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A novel method to sample earwax could be a cheap and effective way to measure the hormone cortisol, enabling new ways of monitoring depression and stress-linked conditions.

A blood test already available to GPs in the UK is more predictive of ovarian cancer than previously thought and could also help pick up other forms of cancer, according to new research published in PLOS Medicine.

A study published in The Journal of Nutrition showed that mothers' vitamin D levels during pregnancy were associated with their children's IQ, suggesting that higher vitamin D levels in pregnancy may lead to greater childhood IQ scores. The study also identified significantly lower levels of vitamin D levels among Black pregnant women.

Two scientists at the Max Planck Institute of Neurobiology developed a method in the fruit fly that marks receptor proteins in selected cells. In this way, they gained new insights into the neuronal mechanisms of motion vision. In addition, the research community receives an innovative tool to label proteins of all kinds.

In a recent study, a research group led by Christian Gruber at MedUni Vienna's Institute of Pharmacology isolated a peptide (small protein molecule) from beetroot. The peptide is able to inhibit a particular enzyme that is responsible for the breakdown of messenger molecules in the body.

So far, 50 Covid-19 patients between 30 and 40 have delivered a sperm sample. Students are next in line. The plan is that participants will return after 12 months for more testing. The project aims to see how the infection affects the development of the immune system and, follow-up studies will reveal how Covid-19 will affect the immune system of their future children.

The study shows that SARS-CoV-2 spike proteins can cause this barrier to become "leaky", potentially disrupting the delicate neural networks within the brain.

Mayo Clinic is collaboarting with Vocalis Health to research and develop new voice-based tools for screening, detecting and monitoring patient health.

Streptavidin and biotin, form a very strong and specific interaction that is invaluable for many biotechnological applications used in science and medicine.

The research group of chemistry professor Claudia Höbartner is now reporting a scientific breakthrough: Her team at Julius-Maximilians-Universität Würzburg (JMU) in Bavaria, Germany, has developed a ribozyme that can attach a very specific small chemical change at a very specific location in a target RNA.