In the Press

Managing IAQ for Human Health creates a ‘North Star’ for Energy Conservation Steps

Our moral imperative is to set health metrics as our constant to guide natural and mechanical HVAC settings.

Neonatal Diet and Gut Microbiome Development After C-Section During the First Three Months After Birth: A Systematic Review

Cesarean section (C-section) delivery imprints fundamentally on the gut microbiota composition with potential health consequences. With the increasing incidence of C-sections worldwide, there is a need for precise characterization of neonatal gut microbiota to understand how to restore microbial imbalance after C-section. After birth, gut microbiota development is shaped by various factors, especially the infant’s diet and antibiotic exposure. Concerning diet, current research has proposed that breastfeeding can restore the characteristic gut microbiome after C-section.

Research shows the number of babies born with cytomegalovirus declined during the pandemic

Published in JAMA, University of Minnesota Medical School researchers have discovered the number of babies born in Minnesota with cytomegalovirus (CMV) decreased significantly during the COVID-19 pandemic. The study found that in the five-year period leading up to the pandemic, about one baby in every 200 births was born with CMV. Between August 2020 and December 2021, the number decreased to one baby in every 1,000 births.

Investigating racial differences in multiple myeloma

Investigators have identified distinct epigenetic pathways in African American and European American patients diagnosed with multiple myeloma, according to a Northwestern Medicine study published in the Journal of Hematology & Oncology.

What scientists have learnt from COVID lockdowns

Restrictions on social contact stemmed disease spread, but weighing up the ultimate costs and benefits of lockdown measures is a challenge.

Reprogramming of Amino Acid Metabolism Differs between Community-Acquired Pneumonia and Infection-Associated Exacerbation of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease

Amino acids and their metabolites are key regulators of immune responses, and plasma levels may change profoundly during acute disease states. Using targeted metabolomics, we evaluated concentration changes in plasma amino acids and related metabolites in community-acquired pneumonia (CAP, n = 29; compared against healthy controls, n = 33) from presentation to hospital through convalescence. We further aimed to identify biomarkers for acute CAP vs. the clinically potentially similar infection-triggered COPD exacerbation (n = 13).

Researchers use machine learning to unlock the genomic code in clinical cancer samples

A new paper from University of Helsinki, published today in Nature Communications, suggests a method for accurately analyzing genomics data in cancer archival biopsies. This tool uses machine learning methods to correct damaged DNA and unveil the true mutation processes in tumor samples. This helps to unlock tremendous medicine values in millions of archival cancer samples.

Research points toward three autism subgroups with distinct prenatal risk factors

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a "blanket" diagnosis applied to individuals with vastly differing behavioral as well as co-occurring medical conditions. Using very large medical-record data sets, researchers from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) have found that, not only can children be broken into subgroups based upon those co-occurring conditions, but that those subgroups are also associated with differing maternal prenatal risk factors. The research is published today in the journal Autism Research.

Lipid transfer protein syndrome: How to save a life through careful education

Lipid transfer proteins (nsLTPs) are ubiquitous allergens. Patients affected by nsLTP syndrome experience symptoms to various plant-derived foods, ranging from local manifestations to anaphylaxis, the critical treatment of which is represented by self-administration of adrenaline.