During the pandemic, contact tracing apps kept Americans informed of potential exposure risk with the goal of reducing infections. But did apps like this help reduce the spread of COVID and how might we improve these apps for use in future outbreaks? Contact tracing is a pivotal part of pandemic preparedness. Evidence-based research on best practices for contact tracing is important because when employed inefficiently contact tracing drains resources. Used effectively, contact tracing slows the spread of disease and saves lives. In the past, contact tracing was done through health ...

Prevention Strategies received a grant from the National Institutes of Health to pursue the study and develop a commercially viable intervention tool based on prevention science. Known as WorkWell, it is a tailored mobile health app that represents the next generation of evidence-based, technology-aided intervention programs. The initial pilot program to test the WorkWell app will focus on construction trade workers and nurses, as well as nursing assistants and technicians. These occupations have been disproportionately impacted by the opioid crisis and have high mortality ratios. “Opioid-involved overdoses are among the leading causes of death in the United States despite extensive ...

A combination strategy of endoscopic ultrasound-guided radiofrequency ablation (EUS-RFA) with chemotherapy for pancreatic cancer will be studied at UTHealth Houston through a $3.3 million grant from the National Cancer Institute by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The survival rate of pancreatic adenocarcinoma, or pancreatic cancer, remains low, around 10%, because of its poor response to current chemotherapies. The five-year grant will continue the established six-year clinical and translational research collaboration between Jennifer Bailey-Lundberg, ...

UTHSC researchers working to find new treatments to combat breast cancer metastasis recently pulled in a major national award. Wei Li, PhD, distinguished professor of Pharmaceutical Sciences and director of the Drug Discovery Center in the College of Pharmacy, and Tiffany Seagroves, PhD, professor of Pathology in the College of Medicine, are principal investigators on a $3.07 million grant from the National Cancer Institute for a project to develop a new series of drugs targeting microtubules to stop the spread of breast cancer to the brain and bone. Duane Miller, PhD, professor emeritus, and Zhongzhi Wu, PhD, assistant professor, both in ...

A total solar eclipse will darken a swath of North America as the Moon blocks the light of the Sun for a few minutes on April 8, 2024. In addition to casting a breathtaking, passing shadow over the heads of millions of people, this total solar eclipse gives scientists a unique opportunity to study the Sun, Earth, and their interactions. NASA will fund five interdisciplinary science projects for the 2024 eclipse to make the most of this opportunity. The projects, which are led by researchers at different academic institutions, will study the Sun and its influence on Earth with a variety of instruments, including cameras aboard high-altitude research planes, ham radios, and ...

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease patients with type 2 inflammation saw rapid and sustained improvements in their disease after treatment with the monoclonal antibody dupilumab, according to a yearlong, Phase 3 clinical trial reported in the New England Journal of Medicine. These improvements — as measured by a significantly lower annualized rate of acute exacerbations, significantly better lung function and quality of life, and significantly less severe symptoms than placebo-treated adults with COPD — were observed within two to four weeks after the initiation of dupilumab and were sustained throughout the 52-week trial period. This monoclonal antibody ...

Scientists studying gene activity data of the early human embryo have discovered an overlooked type of cell which self-destructs within days of forming, as part of a quality control process to protect the developing foetus. The findings give insights on what happens at the very first stages of life after fertilisation which could in the future help improve IVF or regenerative medicine treatments. A new study published on 20 June 2023 in PLoS Biology by an international team of scientists including researchers at the University of Bath, finds that our earliest development in the womb may be rather different to what we have always assumed.  While ...

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: June 20, 2023 - Washington, D.C. - An innovative virtual reality project created by National Geographic Explorers in collaboration with local communities was recognized with the “Best in Category: Visualize” during the XR Prize Challenge: Fight Climate Change earlier this month. The project, “Qikiqtaruk: Arctic at Risk” was selected for the award from across 150 submissions at the Augmented World Expo (AWE) in Santa Clara, California on June 1, 2023. “Qikiqtaruk: Arctic at Risk” brought together researchers, park rangers, educators and immersive content ...

Abu Dhabi, UAE, June 20, 2023: Researchers at NYU Abu Dhabi have developed a new rapid testing method for COVID-19 – an adhesive bandage that relies on gold nanoparticles to quickly detect the immune antibodies in the bloodstream. These antibodies, named IgM and IgG, are naturally produced as a result of SARS-CoV-2 infection, and therefore serve as valuable biomarkers to identify infected individuals and monitor the spread of pandemics. The innovative bandage technology is affordable and easy-to-use, and ...

Ah-Hyung “Alissa” Park has been appointed the Ronald and Valerie Sugar Dean of the UCLA Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science, effective September 1. One of the nation’s leading experts on carbon capture and conversion technology, Park is currently the Lenfest Earth Institute Professor of Climate Change and chair of the department of earth and environmental engineering at Columbia University, where she has been a faculty member since 2007. She also is director of the Lenfest Center for Sustainable Energy, an executive committee ...

In an article titled “A Meta-analysis of Correction Effects in Science-Relevant Misinformation” published in the journal Nature Human Behaviour, University of Pennsylvania social psychologists and communication scholars Man-pui Sally Chan and Dolores Albarracín explain the circumstances under which corrections of misinformation about science are most likely to work or fail, as well as the characteristics of the corrections most likely to succeed. The authors conducted a meta-analysis, a quantitative synthesis of prior research, which involved 60,000 ...

Research Highlights: States that participated in the Medicaid expansion provision of the Affordable Care Act, raising the income level to be eligible for Medicaid up to 138% of the federal poverty level, improved several measures of heart disease care for Medicaid recipients in their states. In an analysis of 30 studies comparing states that chose to participate in Medicaid expansion with those that didn’t, Medicaid expansion was associated with improvement in insurance coverage for cardiac care, decreased out-of-hospital deaths, fewer socioeconomic and demographic disparities in care and increased preventive care and screening. Embargoed until 1 p.m. CT/2 p.m. ET, ...

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – June 20, 2023 – An estimated 3 million patients visit emergency departments each year with acute chest pain and mildly elevated troponin levels. High levels of troponin, a protein, occur when the heart muscle is damaged from a heart attack. How best to evaluate and treat patients with chest pain with detectable or mildly elevated troponin remains unclear. Now, a new study from researchers at Wake Forest University School of Medicine reveals that cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), is a safe and valuable tool to help evaluate these complex patients. The ...

An advance in a topological insulator material — whose interior behaves like an electrical insulator but whose surface behaves like a conductor — could revolutionize the fields of next-generation electronics and quantum computing, according to scientists at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. Discovered in the 1980s, a topological material is a new phase of material whose discoverers received a Nobel Prize in 2016. Using only an electric field, ORNL researchers have transformed a normal insulator into a magnetic topological insulator. This exotic material allows electricity ...

DALLAS, June 20, 2023 — New research published today in Circulation: Cardiovascular Quality and Outcomes examines the pilot phase of the American Heart Association quality improvement program Target: Aortic Stenosis™. The program aims to lay the groundwork to more reliably measure performance on the quality of aortic stenosis (AS) care from diagnosis to treatment. The Target: Aortic Stenosis program focuses on closing care gaps for patients who are not appropriately diagnosed and referred for initial ...

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Millions of Americans over the age of 65 lack access to the social and emotional support they need for healthy aging, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Non-white individuals in rural communities are especially susceptible. New research from Penn State found that the presence of social infrastructure — shared community spaces that are free or low cost to visit — in rural communities may help provide social and emotional support and promote healthy aging among older, ...

The 6th World Congress on Targeting Phage Therapy 2023 that was held on June 1-2 in Paris, and gathered more than 150 attendees from 30+ different countries. Targeting Phage Therapy 2023 included more than 71 presentations between major talks, short orals, and posters. The Chairman of the scientific committee Dr. Marvin Edeas Université de Paris, Cochin Institute, France, and Dr. Domenico Frezza, University of Roma Tor Vergata, Italy, stated: “It’s wonderful to hear that the speakers at the Targeting Phage Therapy 2023 conference delivered excellent presentations on a variety of fantastic topics. The fact ...

Sammie Powers, Assistant Professor, Recreation Management, School of Sport, Recreation, and Tourism Management (SRTM); Hung-Ling Liu, Associate Professor, Recreation Management, SRTM; and Ellen Rodgers, Associate Dean, College of Education and Human Development (CEHD), received funding from the Appalachian Trail Conservancy (ATC) for the project: "Appalachian Conservation Strategy Feasibility Pilot: Conservation and Human Dimensions Stakeholder Engagement Action Plan Project."  They are collaborating with Nate Trauntvein, Associate Professor, ...

Menon & Maribojoc Receive Funding For Evaluation Services For Step Ahead 2.0 – Housing First Support Services Pilot Nirup Menon, Professor, Information Systems and Operations Management (ISOM), and Roderick Maribojoc, Executive Director, Real Estate Entrepreneurship, received funding for: "Evaluation Services for Step Ahead 2.0 – Housing First Support Services Pilot." Menon and Maribojoc are being funded to evaluate the impact of services in reducing homelessness in Fairfax ...

Ten years ago, Samer Naif made an unexpected discovery in Earth’s mantle: a narrow pocket, proposed to be filled with magma, hidden some 60 kilometers beneath the seafloor of the Cocos Plate. Mantle melts are buoyant and typically float toward the surface — think underwater volcanoes that erupt to form strings of islands. But Naif’s imaging instead showed a clear slice of semi-molten rock: low-degree partial melts, still sandwiched at the base of the plate some 37 miles beneath the ocean floor. Then, the observation provided an explanation for how tectonic plates can gradually slide, ...

Researchers from Tokyo Medical and Dental University (TMDU) find that apple-shaped obesity is associated with cytokine storm and a higher risk of death in COVID-19 patients Tokyo, Japan – Eating an apple a day may keep the doctor away, but having an apple shape is not nearly as healthy. Now, researchers from Japan have shown that people who carry their weight in their bellies may be at greater risk of poor outcomes if they catch COVID-19. In a study published last month in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), researchers from Tokyo Medical ...

Amidst rising concerns about the global climate crisis, Princeton researchers have uncovered the surprisingly large role that companies play in shaping sustainable behaviors among employees, as well as a link between eco-friendly behaviors and happier workers. In research published in Current Research in Ecological and Social Psychology, the Princeton team reported the results from a nationwide study of employees to understand the factors that influence whether workers take sustainable actions and incorporate the environment into their day-to-day decision making. The results ...

Give credit to your dad’s gene for keeping you safe during those long months in your mother’s womb. Because without this genetic warrior, you might have succumbed to any number of viral infections that otherwise could be fatal to a fetus. A new paper published this week in the journal Cell Host & Microbe explains the mechanisms behind this anti-viral protection. “What’s unique about this gene is how it produces a form of defense for the baby in the womb,’’ said Hana Totary-Jain, PhD., associate professor of Molecular ...

Outcome indicators make quality of life after childhood cancer measurable A new measurement tool helps analyzing the survival rate of children with cancer, but also the quality of survival. Researchers at the Princess Máxima Center for Pediatric Oncology have worked with patients and survivors to develop a set of outcome indicators that measure health issues. By making the balance between survival and quality of life measurable, the outcome indicators help improve care for children with cancer. There are many types of childhood cancer, and the consequences ...

Back in the 1920s, researchers discovered that cancer patients had sweet-smelling urine. First, the doctors were puzzled, but they soon realised that it was a result of elevated blood sugar levels. “This was one of the first things we learned about cancer patients,” says Associate Professor Lykke Sylow. The sweet-smelling urine suggested that cancer affects the body’s blood sugar level. But how? A new study is ready to answer that question. Where previous studies have examined the connection between cancer and insulin, Lykke Sylow and colleagues’ ...