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Kiran Musunuru: Editing genes to save lives

Kiran Musunuru: Editing genes to save lives

Kiran Musunuru develops gene-based therapies to improve the health of patients with heart disease and correct genetic changes in people affected by ultra-rare conditions.

What ever-growing incisors can teach us about genetic disease
Microscopic view of a mouse incisor.

An image taken through scanning electron microscopy (SEM) shows a polished sagittal section through a mouse mandibular incisor, showing the different mineralized tissue layers.

(Image: Courtesy of Penn Engineering Today)

What ever-growing incisors can teach us about genetic disease

An interdisciplinary team of researchers approaches the question ‘How do teeth mineralize?’ by analyzing the physical, biological, and genetic properties of teeth for real-world clinical applications in the future.

Melissa Pappas

2 min. read

Genetic testing beneficial in critically ill adults
Pipette adding a sample to a petri dish with a DNA profile in the background.

Image: Ten Image/Science Photo Library via Getty Images

Genetic testing beneficial in critically ill adults

Penn Medicine researchers have identified genetic conditions in a large percent of adults admitted to the intensive care unit, dispelling the belief that genetic testing only benefits a pediatric population.

3 min. read

Ants and naked mole-rats and societal roles
Leafcutter ants moving around a bright green leaf.

In eusocial superorganisms like leafcutter ant colonies, labor is divvied up according to body shape and size, but PIK Professor Shelley Berger and her team discovered that molecular signals can override that blueprint. Their findings reveal how simple neuropeptides can reprogram ant behavior, reshuffling roles in nature’s most disciplined workforce.

(Image: Courtesy of Tierney Scarpa)

Ants and naked mole-rats and societal roles

PIK Professor Shelley Berger and colleagues explored the genetic basis of labor distribution in communal-dwelling species and discovered that pathways dating back hundreds of millions of years are conserved across animal kingdoms. Their findings offer fundamental insights into complex social behaviors.

5 min. read

Could gene therapy restore lost hearing?
Soundwaves superimposed over an ear.

Image: Courtesy of Penn Medicine Magazine

Could gene therapy restore lost hearing?

Experts at Penn Medicine are working to understand the genetic architecture of hearing loss in adults at the Penn Center for Adult-Onset Hearing Loss.

From Penn Medicine Magazine

2 min. read