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The search for the culprit behind songbird deaths
A blue jay site on a branch

A mysterious condition is affecting common backyard bird species, including blue jays, causing them to become sick and sometimes perish.

nocred

The search for the culprit behind songbird deaths

Across the United States, songbirds are dying from a mysterious condition. Working with long-established partners, researchers at the School of Veterinary Medicine are striving for a diagnosis.

Katherine Unger Baillie

A fieldwork experience, no travel required
Three people sitting at a table outside all wearing masks. They are around a yellow bin. They are holding tweezers and inspecting small items in the bin. In the foreground are nine styrofoam containers, some with blurred plant material.

During the archaeobotany lesson led by Chantel White (not pictured) of the Penn Museum’s Center for the Analysis of Archaeological Materials—part of a two-week archaeology bootcamp—students including (from left to right) Ashley Ray, Emily Gladden, and Sarah LaPorte, learned a technique called dry sieving used to separate out organic materials like carbonized seeds, wood, and nutshell.

A fieldwork experience, no travel required

During a two-week in-person bootcamp at the Penn Museum, 11 undergrads learned basic archaeological skills in subjects from ceramics and sample-taking to archaeobotany.

Michele W. Berger

Penn mRNA pioneers receive the Princess of Asturias Award
Two people seated at a table in front of a panel that reads "Penn Medicine" many times over. The person on the left is wearing a gray suit, with a white shirt and red tie. The person on the right is wearing glasses, an orange shirt, and a black cardigan.

Drew Weissman (left) is the Roberts Family Professor of Vaccine Research in the Perelman School of Medicine. Katalin Karikó is an adjunct professor of Neurosurgery at Penn and a senior vice president at BioNTech. (Image: Penn Medicine)

Penn mRNA pioneers receive the Princess of Asturias Award

Drew Weissman and Katalin Karikó earned the prestigious honor for their foundational research that led to development of two lifesaving mRNA COVID-19 vaccines.

From Penn Medicine News

The use and misuse of race in health care
drawing of diverse group of people
  • Q&A

    • The use and misuse of race in health care

    In a Q&A, PIK Professor Sarah Tishkoff, the Perelman School of Medicine’s Giorgio Sirugo, and Case Western Reserve University’s Scott Williams shed light on the “quagmire” of race, ethnicity, genetic ancestry, and environmental factors and their contribution to health disparities.

    Katherine Unger Baillie

    How HIV infection shrinks the brain’s white matter
    Fluorescent microscopic image of a brain cell stained in blue and yellow

    How HIV infection shrinks the brain’s white matter

    Researchers from Penn and CHOP detail the mechanism by which HIV infection blocks the maturation process of brain cells that produce myelin, a fatty substance that insulates neurons.

    Katherine Unger Baillie

    A more effective at-home treatment for IBS
    A person wearing a black dress with gold intertwining circles, a black sweater, glasses and gold earrings.

    Melissa G. Hunt is the associate director of clinical training in the Department of Psychology in the School of Arts & Sciences. She is also author of the book “Reclaim Your Life from IBS: A Scientifically Proven Plan for Relief without Restrictive Diets.”

    A more effective at-home treatment for IBS

    In a randomized control trial, researchers found that after eight weeks, participants with irritable bowel syndrome who used an app focused on cognitive behavioral therapy experienced better health-related quality of life, fewer GI symptoms, and less anxiety.

    Michele W. Berger

    Studying plants from 400 miles up
    student standing outside with mountains in the background

    Paul Lin completed a senior thesis grounded in his dual interests in the environment and data science. (Image: Courtesy of Paul Lin)

    Studying plants from 400 miles up

    Using remote sensing data, senior Paul Lin looked for signals of climate change in the grasslands of the Great Plains.

    Katherine Unger Baillie

    Beer with no buzz: 2021 Y-Prize awards dealcoholization project
    Beer in a scientific beaker.

    Beer with no buzz: 2021 Y-Prize awards dealcoholization project

    LiberTech, the award-winning team, pitched their plan to filter alcohol from beer using a nanostructured membrane, which preserves the flavor of beer.

    From the William and Phyllis Mack Institute for Innovation Management

    India’s COVID crisis
    Rows of houses with corrugated metal roofs are interspersed with trees. A mountain range is in the background

    "Everyone’s biggest worry was that India... was extremely vulnerable, given that its population of 1.4 billion people live in very densely populated areas,” says Harsha Thirumurthy. Pictured: Jaipur, India. (Image: Adam Auerbach) 

    India’s COVID crisis

    Political scientist Tariq Thachil of the School of Arts & Sciences and economist and public health expert Harsha Thirumurthy of the Perelman School of Medicine take a look at what’s happening in India with the pandemic's second wave and what can be done to mitigate the spread of COVID-19.

    Kristina García