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To resolve inflammation, location matters
A diagram explains the action of the protein Del-1 and macrophages

Researchers from Penn and Technical University of Dresden found that the protein Del-1 takes on different functions depending on the cell that secretes it. When secreted by the immune system's macrophages, it acts as a bridge between those cells and neutrophils to help clear inflammation. (Image: Courtesy of George Hajishengallis)

To resolve inflammation, location matters

A single protein can both restrain the initiation of inflammation and help to actively resolve it, according to new research led by George Hajishengallis of the School of Dental Medicine. He and his colleague found that the type of cell that secretes the protein determines which activity the protein promotes.

Katherine Unger Baillie

On the biomed menu: Mini-organs, organ-on-a-chip
pen and ink heart in black and white

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.

Penn Today Staff

Brown fat could help fight obesity. This Penn scientist is looking to harness its power

Brown fat could help fight obesity. This Penn scientist is looking to harness its power

Patrick Seale of the Perelman School of Medicine discussed differing types of human fat: “white fat,” which stores energy, and “brown fat,” which burns it. Seale was recently awarded the Richard E. Weitzman Outstanding Early Career Investigator Award for his research on the subject.

Seven Penn researchers receive NIH Director Awards
Payne, Aimee and Mason, Nicola

Aimee Payne (left) of Penn Medicine and Nicola Mason of Penn Vet are co-investigators on an NIH Director's Transformative Research Award that will support investigations into the use of immunotherapies to treat an autoimmune disease in pet dogs. Payne and Mason are among seven Penn researchers to win highly competitive NIH Director's awards this year.

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.

Penn Today Staff

Targeting a viral vulnerability to treat disease
Ricciardi, Rob

Robert Ricciardi

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.

Katherine Unger Baillie

Regrowing dental tissue with stem cells from baby teeth
Shi dental pulp

Stem cells extracted from baby teeth were able to regenerate dental pulp (above, with fluorescent labeling) in young patients who had injured one of their adult teeth.

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.

Katherine Unger Baillie

Penn’s experimental gene therapy saves night vision in dogs, paving the way for human tests

Penn’s experimental gene therapy saves night vision in dogs, paving the way for human tests

The Perelman School of Medicine’s Artur V. Cideciyan discussed his team’s advances in treatment for blindness in dogs, saying that “with these results, we can start working toward treating these mutations…in humans. A crystal ball is tricky, but we hope this could be [in human trials] in a couple years.”