Research in mice and humans points to oxidative stress and inflammation as likely drivers of noise-induced health effects such as hypertension and heart disease.
Corticosterone interferes with signaling in the skin that normally activates hair follicle stem cells, possibly explaining the link between stress and hair loss.
In mice, epigenetic marks made on histones during infancy influence depression-like behavior during adulthood. A drug that reverses the genomic tags appears to undo the damage.
Affectionate touches tap into the nervous system’s rest and digest mode, reducing the release of stress hormones, bolstering the immune system, and stimulating brainwaves linked with relaxation.
The biochemical mechanisms in the brain underlying suicidal behavior are beginning to come to light, and researchers hope they could one day lead to better treatment and prevention strategies.
In a virtual reality experiment, participants recovered faster from a small electric shock when they could smell natural scents than when they could smell urban odors.
By bringing genetics into clinical medicine, the University of British Columbia medical geneticist helped to identify the gene mutations responsible for many rare diseases.
