A new review article published in Engineering offers a comprehensive look at vacuum glazing, a technology that shows great potential in enhancing energy efficiency in buildings. As buildings account for around 40% of society’s total energy consumption, improving the thermal performance of glazing is crucial for achieving low-carbon building goals. Vacuum glazing has gained attention for its heat preservation, sound insulation, lightweight features, and anti-condensation properties. The concept dates back to 1913, but it was not until 1989 that researchers in Australia successfully produced vacuum glazing with excellent thermal insulation performance. Since then, significant ...

About The Study: In this study, differences in out-of-pocket maternity spending among the commercially insured were associated with differences in coinsurance rates. These costs could lead people to forgo needed health care or other basic needs that support health (e.g., food or housing). Changes to health plan benefit design could improve equity in out-of-pocket maternity spending and its consequences. Corresponding Author: To contact the corresponding author, Anna D. Sinaiko, PhD, MPP, email asinaiko@hsph.harvard.edu. To access the embargoed study: ...

COLLEGE PARK, MD – A new study out today in JAMA Health Forum is the first to show that Black, Hispanic and Asian people with private insurance tend to pay more out-of-pocket for maternity care than white people.  “The average additional spending on medical care from pregnancy through postpartum paid by people who are Black, Hispanic and Asian is significantly more than white people,” said Dr. Rebecca Gourevitch, the study’s lead author and an assistant professor in the Department of Health Policy and Management at the University of Maryland School of Public Health (UMD SPH).  “We found that out-of-pocket costs were highest ...

About The Study: During the COVID-19 pandemic, food insecurity decreased among Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) participants in most racial and ethnic groups but did not decrease among non-SNAP participants in any group. These results suggest that during the pandemic, increased SNAP benefit amounts were associated with ameliorating food insecurity for many U.S. adults who were able to access SNAP but did not reduce racial and ethnic disparities in food insecurity. Corresponding Author: To contact the corresponding author, Yingfei Wu, MD, MPH, email yingfeiwu322@gmail.com. To ...

On February 7, 2025, the U.S. National Institutes of Health announced a decision to cap indirect cost reimbursement—which supports the critical infrastructure and staff that make biomedical research possible—at 15%. In a commentary published February 28 in the Cell Press journal Cell, molecular biologist Tom Maniatis of the New York Genome Center (NYGC) and Columbia University's Zuckerman Institute reflects on the impact NIH funding has had on his own career and science, explores the value indirect investment has brought to U.S. science over the last five decades, and calls for urgent, unified action from the scientific community ...

Despite ongoing progress, structural racism and health disparities continue to shape healthcare practices in ways healthcare providers may not even realize. A recent study in JAMA Network Open, published Feb. 28, 2025, shows that continued use of race-specific equations in the diagnostic process of children with asthma symptoms limits the identification of reduced lung function in Black children. “This finding is important because when these children are not identified as having reduced lung function, they may not receive further testing. This can lead to under-diagnosis, ...

Hepatic steatosis, often triggered by non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), is a leading cause of liver dysfunction globally, affecting approximately 30% of the population. The progression from steatosis to hepatic fibrosis, which may ultimately lead to cirrhosis, is a significant concern in liver disease management. This review highlights the critical role of solute carrier (SLC) family transporters in both hepatic steatosis and fibrosis. SLC transporters are membrane-bound proteins responsible for transporting a variety of molecules, including fatty acids, ...

Scientists have a new target to prevent cold sores after University of Virginia School of Medicine researchers discovered an unexpected way the herpes virus re-activates in the body. The finding could also have important implications for genital herpes caused by the same virus. The discovery from UVA’s Anna Cliffe, PhD, and colleagues seems to defy common sense. She and her team found that the slumbering herpes virus will make a protein to trigger the body’s immune response as part of its escape from dormancy. You’d think this would be bad for the virus – that activating the body’s ...

Glenview, Illinois – The American College of Chest Physicians (CHEST), the PF Warriors, the Rare Disease Diversity Coalition (RDDC)—a program at the Black Woman's Health Imperative—and the National Association of Community Health Workers (NACHW) announce their collaboration to address idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) as a chronic disease on Rare Disease Day 2025. Together, the organizations will employ designated activities that will build a knowledge base on the current IPF landscape ...

The study, which examined 121 babies aged three to twelve months in Accra, the capital of Ghana, demonstrates a remarkable variety of language input in the early months of life. The children are regularly exposed to two to six languages. Strikingly, the number of caregivers the children have also ranges between two and six, and babies who have more adults in their daily lives who regularly take care of them also hear more different languages. In Ghana, families often live in so-called “compound buildings”, where many ...

Virginia Tech is spearheading a research coalition to reveal the untapped potential of the greater Appalachian Mountains region. This coalition aims to accelerate the identification and characterization of unconventional critical mineral resources throughout the area. It brings together academic institutions, research laboratories, federal and state natural resource offices, and consultancies, all collaborating with the end goal of boosting regional economic growth and creating new jobs. The research team, led by Richard Bishop, professor of practice in ...

A recent study published in Engineering delves into the behavior of reinforced concrete beams strengthened with Carbon Fiber Reinforced Polymer (CFRP) and Ultra-High-Performance Concrete (UHPC) under thermocyclic loading. This research, conducted by Ju-Hyung Kim and Yail J. Kim, aims to understand the effects of multi-hazard loading on these strengthened structures, which is crucial for the maintenance and rehabilitation of existing buildings. Multi-hazards, such as the combination of seismic events and high temperatures, pose ...

Paul Armsworth, Distinguished Service Professor in the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, has received a 2025 Southeastern Conference Faculty Achievement Award for excellence in teaching, research and service. He and the 15 other recipients this year — one from each SEC member university — are now nominated for the SEC Professor of the Year Award, which will be announced later in the spring. “I am thrilled to receive this recognition, but it is also very humbling to be celebrated in this ...

A recent study published in Engineering presents a groundbreaking method for comprehensively evaluating the performance of aeroengines, the crucial components powering aircraft. Authored by Shubin Si and other researchers from esteemed institutions in China, this research addresses long-standing challenges in aeroengine performance assessment. Aeroengines are complex systems, and their performance directly impacts flight safety and efficiency. Traditional evaluation methods, such as airlines relying on single-parameter indicators like exhaust gas temperature or manufacturers conducting ...

A study led by UMass Chan researchers demonstrated that a gene therapy to correct a mutation that causes maple syrup urine disease (MSUD) prevented newborn death, normalized growth, restored coordinated expression of the affected genes and stabilized biomarkers in a calf as well as in mice.  “Simply put, we believe the gene therapy demonstrated in both animal species, especially in the cow, very well showcases the therapeutic potential for MSUD, in part because the diseased cow, without treatment, has a very similar metabolic profile as the patients,” said Dan Wang, PhD, assistant ...

Drug-induced liver injury (DILI) is a significant concern in clinical practice, arising from medications, herbs, and dietary supplements. It can manifest in different forms, including hepatocellular, cholestatic, and mixed types, each associated with specific liver enzyme abnormalities and histological injury patterns. Hepatocellular DILI is characterized by inflammation, necrosis, and apoptosis, while cholestatic DILI involves bile plug formation and bile duct paucity. Ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA), a widely used treatment for cholestatic liver diseases, has recently been investigated for its potential therapeutic effects ...

Hepatic biliary adenofibroma (BAF) is a rare benign bile duct neoplasm that has garnered increasing attention due to its potential role as a precursor lesion for intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (iCCA). Although it shares histopathological features with other biliary tumors, BAF is distinct in its composition, consisting of low-grade tubuloglandular and microcystic bile duct structures embedded in a dense fibrous stroma. Despite its classification as a benign tumor, emerging case reports suggest that BAF may undergo malignant transformation. However, its rarity and limited molecular characterization contribute to diagnostic ...

Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD), formerly known as non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), is a global health challenge, affecting nearly 30% of adults worldwide. A significant subset of MASLD patients progresses to metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH), liver fibrosis, and even hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), yet no universally approved treatment exists outside resmetirom. The increasing prevalence of MASLD, driven by obesity and diabetes, highlights an urgent need for innovative therapeutic ...

McMaster University researchers have identified small molecules in the blood that may impact early childhood development, showing how dietary exposures, early life experiences, and gut health can influence a child's growth and cognitive milestones. A McMaster team collaborated with Brazilian scientists to conduct an untargeted metabolomic analysis of blood samples taken from more than 5,000 children between the ages of six months and five years as part of the Brazilian National Survey of Child Nutrition study. The McMaster team found several metabolites – small molecules that are by-products of human metabolism and microbial fermentation, ...

Giant pandas have digestive systems that are typical for carnivores. Yet, bamboo is their main source of food. They have evolved several features, for example pseudo thumbs to grasp bamboo and flat teeth that are well suited for crushing it, that make it possible for them to live off plants. All living organisms have DNA, which stores the genetic information in a cell, and RNA, which carries and transfers this information. MicroRNAs (miRNA) are small non-coding RNAs that play an important role in gene expression, the process of turning the information encoded in a gene into a function. ...

Stretchable display materials, which are gaining traction in the next-generation display market, have the advantage of being able to stretch and bend freely, but the limitations of existing materials have resulted in distorted screens and poor fit. General elastomeric substrates are prone to screen distortion due to the 'Poisson's ratio' phenomenon, in which stretching in one direction causes the screen to shrink in the vertical direction. In particular, electronics that are in close contact with the skin, such as wearable devices, are at risk of wrinkling or pulling on the skin during stretching and shrinking, resulting in ...

By Alistair Jones SMU Office of Research – Even by the standards of medical terminology, photoplethysmography (PPG) is a mouthful. Yet it is widely used in clinical settings as a non-invasive, optical technique for measuring the oxygen saturation level in the blood, and the pulse rate, as vital signs of a patient. It is commonly encountered as a clip-on oximeter attached to a finger. First developed in the 1930s, PPG emits light to illuminate the microvascular bed of the skin. Then a photodiode, positioned alongside the light emitter, captures the reflected light, termed the PPG waveform, which ...

By Vince Chong SMU Office of Research – With the surfeit of trackable, wearable devices in modern life, there is little problem locating things and people outdoors by leveraging Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) solutions (GPS is an example of this type of solution) that use signals from satellites. Indoors on the other hand, is a different matter as GNSS signals are unavailable and other possible signals such as those from Wi-Fi systems are inconsistent, and often distorted.  And when this ability to swiftly, accurately locate indoor objects is starkly crucial to essential services that make the difference between life and death, upgrading ...

No one should have to fear food poisoning every time they eat or drink, but the reality, even in the 21st century, is that risks remain. An Osaka Metropolitan University-led Egypt-Japan research team found E. coli prevalent in over 25% of popular milk and dairy products in Egypt. Of the 210 samples of raw milk, cheese, and yoghurt, 26.2% were positive for E. coli, with the highest being raw buffalo milk at 68%, and the lowest at 7.5% for rayeb, a type of fermented milk. The preference for raw milk instead of pasteurized milk and varying hygienic conditions at small dairies and markets could explain these results. Yet food poisoning ...

By Christie Loh SMU Office of Research – When his parents heard that he had won an award at his workplace, they were naturally delighted, showering their son with a confetti of questions like what the prize was for, whether there was a formal ceremony, and that he must keep up the good work. Indeed, Monit Sharma is well aware that as encouraging as the SMU Research Staff Excellence Award is, the professional road he is on calls for both hard work and stamina. The 23-year-old is a Research Engineer at SMU’s ...