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The push to develop treatments for Alzheimer’s disease has yielded a greater understanding of the disease, but has failed to generate successful new drugs. To blame are the many undefined subtypes of mild cognitive impairment, a precursor to Alzheimer’s disease. But if scientists grouped people with similar types of cognitive impairment, they could more precisely test the impact of investigational drugs, according to findings in a July 28 article in the journal Scientific Reports, a publication of Nature Research.

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For the subset of women with BRCA mutations who have already had ovarian cancer, risk-reducing mastectomy might not be worth the price tag. New research from the Duke Cancer Institute finds that for many women in this unique group, prophylactic mastectomy does not produce a substantial survival gain versus breast cancer screening alone and is not cost-effective.

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A team of hearing experts at Duke University School of Medicine and the Duke Global Health Institute is calling for a comprehensive, worldwide initiative to combat hearing loss.

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Researchers from Duke University School of Medicine and Tulane National Primate Research Center report findings in monkeys that demonstrates a CMV vaccine approach that appears to be capable of protecting the animal’s fetus from infection.

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Adding an investigational antibody to the chemotherapy rituximab appears to restore its cancer-killing properties in certain leukemia patients with a natural resistance to the drug, according to a small, proof-of-concept study by Duke Cancer Institute researchers.

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Duke University researchers have identified a potential new mechanism for Parkinson's disease in both mice and human endocrine cells that populate the small intestines.

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Building on insights from an HIV vaccine regimen in humans that had partial success during a phase 3 clinical trial in Thailand, a Duke-led research team used a more-is-better approach in monkeys that appeared to improve vaccine protection from an HIV-like virus.

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A phase one study of 11 patients with glioblastoma who received injections of an investigational vaccine therapy and an approved chemotherapy showed the combination to be well tolerated while also resulting in unexpectedly significant survival increases, researchers at the Duke Cancer Institute report.

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The MURDOCK Study, Duke Clinical Research Institute and Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals Inc. announced today the launch of a new collaborative research effort to closely follow 850 people living with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).

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The chemical bisphenol A, or BPA, appears to aid the survival of inflammatory breast cancer cells, revealing a potential mechanism for how the disease grows, according to a study led by researchers in the Department of Surgery at Duke University School of Medicine and the Duke Cancer Institute.

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A survey of more than 422,000 college freshmen found that students who identified as transgender were more likely than their cisgender peers to experience negative consequences from drinking, including memory blackouts, academic problems and conflicts such as arguments or physical fights.

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A Duke Health-led research team has described both the pathway of HIV protective antibody development and a synthetic HIV outer envelope mimic that has the potential to induce the antibodies with vaccination.

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More than half of older women with early stage breast cancer received more radiation therapy than what might be medically necessary, adding additional treatment and health care costs, according to a study led by Duke Cancer Institute researchers.

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More than 80 percent of stroke patients with a history of atrial fibrillation either received not enough or no anticoagulation therapy prior to having a stroke, despite the drugs’ proven record of reducing stroke risk, according to a Duke Clinical Research Institute study.

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The Pokémon Go craze that spurred millions of people to collect virtual monsters via a smart phone app might have also had a health benefit by encouraging people to get up and walk.

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It may seem obvious, but the key to confirming whether someone is suffering from a cold or flu virus might lie at the misery’s source -- the inflamed passages of the nose and throat. Duke Health scientists have identified a group of proteins that, when detected in specific quantities in the mucous, are 86 percent accurate in confirming the infection is from a cold or flu virus, according to a small, proof-of-concept trial published online in the journal EBioMedicine.

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Babies born at just 22 to 24 weeks of pregnancy continue to have sobering outlooks -- only about 1 in 3 survive. But according to a new study led by Duke Health and appearing Feb. 16 in the New England Journal of Medicine, those rates are showing small but measurable improvement. Compared to extremely preterm babies born a decade earlier, the study found a larger percentage are developing into toddlers without signs of moderate or severe cognitive and motor delay.

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The loss of motor function and mental acuity associated with Huntington’s disease might be treatable by restoring a cellular quality control process, which Duke Health researchers have identified as a key factor in the degenerative illness.

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After decades investigating a rare, life-threatening condition that cripples the muscles, Duke Health researchers have developed a gene therapy they hope could enhance or even replace the only FDA-approved treatment currently available to patients. The therapy uses a modified virus to deliver a gene to the liver where it produces GAA, an enzyme missing in people with Pompe disease.

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A new tool -- a type of ultraviolet light called UVC -- could aid hospitals in the ongoing battle to keep drug-resistant bacteria from lingering in patient rooms and causing new infections.

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Exposure to second-hand tobacco smoke -- even before conception -- appears to have a lingering impact that can later impair the brain development of a fetus, researchers at Duke Health report.

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Although both group and individual therapy can ease post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms in active-duty military service members, individual therapy relieved PTSD symptoms better and quicker, according to a study led by a Duke University School of Medicine researcher. The randomized clinical trial is the largest to date to examine an evidence-based treatment for active-duty military service members, with 268 participants from the U.S. Army’s Fort Hood in Killeen, Texas. Findings will be published Nov. 23 in JAMA Psychiatry.

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A Connecticut law enacted in 1999 to allow police to temporarily remove guns from potentially violent or suicidal people likely prevented dozens of suicides, according to a study by researchers at Duke and Yale universities and the University of Connecticut.

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When patients suffer from atrial fibrillation, an irregular heartbeat, they are at considerably higher risk for blood clots and stroke. However, when hospitalized, half of these patients do not receive medications that could help prevent such complications, according to research being presented Nov. 14 at the American Heart Association Scientific Sessions.

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Scientists at Duke Health and Zhejiang Chinese Medical University have developed a strategy to stop the uncontrollable itch caused by urushiol, the oily sap common to poison ivy, poison sumac, poison oak and even mango trees. The team found that by blocking an immune system protein in the skin with an antibody, they could halt the processes that tell the brain the skin is itchy.

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“This study is a good wake-up call that health care personnel need to concentrate on the idea that the health care environment can be contaminated,” said Deverick Anderson, M.D., the study’s lead author and associate professor of medicine at Duke University School of Medicine. “Any type of patient care, or even just entry into a room where care is provided, truly should be considered a chance for interacting with organisms that can cause disease.”

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A head-to-head comparison of sacral neuromodulation and botulinum toxin led by a Duke Health researcher shows that Botox provides more daily relief for women suffering from urge incontinence, but might also be associated with more adverse events.

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Using a national network and gene mapping tools, Duke Health researchers led a study identifying a new genetic disorder, which still has no name. It shares similarities to two other rare genetic disorders arising from related genes.

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Does eating too much sugar cause type 2 diabetes? The answer may not be simple, but a study published Sept. 26 in the Journal of Clinical Investigation adds to growing research linking excessive sugar consumption -- specifically the sugar fructose -- to a rise in metabolic disease worldwide. The study, conducted in mice and corroborated in human liver samples, unveils a metabolic process that could upend previous ideas about how the body becomes resistant to insulin and eventually develops diabetes.

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A research team led by Duke Health, using mice as the models, has described the cellular processes that occur during “rush desensitization.” The approach involves giving a small dose of the allergy trigger – peanuts or bee poison or even chemotherapy -- to the susceptible patient in small, yet increasing doses over a short period.

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The Duke Clinical Research Institute (DCRI) has been named the coordinating center as part of a $157-million federal initiative involved in studying how environmental factors affect childhood health.

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While searching for a non-invasive way to detect prostate cancer cells circulating in blood, Duke Cancer Institute researchers have identified some blood markers associated with tumor resistance to two common hormone therapies.

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Patients suffering from noninfectious uveitis, a group of diseases that causes eye inflammation, can get effective treatment from a corticosteroid alternative that has previously been approved for treatment of arthritis and Crohn’s disease, according to a study led by a Duke Health researcher.

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Researchers at Duke Health have identified a new mechanism of aspirin’s action that appears to explain the drug’s diverse benefits.

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Gastric bypass surgery is more effective for weight loss and long-term weight maintenance than are other surgical procedures and non-surgical treatment, according to a study led by researchers at Duke Health and the Durham VA Medical Center.

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Heart abnormalities linked to immersion pulmonary edema were present in a greater-than-expected proportion of triathletes who died during the competition’s swim portion, according to a study led by researchers at Duke Health.

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A new quality improvement initiative that aims to create effective solutions in optimizing adult vaccination rates was announced today. The program, the Adult Immunization Project, is a collaboration among the Duke Clinical Research Institute (DCRI), Duke Primary Care, Pfizer, and Premier. Researchers will jointly work to develop evidence-based interventions to support indicated adult vaccination practices among providers in the Duke Health system

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Molecules that scavenge debris from dying cells appear to halt the cycle of chronic inflammation in lupus, while also enhancing the body’s ability to combat flu, according to Duke Health studies in mice.

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Surgeons operating on patients with advanced thyroid cancer are often conflicted when deciding how many lymph nodes they should remove to reduce the patient’s risk of recurrence.

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Eight people who have spent years paralyzed from spinal cord injuries have regained partial sensation and muscle control in their lower limbs after training with brain-controlled robotics, according to a study published Aug. 11 in Scientific Reports.

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In the search for new ways to attack recurrent prostate cancer, researchers at Duke Health report that a novel compound appears to have a unique way of blocking testosterone from fueling the tumors in mice.

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Warfarin prescribed to prevent strokes in atrial fibrillation may not adequately control blood clotting over the long-term, even when patients have been historically stable on the drug, according to a study from the Duke Clinical Research Institute.

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Duke Health-led researchers have discovered new information about the signaling mechanism of cells that could one day help guide development of more specific drug therapies.

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Patients suffering from deadly heart attacks can be spared more extensive heart damage when emergency responders and hospitals work together to standardize their treatment processes, according to a study published August 1 in Circulation, a journal of the American Heart Association (AHA).

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One of the main mysteries confounding development of an HIV vaccine is why some people infected with the virus make the desired antibodies after several years, but a vaccine can’t seem to induce the same response.

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Researchers at Duke Health have identified a potential new avenue for treating Pompe disease, a rare condition caused by the build-up of glycogen, a storage form of sugar, in cardiac and skeletal muscle, the liver and other tissues, due to deficiency of a particular enzyme.

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Physical declines begin sooner in life than typically detected, often when people are still in their 50s, according to a Duke Health study that focused on a large group of U.S. adults across a variety of age groups.

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Duke University could receive up to $19 million to lead early-stage clinical trials for new drugs to treat neurological conditions such as Alzheimer’s disease and neuropathy.

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The process cells use to secrete chemicals also appears to be the way to clear urinary tract infections, or UTIs, according to a study by researchers from Duke Health and Duke-National University of Singapore.

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Walking briskly on a regular basis may be more effective than vigorous jogging for improving glucose control in individuals with pre-diabetes, according to research from Duke Health.