Leprosy and leprostigma: A review from the past through COVID-19
Posted inHealth World Issues

Leprosy and leprostigma: A review from the past through COVID-19

Leprosy patients and leprostigma: Present-day situation and impact of COVID-19 Compared to the past, the prevalence of leprosy has decreased prominently. Important research funding sources have stopped supporting leprosy research, perceiving it as eliminated (56). Because the disease now mainly affects only small populations in poor and developing countries, leprosy is categorized as a Neglected Tropical Disease, meaning it gains low interest in various medical industries (57). However, <1…
Posted inHealth, World Issues
Leprosy and leprostigma: A review from the past through COVID-19
Posted inHealth World Issues

Leprosy and leprostigma: A review from the past through COVID-19

The consequences of leprostigma A leprosy hospital in India Leprostigma in society causes many patients with active leprosy to delay or avoid treatment (35). In Kaur and Ramesh’s research (48), nearly 77.4% of female leprosy patients in Delhi were afraid of receiving confronting questions about leprosy. Furthermore, Pelizzari et al. (49) found that some medical professionals even advised their patients to avoid discussing leprosy in public. These actions of avoiding…
Posted inHealth, World Issues
Leprosy and leprostigma: A review from the past through COVID-19
Posted inHealth World Issues

Leprosy and leprostigma: A review from the past through COVID-19

Leprostigma One of the biggest obstacles in reaching the complete elimination of leprosy is universal leprostigma. The main sources of leprostigma are religious and linguistic stereotypes, misconceptions, and fear of people with deformities. Religious and linguistic stereotypes come from many sources, one being the persistence of discriminatory language, as classified by the UN special rapporteur (30). Across diverse cultures, the word ‘leprosy’ was metaphorically associated with sins, curses or…
Posted inHealth, World Issues
Leprosy and leprostigma: A review from the past through COVID-19 [Part I]
Posted inHealth World Issues

Leprosy and leprostigma: A review from the past through COVID-19 [Part I]

Leprosy is an infectious disease caused by the bacillus Mycobacterium leprae (1). Mycobacterium leprae  Leprosy patients can experience deformities that affect sight, touch, and manual dexterity. Macules, papules, and nodules are prevalent among other skin lesions (2). Along with these symptoms, leprosy patients experience immense stigma and discrimination, also called leprostigma. Leprosy can be cured using a combination of three antibiotics - rifampicin, clofazimine, and dapsone - widely known as multidrug…
Posted inHealth, World Issues
How does Nicotine Addiction Work on Neurons?
Posted inBiology Chemistry Health Science

How does Nicotine Addiction Work on Neurons?

Nicotine, which is an agonist—a substance that can mimic another, mimics acetylcholine by binding to neuronal nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs), which are ligand-gated ion channels constructed from various subunits (Benowitz, 2010). As nicotine binds to the receptor, it generally causes depolarization of the neuron, allowing calcium and sodium to rush through the channels, and will act directly on the presynaptic terminal to release certain neurotransmitters — the catecholamines (Benowitz,…
Posted inBiology, Chemistry, Health, Science
Towards the Future: DNA-Based Data Storage
Posted inBiology Computer Science Science

Towards the Future: DNA-Based Data Storage

DNA-Based Data Storage is becoming increasingly popular as digital data in the world increases. Learn about how one gram of DNA can account for billions of data, all the way from documents to videos! Team Korea_HS is a team of Clara Shin, founder of Connect Study and Northfield Mount Hermon School '23, Sean Lim, Stony Brook School '23, and many other high school students.
Posted inBiology, Computer Science, Science
Ocelots
Posted inAnimals

Ocelots

Source: https://s3-eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/folly-farm.co.uk/uploads/2018/04/ocelot-5.jpg Ocelots are a type of medium-sized spotted cat that mostly lives in South American rainforests. However, in recent years, rainforests have been cut down by humans, which is bringing damage to the ocelot population. In the United States, ocelots currently exhibit low levels of genetic diversity. There were human-induced changes in the landscape of the ocelots’ habitats during the 20th century, which led to habitat fragmentation –…
Posted inAnimals