Study identifies innovative responses to pandemic school meal program disruption

A new study estimates that more than 1.15 billion breakfasts and lunches for low-income children were not served in school as a result of school closures between March 9 and May 1. States and school districts have developed innovative solutions to meet the nutritional needs of low-income children and respond to the rapidly growing food insecurity crisis, yet the number of replacement meals is likely far short of what they provided prior to the pandemic.

Most homemade masks are doing a great job, even when we sneeze, study finds

A new study examined the effectiveness of common household fabrics in blocking droplets. Researchers tested the breathability and droplet-blocking ability of 11 common household fabrics, using a medical mask as a benchmark. The fabrics selected ranged from new and used garments, quilted cloths, bedsheets and dishcloth material.

New way to halt leukemia relapse shown promising in mice

Drugs tackling chronic myelogenous leukemia have completely transformed prognoses of patients over the last couple of decades, with most cases going into remission. But drug resistance can occur, leading to relapses. Targeting the lipids involved in regulating part of a leukemia stem cell’s life span offers a potential second route to defeat the disease — and solid tumorous cancers as well.

Nose’s response to odors more than just a simple sum of parts

Based on highly sensitive recordings of neuron activity in the noses of mice, researchers have found that olfactory sensory neurons can exhibit suppression or enhancement of response when odors are mixed, overturning a long-standing view that the response is a simple sum with more complex processing only happening at later stages.

After developing CRISPR test, researchers validate clinical feasibility for COVID-19 testing

In March, researchers began to develop a new, low-cost, CRISPR-based diagnostic platform to detect infectious diseases, including HIV virus, the novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2). Today, the method is one step closer to being a cutting-edge diagnostics technology for rapid detection of infectious diseases.