Allergic responses to common foods could significantly increase risk of heart disease, cardiovascular death

Surprising new research: Antibodies to allergens such as dairy, peanuts may up risk even for people without obvious food allergies

14-Nov-2023 - Sensitivity to common food allergens such as dairy and peanuts could be an important and previously unappreciated cause of heart disease, new research suggests – and the increased risk for cardiovascular death includes people without obvious food allergies. That increased risk could be comparable ...

Scientists discover 14 genes that cause obesity

Findings could decouple overeating from harmful health effects

05-Oct-2021 - Promising news in the effort to develop drugs to treat obesity: University of Virginia scientists have identified 14 genes that can cause and three that can prevent weight gain. The findings pave the way for treatments to combat a health problem that affects more than 40% of American adults. “We ...

An important new tool for developing COVID-19 treatments, vaccines

New tool is helping scientists better understand COVID-19

04-Jun-2020 - Biomedical scientists working with COVID-19 have a new tool to help them better understand the virus and feel confident about the structural models they are using in their research. Wladek Minor, PhD, of the University of Virginia School of Medicine, and other top structural biologists have led ...

A sweet way to make everyday things almost indestructible

02-Jul-2019 - The secret to making clothing practically indestructible could be the same thing that makes us grow out of it: sugar. A new discovery from the University of Virginia School of Medicine reveals how sugars could be used to make almost indestructible cloth and other materials. Nature figured it out ...

Indestructible virus yields secret to creating incredibly durable materials

20-Jul-2017 - It's like the Superman of viruses, astonishingly tough and able to survive in an environment that would dissolve flesh and bone. And now scientists have unlocked the secrets of its indestructibility, potentially allowing them to harness its remarkable properties to create super-durable materials ...

Blood discovery could benefit preemies, help end platelet shortages

23-May-2017 - The emergency call issued by the American Red Cross earlier this year was of a sort all too common: Donations of platelets were needed, and desperately. But a new discovery from the School of Medicine may be the key to stopping shortages of these vital blood-clotting cells, cells that can ...

Scientists create novel imaging technique with potential for medical diagnostics

18-Oct-2016 - A unique new imaging method, called "polarized nuclear imaging" - combining powerful aspects of both magnetic resonance imaging and gamma-ray imaging and developed by two physicists in the University of Virginia's departments of Physics and Radiology has potential for new types of high-resolution ...

Allergy-causing 'bad guy' cells unexpectedly prove life-saving in C. difficile

01-Jul-2016 - Surprising discovery points to way to prevent life-threatening consequences of C. difficile infections C. diff kills one in seven infected in North America But probiotics that ensure the presence of certain cells in the gut may stave off infection Finding 'as unexpected as it is important,' with ...

Common blood test could predict risk of recurrent stroke

07-Mar-2016 - A new discovery about ischemic stroke may allow to doctors to predict patients' risk of having a second stroke using a commonly performed blood test and their genetic profile. Researchers have linked high levels of C-Reactive Protein, an enzyme found in the blood, with increased risk for ...

The awful anchor that lets UTIs take hold

14-Jan-2016 - To establish an infection in the urinary tract, bacteria must be able to withstand the tremendous forces of urine flow so they're not simply washed away. New research is giving scientists a remarkable view of a strange, spring-like shock absorber used by the most common cause of urinary tract ...