Katherine Unger Baillie

Many factors, both genetic and environmental, have been blamed for increasing the risk of a diagnosis of schizophrenia. Some, such as a family history of schizophrenia, are widely accepted. Others, such as infection with Toxoplasma gondii, a parasite transmitted by soil, undercooked meat and cat feces, are still viewed with skepticism.

WHO: Ben Chrisinger, city and regional planning, School of DesignJohannes Eichstaedt, psychology, School of Arts & SciencesRuth Masterson Creber, nursing science, School of Nursing

Take a look at the inside of your elbow. Chances are, you can see a vein—one of the body’s large vessels that routes blood around the body.

Robert Aronowitz, a physician and historian at the University of Pennsylvania, has been elected to membership in the Institute of Medicine, one of the nation's highest honors in the health-care field.

Pulmonary hypertension is a devastating disease that occurs when the arteries feeding the lungs narrow, making the right side of the heart work harder to pump blood to the lungs. Over time, the heart weakens, leading to heart failure.

By Madeleine Stone  @themadstone

Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania and the University of Florida have identified a drug that can be used to treat pulmonary hypertension, a disease for which few therapy options exist.

Almost anyone who has spent time in a hospital is familiar with the routine checks of blood pressure and oxygen levels that serve as signposts of a patient’s overall health. But these measures only reflect the pulsing of blood through the large vessels, arteries and veins, not the smaller arterioles, venules and capillaries, which directly feed tissues and cells.

On the evening of Tuesday, Oct. 7, The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia hosted the second annual “Best Friends Bash” for 15 of their craniofacial patients.

For many dog owners, incessant barking is the bane of their existence. Some resort to using “shock collars” that deliver a jolt when their animal barks. The brainchild of a School of Veterinary Medicine student, however, may one day help pet lovers quiet their pets using positive reinforcement in the form of food rewards.