JACKSON, Miss.—A federal judge has ruled that he will not block Mississippi from carrying out with this week’s scheduled execution of an inmate who is suing the state over its use of three drugs for lethal injections. Thomas Edwin Loden Jr., 58, faces a Dec. 14 execution date, which was recently set by the Mississippi…

MONTGOMERY, Ala.—Alabama’s string of troubled lethal injections, which worsened late Thursday as prison workers aborted another execution because of a problem with intravenous lines, is unprecedented nationally, a group that tracks capital punishment said Friday. The uncompleted execution of Kenneth Eugene Smith was the state’s second such instance of being unable to kill an inmate…

New research conducted by the Australian National University has identified pathways for lethal Clostridium spp. bacteria, potentially leading to more effective treatment options for the future. “Our research shows there might be new therapies we could develop, such as using certain drugs to neutralise the toxin [released by the bacteria],” said the lead researcher, Prof….

CHICAGO—The U.S. state of Nebraska reported on Tuesday an outbreak of highly lethal bird flu in a flock of 570,000 chickens being raised for meat. Millions of U.S. broiler chickens being raised for meat, egg-laying chickens, and turkeys have been infected with bird flu since February or culled to prevent the spread of the disease….

CHICAGO—A flock of about 240,000 chickens owned by Tyson Foods Inc. in Kentucky tested positive for a highly lethal form of bird flu, government officials and the company said on Monday, widening an outbreak that threatens the U.S. poultry industry. Infections in the chickens being raised for meat triggered more restrictions on U.S. exports, with…

On the heels of National Overdose Awareness Day, I examine the lethal drug fentanyl, which is killing many people as it gets laced into other illegal street drugs. It is cheap, it is sourced from China largely, and dealers are adding it to drugs like cocaine and heroin to enhance their effects, unbeknownst to users….