EurekAlert! News by Subject: Medicine & Health

A new membrane technology stemming from the research led by teams from India could change how industries separate chemicals, reducing energy use and improving water recycling. With a nature-inspired design, the ‘POMbranes’ developed by the scientists are built from molecular units with permanent one-nanometre openings. When assembled into thin films, these openings act as fixed gateways, allowing only smaller molecules to pass, enabling highly selective filtration without the need for traditional heat-driven methods, such as evaporation. The membrane’s flexibility, stability, and lower energy demand make it attractive for use in industries such as textiles and pharmaceuticals.

Journal: Journal of the American Chemical Society

21-Jan-2026

Takeaways are used to reward and console – study

Anglia Ruskin University
Peer-Reviewed Publication

A unique study exploring popular ways to “self‑gift” has found that ordering a takeaway, or takeout, meal is a preferred treat regardless of whether people have had a good or a bad day at work.

Published in the journal Frontiers in Psychology and led by Dr Suzanna Forwood and Dr Annelie Harvey of Anglia Ruskin University (ARU) in the United Kingdom, the research is the first to compare how likely people are to choose a range of food and non-food options for both self-reward and self-consolation.

Journal: Frontiers in Psychology

21-Jan-2026

C-Path’s Translational Therapeutics Accelerator announces 2026 request for proposals from academic investigators

Critical Path Institute (C-Path)
Grant and Award Announcement

Critical Path Institute’s® Translational Therapeutics Accelerator today officially launched its 2026 global Request for Proposals for Bridging Research and Innovation in Drug Development Grants. These awards aim to empower academic researchers by providing the critical funding and strategic guidance needed to overcome the “valley of death” in drug development — helping transition innovative therapeutics from the lab to patients.

21-Jan-2026

Study finds religion/spirituality may protect against depression among young adult online gamers

American Counseling Association
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Research suggests that religion and spirituality may act as a protective factor against internet addiction and depression by providing meaning, social support, and reduced feelings of isolation.

Journal: Journal of Addictions & Offender Counseling

21-Jan-2026

Old diseases return as settlement pushes into the Amazon rainforest

University of California - Santa Barbara
Peer-Reviewed Publication

(Santa Barbara, Calif.) — Human activity continues to expand ever further into wild areas, throwing ecology out of balance. But what begins as an environmental issue often evolves into a human problem.

Journal: Biology Letters

21-Jan-2026

Rare sciatic nerve tumor in child successfully treated with microsurgery

Impact Journals LLC
Peer-Reviewed Publication

BUFFALO, NY — January 21, 2026 — A new case report was published in Volume 12 of Oncoscience on December 23, 2025, titled “Solitary diffuse-type giant neurofibroma arising from the sciatic nerve in a 13-year-old: A rare occurrence.”

Journal: Oncoscience