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Health Sciences
Expanding opportunities to leverage science in the clinic
Expanding opportunities to leverage science in the clinic
Patricia Corby, who recently joined the School of Dental Medicine as associate dean for translational research, is bringing her research to bear for cancer patients undergoing radiation, while looking to advance clinical research School-wide.
First-year doctors spend almost 90 percent of their time away from patients
First-year doctors spend almost 90 percent of their time away from patients
First-year doctors, or interns, spend 87 percent of their work time away from patients, half of which is spent interacting with electronic health records.
App predicts risk of developing hernia following abdominal surgery
App predicts risk of developing hernia following abdominal surgery
A Penn-developed app can predict the likelihood that a patient will develop an incisional hernia following abdominal surgery, utilizing electronic health records to identify the most common risk factors for patients.
Brain regions linked to memory and emotion help humans navigate smell
Brain regions linked to memory and emotion help humans navigate smell
The work points to the existence of a grid-like hexagonal structure in olfactory-related brain areas, similar to mapping configurations previously found to support spatial navigation in animals.
Watching Sheeba’s eye
Watching Sheeba’s eye
A successful surgery on an eye lesion at Penn Vet’s Ryan Hospital helped Sheeba, a working service dog, so she could get back to work.
Protecting the planet at Penn
Protecting the planet at Penn
Earth Day and every day, the University community is at work to make the world a little better. Here are some highlights from those efforts.
A cardiologist’s take on the keto diet
A cardiologist’s take on the keto diet
Does the keto diet improve blood sugar and lessen cardiovascular risk factors, or does it lead to spikes in bad cholesterol, heart problems, and hypoglycemia? One doctor looks to science for answers.
Researchers use gene editing with CRISPR to treat lethal lung diseases before birth
Researchers use gene editing with CRISPR to treat lethal lung diseases before birth
Using CRISPR gene editing, a team from Penn Medicine and Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia have thwarted a lethal lung disease, in which a harmful mutation causes death within hours after birth.
How a year in space affects the brain
How a year in space affects the brain
Penn Medicine’s Mathias Basner discusses the NASA Twins Study, which analyzed astronaut Scott Kelly’s physical and mental health after he spent 340 days in space, and found that Kelly’s performance on a cognitive test battery dropped when he returned to Earth for six months.
Three from Penn elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
Three from Penn elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
Vice Provost for Faculty Anita Allen of the Law School and the School of Arts and Sciences, Daniel Rader of the Perelman School of Medicine, and Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein of Perry World House join a group recognized for their world-class leadership and expertise.
In the News
Axios
The flimsy promises of brain wearables
Anna Wexler of the Perelman School of Medicine said the FDA is ill prepared to reign in the companies producing wearable brain devices, which record brain activity or stimulate the brain with electric currents in spite of little oversight.
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Philadelphia Inquirer
College affirmative action bans linked to higher rates of smoking among minority youth
A new study from the Perelman School of Medicine has found that states that ban affirmative action in college admissions experience increased smoking rates among black, Latino, and Indigenous high schoolers. “Educational policies can have these unintended health consequences,” said co-author Atheendar Venkataramani. “Social policies really matter for health, and it’s worth talking about.”
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WHYY (Philadelphia)
In Pennsylvania, ‘deaths of despair’ are 50% higher than the national average
Maria Oquendo of the Perelman School of Medicine is quoted on increased suicide rates in Pennsylvania.
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Time
‘They’re chipping away.’ Inside the grassroots effort to fight mandatory vaccines
In an article about anti-vax organizing, Paul Offit of the Perelman School of Medicine said, “Vaccines are a victim of their own success.” Offit continued, “people have forgotten how sick measles can make you and how dead measles can make you.”
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Nature
Whole-body PET scanner produces 3D images in seconds
Abass Alavi of the Perelman School of Medicine spoke about a new version of a PET scanner that can generate 3D renderings of the entire human body in just seconds, a fraction of the time required by older iterations. “The whole-body machine is another quantum jump in medical imaging,” said Alavi.
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