News Releases

Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine have discovered a unique molecular pathway that detects and selectively eliminates defective messenger RNAs from red blood cells. Other such pathways -- known as surveillance pathways -- operate in a more general way, in many cell types. Knowing how this specific surveillance system works can help researchers better understand hereditary diseases, in this case, thalassemia, a form of anemia, which is the most common genetic disorder worldwide. The results appear in the most recent issue of Nature Structural and Molecular Biology.

With thousands of shoes at half the suggested retail price, shoe lovers had the opportunity to splurge in the name of charity at the 13th Annual QVC Presents 'FFANY Shoes on Sale' event during Breast Cancer Awareness Month last October. The Rena Rowan Breast Center of the University of Pennsylvania's Abramson Cancer Center (ACC) was one of the beneficiaries of the televised fundraiser that supports breast cancer research and patient education.

A study conducted by researchers at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine reports that a cohort of women exposed to a safe, alternative method of maternity care had a 5.3 percent cesarean delivery rate compared to a 11.8 percent of women who received more traditional care.

Caryn Lerman, PhD, Deputy Director of the Abramson Cancer Center of the University of Pennsylvania, has been awarded the 22nd Annual Alton Ochsner Award Relating Smoking and Health. The award will be presented to Lerman for her work on pharmacogenetic approaches to nicotine dependence treatment at the annual convention of the American College of Chest Physicians on October 21, 2007, in Chicago.

Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine are the first to observe and measure the internal motion inside proteins, or its 'dark energy.' This research, appearing in the current issue of Nature has revealed how the internal motion of proteins affects their function and overturns the standard view of protein structure-function relationships, suggesting why rational drug design has been so difficult.

'Learning to enjoy nutritious foods and be physically active in fun ways are life lessons that parents can teach their children to help them develop healthy habits they will carry through their school years and on into adulthood,' says Lisa Hark, PhD, RD, Director of the Nutrition Education Program at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine. Dr. Hark, who also hosted TLC's show 'Honey, We're Killing the Kids,' offers the ABC's of back-to-school nutrition for parents and children.

Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine identified a combination therapy as a way to sensitize resistant human cancer cells to a treatment currently being tested in clinical trials They propose that the therapy may help to selectively eliminate cancer cells while leaving healthy cells intact, providing a cancer treatment with fewer side effects. The Penn team reports their findings in the July issue of Cancer Cell.

The Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania (HUP) has achieved Magnet status -- the highest institutional honor awarded for nursing excellence -- from the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC). To achieve Magnet status, a hospital must undergo a rigorous review process demonstrating they are committed to sustaining nursing excellence, improving professional practice, and transforming the culture of a work environment.

While most RNAs work to create, package, and transfer proteins as determined by the cell's immediate needs, miniature pieces of RNA, called microRNAs (miRNAs) regulate gene expression. Recently, researchers from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine determined how miRNAs team up with a regulatory protein to halt protein production. Results of the study were published recently in Cell.

Jeanne M. Rogers, RN, MEd, Associate Executive Director of the Abramson Cancer Center of the University of Pennsylvania and Administrative Director, of the University of Pennsylvania Cancer Network, was recently appointed to serve on the Pennsylvania Cancer Control, Prevention and Research Advisory Board.