MYC

Apr 13 2026HEALTH

How a common food contaminant may harm your liver without you knowing

A mold byproduct called deoxynivalenol, or DON for short, shows up in spoiled grains like wheat and corn more often than people think. Scientists now suspect this invisible pollutant doesn’t just give you a stomachache—it might quietly push a damaged liver toward worse trouble. While doctors already

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Mar 15 2026POLITICS

Chile’s New President Faces a Tightrope Between Security and Global Ties

The current president of Chile steps into a country that once stood as a beacon of economic stability in Latin America. Decades ago, the nation blended free‑market policies with moderate social spending, slashing poverty and attracting foreign capital. That model earned Chile praise from economists

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Jan 06 2026HEALTH

How Well Does ChatGPT-4o Handle Eye Care Questions?

ChatGPT-4o is a tool that can answer questions from patients about eye care. It's part of a system called Epic MyChart. The goal was to see how well ChatGPT-4o does this job. First, let's talk about what ChatGPT-4o is. It's a type of AI that uses something called a Generative Pre-Trained Transforme

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Dec 13 2025SCIENCE

How Tiny Germs Trick the Immune System

Have you ever wondered how some germs manage to hide from the body's defenses? Mycoplasma mycoides subsp. capri (Mmc) is a tiny, cell wall-less bacterium that can cause disease in goats and cattle. It has a clever trick: it can switch on and off a sugar-like coating called capsular polysaccharide (C

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Dec 01 2025SCIENCE

Smart Sponges for Food Safety: The Rise of MOF Sensors

Food safety is a big deal. Harmful substances called mycotoxins can sneak into food. They cause health problems and cost a lot of money. Detecting them is tricky. Old methods are precise but need lots of prep work, fancy tools, and experts. This is where metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) come in. MOFs

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Nov 20 2025SCIENCE

Maize's Secret Weapon: How Tiny Fungi Fight Pollution

Maize, a staple crop, faces a big problem: antimony (Sb) pollution. This harmful substance sneaks into the soil and messes with the plants, making them grow poorly and reducing their nutritional value. But here's a twist: tiny fungi called arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) might just be the heroes

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Jul 16 2025SCIENCE

Cleaning Up Our Food: How Charcoal Can Help

Food safety is a big deal. Pesticides and mycotoxins can linger in our food. These leftovers can be bad for our health. So, how do we get rid of them? One answer might be biochar. This is a special kind of charcoal. It can help clean up our food. Biochar isn't just good for cleaning. It can also he

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Jul 11 2025SCIENCE

Unlocking Nature's Tiny Factories: The Streptomyces Mystery

In the world of microbes, Streptomyces sp. NRRL S-1813 is a standout. This special bacterium is like a tiny factory, capable of producing useful chemicals. Scientists wanted to see what this microbe could make when given different food sources. They found something interesting: two related chemicals

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Jul 11 2025ENVIRONMENT

How Tiny Fungi Help Trees Survive Harsh Conditions

In the world of plants, tiny helpers called arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) are making a big difference. These fungi team up with trees, like the Casuarina equisetifolia, to help them survive tough conditions. Scientists wanted to see how these fungi help the trees when they are growing in coral

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Jul 05 2025SCIENCE

Tuberculosis and COVID-19: A Double Whammy on Lungs

Tuberculosis (TB) and COVID-19 are both nasty lung infections. They can cause a lot of damage to the lungs. Scientists wanted to see what happens when someone has both infections at the same time. They used a special type of lung cell, called A549 cells, to study this. First, they infected the cell

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