pathology news stories on Newser

Harvard Probes Poisoning at Med School Lab

M. Morris — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 15:47:34 CDT

Harvard Medical School is investigating after six workers in the pathology department were poisoned by coffee prepared near their lab. The researchers and students were treated and released after suffering dizziness, low blood pressure, and other symptoms during the August incident. "As the investigation continues, we are being prudent and...

Eye Trouble May Have Affected Galileo's Observations

Nick McMaster — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 13:24:01 CST

Galileo’s vision problems may have distorted some of his findings, Reuters reports. Scientists want to exhume the scientist’s body to determine, through DNA tests, the exact nature of his eye condition. “If we knew exactly what was wrong with his eyes we could use computer models to recreate what he...

Thomas Weller, Who Won Nobel for Polio Work, Dead at 93

Nick McMaster — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 15:12:02 CDT

Thomas Weller, whose research on polio won him a share of a Nobel Prize in 1954, died this weekend at 93, the Boston Globe reports. Weller, along with colleagues John Enders and Frederick Robbins, discovered that the polio virus preyed on muscles, not nerve tissue as had been previously thought....

Doctor Killed Beethoven, Says Pathologist

Jason Farago — Wed, 29 Aug 2007 07:35:54 CDT

It's not exactly CSI , but the classical era now has its own forensic murder investigation. A new Austrian study has concluded that Ludwig von Beethoven died from overdoses of lead administered by his doctor with the intention of healing him. Beethoven suffered from cirrhosis of the liver, and that organ's...