10.21
Health Sciences
Elected to the NAM, four faculty members earn the highest honor in biomedicine
Susan M. Domchek, Daniel E. Polsky, Marie Celeste Simon, and Rachel M. Werner are four of the 85 newly-elected members of the National Academy of Medicine.
Multidisciplinary team to develop stem cell-based approaches to restore vision
Gene therapies have had success in treating blindness but can’t save areas of the retina where cells have already died. In a new effort, School of Veterinary Medicine scientists John Wolfe and William Beltran will attempt to develop a stem-cell-based approach that restores vision.
Linguistic red flags from Facebook posts can predict future depression diagnoses
The language people use in these social media posts can make these predictions as accurately as the tools clinicians use in medical settings to screen for the disease.
Blood test identifies more treatable cancer mutations than biopsies alone
A new study shows patients with treatable mutations identified by liquid biopsies rather than tissue biopsies also largely respond to therapy.
Immune cells involved in triple-negative breast cancer could offer future therapeutic target
New research led by Rumela Chakrabarti reveals how immune cells called myeloid-derived immunosuppressor cells contribute to the progression of triple-negative breast cancer, a particularly aggressive cancer. Pairing chemotherapy with a drug that blocks these cells may one day help stem its growth.
‘Cancer in all forms is our enemy’
Robert H. Vonderheide, the Abramson Cancer Center director, talks innovation, discoveries, FDA approvals, and how to deliver top-of-the-line cancer care.
A study in prenatal gene editing with DNA in utero
A Penn Medicine and CHOP team shows the first example of using base-editing tools to treat a disease in animal models in utero.
The world’s oldest nightmare: Understanding sleep paralysis
Sleep paralysis has been linked to the supernatural for centuries. Neuroscientists work to uncover the science of REM disorders.
Electronic research notebooks streamline the scientific method
To do it right, scientific research requires careful record keeping, dutiful repetition of protocols, and, in many cases, free exchange of data. Electronic research notebooks are intended to help researchers up their game and are now available at no charge to the University community through the Office of the Vice Provost for Research, Dawn Bonnell.
Cutting-edge science moves to the clinic to help ‘our furry friends’ fight cancer
A year after its launch, the Penn Vet Cancer Center is solidifying the translational science pipeline, connecting basic scientists to the clinic and vice versa, to transform veterinary cancer care.
In the News
Philadelphia Inquirer
Depression often goes undiagnosed. Researchers are turning to Facebook to change that
Researchers from the Perelman School of Medicine co-authored a study on social media and mental illness. “Depression is a really debilitating disease and we have treatments that can help people,” said Raina Merchant. “We want to think of new ways to get people resources and identification for depression earlier.”
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CNN
Smoking featured in half of hip-hop videos, study finds
The Annenberg Public Policy Center’s Dan Romer offered commentary on a study of smoking in music videos. He noted that the study didn’t differentiate between marijuana and tobacco products or consider the role of product placement.
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Philadelphia Inquirer
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.
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Time
How scientists are treating breast cancer using the immune system
The Abramson Cancer Center’s Robert Vonderheide described challenges in treating breast cancer. Most cases, he said, “fit into a category we call ‘cold’ immunological tumors, meaning the tumor has the ability to either exclude the immune system or hide from it altogether. That kind of cancer isn’t easily treated with current immunotherapies.”
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Philadelphia Inquirer
Is blackout drinking the same as passing out from alcohol? A Penn psychologist explains
The Perelman School of Medicine’s Reagan Wetherill discussed common misconceptions about alcohol-related blackouts. People in a blackout are “conscious and interacting with their environment,” she said. But their brains are “not creating memories” due to alcohol’s impact on the hippocampus.
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