Imagine you're walking or climbing stairs while wearing a knee brace. You wouldn't want it to interfere with your movement, right? That's the challenge for exoskeleton designers. They need to make sure their devices don't get in the way during the swing phase of walking or stair climbing. But how mu
In the quiet town of Plainfield, Illinois, a terrible event unfolded on October 14, 2023. Wadee Alfayoumi, a young boy, lost his life in a stabbing attack that his family believes was motivated by hate against their Palestinian heritage. His mother, Hanan Shaheen, was also injured in the tragic inci
When it comes to battling childhood obesity, what really works? Researchers decided to find out by looking at studies that tested behavioural and psychological treatments. They crunched the numbers from lots of experiments, aiming to figure out what makes a real difference. The team focused on rand
Have you ever wondered why some teens choose weight loss surgery? Well, the number of severely overweight teens has been on the rise, making surgery a common solution. This study took a closer look at what makes teens decide to go for metabolic and bariatric surgery (MBS) and what kind of support th
Have you ever wondered if the policies your state puts in place actually affect how many opioids are being dispensed? Well, let's dive into that! States have been trying out various policies to change how opioids are prescribed, but not many studies have looked at how effective these policies are in
Imagine a tiny protein that could revolutionize the way we understand obesity and metabolism. That's exactly what leptin did thirty years ago. Discovered by chance, this little molecule has since become a big deal in the world of health and science. So, what's the story behind leptin? It all starte
Chronic kidney fibrosis is a major health issue worldwide, but effective treatments are still hard to find. Scientists know that the way cells interact with the stuff around them, called the extracellular matrix, drives fibrosis. But what about focal adhesions (FAs)? These are like tiny anchors that
Have you ever wondered how the gut bugs we carry around might be talking to our bodies? Scientists found that tiny, nanoscale packets called bacterial extracellular vesicles (bEVs) can signal pain hypersensitivity. They studied mice with diet-induced obesity (DIO) and found these bEVs in their poop.
Imagine you're living along the Yellow River in China. How much do you think the river and its surroundings help your daily life? This study explored how well the river basin's ecosystem services match what locals think. Ecosystem services, or ESs, are the goodies nature provides, like clean water,
When it comes to growing new bones, scientists are exploring how to design the best scaffolds for the job. These scaffolds need to be good at helping new bone grow and strong enough to hold up. Researchers have looked at different types of materials, like metals, non-metals, and polymers, to make th
