Brisbane locks down as new strains put Australia on high alert

Australia's third-largest city of Brisbane was in its first day of a snap lockdown on Saturday, with officials elsewhere on "high alert" over the emergence of more contagious strains of COVID-19.

Sinovac, AstraZeneca seek vaccine approval in Brazil

The manufacturers of two COVID-19 vaccines developed by Chinese pharmaceutical firm Sinovac and Oxford-AstraZeneca filed the first applications Friday for regulatory approval in hard-hit Brazil, officials said.

US logs record virus caseload as millions in Asia enter new lockdowns

The United States logged a record new daily virus caseload as Joe Biden slammed the Trump administration's vaccine roll-out as a "travesty" and millions in Asia woke up to new lockdowns.

2020 another grim year for Brazilian Amazon

Deforestation destroyed the equivalent of more than two football pitches each minute in the Brazilian Amazon in 2020, another devastating year for a resource seen as vital to curbing climate change, according to government data released Friday.

Mexico City prolongs virus curbs as cases soar

Mexico City on Friday scrapped plans to reopen non-essential activities as it grapples with a spike in the number of coronavirus cases, hospitalizations and deaths.

Killer fungus spread rampantly at US hospital COVID ward: study

Dozens of people being treated for COVID-19 at a Florida hospital last summer became additionally infected with a mysterious, often deadly fungus called Candida auris, a US government study said Friday.

Chaos on the roads as Spain sees heaviest snowfall in decades

Heavy snow continued to fall across much of Spain on Friday, causing chaos on the roads, particularly in the centre of the country, with the capital Madrid seeing its heaviest snowfall in 50 years.

One Planet Summit kickstarts year of crucial environment talks

Global leaders will try to reignite international environmental diplomacy on Monday, with a biodiversity summit that launches a critical year for efforts to stem the devastating effects of global warming and species loss.

New COVID-19 variant found in eight US states: official data

A new, more infectious strain of the coronavirus has now spread to at least eight US states, official data showed Friday, as the country logged a record new daily virus caseload.

Mexican farmers find rare female statue in citrus grove

Farmers digging in a citrus grove near Mexico's Gulf coast have found a striking, six-foot-tall statue of a female figure who may represent an elite woman rather than a goddess, or some mixture of the two, experts said Friday.

Latina mothers, often essential workers, report COVID-19 took toll

More than half of Latina mothers surveyed in Yolo and Sacramento counties reported making economic cutbacks in response to the pandemic shutdown last spring—saying they bought less food and missed rent payments. Even for mothers who reported receiving the federal stimulus payment during this time, these hardships were not reduced, University of California, Davis, researchers found in a recent study.

Including unhealthy foods may diminish positive effects of an otherwise healthy diet

Eating a healthy diet, such as the Mediterranean diet, has a positive impact on health, but little is known about the effects of including unhealthy foods in an otherwise healthy diet. Now researchers at Rush University Medical Center have reported diminished benefits of a Mediterranean diet among those with high frequency of eating unhealthy foods. The results of their study were published in Alzheimer's & Dementia: The Journal of the Alzheimer's Association on Jan. 7.

NIST publishes a beginner's guide to DNA origami

In a technique known as DNA origami, researchers fold long strands of DNA over and over again to construct a variety of tiny 3-D structures, including miniature biosensors and drug-delivery containers. Pioneered at the California Institute of Technology in 2006, DNA origami has attracted hundreds of new researchers over the past decade, eager to build receptacles and sensors that could detect and treat disease in the human body, assess the environmental impact of pollutants, and assist in a host of other biological applications.

Researchers take key step toward cleaner, more sustainable production of hydrogen

Efficiently mass-producing hydrogen from water is closer to becoming a reality thanks to Oregon State University College of Engineering researchers and collaborators at Cornell University and the Argonne National Laboratory.

Most patients hospitalised with COVID-19 have at least 1 symptom 6 months after falling ill: Wuhan study

More than three quarters of COVID-19 patients have at least one ongoing symptom six months after initially becoming unwell, according to research published in The Lancet.

Large study finds higher burden of acute brain dysfunction for COVID-19 ICU patients

COVID-19 patients admitted to intensive care in the early months of the pandemic were subject to a significantly higher burden of delirium and coma than is typically found in patients with acute respiratory failure. Choice of sedative medications and curbs on family visitation played a role in increasing acute brain dysfunction for these patients.

Researchers collaborate to aid coral reef restoration

Florida's threatened coral reefs have a more than $4 billion annual economic impact on the state's economy, and University of Central Florida researchers are zeroing in on one factor that could be limiting their survival—coral skeleton strength.

New tech helping cancer patients manage symptoms

Hundreds of cancer patients have benefitted from using computer algorithms to manage their symptoms and improve their wellbeing in a unique UK trial.

Unravelling the mystery that makes viruses infectious

Researchers have for the first time identified the way viruses like the poliovirus and the common cold virus 'package up' their genetic code, allowing them to infect cells.

Gene therapy strategy found effective in mouse model of hereditary disease TSC

Patients with tuberous sclerosis complex, a genetic disorder characterized by the growth of noncancerous tumors in multiple organs of the body, have limited treatment options. A team led by investigators at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) has now shown that gene therapy can effectively treat mice that express one of the mutated genes that cause the disease. The research is published in Science Advances.

COVID forced psychiatric care online. Many patients want it to stay there, study finds

A year ago, trying to find patients who would agree to see their University of Michigan mental health provider through a video screen felt like pulling teeth.

Child marriage is legal and persists across Canada

Canada is at the forefront of global efforts to end child marriage abroad. Yet this practice remains legal and persists across the country. In Canada, more than 3,600 marriage certificates were issued to children, usually girls, under the age of 18 between 2000 and 2018, according to a new study from researchers at McGill University. In recent years, an increasing number of child marriages have been common-law unions.