Ketamine therapy has a swift short-term effect on reducing symptoms of depression and suicidal thoughts, according to a review of all the available evidence. A systematic review led by the University of Exeter and funded by the Medical Research Council analysed evidence from 83 published research papers. The strongest evidence emerged around the use of […]

Snakes, some lizards and even a few mammals can have a venomous bite. Although these lineages split more than 300 million years ago, their venoms have evolved from the same ancestral salivary protein, reported scientists today in BMC Biology. Researchers from the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University (OIST) in Japan and the Australian […]

A variety of jobs expose people to formaldehyde, a strong-smelling gas used in manufacturing wood and chemical products, plastics and in other applications. A new study suggests that long-term exposure to formaldehyde during work may be associated with cognitive impairment later on. The research is published in the December 22, 2021, online issue of Neurology®, the […]

When winds loft fine desert dust high into the atmosphere, iodine in that dust can trigger chemical reactions that destroy some air pollution, but also let greenhouse gases stick around longer. The finding, published today in the journal Science Advances, may force researchers to re-evaluate how particles from land can impact the chemistry of the atmosphere. […]

We all get tired sometimes, even bundles of carbon nanotubes, no matter how perfect their individual components are. A new study calculates how strains and stresses affect both “perfect” nanotubes and those assembled into fibers and found that while fibers under cyclic loads can fail over time, the tubes themselves may remain perfect. How long the tubes or their fibers sustain their […]

When it comes to studying lungs, scientists have a lot to learn from lizards. New Princeton University research shows how the brown anole lizard solves one of nature’s most complex problems — breathing — with ultimate simplicity. Whereas human lungs develop over months and years into baroque tree-like structures, the anole lung develops in just […]

Researchers have identified a material that could integrate quantum devices into semiconductor technology, making electronic components significantly more powerful. The scientists from the Paul Scherrer Institute PSI and Cornell University publish their findings today in the journal Science Advances. Current electronic infrastructure is based mostly on semiconductors, a class of materials developed in the middle […]

Creutzfeldt-Jakob and other prion diseases  progress rapidly and lead to dementia and death. How fatal aggregates of prions are formed in brain cells has never been fully understood. Now scientists at Scripps Research say the aggregates kill neurons by attacking the narrow nerve fibers through which they send signals to other neurons, known as axons. The […]

They say these new proteins can be used as biological indicators to distinguish between the two conditions, and to identify patients more prone to psychosis or suicide. Schizophrenia and bipolar disorder are debilitating mental disorders that are hard to diagnose and treat. Despite being amongst the most heritable mental health disorders, very few clues to […]

From coronavirus to climate change, asteroids and nanorobots, these are some of the stories that made 2021 a year to remember. Take a look at some of the most-read stories we shared this year. At Horizon we covered more than 150 science news stories over the course of this year. So as the year winds […]