research

Free Meals from Drug Companies Influence how Doctors Prescribe Drugs

Drug companies don’t need to give doctors thousands of dollars in kickbacks to sway them to prescribe their medications and implant their devices. A new study published online in JAMA Internal Medicine shows that doctors who received a free meal from a pharmaceutical company were more likely to prescribe the drug the company was promoting than doctors who received no such meals.

Microplastics in the Ocean are Killing Baby Fish, Study Finds

Our seas are littered with plastic, and tiny bits of it are seriously threatening the environment, according to a study published in the journal Science. Researchers say microplastics – small plastic particles less than 5 millimeters in diameter – could be hurting the survival of European perch, as well as other creatures.
Source: EcoWatch

Scientist Create Human-Pig Embyros to Help Provide Organ Transplants

In the U.S., 77,500 people are on the organ transplant waiting list. Every 10 minutes, someone is added to that list. On average, 22 people die each day awaiting a transplant. The numbers certainly are discouraging. To try and tackle the problem, scientists at UC Davis have developed embryos that are part human and part pig, and are implanting them in sows. [1] [2]