, Geoffrey. “LinkMed to Provide First At-Home Fertility Monitoring in U.S.” EIN News, October 20, 2022. https://www.einnews.com/pr_news/596793974/linkmed-to-provide-first-at-home-fertility-monitoring-in-u-s.
He, Yanan, Jixin Li, Yanjun Qu, Liyuan Sun, Xibo Zhao, Han Wu, and Guangmei Zhang. “Identification and Analysis of Potential Immune-Related Biomarkers in Endometriosis.” Journal of Immunology Research 2023 (January 10, 2023): e2975581. https://doi.org/10.1155/2023/2975581.
Hill, Matthew, and Rhiannon Yhnell. “Device Developed in Bristol Offers ‘revolution’ in Hormone Understanding.” BBC News, June 21, 2023, sec. Bristol. https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-bristol-65961378.
Medical Xpress. “Early Blood Test May Unravel Secrets of Pregnancy Loss,” May 17, 2023. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2023-05-early-blood-unravel-secrets-pregnancy.html.
Medical Xpress. “Extra Vitamin D during Pregnancy May Increase Chance of a ‘Natural Birth,’” February 6, 2023. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2023-02-extra-vitamin-d-pregnancy-chance.html.
PR Newswire. “Gynov Helps Women Cope with Polycystic Ovary Syndrome with Two Key Ingredients,” October 20, 2022. https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/gynov-helps-women-cope-with-polycystic-ovary-syndrome-with-two-key-ingredients-301654438.html.
PR Newswire. “QvinTM Menstrual Blood Diagnostic Device Receives FDA Approval in Thailand,” February 2, 2023. https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/qvin-menstrual-blood-diagnostic-device-receives-fda-approval-in-thailand-301736890.html.
Sommer, Constance. “Decoding Endometriosis: Recent Research Fosters Hope.” Medscape, February 2, 2023. https://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/987811?src=rss.
Watson, Clare. “Scientists Think They’ve Found The Cause of Morning Sickness.” ScienceAlert, June 21, 2023. https://www.sciencealert.com/scientists-think-theyve-found-the-cause-of-morning-sickness.
The constant ebb and flow of hormones that guide the menstrual cycle don't just affect reproductive anatomy. They also reshape the brain, and a new study has given us insight into how this happens. Led by neuroscientists Elizabeth Rizor and Viktoriya Babenko of the University of California Santa Barbara, a team of researchers tracked 30 women who menstruate over their cycles, documenting in detail the structural changes that take place in the brain as hormonal profiles fluctuate. The results, which are yet to be peer-reviewed but can be found on preprint server bioRxiv, suggest that structural changes in the brain during menstruation may not be limited to those regions associated with the menstrual cycle. "These results are the first to report simultaneous brain-wide changes in human white matter microstructure and cortical thickness coinciding with menstrual cycle-driven hormone rhythms," the researchers write.
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The exact nature of long COVID is still coming to light, but we just got some of the best evidence yet that this debilitating condition stems from a brain injury. Using high-resolution scanners, researchers at the Universities of Cambridge and Oxford have shown microscopic, structural abnormalities in the brainstems of those recovering from COVID-19. Signs of brain inflammation were present up to 18 months after first contracting the SARS-CoV-2 virus.
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{Words by José Olivarez from Citizen Illegal /@fatimaamerbilal , from even flesh eaters don't want me.}