Research Results

Mental Health Units in Correctional Facilities: Scarce Data but Promising Outcomes

July 13, 2020 sarah Jonas Incarceration, Mental Health, Mental Illness, Public Health

Specialized mental health units (MHUs) may be critical to managing the high rates of serious mental illness in incarcerated populations. But research data on unit characteristics, services provided, and outcomes achieved by MHUs in correctional facilities are scarce, according to a report in the July/August issue of Harvard Review of Psychiatry. The journal is published in the Lippincott portfolio by Wolters Kluwer.

Research Results

Parasite infestations revealed by tiny chicken backpacks

July 13, 2020 sarah Jonas AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTION/ECONOMICS, Agriculture, Biology, Computer Science, Entomology, FERTILIZERS/PEST MANAGEMENT, FOOD/FOOD SCIENCE, PARASITOLOGY, ROBOTRY/ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE

Blood-feeding livestock mites can be detected with wearable sensor technology nicknamed “Fitbits for chickens.”

Research Results

Listeria protein provides a CRISPR ‘kill switch’

July 13, 2020 sarah Jonas

A single protein derived from a common strain of bacteria found in the soil will offer scientists a more precise way to edit RNA.

Research Results

Scientists discover key element of strong antibody response to COVID-19

July 13, 2020 sarah Jonas Cell Biology, genes, IMMUNOLOGY/ALLERGIES/ASTHMA, INFECTIOUS/EMERGING DISEASES, MEDICINE/HEALTH, Vaccines, VIROLOGY

A team led by scientists at Scripps Research has discovered a common molecular feature found in many of the human antibodies that neutralize SARS-CoV-2, the coronavirus that causes COVID-19.

Research Results

Pickled capers activate proteins important for human brain and heart health

July 13, 2020 sarah Jonas Epilepsy, UCI School of Medicine

A compound commonly found in pickled capers has been shown to activate proteins required for normal human brain and heart activity, and may even lead to future therapies for the treatment of epilepsy and abnormal heart rhythms.

Research Results

Study finds weight loss surgery cost disparity

July 13, 2020 sarah Jonas Bariatric, Medical Costs, Obesity

A new study from the University of Georgia finds that users of public insurance are paying more for bariatric weight loss surgery compared to private insurance patients.

Research Results

Single-Dose Flu Drug Reduces Spread Within Households

July 13, 2020 sarah Jonas Aging, EPIDEMIOLOGY, flu, GERONTOLOGY, Influenza, Mortality, Pediatrics, University Of Virginia, University of Virginia School of Medicine, UVA, UVA School of Medicine, Vaccines

Only 1.9% of uninfected household contacts who took a single dose of baloxavir marboxil came down with the flu.

Research Results

UTHealth joins study of blood pressure medication’s effect on improving COVID-19 outcomes

July 13, 2020 sarah Jonas Clinical Trial, COVID Research, COVID-19, Critical Care Medicine, Double Blind Study, ICU Care, Placebo Controlled

An interventional therapy aimed at improving survival chances and reducing the need for critical care treatment due to COVID-19 is being investigated by physicians at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth). The clinical trial is underway at Memorial Hermann and Harris Health System’s Lyndon B. Johnson Hospital.

Research Results

Tiny Bubbles Make a Quantum Leap

July 13, 2020 sarah Jonas Materials, OPTICS, Photon, Quantum, Semiconductor

Researchers at Columbia Engineering and Montana State University have found that placing sufficient strain in a 2D material creates localized states that can yield single-photon emitters. Using sophisticated optical microscopy techniques developed at Columbia over the past 3 years, the team was able to directly image these states for the first time, revealing that even at room temperature they are highly tunable and act as quantum dots, tightly confined pieces of semiconductors that emit light.

Research Results

Severely Damaged Human Lungs Can Now Be Successfully Recovered

July 13, 2020 sarah Jonas Biomedical Engineering, Lungs, Transplant

A multidisciplinary team from Columbia Engineering and Vanderbilt University has now demonstrated that severely injured donor lungs that have been declined for transplant can be recovered outside the body by a system that uses cross-circulation of whole blood between the donor lung and an animal host. For the first time, a severely injured human lung that failed to recover using the standard clinical EVLP was successfully recovered during 24 hours on the team’s cross-circulation platform.

Research Results

Mind the gap: Even the richest Americans lag the English on health, study finds

July 13, 2020 sarah Jonas Chronic Disease, England, Health Disparities, Health Insurance, low-income, United States

A new study shows that middle-aged people living in the U.S. today have worse health than their English counterparts – and that the difference in health between rich and poor is much larger on the American side of the Atlantic.