Each day, in every School at Penn, from labs to libraries, field sites to clinics, researchers are making strides to cure diseases, improve lives, and better understand our world.
Research at Penn: By the Numbers
Promise
Longer, Healthier Lives
1,407 clinical trials (FY24)
>67,000 patients in clinical trials (FY24)
42 FDA approvals (through 2024)
(From Penn Medicine)
Progress
Creative Solutions
125 patents issued (FY24)
354 invention disclosures (FY24)
12 PCI-supported spinouts and Penn affiliated startups (FY24)
(From PCI)
Purpose
Stronger, Safer Communities
619 commercialization agreements (FY24)
$2.8B total annual output within the Commonwealth (FY24)
$47M in Pennsylvania state tax revenue (FY24)
(From PCI and the Office of the Vice Provost for Research)
Passion
Curiosity-Driven Pursuits
9 MacArthur Award faculty recipients
2 Nobel Prize faculty recipients
>150,000 undergraduate research hours
(From Institutional Research & Analysis and the Center for Undergraduate Research and Fellowships)
A better understanding of common hypertension medications
Henry Daniell of Penn Dental and collaborators found that ACE inhibitors dramatically reduced the activity of ACE2, a critical cardioprotective enzyme.
Understanding the social needs of cancer survivors
Penn researchers and their colleagues have investigated how unmet social needs impact the health and well-being of U.S. cancer survivors. Their findings are relevant for other serious chronic illnesses.
Transforming CAR T treatment: ‘Leukemia-on-a-chip’
In a collaborative effort with NYU, Penn researchers have helped pioneer a novel 3D platform that mimics the human bone marrow and immune environment, enabling more predictive testing of cancer immunotherapy success in patients, including CAR T cell therapies.
Kevin Volpp: Nudging populations toward better health
Kevin Volpp, Mark V. Pauly President’s Distinguished Professor at the Perelman School of Medicine and Health Care Management at the Wharton School, discusses how behavioral health interventions can improve public health outcomes.
Eri Maeda: Investigating barriers to menopause care
Rising third-year Eri Maeda dedicated her summer to a Penn Undergraduate Research Mentoring Program project exploring how insurance status may shape access to menopause care in the U.S.
Geddy: One tiny dog’s outsized contribution to brain surgery
A terrier mix makes history as the first patient to undergo canine neurosurgery in a collaborative effort of specialists in human and veterinary medicine using cutting-edge augmented reality technology and infrared imaging.
Penn engineers, materials scientists, and designers have developed a 3D-printed concrete solution based on diatomaceous earth that has enhanced carbon capture, is stronger, and uses fewer materials like cement.
A new study by Penn GSE’s Richard Ingersoll evaluates a team-based model of organizing teaching staff in elementary and secondary schools that integrates teams of teaching staff in contrast to this traditional one-teacher, one-classroom approach.
Research co-authored by Wharton professors Gideon Nave and Christian Terwiesch finds that while ChatGPT improves the quality of individual ideas, it also leads groups to generate more similar ideas.
Understanding atomic disorder and next-gen electronics
A Penn team has developed insight into the chemical and geometric mechanisms underlying the synthesis of new multi-metal 2D materials, paving the way for next-gen devices, biomedical applications, and cleaner, quicker energy conversion and storage.
Penn researchers developed a system that allows light to be guided through a tiny crystal, undeterred by bumps, bends, and back-reflections. Their findings pave the way for robust, controllable light-based chips, smarter routing for data links, and more stable lasers.
Frank Chen: Mapping smarter tree placement in Philadelphia
Weitzman School of Design graduate student Frank Chen provides insight into his project to find the best spots to plant street trees and optimize shade coverage for pedestrians in Philadelphia.
Ngaatendwe Manyika: Helping to reshape renewable energy education
Third-year mechanical engineering student Ngaatendwe Manyika spent the summer working with practice assistant professor at Penn Engineering Lorena Grundy developing a new class, the Renewable Energy Technologies Lab coming to Penn next fall.
As part of the Pennsylvania Animal Diagnostic Laboratory System (PADLS), Penn Vet’s New Bolton Center helps to protect animals and humans from health threats and minimize agricultural economic loss.
A new study in Sciences Advances, co-authored by Penn Carey Law’s Michael Morse, introduces the concept of vote revelation, or the potential for a vote on an anonymous ballot to be linked to the voter’s name in the public voter file.
Preventing falls in older adults with mild cognitive impairment
A team led by researchers in the School of Nursing has developed a multicomponent intervention that uses passive monitoring and behavioral support to help reduce falls in at-risk older adults.
Penn professor Paris Perdikaris and collaborators developed Aurora, a machine-learning model that has predictive capabilities for air quality, ocean waves, tropical cyclone tracks, and weather.
Antonia Villarruel and Kathleen Hall Jamieson: Recommendations for economic prosperity and national security
Dean Antonia M. Villarruel of Penn Nursing and Kathleen Hall Jamieson of the Annenberg Public Policy Center are on the Vision for American Science and Technology task force that devised the policy recommendations.
Christina Roberto: System-level changes for public health
The Center for Health Incentives and Behavioral Economics affiliate studies labeling systems to improve the choices people make with food, and argues that if health care professionals are serious about preventing nutrition-related chronic diseases, then system-level changes are necessary.
Third-year Ella Vance spent the summer working with Penn Carey Law’s Paul Robinson exploring the potential roots of crime, including addiction and poverty. Her 10-week opportunity was supported by the Penn Undergraduate Research Mentoring Program.
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.
Research by the Atacama Cosmology Telescope collaboration has led to the clearest and most precise images yet of the universe’s infancy—the cosmic microwave background radiation that was visible only 380,000 years after the Big Bang.
Yuko Goto Butler’s latest book gathers research on language development and pedagogy among children learning a foreign language and presents it in a manner that bridges research and practice.
A new book edited by School of Social Policy & Practice professor Jacqueline Corcoran highlights the day-to-day reality of social work through social workers detailing their experiences in the style of creative nonfiction.
Irina Marinov: How to prepare for the impacts of a changing climate
Irina Marinov, associate professor at the Department of Earth and Environmental Science, leads a research community focused on understanding global climate impacts, risks, and vulnerabilities to enable local action.
Xinyi Wang: Sparking curiosity for better learning and better lives
Annenberg School for Communication doctoral graduate Xinyi Wang studies how people actively seek out and engage with new information.
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Research at Penn: In print
Research at Penn is also a print publication highlighting notable research from across the University. Featuring original and repurposed stories from Penn Today, Research at Penn is brought to you twice a year by the Office of University Communications and available as a PDF (Fall 2025 and Spring 2025).
