Rob Stein

Why do some people get sick from genetic mutations and others don't? Scientists say clues may lie in a rare group of people who carry profound genetic defects but somehow don't fall ill.

A new study from the University of Texas has some good news for infants and their parents: ear infections in babies are on the decline.

A biotech company says its genetically engineered mosquitoes could help Brazil and other countries fight the Aedes aegypti mosquitoes, which spread Zika and other viruses.

The Food and Drug Administration is demanding that the instructions for the most commonly prescribed opioids include so-called black box warnings about dangers of abuse, misuse, overdose and death.

The "new microcephaly." That's what doctors in Brazil are calling the birth defect believed to be caused by the Zika virus because it seems much worse than cases that have occurred for other reasons.

A study of pregnant women in Rio de Janeiro lends credence to a suspected link between Zika and microcephaly and suggests the virus could cause other complications, including stillbirth.

A visit to a Brazilian virology laboratory at the epicenter of the Zika outbreak gives a reporter a close encounter with the mysterious virus that has triggered a global health emergency.

A team of health experts is tracking down mothers who had babies with microcephaly to try to prove or debunk the link to Zika virus.

Disease detectives from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention begin their crucial effort on the ground in Brazil to firmly establish whether the Zika virus is really causing terrible birth defects.

U.S. disease detectives are launching a research project that health authorities hope will produce the most definitive evidence yet about whether the virus is really causing birth defects.

Millions of people take proton pump inhibitors. But the drugs can increase patients' risk of infections, bone fractures and kidney problems. And trying to stop the drugs can make symptoms much worse.

U.S. health experts cautioned Friday that the apparent discovery of the Zika virus in saliva and urine from people in Brazil does not necessarily mean the virus can be spread by more casual contact with infected people, such as through kissing.

"I think we need to be careful that don't ...

An independent federal panel says the experimental procedure needs to be proven safe, and even then should only be tried with male embryos because of concerns about passing down genetic errors.

British regulators are giving scientists the first government sanction to edit DNA in human embryos. Scientists want to do this to learn more about human development, but critics fear it will lead to designer babies.

A small study suggests that slathering newborns with their mothers' microbes after cesarean sections could help create healthy microbiomes. Reducing childhood illness later on is the goal.

One strain of dog flu causing outbreaks in the U.S. appears to be especially contagious, making it likely more dogs than usual will get sick, veterinarians say. Still, 90 percent of cases are mild.

A human study of Zika virus vaccine could begin as early as this year, U.S. health officials told reporters Thursday.

But the officials cautioned that it could be years before the vaccine is available for wide use.

The news came as the Zika virus continues to spread through the Americas. ...

The spread of Zika is probably limited by window screens and other mosquito-control measures in common use in the U.S. Also, the primary mosquito that carries Zika has a somewhat limited range.

Medications for heartburn called proton pump inhibitors are linked to a higher risk for chronic kidney disease, according to a study. It's the latest in a growing list of worries with these drugs.

At least three genes that predispose some of us to hay fever and other allergies came from Neanderthal DNA, scientists say. The genes very likely boosted the immunity of our early ancestors.