Nicoletta Lanese

Nicoletta Lanese

Channel Editor, Health

Nicoletta Lanese is the health channel editor at Live Science and was previously a news editor and staff writer at the site. She holds a graduate certificate in science communication from UC Santa Cruz and degrees in neuroscience and dance from the University of Florida. Her work has appeared in The Scientist, Science News, the Mercury News, Mongabay and Stanford Medicine Magazine, among other outlets. Based in NYC, she also remains heavily involved in dance and performs in local choreographers' work.

Articles by: Nicoletta Lanese

illustration depicts amyloid-beta peptides, the building blocks of amyloid-beta plaques, building up in the brain among individual neurons

New Alzheimer's drug slightly slows cognitive decline. Experts say it's not a silver bullet.

By Nicoletta Lanese published

Experts weigh in on whether the newly approved Alzheimer's treatment lecanemab is worth taking.

older man wearing a blue surgical mask looks down at his arm, which bears a bandage as if he's just gotten an injection

Moderna says its RSV vaccine is 84% effective in older adults

By Nicoletta Lanese published

Moderna announced positive results from its late-stage RSV vaccine trial in older adults.

close up of white, orange and pink gummies bears scattered on a table next to clumps of dried cannabis

Cannabis poisonings in young kids skyrocketed following legalization of edibles

By Nicoletta Lanese published

The rate of children being hospitalized for cannabis poisoning increased in Canadian provinces that legalized edibles.

illustration of a brain in front of a orange, shiny circuit board design

A mysterious brain network may underlie many psychiatric disorders

By Nicoletta Lanese published

Researchers discovered that six psychiatric disorders seemed linked to the same underlying brain wiring.

photo shows a close up of a stent-like device containing electrodes that record electrical activity

New 'thought-controlled' device reads brain activity through the jugular

By Nicoletta Lanese published

A new brain-computer-interface device doesn't require open-brain surgery to implant.

illustration shows a coronavirus particle with red spike proteins jutting out of a while viral capsule

The 'Kraken' COVID subvariant: What to know about quickly rising omicron descendant

By Nicoletta Lanese published

Here's what you need to know about the omicron subvariant XBB.1.5, which is causing an increasing number of COVID-19 cases in the U.S.

conceptual illustration showing the human brain depicted in blue with various neural networks highlighted using colorful dots

Humans' big-brain genes may have come from 'junk DNA'

By Nicoletta Lanese published

"De novo" genes may have paved the way for humans' big brains.

diagram showing a new anatomical structure in the brain called the SLYM which lies between the skull and surface of the brain

Newfound 'protective shield' in the brain is like a watchtower for immune cells

By Nicoletta Lanese published

Scientists discovered a "protective shield" in the brain.

A patient in a hospital.

10 bizarre medical case reports from 2022

By Nicoletta Lanese published

From "crawling" rashes to exploding bladders, here's 10 unusual medical cases that recently caught our eyes.

epstein-barr virus

12 microscopic discoveries that went 'viral' in 2022

By Nicoletta Lanese published

Twelve recent studies showcase how viruses affect humans and other organisms all across the globe.

Northern brown snake

12 wild and wondrous animal facts we learned in 2022

By Nicoletta Lanese published

Here's 12 amazing (and somewhat disgusting) animal facts.

a micrograph of an ancient microbe with a spherical main cell body and bumpy tentacles that extend outwards in all directions

Massive tentacled microbe may be direct ancestor of all complex life

By Nicoletta Lanese published

Scientists successfully grew Asgard archaea in the lab and took detailed images.

illustration of a dna double helix against a blue background

More than 150 'made-from-scratch' genes are in the human genome. 2 are totally unique to us.

By Nicoletta Lanese published

Scientists pinpointed several "made-from-scratch" genes that humans developed after splitting off from chimps.

photo of an older white man with glasses holding a blonde baby wearing a onesie in the lobby of a hospital

In a 1st, baby's heart defect successfully treated with injected stem cells

By Nicoletta Lanese published

Doctors treated a baby's heart defect with donated stem cells.

An example of a organ on a chip device; the small, clear device has two colored channels crisscrossing its center. Someone is holding the device between their pointer finger and thumb

Scientists invent 1st 'vagina-on-a-chip'

By Nicoletta Lanese published

The first vagina-on-a-chip replicates the cellular environment of the vagina.

short video clip shows a wasp escaping from a frog's mouth after the frog attempting to eat it

This wasp uses its prickly penis to escape certain death

By Nicoletta Lanese published

Male mason wasps have no venom, but they can still stab predators with their genitals.

illustration of group A Streptococcus bacteria, depicted in green on a red background that represents body tissue

Dangerous strep infection surging in the UK may be spreading in US

By Nicoletta Lanese published

Federal health officials are investigating a potential uptick in dangerous strep infections in U.S. children.

illustration of measles viral particles, depicted in purple and green against a black background

More than 70 children sickened in Ohio measles outbreak

By Nicoletta Lanese published

An ongoing measles outbreak in Ohio accounts for most cases of the disease reported in the U.S. this year.

photo shows the gloved hands of a nurse wrapping a child's foot in gauze and bandages; the child's exposed ankle has patches of discoloration and skin wounds

'Butterfly disease' makes the skin incredibly fragile, but a new gene therapy helps it heal

By Nicoletta Lanese published

A gene-therapy gel designed to treat the rare genetic condition "butterfly disease" showed success in a late-stage trial.

photo of a young smiling girl wearing black-framed glasses and holding a blue teddy bear while sitting up in a hospital bed

A teen's cancer is in remission after she received new cells edited with CRISPR

By Nicoletta Lanese published

A young girl entered remission after receiving an experimental cancer treatment.

white woman with long red hair sleeping under a grey weighted blanket on a bed

Weighted-blanket use may boost sleep hormone melatonin, small study hints

By Nicoletta Lanese published

A small study links weighted-blanket use at bedtime to increased melatonin production.

celine dion, a white woman with blonde, bobbed hair belts into a microphone while wearing a sparkly, sleeveless red dress

Céline Dion's muscle spasms caused by rare disorder: What is stiff-person syndrome?

By Nicoletta Lanese published

Singer Céline Dion was recently diagnosed with a rare disorder that causes severe muscle spasms.

illustration of a triceratops in the midst of foliage that contains two small mammals, and nearby, there's a small turtle on a log

Mammals were already poised to take over the world before the dino-killing asteroid struck

By Nicoletta Lanese published

Ancient mammals were better adapted than nonavian dinosaurs to survive the Chicxulub asteroid impact.

woman wearing glasses and a black kn95 mask prepares a syringe to deliver a flu shot

This year's flu shots are a 'very good match' to circulating strains, health officials say

By Nicoletta Lanese published

This year's flu shots match the circulating strains well, early data show.

A woman wearing a short sleeve green dress sits on the floor holding a small trash can to her face, as if she's going to vomit

Woman who spontaneously vomited up to 30 times a day likely had rogue antibodies

By Nicoletta Lanese published

A woman's unusual vomiting episodes may be linked to an autoimmune disorder.

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