Biology

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

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

Computer-generated antibiotics and biosensor Band-Aids

For Penn synthetic biologist César de la Fuente and his team, these concepts aren’t some far-off ideal. They’re projects already in progress, and they have huge real-world implications should they succeed.

Michele W. Berger



In the News


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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ScienceAlert

A crucial pattern behind long COVID may have been identified

A study by Christoph Thaiss and Maayan Levy of the Perelman School of Medicine and colleagues suggests that several current hypotheses for the pathophysiology of long COVID are linked by a single pathway that is connected by serotonin reduction.

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