A happy cell is a balanced cell, but for every stupendously twisted protein it creates, it must tear the old ones asunder. That means untangling a convoluted pretzel-like mass for recycling. Cdc48 plays a critical role in unraveling the spent proteins. “Cdc48 is like a Swiss army knife of the cell and can interact with […]
Health & Medicine
Freeze frame: Researchers solve how cells unfold proteins
Tiny Change Has Big Effects, Reverses Prediabetes in Mice
A small chemical change — shifting the position of two hydrogen atoms — makes the difference between mice that are healthy and mice with insulin resistance and fatty liver, major risk factors for diabetes and heart disease. Making the change prevented the onset of these symptoms in mice fed a high-fat diet and reversed prediabetes […]
Children who use asthma tracking app have better disease control and fewer hospital visits
An app that allows parents and doctors to monitor a child’s asthma has a big impact on managing the disease. When families monitored symptoms with eAsthma Tracker and adjusted care accordingly, children had better asthma control and made fewer visits to the emergency department. Using the app also meant that children missed fewer days of […]
Restoring hearing loss
A team of worldwide researchers including engineers from the University of Utah have received a $9.7-million grant to design and develop a new implantable device and surgical procedure for the deaf that hopefully will cut through the noise and produce much more detailed sound than traditional hearing-loss treatments. This new procedure involves the use of […]
U of U Health-Produced Film One in a Million Premieres during Sundance Film Festival
University of Utah Health is proud to present One in a Million, an original short documentary co-directed by two acclaimed independent filmmakers, Jeremiah Zagar and Ross Kauffman. The film tells the tale of Tyler who lost his ability to walk, see, and hear by the time he was 10. The cause remained a mystery until […]
Researchers Conduct First Population-based Study of Suicide Risk in People with Autism
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, one out of every 59 children in the United States is diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). After decades of research, much about this condition remains unclear. Researchers at the University of Utah Health conducted the first population-based study of suicidality in individuals with ASD in […]
States with fewer melanoma diagnoses have higher death rates
Skin cancer is the most common cancer in the United States. While the number of cases diagnosed is on the rise, the overall survival rate has improved, but survival is uneven across the country. Researchers at University of Utah Health conducted a state-by-state analysis to understand the geographic disparities for patients diagnosed with melanoma. The results […]
U develops first dark sky studies minor in the U.S.
The W. M. Keck Foundation has awarded $250,000 to the University of Utah to establish a new undergraduate minor in dark sky studies, the first of its kind in the United States. Dark sky studies is an emerging field that explores the impacts of artificial light at night and the loss of our night skies […]
Longevity primarily hereditary in extremely long-living families
Longevity is heritable, but that primarily applies to persons from families where multiple members are among the top 10 percent survivors of their birth cohort. The key to a long life can probably be found in the genes of these families. These are the conclusions of researchers at Leiden University Medical Center, together with their […]
Researchers identify genes associated with polycystic ovary syndrome
Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) affects one in 10 women of reproductive age. It is characterized by irregular menstrual cycles, facial hair or acne and an increased number of eggs arrested in development. Many women also suffer from weight gain, Type 2 diabetes and depression. While first characterized by the medical community in the mid-1930s, few […]