Human performance, public health, biology, and the science of living well.
A study in Nature Communications found that people with tuberculosis who have few or no recognized symptoms may still spread Mycobacterium tuberculosis inside their homes. The finding comes from a case-contact study in eastern China, where researchers compared infection rates among people living with symptomatic and minimally symptomatic tuberculosis patients. The result challenges a familiar…
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A study in Neuron involving 41 healthy volunteers found that slow breathing with a longer exhale can shift heart activity, change reward processing in the brain and make people more likely to choose riskier options. Researchers from the German Institute of Human Nutrition Potsdam-Rehbruecke, known as DIfE and Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin showed that a…
A study in Neuron found that two sugars with the same calories can send very different messages to the brain. Researchers at the Monell Chemical Senses Center showed in mice that fructose uses a distinct gut-brain pathway and has a weaker effect on hunger-related neurons than glucose. The finding matters because fructose is a major…
Researchers at City of Hope have identified a stem-cell change that may help explain why waistlines often expand in middle age. The study, published in Science, found that aging can activate a newly recognized population of fat-making cells that appears to boost the production of new belly fat cells. The finding matters because abdominal fat…
