Confused in California

The 52 Places Traveler Nearing the end of his round-the-world trip, the 52 Places Traveler was confounded by the Golden State cities of Los Angeles and Santa Barbara. Dec. 24, 2019 ImageThe Griffith Observatory offers panoramic views of the surrounding hills stretching all the way to the coast. The whirlwind pace of my yearlong trip…

A Sleep Reset for the New Year

By Jane E. Brody As many as 20 percent to 30 percent of people in the general population sleep poorly. They may have difficulty falling asleep or staying asleep, some awaken much too early, while others do not feel rested despite spending a full night seemingly asleep in bed. For one person in 10, insomnia…

Mouse pups born from eggs derived from the granulosa cells that surround oocytes

By introducing a chemical cocktail to granulosa cells, researchers in China induced the cells to transform into functional oocytes in mice. Once fertilized, these oocytes were then successfully able to produce healthy offspring, showing no differences from naturally bred mice. The chemical reprogramming method appears December 24 in the journal Cell Reports. Ovarian follicles are…

Why isn’t there a vaccine for staph?

Staph bacteria, the leading cause of potentially dangerous skin infections, are most feared for the drug-resistant strains that have become a serious threat to public health. Attempts to develop a vaccine against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) have failed to outsmart the superbug’s ubiquity and adaptability to antibiotics. Now, a study from Washington University School of…

Many younger patients with stomach cancer have a distinct disease, Mayo research discovers

ROCHESTER, Minn. — Many people under 60 who develop stomach cancer have a “genetically and clinically distinct” disease, new Mayo Clinic research has discovered. Compared to stomach cancer in older adults, this new, early onset form often grows and spreads more quickly, has a worse prognosis, and is more resistant to traditional chemotherapy treatments, the…