Author Archives: Francisco Fernandez, MD

Alopecia areata is a common disorder that can have a large adverse impact on the quality of life of individuals. It’s considered an autoimmune disorder that causes your hair to come out, often in clumps the size and shape of a quarter. The disorder affects more than 300,000 people in the US each year. The […]

Licorice is a herbaceous perennial legume copiously cultivated in many places worldwide. The Glycyrrhiza genus consists of about 30 species belonging to the family of Leguminosae. Licorice is widely used as a sweetening and flavoring material in the food industry and as a de-bittering agent in the tobacco industry.  Recently, a group of researchers studied […]

In humans, when an egg is fertilized there is no guarantee of reproductive success. Most of the embryos stop developing and perish within days of fertilization, usually because of an abnormal number of chromosomes.  In a recently published study, researchers from Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons have found that the majority of mistakes […]

In recent years our understanding of the role of gut health and microbiome has increased tremendously. We have learned that it plays an important role in the pathogenesis of multiple health conditions.  Studies have revealed that gut microbiota strains can adapt and evolve throughout the lifetime of the host, raising the possibility that changes in […]