Providing insecticide-treated underwear to people in homeless shelters was effective in eliminating body lice infestations, but the effect did not last and resistance to insecticide resistance increased, according to the results of a clinical trial by Samir Benkouiten, M.P.H., of Aix Marseille Université, France, and colleagues.

Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery assembles evidence on laser therapy for scar prevention and treatmentCurrent laser therapy approaches are effective for treating excessive scars resulting from abnormal wound healing, concludes a special topic paper in the December issue of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery®, the official medical journal of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons...

Researchers from North Carolina State University and Duke University have developed nanoscale "patches" that can be used to sensitize targeted cell receptors, making them more responsive to signals that control cell activity. The finding holds promise for promoting healing and facilitating tissue engineering research.

This important scientific breakthrough, developed by the University of Granada, will aid the immediate use of artificially-grown skin for major burn patients, since the skin could be stored in tissue banks and made available when needed.

Researchers have identified a genomic variant strongly associated with sensitivity to the sun, brown hair, blue eyes - and freckles. In the study of Icelanders the researchers uncovered an intricate pathway involving the interspersed DNA sequence, or non-coding region, of a gene that is among a few dozen that are associated with human pigmentation traits.

A gut-clinging worm with a proboscis that swells has inspired a new approach to healing and protecting wounds normally treated with sutures, staples and adhesive dressings.Traditional methods for protecting and sealing wounds, such as staples, sutures and adhesive dressings have limitations.

The layers of skin that form the first line of defence in the body's fight against infection have revealed a unanticipated secret.The single cell type that was thought to be behind the skin's immune defence has been found to have a doppelganger, with researchers from the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute showing the cells, despite appearing identical, are actually two different types.

Skin provides a first line of defense against viruses, bacteria and parasites that might otherwise make people ill. When an injury breaks that barrier, a systematic chain of molecular signaling launches to close the wound and re-establish the skin's layer of protection.

Researchers who found giving mice baths in diluted bleach blocked inflammatory processes that damage skin suggest if the same works in humans, then it could offer a new way to treat skin inflammation from radiotherapy or excessive sun exposure, or even skin damage caused by aging.

How do cells spread to cover and close a wound? A team of researchers led by IST Austria Professor Carl-Philipp Heisenberg, including first author Pedro Campinho, PhD student in the Heisenberg group, publishes new insights into epithelial cell spreading in the current online edition of Nature Cell Biology.