Japan suicides decline as COVID-19 lockdown causes shift in stress factors
April’s 20% drop compared with a year earlier may be the result of delays to start of school year, less commuting and more time with family
Public health & disease
Seattle to permanently close 20 miles of streets to car traffic
The Stay Healthy Streets initiative started in April to provide more space for residents to get out of the house and exercise while maintaining social distancing. Mayor Durkan now says that the closures are permanent.
Kenyan scientists discover microbe that protects mosquitoes from malaria
The researchers are now investigating whether they can release infected mosquitoes into the wild, or use spores to suppress the disease, in order to reduce the incidence of the disease among humans.
Malaysia close to attaining malaria-free status after reporting no cases since 2018
Malaysia has not recorded any domestic malaria cases since 2018 after recording than 5,000 cases in 2010. If it succeeds in preventing more cases, Malaysia would be eligible to apply for malaria-free status certification from the World Health Organization in 2021.
Canada to ban assault-style weapons
Canada’s government is set to announce a ban on assault-style weapons following a deadly shooting in Nova Scotia this month that killed 22 people.
FDA to authorize remdesivir for COVID-19 treatment after trial shows ‘positive effect’
The government-funded study found that patients who took remdesivir recovered faster than patients who did not, potentially freeing up more hospital beds amid the COVID-19 crisis.
New treatment allows blind mice to recover vision, will now be tested for humans
The new treatment is rapidly approaching human trials and hopes to have an FDA-approved treatment out the other end of the pipeline in 2-3 years.
Asthma rates in Kentucky improve as coal plants shut down, new study finds
After four coal plants in Kentucky either retired or were retrofitted, local asthma-related hospitalizations dropped and individuals used their inhalers less frequently.
Blood plasma taken from COVID-19 survivors could aid recovery, new study shows
In several of the patients the virus cleared up entirely, leading the authors to conclude that plasma “can serve as a promising rescue option” for severe COVID-19 cases.
New magnetic brain therapy relieved depression in 90% of the participants in small trial
“There’s never been a therapy for treatment-resistant depression that’s broken 55% remission rates in open-label testing,” the team says.