April 15, 2025—Scientists respond to Harvard's refusal to comply with federal demands. Plus, is a miracle molecule sitting right under our noses?
—Andrea Gawrylewski, Chief Newsletter Editor |
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Annealed neodymium iron boron magnets sit in a barrel prior to being crushed into powder in a factory in Tianjin, China. Doug Kanter/Bloomberg via Getty Images |
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Harvard University is pushing back against the Trump administration’s attempts to impose ideological constraints on its operations as a condition for federal funding. On Monday, Harvard sent a letter to White House lawyers refusing to comply with a list of demands related to the university’s handling of antisemitism and other issues, and which called for unprecedented changes to faculty hiring and student admissions at the school. In response, the Trump administration froze more than $2 billion in federal funding to Harvard and threatened to take away its tax-exempt status.
Why this matters: Harvard’s president wrote in a statement yesterday that the demands infringed on the institution's academic freedoms, and that the school would not allow itself to be taken over by the federal government. The threatened cuts could seriously impact the university’s ability to conduct vital research in biomedical science, among other areas, and hospitals affiliated with Harvard could be especially hard hit (they are not backed by the school's $53 billion endowment and operate as nonprofits) , the university’s student newspaper reported.
What scientists are saying: “I’ve been waiting for a major university to take a stand like this. I am thrilled that mine did,” Jeremy Faust, an assistant professor at Harvard Medical School and emergency physician at Brigham and Women's Hospital, wrote in his newsletter Inside Medicine. “First time you’ll hear this Yalie say: let’s go Harvard. Seriously: Yale stand up and lead,” Gregg Gonsalves, an associate professor of epidemiology at Yale School of Public Health, posted on Bluesky. —Tanya Lewis, senior health editor
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Doctors have known about its disinfectant powers for 200 years. It was used to treat wounds on the battlefields of World War I. Hypochlorous acid, or HOCl (its chemical formula), is a bit of a miracle molecule. The synthetic form of the substance destroys a broad spectrum of harmful microbes—including highly resistant spores and viruses such as norovirus. It kills pathogens by penetrating their cell walls and destroying DNA. HOCl is 100 times more effective than bleach at much lower concentrations, and it works much faster. And best of all? It’s safe for human skin and eyes. While it isn't yet a household name, a growing market of HOCl sprays have begun popping up in skincare lines (and on social media algorithms), with claims that they soothe eczema, treat acne and promote wound healing.
What's the catch: Hypochlorous acid is highly unstable. It only retains its chemical makeup in solutions with pHs between 4 and 6, and within minutes of exposure to light or air it quickly deteriorates back into salt water. Thanks to new methods, some brands say their HOCl products have longer shelf-lives. While its efficacy as a disinfecting agent is well established (it’s currently used in water treatment facilities, hospitals, etc.) new research is underway on HOCl for preventing the transmission of viruses and bacteria in humans. The cosmetic industry—which is relatively unregulated beyond requirements for internal safety studies—is jumping on the HOCl bandwagon, and many sprays are now available from beauty brands.
What the experts say: Some hypochlorous acid products sold by newly-formed companies have been cleared by the FDA, but many are not regulated. Nevertheless, “Since hypochlorous acid helps to repair the skin, it can be used to address various skin concerns, helping to calm redness and inflammation as well as skin sensitivity,” Marisa Garshick, a board certified dermatologist in New York City recently told the Daily Beast.
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