Health

Even as cities and urban spaces are getting more polluted, a new technology developed by researchers at the Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IIT Madras) can help keep city streets clean and also eliminate harmful airborne dust.  The dust from the streets has been among the biggest contributors to air pollution in cities. Inhaling this dust, particularly fine particles called PM2.5, is known to lead to health problems ranging from asthma and cough to other lung diseases. In India, road sweeping is mainly done by long broomsticks- the job is not only labour-intensive but also exposes sweepers to dangerous dust. While there are large machines available in the market, they tend to be costly and cannot easily venture into tight lanes or crowded places. The innovative device is an easy...

Scientists at the S N Bose National Centre for Basic Sciences introduced an artificial intelligence (AI) framework that could change how we understand and treat cancer, and also pave the way for personalised therapies,  the Ministry of Science and Technology said on Wednesday.  The framework, developed in collaboration with Ashoka University, gives a new lens to look at cancer -- not by its size or spread alone, but by its molecular personality. “Cancer is not just a disease of growing tumours -- it is powered by a set of hidden biological programmes called the hallmarks of cancer. These hallmarks explain how healthy cells turn malignant: how they spread, evade the immune system, and resist treatment,” the Ministry said. While for decades, doctors have relied on staging systems like TNM...

Children in India districts that are highly vulnerable to climate change could be 25 per cent more likely to be underweight, compared to those in less vulnerable districts, indicating how climate vulnerability can impact public health outcomes, a study has found. Districts highly vulnerable to climate change consistently underperform on achieving health targets, such as stunting and problems accessing healthcare, compared to less vulnerable districts, the study published in the journal PLOS one said. Researchers from Delhi`s Institute of Economic Growth said that with 80 per cent of India`s population living in areas highly vulnerable to extreme weather events such as cyclones, floods and heatwaves, risks due to climate change could undermine the country`s progress on several Sustainable...

Integrating palliative care into the public health system can help universalise access and improve healthcare, according to a study.  Palliative care is a branch of medicine that aims to prevent and relieve the physical, social, and spiritual suffering of patients suffering from chronic life-limiting illnesses and their caregivers. The World Health Organisation defines palliative care as ‘an approach that improves the quality of life of patients (adults and children) and their families who are facing problems associated with life-threatening illness’. The study showed that nearly 7-10 million people require palliative care in India, but less than 4 per cent have access to it. "With rising burden of chronic diseases in the country and associated suffering, there is an urgent need to imp...

The human brain goes through five major eras of structural changes over a lifetime -- marked by turning points at ages nine, 32, 66 and 83 -- as it rewires to support varied ways of thinking as one grows, matures and ultimately declines, a study has suggested. Age nine is when communications between brain networks developed since birth transition to the adolescent phase, which then lasts up to age 32, researchers led by those from the UK`s University of Cambridge explain. Early thirties is when the brain`s neural wiring shifts into "adult mode" -- the longest era lasting over three decades and marked by a stabilising of the brain`s architecture. Age 32 is also the "strongest topological turning point" of the entire lifetime, they said. Age 66 was found to signal the start of an "early a...

Researchers in Australia have found that Parkinson`s disease causes significant and progressive changes in the brain`s blood vessels, changing the understanding of the disease.  While Parkinson`s disease is characterised by alpha-synuclein protein deposits, the research demonstrated that region-specific changes to blood vessels in the brain underlie disease progression, Xinhua news agency reported. "Traditionally, Parkinson`s researchers have focused on protein accumulation and neuronal loss, but we have shown the impacts on our cerebrovasculature -- the blood vessels in our brain," said Derya Dik, postdoctoral student at Neuroscience Research Australia (NeuRA). "Our research identified region-specific changes in the brain`s blood vessels, including an increased presence of string vesse...

A natural compound found in long pepper can be an effective and cost-efficient agent against colon cancer cells, said researchers at the National Institute of Technology (NIT) Rourkela on Tuesday.  Colon cancer is a disease in which the cells grow uncontrollably in the large intestine of the body, forming a tumour. It is one of the most common types of cancer globally. According to the World Health Organization, in 2022, nearly 1.9 million new cases and almost 900,000 deaths occurred due to colon cancer. While various international cancer research studies have examined natural molecules’ activity towards a variety of cancers, the team at NIT Rourkela conducted a set of laboratory experiments to demonstrate the activity of Piperlongumine -- a natural compound -- as an alternative to chemo...

Free-living amoebae in Vashi Creek, a tidal estuary in Mumbai, were found to harbour bacteria which had far higher levels of antimicrobial resistance (AMR), according to a global study, including researchers from the Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay.  The study, conducted by researchers at the University of Strathclyde in Scotland, noted that the amoebae are acting as a ‘Trojan horse’ harbouring and protecting multidrug-resistant bacteria. Nearly half of the bacteria in the amoeba were resistant to four or more antibiotics, rising to six or more in 22 per cent of the samples. In marked contrast, the same level of resistance was found in only 0.6 per cent of samples derived from the sediment. While they are normally predators of bacteria, amoebae could serve as “sentinel indicators” ...

Doctors at a hospital in Mumbai have successfully treated a talented young GI surgeon from Delhi following a ground-breaking sacral bone cancer chordoma surgery. The intricate procedure, which utilised advanced navigation techniques and nerve-sparing technique with intra-operative neuromonitoring (IONM), was led by Dr Manit Gundavda, orthopaedic oncologist and lead surgeon at Kokilaben Hospital in Mumbai. Dr. Gundavda, along with a multidisciplinary team of experts including neurosurgery, orthopaedic surgery, radiology, anaesthesiology, and nursing, performed the 15-hour long surgery to remove a bone cancer - sacral chordoma, a rare type of cancer (there are fewer than 1 case per million in the world) that occurs in the bones of the spine. 3D printing technology was used to create a mode...

An exposure to high temperatures during pregnancy could be disrupting amino acids and vitamins key to managing stress and energy, thereby increasing the risk of a premature delivery, suggests an analysis of blood samples. Studies have observed a link between warmer ambient temperatures and preterm births, where a baby is born before 37 weeks of pregnancy. The analysis, published in the journal Science Advances, looked at small molecules or "molecular fingerprints" in blood samples of 215 pregnant women who were residents of the US metropolitan city of Atlanta, and matched residential addresses with the maximum ambient temperatures experienced throughout their pregnancies. The first-of-its-kind study by researchers at Emory University found a disruption in levels of naturally occurring s...