EurekAlert! News by Subject: Medicine & Health

Medicine & Health

Updates every hour. Last Updated: 22-Jun-2026 16:16 ET (22-Jun-2026 20:16 GMT/UTC)

18-Jun-2026

Epigenetic drugs could protect blood vessels in obesity and diabetes

University of Zurich
Peer-Reviewed Publication

People with obesity and type 2 diabetes are at high risk of blood vessel damage. This risk depends not only on the genes a person carries, but also on how they are “read”. By changing the epigenetic reading signals in the thin fat layer surrounding arteries and veins, researchers led by the University of Zurich were able to reduce inflammation and improve blood vessel health in both mice and human tissue.

Journal: Cell Reports

18-Jun-2026

Weekly Conferences | From San Diego to Shanghai: Insilico Medicine showcases new advances in AI-driven drug discovery

InSilico Medicine
Meeting Announcement

Led by Dr. Alex Zhavoronkov, Founder, CEO, and CBO of Insilico Medicine, the Insilico Medicine team will meet with biopharma partners, investors, and researchers at Booth #4021 to explore collaboration opportunities. Insilico Medicine will showcase the core capabilities of its end-to-end Pharma.AI platform as well as its latest R&D pipeline.

18-Jun-2026

Menopausal women taking hormones more likely to have overall healthier lifestyles

The Menopause Society
Peer-Reviewed Publication

CLEVELAND, Ohio (June 17, 2026)—Menopause is associated with a number of adverse health effects, some of which can be mitigated by an array of modifiable health behaviors (MHBs), including diet, exercise, and sleep duration. A new study sought to determine whether menopause and hormone therapy status had any association with MHBs. Initial results suggest that a link exists. Results of the study are published online today in Menopause, the journal of The Menopause Society.

Journal: Menopause

18-Jun-2026

Researchers find caregivers of children hospitalized for cancer, blood disorders at risk for food insecurity

Wake Forest University School of Medicine
Peer-Reviewed Publication

A study by Wake Forest University School of medicine researchers highlights an overlooked issue, “inpatient food insecurity,” or when families don’t have enough to eat while their child is in the hospital because of the hardships that time might create like missed work or additional expenses.

Journal: Pediatric Blood & Cancer

18-Jun-2026

Virtual tissue staining in 3D

Paul Scherrer Institute
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Researchers at the Paul Scherrer Institute PSI have developed an AI platform that stains tissue images from computed tomography as if they had been made from classical tissue sections. This could in the future enable non-destructive and three-dimensional analysis of pathological changes. The study was published in the Journal of the Royal Society Interface.

Journal: Journal of The Royal Society Interface

18-Jun-2026

New technology streamlines the development of aptamers, synthetic alternatives to antibodies

Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry of the Czech Academy of Sciences (IOCB Prague)
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Scientists at IOCB Prague have developed a breakthrough technology that streamlines aptamer development. The new method integrates several biochemical and bioinformatics steps and paves the way for new diagnostic and therapeutic applications. Ongoing applications include wearable sensors that monitor selected biomarkers in real time and provide early warnings of impending health complications. The findings were published in Nature Communications.

Journal: Nature Communications

18-Jun-2026

Largest-ever global review calls for integrated mental health care after brain inflammation

King's College London
Peer-Reviewed Publication

A major new study has found that mental health and behavioural changes such as depression, anxiety, and emotional instability are common in people who survive encephalitis — inflammation of the brain that can be caused by infection or autoimmune disease.

Journal: Brain Communications
Funder: NIHR Maudsley Biomedical Research Centre, National Institute for Health Research

18-Jun-2026

Respiratory symptoms in people with COPD worsen when walking in areas with high levels of black carbon

Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal)
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Physical activity, particularly walking, is a common recommendation for people with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). However, carrying out this activity in polluted areas may increase exposure to airborne contaminants. A study published in the journal Thorax and conducted by the Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal), a centre supported by ”la Caixa” Foundation, links black carbon (soot) to an increase in certain respiratory symptoms in people with COPD.

Journal: Thorax
Funder: Fondo de Investigación Sanitaria, Sociedad Española de Neumología y Cirugía Torácica, Societat Catalana de Pneumologia, Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation

18-Jun-2026

Repurposed drug thalidomide shows promise for hard-to-treat brain and spinal cord arteriovenous malformations

Science China Press
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Researchers developed a KRAS-driven mouse model of sporadic brain arteriovenous malformation and identified thalidomide as a candidate therapy. In mice, thalidomide improved survival, reduced lesion growth, and stabilized abnormal vessels. In a proof-of-concept clinical study, most evaluable patients showed stable or regressed lesions.

Journal: Science Bulletin