TechNow

Health & Biotech2026-09-26

Gene-edited stem cell transplant lets doctors safely attack leftover leukemia

By deleting a shared marker protein from donor stem cells before transplant, doctors created an opening to hit residual leukemia with drugs that would otherwise destroy the new blood supply too.

Health & Biotech2026-09-25

Study finds normal-seeming coach behaviors can be part of sexual abuse

Researchers say ordinary gestures like hugs and one-on-one attention can form part of a grooming pattern, but athletes rarely recognize them as abuse.

Health & Biotech2026-09-24

CDC delays free COVID shots for low-income and uninsured children

Roughly half of US children depend on a federal program for free vaccines, and its stalled rollout means access now depends on family income while COVID hospitalizations climb.

Health & Biotech2026-09-24

Higher REM sleep linked to lower risk of 83 diseases in large study

A study of nearly 100,000 UK Biobank participants ties more REM sleep to lower risk of dozens of conditions, adding to evidence from smaller cohorts that low REM sleep tracks with earlier death.

Health & Biotech2026-09-23

Injected nanoparticles make blind mouse retinas respond to light

A new material could offer an option for restoring some light sensitivity after photoreceptors die, without gene editing or surgery, though it remains far from a human treatment.

Health & Biotech2026-09-22

Stopping GLP-1 drugs raises heart risk within two years, study finds

With about half of GLP-1 users quitting early and cost often the reason, the finding shows heart protection depends on staying on a drug many cannot keep affording.

Health & Biotech2026-09-20

Study finds how malaria parasites sense stress and switch to transmission mode

The discovery of a single control hub that triggers transmission-ready forms under stress could point to new ways to block malaria spread, though the mechanism was only shown in cultured parasites so far.

Health & Biotech2026-09-19

Ancient RNA-guided systems found in viruses could expand gene editing

Two newly described systems show that guiding proteins to precise DNA targets with RNA is an old trick nature has used more than once, and one of the new tools is far smaller than CRISPR-Cas9.

Health & Biotech2026-09-18

IV tubing contamination probe echoes a decades-long pattern of infusion-related outbreaks

Because IV lines put fluid straight into the bloodstream, even small lapses in manufacturing or handling have repeatedly caused infections and adverse reactions, from a 1971 nationwide outbreak to a glutathione mix-up in 2019.

Health & Biotech2026-09-17

Sedge plant has sex but produces clones, study finds

A tiny grassland plant keeps chromosome shuffling and fertilization but still hands each generation an unchanged copy of its parent's genome, blurring the line between sexual and clonal reproduction.

Health & Biotech2026-09-15

Faster biological aging in younger generations tied to early-onset cancer

A large study finds that people born more recently show bodies that appear biologically older than their birth years suggest, and that gap tracks with higher rates of cancers diagnosed before age 55.

Health & Biotech2026-09-14

DNA folding patterns shift in Alzheimer's brain cells and with aging

The finding adds a new physical layer, alongside genetic and chemical changes, to how scientists explain disrupted gene activity in Alzheimer's disease.

Health & Biotech2026-09-14

Four new AI tools automate mapping of cell membranes and proteins

Separate research groups report algorithms that match expert manual segmentation and database curation while running far faster, across yeast membranes, mouse brain neurons, electron tomograms, and protein databases.

Health & Biotech2026-09-13

New enzymes found in landfill and compost bacteria break down plastic foam and nylon

Two hard-to-recycle plastics have lacked practical enzymatic treatments, and a broad new screen has turned up a dozen enzymes that attack both, including forms and thicknesses no previous enzyme handled.

Health & Biotech2026-09-13

AI search by protein shape uncovers a hidden human protein that builds cell-to-cell bridges

The discovery points to an overlooked layer of biology that may show how cells cooperate, compete, and possibly fuel cancer growth.

Health & Biotech2026-09-13

Precise gene editing in human embryos still causes unpredictable DNA changes

A method gentler than CRISPR can correctly fix a disease gene in every cell of an embryo, but it also triggers unplanned changes elsewhere, keeping the approach far from clinical use.

Health & Biotech2026-09-13

Nanoparticle blood test detects amoxicillin allergy that standard test missed

A pilot study found the new test caught nearly all true amoxicillin allergies, at a time when most people who believe they are allergic to penicillins are not.

Health & Biotech2026-09-11

New CRISPR tool speeds up regenerating gene-edited perennial crops

By activating a plant's own growth genes instead of adding new ones, the method cuts months off the slowest step in gene editing crops like citrus and poplar that have long resisted lab regeneration.

Health & Biotech2026-09-09

Snake blood proteins neutralize rattlesnake venom better than current antivenom

Snakebites kill up to 140,000 people a year, and a protein mixture drawn from snakes' own blood outperformed standard antivenom in laboratory tests.

Health & Biotech2026-09-09

Gut bacteria don't inherit family lines the way genes do

A re-analysis finds that gut microbes shift between countries and continents far more freely than human genes do, challenging a recent claim that dozens of bacterial species evolved in lockstep with human populations.

Health & Biotech2026-09-08

New LSD-based molecule promotes brain rewiring without causing hallucinations

Swapping two atoms in LSD's structure produced a compound that repairs neural connections in mice while avoiding effects tied to psychosis, opening a route to treating schizophrenia with a psychedelic-derived drug.

Health & Biotech2026-09-06

Dormant cancer cells found hiding behind protective cell shields

Multiple studies now show that sleeping cancer cells survive treatment because nearby normal cells and internal survival switches protect them, pointing to new drug combinations aimed at that protection rather than at the tumor alone.

Health & Biotech2026-09-06

Bacterial enzyme reads eight-letter genetic code, structure shows

The finding suggests cells could process expanded, human-designed genetic information using their own natural machinery, a step toward new diagnostics and engineered biology.

Health & Biotech2026-09-06

Psilocybin prevents chemotherapy nerve damage in mice

A common and often permanent side effect of chemotherapy has no reliable prevention today, and this early mouse study is now heading to human trials to see if that changes.