Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is a major cause of life-threatening infections worldwide and a growing public health concern. The rise of antibiotic-resistant bacteria, such as MRSA, is often linked to genetic adaptations that enhance ...

Microbiology Mobile Implementation Officer, Medical, NGO, Humanitarian Job, MSF Belgium, Médecins Sans Frontières Belgium

BMC Biology

Abstract Recent clinical trials on slowing dementia progression have led to renewed focus on finding safer, more effective treatments. One approach to identify plausible candidates is to assess whet...

Research has previously documented that across a range of Olympic combat sports, wearing red is associated with a higher probability of winning contests, especially when bouts are close. Yet, the hypothesis for a red advantage has not been systematically examined across multiple tournaments. Here, we report 6,589 contest outcomes for boxing, taekwondo, and wrestling from seven Summer Olympic Games (1996–2020) and nine World Boxing Championships (2005–2021). Using meta-analytic techniques, we found 50.5% wins by red for the overall data, which was not a statistically significant bias. Analyses of close contests resulted in 51.5% red wins, also not significantly different from the null expectation of equal proportions. Before 2005, however, when the red advantage was first reported and prior to changes in particular tournament rules, there was some support for a red advantage in close contests, with 56.8% of bouts won by red. It is possible that knowledge of the effect, as well as rule changes in each of the sports, have reduced the chances of a small effect being manifested, leading to the disappearance of the red advantage in competition results.

Researchers are trying to understand why resistant pathogens are so prevalent in the war-torn nations of the Middle East.