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Health Sciences
Penn Vet, Montreal and McGill Researchers Show How Blood-Brain Barrier Is Maintained
The brain is a privileged organ in the body. So vital to life, the brain is protected from alterations elsewhere in the body by a highly regulated gateway known as the blood-brain barrier, which allows only selected molecules to pass through.
Penn Study Shows Computer-Assisted Diagnosis Tool Helps Physicians Assess Skin Conditions Without Aid from Dermatologists
In the first major study to examine the use of a computer-assisted, photo-driven differential diagnosis generator for skin conditions, researchers at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania found physicians routinely used the tool, without an increase in calling for inpatient dermatology consu
Two Penn Medicine Studies Examine Diabetes Severity in Parkinson's, Sex Differences in Parkinson's Disease Caregiving
A pair of studies from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania demonstrate a correlation between diabetes severity and parkinsonism, or parkinsonian tremors; and examine the caregiving differences between men and women with PD.
Penn Senior Jodi Feinberg to Launch Cardiac Patient In-home Rehab Program
(This is the fourth in a series of features introducing the inaugural Penn President’s Engagement Prize winners.) One in five patients discharged from the hospital experience an adverse event at home within three weeks. They may fall or mix up their medications, placing an extreme burden on their caregivers. Ultimately they’re readmitted to the hospital.
University of Pennsylvania Team Receive Prestigious National Clinical Research Award for HIV Breakthrough
Researchers from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania and the Penn Center for AIDS Research (CFAR) are among the 2015 recipients of the prestigious Clinical Research Achievement Award for their personalized gene therapy work in HIV.
Messenger RNA-associated Protein Drives Multiple Paths in T-cell Development, Penn Study Finds
RNA is both the bridge between DNA and the production of proteins that carry out the functions of life and what guides which and how much protein gets made.
Two Different Carotid Artery Stenting Procedures Show Little Difference in Effectiveness, According to Penn Medicine Study
Use of either proximal embolic protection devices (P-EPDs) or distal filter embolic protection devices (F-EPDs) during elective carotid artery stenting results in low rates of in-hospital stroke and death, according to a new study from researchers at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania.
Penn Medicine: Investigational Personalized Cellular Therapy Tolerated Well by Patients with Advanced Mesothelioma, Ovarian and Pancreatic Cancers
Genetically modified versions of patients’ own immune cells successfully traveled to tumors they were designed to attack in an early-stage trial for mesothelioma and pancreatic and ovarian cancers at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania.
New Combination of Immunotherapy Drugs is Safe, Shrinks Tumors in Metastatic Melanoma Patients, Penn Study Finds
Once again, researchers at Penn’s Abramson Cancer Center have extended the reach of the immune system in the fight against metastatic melanoma, this time by combining the checkpoint inhibitor tremelimumab with an anti-CD40 monoclonal antibody drug.
Immunotherapy Drug Pembrolizumab Shows Early Promise for Mesothelioma Patients, Penn Medicine Researchers Find
The PD-1 inhibitor pembrolizumab, a cancer immunotherapy drug, shrank or halted growth of tumors in 76 percent of patients with pleural mesothelioma, a rare and deadly form of cancer that arises in the outer lining of the lungs and internal chest wall, according to a new study from researchers in the Perelman School of Medicine at the University
In the News
Sugar-coated gold nanoparticles could replace some antibiotics
According to a Penn Medicine study, a new therapy involving laser light and sugar-coated gold nanoparticles can reduce tooth decay and infected wounds without needing antibiotics.
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A new strategy to attack aggressive brain cancer shrank tumors in two early tests
A clinical trial led by Stephen Bagley of the Perelman School of Medicine suggests that targeting two associated proteins with CAR T cell therapy could be a viable strategy for shrinking brain tumors.
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Alzheimer’s may be caused by a build-up of fat in brain cells
A study by Michael Haney of the Perelman School of Medicine suggests that the root cause of Alzheimer’s is a build-up of fat droplets in brain cells.
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Cats aren’t jerks. They’re just misunderstood
James Serpell of the School of Veterinary Medicine says that the domestic cat suffers from its legacy of being a not-quite-wild animal on the margins of society.
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Philadelphia hospital program adds psychologists to bridge mental health services for trauma survivors
A new psychology team at the Penn Trauma Violence Recovery Program has provided about 46 survivors with short- and long- term therapy, featuring remarks from Elinore Kaufman and Lily Brown of the Perelman School of Medicine.
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