Could the key to cheaper medication be… gold?! This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Many medications, like insulin, are expensive to produce due to costly purification steps. Today’s purification techniques are also slow. How can we speed things up? Enter Caroline McCue and team from
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Look out! Mutant armies on the attack! This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Our bodies naturally recognize and fight cancers. One weapon? p53! That’s a protein that triggers cell death, stopping developing cancer cells in their tracks! But when this protein mutates and clusters, its
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What came first, dairy culture or cultured dairy? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Previous studies have shown that animal milk was important in some ancient humans’ diets. But even nowadays, many adults get upset stomachs when indulging in dairy. When did our ancestors start
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“Gangnam Style”, “Despacito”, “Happy”…we LOVE music that goes viral! This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science, saying…but what about a VIRUS that goes MUSICAL? Quick treatment of viruses requires understanding them. But different viruses have different proteins and genetic information, which take time to decode.
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Kale again? Yuck! I hate bitter greens! This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. I know, I know – eating greens is healthy. But my taste buds disagree! What’s the secret to eating those bitter greens happily? Meet Laura Martin and colleagues from the University of
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What do trees, coastlines, and pineapples have in common? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Answer? They’re all FRACTALS, shapes that repeat as you zoom in. Their aesthetically-pleasing geometry inspires artists, writers, and even scientists! Sagar Khare’s team from Rutgers University felt drawn to fractals…
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Exercise gives us that healthy glow…but uh-oh, B.O.! This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Sweat is our body’s cooling-down mechanism. But does it have to be so smelly? Armpits, I’m looking at you! Our sweat is odorless, so what’s all the stink about? Gurdeep Minhas
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Pop, lock, and… ouch! This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Over twenty million people in the U-S suffer from joint pain, or osteoarthritis. Our joints are cushioned by cartilage. As we age, this cushion wears down but doesn’t grow back. Current treatments manage the pain
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You think you’re having a bad hair day? Ach du lieber! This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. The Germans call it Struwwelpeter or “Shockhead Peter.” It affects people with dry, frizzy blonde hair. Those who have it comb and brush, spray and spritz, but nothing
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Gaaah – this place is so cluttered! Do I NEED all this stuff? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science, saying…maybe! Just like that overstuffed closet, your body is crammed with different proteins. Your genes contain blueprints for all of them. But some proteins have multiple,
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