The brightest take on this week’s science

People with high cholesterol levels face an increased risk of heart attack or stroke.

Statins can help lower ‘bad’ cholesterol in the body, and these drugs are associated with a whole host of health benefits beyond the cardiovascular system.

But they may require lifelong administration.

Scientists are now working on a one-off treatment.

The experimental idea depends on precise DNA editing to make a permanent genetic change.

The results of a recent clinical trial suggest that this approach can safely and effectively lower certain levels of bad cholesterol for up to a year.

Time will tell if the benefits last…

Read more.

Many heart attacks and strokes are caused by an insidious buildup of fatty plaques in the arteries.

Slowly and silently, these plaques can restrict blood flow.

But a warning sign may appear on the face before a life-threatening cardiovascular event.

They appear like yellow patches, usually around the eyes. The condition is called xanthelasma and is sometimes (but not always) associated with higher cholesterol in the blood.

A recent study analyzed health data from nearly 18,000 people diagnosed with xanthelasma and an equal number without the condition.

In the first year of data, 0.95 percent of those with xanthelasma suffered a stroke compared to 0.3 percent of the controls.

There was also an increased risk of heart attacks.

Read more.

A) Human face mites
B) Caterpillar larvae
C) Bee parasites
D) Deep-sea worms

Answer at the bottom.

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In 2018, researchers from the Chinese government were drilling in the South China Sea.

They were looking for sources of natural gas on the seafloor, but they failed to properly seal one of their exploratory holes.

A year later, a plume of methane gas was shooting out of the hole. Its bubbles rose more than a kilometer high into the water column.

Then, something unexpected happened.

The plume attracted a flood of ocean organisms, and these bacteria, worms, and crustaceans contained the leak with "remarkable speed".

With just one poke, the whole ecosystem had changed.

Read more.

Sunsets on Mars are blue, not pink.

The red planet has only a fraction of the atmosphere Earth does, which means sunlight interacts very differently on each planet.

Watch the breathtaking clips from an upcoming documentary on ocean life at the edge of a Greenland glacier.

Microscope answer: Bee parasites

These two cuties look like they are tucked up in bed, but really they are parasites, resting in the folds of a bee’s rear end. Females like these spend most of their lives in the body of their host, rarely emerging.