A mouse protein, whose human equivalent is related to defense against HIV-1, inhibits the infection and spread of a mouse tumor virus. This finding provides a new model for the discovery and evaluation of anti-HIV drugs.
Shiriki Kumanyika, PhD, MPH, a Professor in the Department of Biostatistics and Epidemiology at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, has won the 2007 Red Dress Award from Woman's Day magazine. It is presented annually (this year to three individuals nationwide) to those who have made an exceptional contribution to fighting heart disease in women, the nation's leading killer.
Researchers have shown that impaired function and loss of synapses in the hippocampus of a mouse form of Alzheimer's disease (AD) is related to the activation of immune cells called microglia, which cause inflammation.
Researchers have discovered that microtubules use proteins that act as molecular motors and brakes to organize into their correct structure. If microtubules are not formed properly such basic functions as cell division and transport can go wrong.
Investigators describe the basis for developing a biological interface that could link a patient's nervous system to a thought-driven artificial limb. Their conceptual framework brings together years of spinal-cord injury research.
Researchers have shown that a well-known protein structure acts as a molecular spring, explaining one way that clots may stretch and bend under such physical stresses as blood flow. This knowledge will inform researchers about clot physiology in such conditions as wound healing, stroke, and cardiovascular disease.
Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine have demonstrated the potential of a new type of therapy for patients who suffer from high cholesterol levels. In this study, patients with homozygous familial hypercholesterolemia (FH), a high-risk condition refractory to conventional therapy, had a remarkable 51% reduction in low-density lipoprotein (LDL) or "bad cholesterol" levels.
James Kirkpatrick, MD, who recently joined the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine as an Assistant Professor of Medicine, is offering his expertise to the media in the often overlooked arena of ethics in cardiovascular medicine.
Researchers have pinpointed a key regulatory protein that translates blood flow into gene expression. The investigators showed that in a model of mouse embryonic development a transcription factor called Klf2, which resides in cells that line blood vessels, is activated by rapid, pulsed blood flow.
Clinical researchers at the University of Pennsylvania Health System are starting a trial utilizing a new mechanism to treat the heart when its electrical pulses essentially short-circuit, referred to as atrial fibrillation (A-Fib). The tool is a high intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) ablation system. It's the first to deliver energy bursts forward in a complete circle, all at once, from outside of the vein.
Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania's School of Medicine have found that hospitals with high and low performance on Medicare quality measures had little difference in the rate of death for three common conditions at the hospitals, indicating that the performance measures may not accurately reflect patient outcomes.
Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania's School of Medicine have found by targeting the function of a single gene that it is possible to inhibit bone decay while simultaneously stimulating bone formation. This concept may lead to drug treatments for osteoporosis and other bone diseases.
Researchers are advancing against a rare, deadly lung disease (related to hormones) that no one had even heard of a decade ago. The disease targets only women, striking them down during their childbearing years. It can be triggered by pregnancy, progresses rapidly, and often results in death within ten years.
Researchers have pinpointed a molecular pathway that regulates the development of taste buds and is required for hooking up the wiring of taste signals to the brain.
Researchers have identified a new protein associated with acute myelogenous leukemia. Several lines of evidence point to a protein called Tribbles, named after the furry creatures that took over the starship Enterprise in the original Star Trek series.
Researchers have discovered how the Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpes virus subverts a normal cell process in order to promote tumor growth. The finding offers new potential strategies for treating Kaposi's sarcoma and other viral cancers.
Researchers report the first clinical test of a new gene therapy based on a disabled AIDS virus carrying genetic material that inhibits HIV replication. Five subjects with chronic HIV infection who had failed to respond to at least two antiretroviral regimens were given a single infusion of their own immune cells that had been genetically modified for HIV resistance.
A protein with the ironic name "Srcasm" can counteract the effects of tumor-promoting molecules in skin cells. Using animal models, the researchers discovered that Srcasm acts like a brake in epithelial cells, preventing uncontrolled cell growth caused by a family of proteins called Src kinases.
The Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania (HUP) is now offering the newest multi-slice computed tomography (CT) imaging technology to patients, becoming the first hospital in Philadelphia equipped with pioneering dual x-ray source technology -- which produces amazingly detailed 3-D images of the heart. Benefits include: no medication, less radiation, and faster imaging time.
Fifty-four million Americans - that's one in six of us -- have pre-diabetes and most don't even realize it. Mark Schutta, MD, medical director of the Penn Rodebaugh Diabetes Center, is urging at-risk patients to be proactive and ask your doctor to give you a simple blood test for pre-diabetes - to arm yourself with information before the damage is done.
According to a study that appears in the November 2006 issue of the journal Ophthalmology, researchers at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine and 21 other clinical centers have found that low-intensity laser treatment - thought to be potentially beneficial in slowing or preventing the loss of vision from age-related macular degeneration (AMD) - is ineffective in preventing complications of AMD or vision loss.
Glossolalia, otherwise referred to as "speaking in tongues," has been around for thousands of years. Now, in a first of its kind study, scientists are shining the light on this mysterious practice -- attempting to explain what actually happens physiologically to the brain of someone while speaking in tongues.
The University of Pennsylvania Health System's Wissahickon Hospice announced a new partnership with The Moyer Foundation, established by Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Jaime Moyer and his wife Karen, to assist in the development of Camp Erin-Philadelphia. Camp Erin, created and funded by The Moyer Foundation, is the largest network of bereavement camps in the United States with eight camps covering six different states.
A finding on how immune cells "decide" to become active or inactive may have applications in fighting cancerous tumors, autoimmune diseases, and organ transplant rejection.
Psoriasis is an independent risk factor for myocardial infarction (MI; heart attack), and this risk is greatest in young patients with severe psoriasis, according to Joel M. Gelfand, MD, MSCE, Assistant Professor of Dermatology, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, and lead author of the study that appears in the October 11 issue of The Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA).
Researchers have discovered the major disease protein for two neurodegenerative disorders: a type of frontotemporal dementia (FTD) and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also called Lou Gehrig's disease.
NIH has awarded Penn $68 million over the next five years, along with The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. Institutional commitments of $30 million bring the Philadelphia consortium's total to nearly $100 million.
Marc Levine, MD, Professor of Radiology at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine has received an Eminent Scientist of the Year 2006 award from the International Research Promotion Council (IRPC) in India. The award is based on his clinical expertise and research excellence in the field of gastrointestinal radiology.
Critical care physicians with the University of Pennsylvania Health System address a newly-emerging ethical dilemma in medicine - what should health care professionals do when faced with a request from a patient to end the use of life-sustaining supplemental oxygen?
RT Image has chosen The Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania (HUP) as one of its "25 Most Influential" movers and shakers in the radiology industry in 2006. Every year, RT Image magazine presents its roster of radiology's most powerful people, institutions and organizations based on who has influenced the radiology profession in a positive way in the last year.
Deleting an inflammation enzyme in a mouse model of heart disease slowed the development of atherosclerosis. This could mean the possibility of a new class of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs that steer clear of heart-disease risk.
Craig B. Thompson, MD, has been named the new Director of the Abramson Cancer Center of the University of Pennsylvania and Associate Vice President for Cancer Services of the University of Pennsylvania Health System.
Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine will soon be armed with a new, cutting-edge technological tool in the field of radiology - a 7 Tesla whole-body Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) system. Penn's Department of Radiology will become the first in the Greater Philadelphia region to acquire one of these ultra high-field scanners. Only a handful of them are in operation elsewhere in the United States.
Researchers discovered that children with autism possessed levels of biochemicals that indicate the presence of constricted blood vessels via the endothelium (the cells that line vessels) with a higher tendency to form clots (through cells called platelets).
Tips for making healthy school lunches from Pennsylvania Hospital nutritionist Debra DeMille
Although experts recommend that backpacks weigh no more than 15 percent of a child's body weight, many kids routinely lug more than double that burden. Over time, this can lead to stooped posture, chronic back and shoulder pain, and muscle weakness.
Penn sleep physician shares advice for parents of teens who suffer from delayed sleep phase syndrome.
Truck drivers who routinely get too little sleep or suffer from sleep apnea show signs of fatigue and impaired performance that can make them a hazard on the road, according to a major new study by researchers at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine. The study results are published in the August 15th issue of the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.
Researchers discovered a novel mechanism that works over an extensive genomic distance and controls the expression of human growth hormone in the pituitary gland. Mistakes in expression could be implied in growth disorders.
Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine have helped develop a technique in animal models for using the abdominal cavity to exchange gas, supplementing the function normally performed by the lungs.
Researchers have determined the structure of an important smallpox virus enzyme and how it binds to DNA. The enzyme, called a topoisomerase, is an important drug target for coming up with new ways to fight smallpox.
Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine are examining the effectiveness of meditation on early cognitive impairment. Once this new study is completed, the results could help answer lingering questions over whether or not stress-reducing techniques and mind exercises can lessen or even prevent cognitive decline.
Researchers estimate that the human retina can transmit visual input at roughly 10 million bits per second, similar to an Ethernet connection. This line of questioning can ultimately inform the design of artificial visual systems.
Researchers found that chronic ibuprofen therapy given after brain injury worsens cognitive abilities. These findings have important implications for traumatic brain injury patients who are often prescribed NSAIDs for chronic pain.
Penn researchers have published a group of papers that, taken together, show proteins that function as molecular motors are surprisingly flexible and agile, able to navigate obstacles within the cell.
Researchers have discovered a new way to open ion channels in the membrane of cells. They found that an enzyme splits a lipid that surrounds the channel, with implications for designing new drugs to control ion-channel activity.
Researchers have isolated a new source of adult stem cells that appear to have the potential to differentiate into several cell types. These cells may one day have applications for a host of disorders, including peripheral nerve disease, Parkinson's disease, and spinal cord injury.
Using a newly developed drug screen, researchers have discovered small molecule compounds that are able to perform the functions of a gene commonly mutated in many types of cancer. These findings emphasize the growing role of imaging technology in aiding researchers in the development of individualized cancer treatments.
The University of Pennsylvania Health System (UPHS) is launching a new "Center for Evidence-Based Practice" in July 2006. Its purpose is to provide, throughout the entire health system, recommendations -- based on scientific methodology -- on clinical practices and policies. The center will evaluate drugs, as well as non-drug technologies like medical devices and equipment.
Researchers have found that the acute loss of a protein called menin can cause the proliferation of pancreatic islet cells. The menin gene (Men1) mutation in humans causes an inherited disease called Multiple Endocrine Neoplasia type 1 (MEN1). Not only could this discovery inform basic cancer biology, it also has implications for treating Type 1 diabetes.
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