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Cocaine

Cocaine is a crystalline tropane alkaloid that is obtained from the leaves of the coca plant. It is a stimulant of the central nervous system and an appetite suppressant, creating what has been described as a euphoric sense of happiness and increased energy. Though most often used recreationally for this effect, cocaine is also a topical anesthetic that was used in eye and throat surgery in the 19th and early 20th centuries.

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Health & Medicine News

May 31, 2026

Scientists at Scripps Research have uncovered a molecular “switch” that appears to fuel the damaging brain inflammation seen in Alzheimer’s disease. They found that a protein called STING becomes chemically altered in a way that keeps the ...
Melanoma may not become steadily more dangerous with age as scientists once assumed. In a surprising discovery, researchers found that cancer spread was lowest in young mice, surged in middle-aged mice, and then dropped again in very old mice. The ...
Losing weight may involve rewiring the gut and the brain at the same time. In a study of obese adults, an intermittent fasting-style diet led to significant weight loss, healthier metabolic markers, and notable shifts in gut bacteria. Brain scans ...
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A new study suggests melatonin supplements may help night shift workers boost their body's DNA repair processes, potentially offsetting some of the damage linked to working overnight. The findings ...
A specially formulated tomato-soy juice packed with natural plant compounds may help calm inflammation linked to obesity, according to a new clinical study. Healthy adults with obesity who drank the juice daily for four weeks saw significant ...
Scientists at Stanford may have uncovered a hidden reason our brains decline with age. Studying the ultra-short-lived turquoise killifish, researchers discovered that the cellular machinery responsible for building proteins begins to jam and ...
Using cannabis edibles and alcohol together may make drivers far more impaired than either substance alone, according to new research from Johns Hopkins. Even more concerning, common field sobriety tests often failed to detect the cannabis-related ...
A sweeping global study found that chronic kidney disease now affects nearly 800 million people and has become one of the world's leading causes of death. Often silent in its early stages, the condition is also a major contributor to heart disease ...
Feeling constantly drained might not just be about poor sleep or working too hard. Researchers in Japan found that low levels of key vitamins — especially vitamin B12 and folate — may quietly contribute to fatigue and lack of motivation, even in ...
Cambridge researchers created miniature brain-and-spinal-cord systems in the lab that can send signals and even trigger tiny muscle contractions. They discovered that human neurons gradually lose their ability to regrow after damage during ...
CBD may be doing far more than just easing pain or anxiety — new research suggests it could help fight Alzheimer’s disease by calming the brain’s runaway immune response. In experiments using Alzheimer’s mice, scientists found that inhaled ...

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