Patient Who Received World’s First Pig Heart Transplant Has Passed Away

The first person to receive a heart transplant from a genetically modified pig has died two months after the medical milestone, the hospital that carried out the surgery said Wednesday.   The procedure raised hopes that advances in cross-species organ donation could one day solve the chronic shortage of human organs available for donation, and … Read more

Scientists Uncover Largest Known Crater on Earth From The Last 100,000 Years

A crescent-shaped crater in Northeast China holds the record as the largest impact crater on Earth that formed in the last 100,000 years. Prior to 2020, the only other impact crater ever discovered in China was found in Xiuyan county of the coastal province of Liaoning, according to a statement from the NASA Earth Observatory.   … Read more

Arcane Ritual Complex From 9,000 Years Ago Unearthed in Unprecedented Discovery

Archaeologists deep in the Jordanian desert have discovered a 9,000-year-old ritualistic complex near what is thought to be the earliest known large human-built structure worldwide.   The Stone Age shrine site, excavated last year, was used by gazelle hunters and features carved stone figures, an altar and a miniature model of a large-scale hunting trap. … Read more

World-First Experiment That Infected People With Coronavirus Shares Early Results

Scientists deliberately infected young, healthy volunteers with SARS-CoV-2, the coronavirus that causes COVID-19 – and now, they’ve shared their first results from that experiment.      The new study, published Tuesday (Feb. 1) in Springer Nature’s preprint database, In Review, has not yet been peer-reviewed, but it could provide insight into how mild COVID-19 unfolds, from the moment … Read more

FDA Just Approved The World’s First Injectable Medication to Prevent HIV

The world’s first injectable medication to reduce the risk of acquiring HIV has been approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the agency announced Monday (December 20).   The injectable drug – called Apretude or its generic name, “cabotegravir extended-release injectable suspension” – provides an alternative to daily pills for HIV prevention, such as Truvada and Descovy. These pills are … Read more