— Despite our best efforts to wash our hands and keep raw meat separate from other ingredients while cooking, over 76 million Americans per year become ill from foodborne bacteria or the toxins produced by them. The bacterial culprits are typically E. coli, Salmonella, or Campylobacter jejuni. While gastrointestinal diseases are unpleasant, they can be treated with antibiotics that kill the offending bacteria. However, scientists and consumers alike worry that antibiotic-resistant “superbugs” may soon contaminate the food supply. One step the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is taking to prevent such superbugs is to regulate the use of antibiotics in livestock. Continue reading Antibiotics and foodborne pathogens: are superbugs born in livestock?

— Itchy, watery eyes, and a drippy nose. Constricted, swollen airways secreting thick mucus. Itchy, red, dry, cracked skin. These symptoms describe three conditions — allergies, asthma, and eczema, respectively — that are commonly found together in the same people. Yet, what causes these symptoms and why they are so closely associated with each other is still poorly understood. Continue reading Scaly Skin, Drippy Nose, Wheezy Breathing: Coincidence or Connection?

— In 1985, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) began tracking the prevalence of obesity in the United States. Since then, a clear trend has emerged: obesity is on the rise… If you’re wondering why the CDC is tracking obesity, it’s because those excess pounds have been linked to several significant health problems, including heart disease, stroke, and some forms of cancer. In fact, one study in 2009 estimated that the direct medical cost of obesity in the US accounted for $147 billion of total health-care spending. Of all the health problems associated with being overweight, one of the most significant and well-studied impact is the increased risk for diabetes. Continue reading Obesity, Inflammation and Diabetes

— In 1973, a young scientist by the name of Ralph Steinman became the first person to identify and describe an unusual immune cell called the dendritic cell. At a time when immunology was dominated by research on cell types known as B cells and T cells, most scientists initially considered these comparatively rare, strikingly branched cells discovered by Steinman to be nothing more than a curious oddity. Steinman and his colleagues fought an uphill battle advocating the importance of these cells in controlling the immune response, and it took almost a decade for their ideas to gain significant traction in the scientific community. Despite this initial struggle, Steinman’s ideas eventually revolutionized immunology and the greater medical field to such a degree that this year he was awarded the Noble Prize in Medicine – albeit, tragically, three days after he passed away from pancreatic cancer. Continue reading Dendritic cells – catalysts of the immune response