US school district removes classic novel ‘The Fixer,’ about a 1911 blood libel

JTA — Late last year, a mom in South Carolina requested that her local school district remove nearly 100 books from its shelves — including a classic novel about antisemitism. The challenge to “The Fixer,” an award-winning 1966 work by Bernard Malamud, came amid an ongoing flurry of attempts by conservative activists to take books […]

US Maternal Hepatitis C Infections Increased 16-Fold Since 1998

Berkeley N. Limketkai, MD, PhD Source: Twitter The prevalence of hepatitis C virus (HCV)-positive pregnancies among US women increased more than 16-fold from 1998 – 2018, according to new cross-sectional data. New research from a team of US investigators showed more than 5 in 1000 pregnancies resulted in a positive case of HCV in 2018—a […]

Using bacteriophages to treat bladder infections

About one in two women are affected by cystitis during her lifetime, and many suffer from recurrent urinary tract infections. Bladder infections are not only painful and potentially dangerous, but they also pose a significant dilemma for physicians. With antibiotic resistance becoming widespread in urinary tract infections and continually increasing, physicians are often forced to […]

The Eucharistic Revival is missing something: the Blood of Christ

We are in the midst of a eucharistic revival in the American Catholic Church. No doubt, we need a revitalization. Mass attendance is declining along with belief in the true presence of Christ. Decades of scandal, declining vocations and the negative impacts of church closures because of Covid-19 have left the church in the United […]

Ceramides as risk markers for future cardiovascular events and all-cause mortality in long-standing type 1 diabetes

Ceramides are lipid molecules involved in inflammation-related signaling. Recent studies have shown that higher amounts of specific circulating ceramides and their ratios are associated with future development of cardiovascular (CV) disease (CVD). We examined the associations between serum ceramide levels with CVD, kidney failure, and all-cause mortality in individuals with longstanding type 1 diabetes (T1D). […]

Patients need better information on usefulness of blood tests, finds new UK audit

Credit: CC0 Public Domain An audit of blood tests in U.K. GP practices has found that 6.2% of test results led to a new diagnosis or confirmation of a diagnosis, and abnormal or borderline results were common with only around a quarter (26.6%) of patients having results in the normal range. Authors of the University […]

Listeria monocytogenes Transmission from Donated Blood to Platelet Transfusion Recipient, Italy

Disclaimer: Early release articles are not considered as final versions. Any changes will be reflected in the online version in the month the article is officially released. Maria Gori, Luca Bolzoni, Erika Scaltriti, Lilia Andriani, Vito Marano, Francesca Morabito, Clara Fappani, Danilo Cereda, Enza Giompapa, Rosa Chianese, Paola Lanzini, Livia Antonietta Martinelli, Silvia Bianchi, Antonella […]