A new Columbia study has found clues of Alzheimer’s beginnings, revealing how tau filaments—protein clumps that are closely linked to memory decline in Alzheimer’s disease—get their start. The finding raises the prospect of future Alzheimer’s drugs that could stop the production of the filaments at its source. The findings are published in the journal Nature Neuroscience.

Most Americans know that how well a mother takes care of herself before and during pregnancy affects the health of a baby, but many people remain unclear about some specific maternal health recommendations, including when to start avoiding alcohol, according to a new nationally representative survey from the Annenberg Public Policy Center (APPC) of the University of Pennsylvania.

Scientists at Université de Montréal have figured out how metformin—a common drug that’s used to treat type-2 diabetes and that may cut the risk of developing cancer and even help humans and other mammals live longer—actually works.

The UN health chief was on Friday in the Democratic Republic of Congo, where authorities are struggling to contain the spread of a deadly Ebola outbreak but the recovery of a patient, the first since the crisis began, was confirmed.

It’s quick to spot a tick, but harder to know if that tick carries Lyme disease. Emergency room visits for tick bites provide important data for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, but doctors often cannot immediately confirm whether a patient has Lyme disease. Blood tests depend on antibodies that typically take about two weeks to develop after infection.