U.S. opioid overdose deaths have quadrupled in the last two decades, and the highest rates are now seen in eight Eastern states, a new study shows. Those states are Connecticut, Illinois, Indiana, Massachusetts, Maryland, Maine, New Hampshire and Ohio. The researchers also found that the death rate from opioids has increased the fastest in the District of Columbia, more than tripling every year since 2013, and that opioid death rates in Florida and Pennsylvania were doubling every two … [Read more...]

Scientists who assembled the genome of a salamander renowned for its ability to regenerate body parts say the achievement could be an important step toward finding ways to regrow human body parts. The axolotl is a salamander whose only native habitat is a lake near Mexico City. "It's hard to find a body part they can't regenerate: the limbs, the tail, the spinal cord, the eye, and in some species, the lens, even half of their brain has been shown to regenerate," said study co-lead author … [Read more...]

Teens with behavioral problems are more likely than others to use marijuana -- but the drug itself doesn't increase conduct problems, a new study indicates. The findings suggest that a "cascading chain of events" predict marijuana use problems as teens become young adults, according to the University of Pennsylvania researchers. "Cannabis use in and of itself does not appear to lead to conduct problems or increasing attraction to peers who use cannabis," said study co-author Dan Romer, a … [Read more...]