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Why is everything gambling now?
Hand holding a mobile phone with sports bets lined up.

Over the last decade, there’s been an explosion in phone-based gambling platforms owing to the 2018 Supreme Court ruling that struck down a federal sports betting ban. Neuroscientist Michael L. Platt says the gambling boom has as much to do with human biology as it does business. 

(Image: Hispanolist)

Why is everything gambling now?

Neuroscientist Michael Platt discusses the biological basis of gambling as it relates to the over proliferation of gambling-based platforms.

5 min. read

Wired for connection

Wired for connection

PIK Professor Michael Platt and the Wharton Neuroscience Initiative are featured in a documentary special exploring the link between friendship and overall health

Immune protein a possible target to slow Parkinson’s disease
Neuron cell network

Image: koto_feja via Getty Images

Immune protein a possible target to slow Parkinson’s disease

Researchers at Penn Medicine have found that blocking a key neuronal protein interrupts the spread of toxins to healthy neurons in preclinical studies.

Eric Horvath

1 min. read

Most who meet proposed CTE criteria do not show disease signs at autopsy
Gloved hand holding a scan of four brains

Image: pangoasis via Getty Images

Most who meet proposed CTE criteria do not show disease signs at autopsy

New research from Penn Medicine finds proposed traumatic encephalopathy syndrome criteria often don’t match CTE pathology at autopsy, raising concerns about misdiagnosis and potential mental health impacts for at-risk groups.

Kelsey Geesler

2 min. read

Specialized RNA molecules could counter ALS neurodegeneration
Microscopic view of mRNA

Image: Courtesy of Penn Medicine

Specialized RNA molecules could counter ALS neurodegeneration

Researchers at Penn Medicine have discovered short RNA chaperones that bind to the primary target of ALS, restore its function, and protect motor neurons in a preclinical model, pointing toward a new RNA-based therapeutic strategy.

From Penn Medicine News

2 min. read

Reimagining a shelter as a supportive space for childhood

The HAVEN team with Liz Donaghue, assistant shelter director, in Jane Addams’ Bright Spaces room.

nocred

Reimagining a shelter as a supportive space for childhood

HAVEN, a winning project of the 2026 President’s Engagement Prize developed by three fourth-year undergraduates, will launch an after-school program for K-5 children at Jane Addams Place, a homeless shelter in North Philadelphia.

3 min. read

How estrogen in the brain impacts stress and trauma response
The human hippocampus.

Image: libre de droit via Getty Images

How estrogen in the brain impacts stress and trauma response

New research from Penn Medicine reveals how estrogen levels in the brain influence vulnerability to stress-related memory problems, helping explain sex differences in PTSD risk.

Eric Horvath

2 min. read

Learning I had Lynch syndrome ‘saved my life’
Dennis Massimo and his sister Lauren Massimo.

Dennis Massimo and his sister Lauren Massimo in 2026.

(Image: Courtesy of Penn Medicine News)

Learning I had Lynch syndrome ‘saved my life’

Dennis Massimo was only 42 and symptom-free when he was diagnosed with colorectal cancer, thanks to a research study he signed up for with the Penn Medicine BioBank nearly a decade earlier.

2 min. read