Biology

Fruit fly love songs

Yun Ding, assistant professor of biology, studies the courtship behavior of fruit flies to learn how genes and brains evolve to change animal behaviors.

Answers to microbiome mysteries in the gills of rainbow trout

In trout, the School of Veterinary Medicine’s J. Oriol Sunyer and colleagues discovered that a particular type of primitive antibody is essential for fighting microbes that cause disease while preserving others that make up a healthy microbiome.

Katherine Unger Baillie

Coral reef resilience

With coral reefs under threat from climate change, marine biologist Katie Barott studies how some corals may prove resilient to warming temperatures and acidifying oceans.

Katherine Unger Baillie

A new role for a triple-negative breast cancer target

A team led by Rumela Chakrabarti of the School of Veterinary Medicine has made new discoveries into how a key protein involved in triple-negative breast cancer functions in puberty.

Katherine Unger Baillie

Side Gigs for Good

After putting in a full, impactful day at work at Penn, some faculty and staff fill their spare hours with endeavors that make a difference.

Katherine Unger Baillie, Michele W. Berger



In the News


Newsweek

Man does DNA test, not prepared for what comes back ‘unusually high’

César de la Fuente of the School of Engineering and Applied Science and Perelman School of Medicine says that Neanderthal DNA provides insights into human evolution, population dynamics, and genetic adaptations, including correlations with traits such as immunity and susceptibility to diseases.

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Good Housekeeping

When is the best time to take L-theanine—morning or night?

According to Colleen Tewksbury of the School of Nursing, research suggests that L-theanine may help support stress management, sleep, and potentially weight management.

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Stat

Is the flu shot market a slam dunk for mRNA vaccines? Experts aren’t so sure

Scott Hensley of the Perelman School of Medicine is working on a flu vaccine to provide protection against 20 subtypes of flu that may pose a pandemic threat in the future.

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NPR

Thanks, Neanderthals: How our ancient relatives could help find new antibiotics

A study by César de la Fuente of the Perelman School of Medicine and colleagues used AI to recreate molecules from ancient humans that could be potential candidates for antimicrobial treatments.

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NPR

Long COVID brain fog may originate in a surprising place, say scientists

A study by Christoph Thaiss and Maayan Levy of the Perelman School of Medicine and colleagues finds that long COVID’s neurological symptoms, like brain fog, memory loss, and fatigue, may stem from serotonin reduction.

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Time

Long COVID research is in its ‘most hopeful’ phase yet

A study by Christoph Thaiss and Maayan Levy of the Perelman School of Medicine and colleagues suggests that serotonin could be a target for long COVID treatment.

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