News & Publications
Healing Can be Too Much of a Good Thing for Transplanted Hearts
By Phoebe Ingraham Renda
Treg repair responses reveal a delicate balance in healing transplanted hearts. Illustrated by: Phoebe Ingraham Renda.
In a study published in the Journal of Clinical Investigation, researchers from The University of Pittsburgh’s Departments of Surgery and of Immunology and the Thomas E. Starzl Transplantation Institute discovered that a molecule...
Pitt Doctor Sylvia Owusu-Ansah's Story Influenced Upcoming Series, “The Pitt”
By Kat Procyk
Sylvia Owusu-Ansah, associate vice chair of diversity, equity and inclusion, Department of Pediatrics, and assistant professor of pediatrics and of emergency medicine at the University of Pittsburgh’s School of Medicine, met with the writing staff from Max’s upcoming medical drama set in Pittsburgh, “The Pitt,” over a two-hour Zoom call in March 2024 to...
As Respiratory Illnesses Surge, Pitt Vaccination and Health Connection Hub Offers Vaccines
Pitt’s Vaccination and Health Connection Hub is offering vaccinations to protect against many of the respiratory illnesses that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports are surging now in states including Pennsylvania.
As of Friday, Jan. 3, COVID-19 was on the rise across most of the country and is expected to continue an upward trajectory in the...
Parents Who Lost Children to HDFN are Fighting for Patient Advocacy. This Pitt Doctor Is Helping Their Voices Be Heard.
By Kat Procyk
Clinicians are widely adopting RhD-positive low titer group O whole blood (LTOWB) to treat life-threatening bleeding based on data that suggests it’s safe and saves lives. However, if a trauma patient later becomes pregnant, it can occasionally lead to complications, including fetal death.
When someone with RhD-negative blood—a less common blood type...
Nasal Swab Detects Asthma Type in Kids
University of Pittsburgh researchers have developed a nasal swab test for kids that diagnoses a specific asthma subtype, or endotype. This noninvasive approach could help clinicians prescribe medications more accurately and pave the way for research toward better treatments for lesser-studied asthma types.
Published Jan. 2, 2025, in JAMA, the findings are based on data...
Herpes Virus Might Drive Alzheimer's Pathology, Study Suggests
University of Pittsburgh researchers uncovered a surprising link between Alzheimer’s disease and herpes simplex virus-1 (HSV-1), suggesting that viral infections may play a role in the disease. The study results were published Jan. 2, 2025, in Cell Reports.
The study also revealed how tau protein, often viewed as harmful in Alzheimer’s, might initially protect the brain...
Surviving Ovarian Cancer May Depend on Where You’ve Lived, Study Suggests
By: Fernanda Juarez Anaya
Patients with epithelial ovarian cancer, one of the deadliest gynecologic cancers, who lived in disadvantaged neighborhoods had a worse chance of survival compared to those in more advantaged areas, according to a pilot study published in Gynecologic Oncology by University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine researchers.
Pitt Scientist Jason Lohmueller to Discuss Cracking the Code to Defeat Cancer at Upcoming Senior Vice Chancellor Lecture
By Kat Procyk
Jason Lohmueller, assistant professor of surgery, School of Medicine, always wanted to build things.
That innate drive led him to work in biomedical engineering and synthetic biology. Today, his lab is working to genetically alter immune cells to help patients fight various cancers.
“Our immune system is constantly trying to combat infectious...
Winter 2024 Commencement for Pitt Health Sciences Students in Photos
By Kat Procyk
On Dec. 18, 2024, approximately 250 health sciences students celebrated their commencement with schools across the University of Pittsburgh at the Petersen Events Center, proudly receiving their diplomas in the presence of family and friends.
Holden Thorp, a chemist, pharmaceutical executive and editor-in-chief at the journal Science, served as this...
A Collaborative Program to Rethink Nursing Home Care
By Michele Dula Baum and Clare Collins
Pitt Nursing student Hope Karnes with resident Roselyn Baum at The Willows nursing home in Oakmont, Pa.
When COVID-19 struck in early 2020, nursing homes became the pandemic’s epicenter. Overwhelmed long-term care facilities found themselves unable to keep up with spiraling infections and deaths among residents. Overworked staff...
