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Studying immune system differences between the sexes

Photo of mail Covid patient in hospital bed
CREMONA, ITALY - MARCH 29: Mattia Guarneri lies on a bed in coma, connected to a ventilator, in Cremona Hospital on March 29, 2020 in Cremona, Italy. The young man have been discharged from Cremona Hospital on April 16, 2020. Mattia, aged 18, is the youngest person in Italy that's being discharged after being in a coma and attached to a ventilator. There have been over 150,000 reported COVID-19 cases in Italy and more than 20,000 related deaths, but the officials are confident the peak of new cases has passed. (Photo by Marco Mantovani/Getty Images)

COVID-19’s deadliness for men is revealing why researchers should have been studying immune system sex differences years ago

Adam Moeser, Michigan State University

When it comes to surviving critical cases of COVID-19, it appears that men draw the short straw.

Initial reports from China revealed the early evidence of increased male mortality associated with COVID. According to the Global Health 50/50 research initiative, nearly every country is now reporting significantly higher COVID-19-related mortality rates in males than in females as of June 4. Yet, current data suggest similar infection rates for men and women. In other words, while men and women are being infected with COVID-19 at similar rates, a significantly higher proportion of men succumb to the disease than women, across groups of similar age. Why is it then that more men are dying from COVID-19? Or rather, should we be asking why are more women surviving?

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FDA warns consumers about dangerous hand sanitizers

photo of hand sanitizer dispenser
Image by Ri Butov from Pixabay

Coronavirus (COVID-19) Update: FDA Reiterates Warning About Dangerous Alcohol-Based Hand Sanitizers Containing Methanol, Takes Additional Action to Address Concerning Products

Agency Urges Consumers, Health Care Professionals Not to Use Certain Products, Citing Serious Adverse Events and Death

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration continues to warn consumers and health care professionals not to use certain alcohol-based hand sanitizers due to the dangerous presence of methanol, or wood alcohol – a substance often used to create fuel and antifreeze that can be toxic when absorbed through the skin as well as life-threatening when ingested. The agency has also taken additional action to help prevent certain hand sanitizers from entering the United States by placing them on an import alert. The FDA is proactively working with manufacturers to recall products and is encouraging retailers to remove products from store shelves and online marketplaces. As part of these actions, a warning letter has been issued to Eskbiochem S.A. de C.V. regarding the distribution of products labeled as manufactured at its facilities with undeclared methanol, misleading claims –including incorrectly stating that FDA approved these products—and improper manufacturing practices.

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A rush is on to mine the deep seabed

Photo of mineral deposits on the ocean floor
Manganese nodules on the Atlantic Ocean floor off the southeastern United States, discovered in 2019 during the Deep Sea Ventures pilot test. National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration

A rush is on to mine the deep seabed, with effects on ocean life that aren’t well understood

Elizabeth M. De Santo, Franklin & Marshall College; Elizabeth Mendenhall, University of Rhode Island, and Elizabeth Nyman, Texas A&M University

Mining the ocean floor for submerged minerals is a little-known, experimental industry. But soon it will take place on the deep seabed, which belongs to everyone, according to international law.

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Turning bricks into batteries

Artwork image of electrical power over bricks
Bricks could do double duty as building materials and supercapacitors. Big_Ryan/DigitalVision Vectors via Getty Images

Clever chemistry turns ordinary bricks into electricity storage devices

Julio M. D’Arcy, Washington University in St Louis

The Research Brief is a short take about interesting academic work.

The big idea

In my synthetic chemistry lab, we have worked out how to convert the red pigment in common bricks into a plastic that conducts electricity, and this process enabled us to turn bricks into electricity storage devices. These brick supercapacitors could be connected to solar panels to store rechargeable energy. Supercapacitors store electric charge, in contrast to batteries, which store chemical energy.

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Being a COVID-19 long-hauler

Photo of patient getting CT scan
Margot Gage Witvliet was hospitalized with COVID-19 in March. More than four months later, she has yet to recover. Courtesy of Margot Gage Witvliet, Author provided

I’m a COVID-19 long-hauler and an epidemiologist – here’s how it feels when symptoms last for months

Margot Gage Witvliet, Lamar University

Imagine being young and healthy, a nonsmoker with no preexisting health conditions, and then waking up one morning feeling like you were being suffocated by an unseen force. Back in March, this was my reality.

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A violent derecho sweeps through the Midwest

Photo of a massive storm cloud
A deadly derecho strikes central Kansas. (Photo by Jim Reed/Corbis via Getty Images)

What is a derecho? An atmospheric scientist explains these rare but dangerous storm systems

Russ Schumacher, Colorado State University

Thunderstorms are common across North America, especially in warm weather months. About 10% of them become severe, meaning they produce hail 1 inch or greater in diameter, winds gusting in excess of 50 knots (57.5 miles per hour), or a tornado.

The U.S. recently has experienced three rarer events: organized lines of thunderstorms with widespread damaging winds, known as derechos.

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A dietitian shares tips for eating well

Photo of sliced strawberries
Food is fuel for the human body. Photo by Merve Aydin for Unsplash

8 simple strategies to fuel your body during a pandemic

Julie Lee, Binghamton University, State University of New York

People eat for many reasons – pleasure, emotional release, boredom or to connect with others. And then there is eating during a pandemic. Whether you find yourself working from home, in quarantine or transitioning back to an office, chances are good that COVID-19 has impacted how you eat.

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COVID-19 and its effect on the brain under scrutiny

Image of brain with superimposed drawing of virus
3D rendering illustration coronavirus x-rays lung show terrifying damage in lungs of Covid-19 analyze first US patient with coronavirus illustration,show terrifying damage in lungs.illustration

How COVID-19 might increase risk of memory loss and cognitive decline

Natalie C. Tronson, University of Michigan

Of all frightening ways that the SARS-COV-2 virus affects the body, one of the more insidious is the effect of COVID-19 on the brain.

It is now clear that many patients suffering from COVID-19 exhibit neurological symptoms, from loss of smell, to delirium, to an increased risk of stroke. There are also longer-lasting consequences for the brain, including myalgic encephalomyelitis /chronic fatigue syndrome and Guillain-Barre syndrome.

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Increasing ocean warming threatens coral reefs

Photo of Coral
Climate-driven ocean warming threatens healthy coral reefs, like this one in Hawaii. Shawna Foo, CC BY-ND

Ocean warming threatens coral reefs and soon could make it harder to restore them

Shawna Foo, Arizona State University

Coral reefs support over 25% of marine life by providing food, shelter and a place for fish and other organisms to reproduce and raise young. Today, ocean warming driven by climate change is stressing reefs worldwide.

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Regional success and setbacks in the battle against a pandemic

Photo of people wearing masks and social distancing
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - MAY 17: People practice social distancing in white circles in Domino Park in Williamsburg during the coronavirus pandemic on May 17, 2020 in New York City. COVID-19 has spread to most countries around the world, claiming over 316,000 lives with over 4.8 million infections reported. (Photo by Noam Galai/Getty Images)

As coronavirus cases spike in the South, Northeast seems to have the pandemic under control – here’s what changed

Taison Bell, University of Virginia

“Hospital Capacity Crosses Tipping Point in U.S. Coronavirus Hot Spots” – Wall Street Journal

This is a headline I hoped to not see again after the number of coronavirus infections had finally started to decline in the Northeast and Pacific Northwest. However, the pandemic has now shifted to the South and the West – with Arizona, Florida, California and Texas as hot spots.

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