COVID-19 can be a multi-system disease, impacting many organs and the entire nervous system. Igor Koralnik, MD, has been investigating the neurological complications of the disease and published the first study focused on long-term neurologic symptoms in COVID-19 “long haulers.” He explains the study and what he is seeing in the Neuro COVID-19 Clinic at Northwestern Memorial Hospital.
Atopic dermatitis — or eczema — affects about 10 million children in the U.S., and the itching that accompanies this condition can cause pain and distress for kids who can’t always verbalize or quantify how much they’re suffering. But a new wearable sensor developed by Northwestern University scientists could help better monitor scratching and assess the effectiveness of therapies for eczema and other conditions that cause itch. Steve Xu, MD, MSc, talks about the wearable sensor and the critical role it could play in bringing much-needed relief to patients.
COVID-19 can be a multi-system disease, impacting many organs and the entire nervous system. Igor Koralnik, MD, has been investigating the neurological complications of the disease and published the first study focused on long-term neurologic symptoms in COVID-19 “long haulers.” He explains the study and what he is seeing in the Neuro COVID-19 Clinic at Northwestern Memorial Hospital.
Daniel Batlle, MD, professor of medicine in the Division of Nephrology and Hypertension at Northwestern, has been studying ACE2 and its potential therapeutic uses for many years. When the pandemic began, he proposed a hypothesis that soluble ACE2 could treat the SARS-CoV-2 virus and lead to survival and full recovery, and now he has some exciting preliminary results.
Black men are more likely to get prostate cancer and more than twice as likely to die from the disease than other men. Edward Schaeffer, MD, PhD, has developed a research team to better understand this problem. In this show he talks about his latest discoveries, which are paving the way to precision medicine for aggressive prostate cancer. Schaeffer is the chair of the Department of Urology at Northwestern and a Northwestern Medicine urologist with a specialized practice in prostate cancer.
An early clinical trial found that a spherical nucleic acid drug developed at Northwestern kills tumor cells in people with the fatal brain cancer glioblastoma. This is the first time a nanotherapeutic has been shown to cross the blood-brain barrier and cause cell death. Lead investigator Priya Kumthekar, MD, explains the results of the study.
COVID-19 vaccines are being doled out across the nation, almost exclusively to adults. Pfizer’s vaccine has been authorized for ages 16 and up and Moderna’s vaccine for 18 and up. So when might younger children be vaccinated for COVID-19? And what needs to happen before then? William Muller, MD, PhD, offers insight.
The drug semaglutide, typically prescribed for treatment of Type 2 diabetes, was used in a phase 3 clinical trial as a treatment for obesity with very promising results. Northwestern’s Robert Kushner, MD, led this study published in the New England Journal of Medicine and shares the results.
Since SARS-CoV-2 was discovered in Illinois over a year ago, Feinberg scientists have been tracking the evolution of the disease in the Chicago area. Ramón Lorenzo Redondo, PhD, research assistant professor of Medicine in the Division of Infectious Diseases, is part of the team leading this work. He talks about the team’s research, the new COVID-19 variants and how the vaccines on the market today stand up to them.
Mercedes Carnethon, PhD, a Northwestern Medicine epidemiologist and population science expert, talks about how COVID-19 is affecting Black, Indigenous, Latinx and other people of color the most and what can be done to help these vulnerable communities as the pandemic continues and vaccine rollout lags behind.