NIH SciBites: Turning Down the Dial on Hearing Loss
The video features Jack, a post‑baccalaureate fellow at the NIH, describing his lab’s effort to curb noise‑induced hearing loss, a condition that stems from chronic exposure to everyday sounds and is currently irreversible. He explains that while brief, extremely loud bursts can damage the ear, most loss results from prolonged low‑level noise. Because cannabidiol (CBD) is already FDA‑approved for seizures and shown to protect neurons, his team is testing whether it can similarly shield cochlear hair cells from death. In a controlled mouse study, animals receive either CBD or placebo before being subjected to a calibrated loud‑noise protocol; auditory brainstem responses are recorded before and after exposure. “If CBD works, it could protect our ears the way earplugs do, but even better, because it wouldn't dampen any sound,” he notes. Should the preclinical results translate to humans, CBD could become a non‑invasive prophylactic for workers in construction, aviation, theater and other high‑noise fields, offering a drug‑based alternative to traditional hearing protection and potentially reducing the public health burden of age‑related hearing impairment.
NIH-Led Research Discovers New Way Lung Cancer Can Emerge
The NIH‑led study unveiled a previously unknown pathway by which certain lung cancers develop, driven by retrotransposon elements—mobile DNA sequences that can copy and paste themselves throughout the genome. Using whole‑genome sequencing, researchers mapped mutational signatures that pointed to this...
NIH Scientific Freedom Lecture – Viral: The Search for the Origin of COVID-19
The NIH inaugurated its Scientific Freedom Lecture series with a focus on the contentious origins of COVID‑19. Host Jay Bazacharia framed the event as a platform for rigorous, non‑judgmental inquiry, inviting British science writer Matt Ridley—co‑author of the bestseller "Viral:...
NIH SciBites: Using Itch to Fight Ticks
The NIH’s SciBites team, led by post‑bac researcher Ronja, unveiled a discovery that harnessing the body’s itch response could accelerate tick removal and curb transmission of tick‑borne illnesses such as Lyme disease. Ticks often go unnoticed for the 24‑ to 48‑hour...
NIH SciBites: Pursuing Lab-Grown Organs Through Stem Cell Studies
The video spotlights NIH post‑baccalaureate fellow Jack’s work on engineering lab‑grown organs, focusing on how stem cells must be coaxed through differentiation to become functional heart, lung or other tissues. Jack explains that differentiation hinges on the three‑dimensional arrangement of DNA....
