11.17
Internal medicine
On the biomed menu: Mini-organs, organ-on-a-chip
Since the first paper describing a brain organoid—a miniature, simplified version of a human organ—published in 2013, many new technologies, from organs-on-a-chip to organoids, have continued biomedical science down the innovative path.
Seven Penn researchers receive NIH Director Awards
Seven researchers from the Perelman School of Medicine, School of Veterinary Medicine, and School of Engineering and Applied Science are to receive National Institutes of Health Director Awards, highly competitive grants to support innovative biomedical research.
Targeting a viral vulnerability to treat disease
Robert Ricciardi company ViRAZE utilizes interdisciplinary approaches to drug discovery. Its first target is molluscum contagiosum, a disease that targets children and immune-compromised adults with no current FDA-approved therapy.
Regrowing dental tissue with stem cells from baby teeth
In a clinical trial led by Songtao Shi of the School of Dental Medicine, stem cells extracted from baby teeth were used to regrow the living tissue in teeth damaged by injury. The promising findings highlight the potential of dental stem cells, which could be used in a wide range of dental procedures, or treating certain systemic diseases.
Making hepatitis C-infected organs safe for transplantation
Twenty patients at Penn Medicine have been cured of the hepatitis C virus following lifesaving kidney transplants from deceased donors who were infected with the disease. The kidney transplants for these patients, too, are functioning just as well as kidneys that are transplanted from similar donors without HCV.
Red blood cell ‘hitchhikers’ offer new way to transport drugs to specific targets
A new drug-delivery technology which uses red blood cells to shuttle nano-scale drug carriers, called RBC-hitchhiking, has been found to dramatically increase the concentration of drugs ferried precisely to selected organs.
Promoting cross-campus collaborations in health research
The One Health Communications Group is a collaboration that brings together several schools and centers to develop groundbreaking health research in a cross-disciplinary and innovative environment.
Low-calorie diet enhances intestinal regeneration after injury
Dramatic calorie restriction, diets reduced by 40 percent of a normal calorie total, have long been known to extend health span, the duration of disease-free aging, in animal studies, and even to extend life span in most animal species examined.
In the News
Philadelphia Inquirer
E-Cigarettes Disappoint in a Workplace Quit-Smoking Study
The Perelman School of Medicine’s Scott Halpern led a study on the effects of vaping on smoking cessation. Halpern found that e-cigarettes were no more helpful than other stop-smoking tools, and that “the very best way to help them quit is to offer them money.”
FULL STORY →
WHYY (Philadelphia)
New Blood Test for Pregnant Women Could Predict Preterm Birth
The Perelman School of Medicine’s Michal Elovitz discussed the results from her research exploring methods for predicting preterm births. The study’s results were published in Science.
FULL STORY →