Stanford Medicine brain cancer researchers joined other thought leaders in Washington, D.C. to discuss what the Biden Administration-led Cancer Moonshot initiative could mean. Stanford Medicine cancer physician-researchers Michelle Monje (from left), Paul Mischel and Michael Lim at the Cancer Moonshot Brain Cancers Forum on glioblastoma multiforme and diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma in Washington, D.C., on March 25, 2023. (Photo courtesy of Michelle Monje)

Stanford Medicine experts discuss the past successes and future potential of mRNA as a new type of medicine or treatment. The biggest source of mRNA vaccine skepticism, according to vaccinologist Bali Pulendran, PhD, the Violetta L. Horton Professor and professor of pathology and of microbiology and immunology, is rooted not in biology but in our own psychology -- specifically, an amorphous, free-floating fear of the unknown.

Statins designed to lower cholesterol have long been noted to work in mysterious ways to improve other aspects of cardiovascular health. A Stanford Medicine-led study uncovers how they do it. “The study gives us an understanding, at a very deep mechanistic level, of why statins have such a positive effect outside of reducing LDL,” said professor of medicine Joseph Wu, MD, PhD, referring to low-density lipoprotein, or “bad” cholesterol. “Given how many people take statins, I think the implications are pretty profound.”

Study opens pathway to better diagnosis and treatment of autoimmune diseases. Researchers from Washington University, Stanford University, and Oxford University have developed a method to identify protein fragments and immune cells that cause autoimmune reactions. Co-corresponding author K. Christopher Garcia, PhD, and co-first author Xinbo Yang, PhD, of Stanford Medicine.

New research offers a path toward transplants that can fix damage from a heart attack without causing life-threatening arrhythmias. “The arrhythmias are one of the key roadblocks. The investigators conducted an important study but will need to test more animals to show these genetically modified cells do not cause irregular rhythms and can improve heart function,” said Joseph Wu, director of the Stanford Cardiovascular Institute.

Determining the order of authors on a scientific paper can be tricky. Unless you're a pair of video gaming graduate students. Recently Stanford researcher Garry Nolan, PhD, tweeted about an unconventional way two researchers in his laboratory who had each contributed equally to a study decided who should be listed first on the print version of the paper.

As the government moves to Plan B - what actually happens when you catch the new variant?

A Q&A with one of the foremost scientists studying UAPs, and what he hopes to learn by systematically studying bizarre and difficult-to-explain incidents. Dr. Garry Nolan is a Professor of Pathology at Stanford University. His research ranges from cancer to systems immunology. Dr. Garry Nolan has also spent the last ten years working with a number of individual analyzing materials from alleged Unidentified Aerial Phenomenon.

The preliminary findings could partially explain why people living with obesity are at higher risk of severe covid-19. “This could well be contributing to severe disease,” senior author, Catherine Blish, an immunologist at the Stanford University School of Medicine, told the New York Times. “We’re seeing the same inflammatory cytokines that I see in the blood of the really sick patients being produced in response to infection of those tissues.”

Injections of blood from young adult mice that are getting lots of exercise benefited the brains of sedentary mice the same age, according to a study by the Stanford School of Medicine in California. 'The discovery could open the door to treatments that, by taming brain inflammation in people who don't get much exercise, lower their risk of neurodegenerative disease or slow its progression,' said Professor Tony Wyss-Coray, of the Stanford School of Medicine in California, which carried out the research.

Three of Stanford Medicine's Nobel laureates, including Andrew Fire, George D. Smith Professor of Molecular and Genetic Medicine and Professor of Pathology and of Genetics, offer advice to future winners about hearing the news and what to expect next in their careers.

If the immune system makes mistake--reacting late or getting the target wrong--it can amplify the damage wrought by SARS-CoV-2.

People with ulcerative colitis who are also taking statins have about a 50% decreased risk of colectomies and hospitalization, according to a Stanford Medicine study. Purvesh Khatri, PhD, associate professor of medicine and of biomedical data science, and his team tracked down a connection between a handful of drugs and decreased symptoms of ulcerative colitis.

Stanford is exploring consumer wearable devices, including Apple Watches and Fitbits, to monitor heart rates and predict COVID-19 symptoms. Michael Snyder, professor of genetics, leads many of the health systems' wearable projects and says it's up to health systems to quickly figure out whether the data's useful to doctors and how to efficiently extract it from the devices.

Stanford Medicine Scientists have devised a blood test to predict some cancer relapses after patients have already been treated.To understand whether ctDNA tracking might hint at relapse, Miklos, who heads Stanford Medicine's Blood and Marrow Transplantation and Cellular Therapy division, Matthew Frank MD, PhD assistant professor of medicine, and their labs enrolled 72 patients with large B-cell lymphoma, who had received CAR-T cell therapy, which involves genetically engineering certain immune cells to find and eliminate specific cancer cells.

Scientists and companies are trying to harness the mRNA technology to develop vaccines against cancer and other diseases. Bali Pulendran, Violetta L. Horton Professor And Professor Of Microbiology And Immunology and of Pathology, comments on the future on vaccines.

A detailed molecular analysis of tissue from the brains of individuals who died of COVID-19 reveals extensive signs of inflammation and neurodegeneration, but no sign of the virus that causes the disease. Tony Wyss-Coray, PhD, professor of neurology and neurological sciences at Stanford, shares senior authorship with Andreas Keller, PhD, chair of clinical bioinformatics at Saarland University.

Air levels of pollen and mold spores in the San Francisco Bay Area are elevated for about two more months per year than in past decades, and higher temperatures are to blame, a Stanford Medicine study has found, led by senior author, Kari Nadeau, MD, PhD, professor of medicine and of pediatrics at Stanford School of Medicine.

The 2021 Faculty Women’s Forum Awards honor individuals for their outstanding work supporting women at Stanford through role modeling, allyship, leadership and sponsorship. Stanford Immunology faculty Dr. Joy Wu, an associate professor of medicine (endocrinology, gerontology and metabolism) in the School of Medicine is honored in the Allyship Award category.

Stanford researchers found that data from smartwatches can flag early signs of some health conditions and predict the results of simple blood tests. Scientists from the lab of Michael Snyder, PhD, professor and chair of genetics, tracked data from smartwatches, blood tests and other tests conducted in a doctor’s office in a small group of study participants.

Protein levels in people’s blood can predict their age, a Stanford study has found. The study also found that aging isn’t a smoothly continuous process.

CAR-T cells are remarkably effective against blood cancers, but their effect can be transient as the cells become exhausted. Stanford researchers found a way to keep the cells effective in mice with human tumors.

Hongjie Dai, Julie Parsonnet and Joseph Wu are among the 90 regular members and 10 international members elected this year to the academy, which aims to provide independent, scientifically informed analysis and recommendations on health issues.

“Never could I have imagined the work I am doing now – not even ten years ago.” - Devavani Chatterjea, PhD, MPH

Researchers at Stanford and UCSF slowed the spread of a type of nonsmall cell lung cancer in mice by neutralizing a single protein that would otherwise set off a chain reaction, causing runaway tumor growth.

David Schneider, whose research focuses on resilience to infection and developing mathematical models to predict recovery and well-being, succeeds Peter Sarnow in post.

In the trial, a new drug proved safe and effective for hard-to-treat rheumatoid arthritis patients. A national organization of senior researchers named the trial one of the top 10 for 2016.

A common signaling pathway unites diverse fibrotic diseases in humans, Stanford researchers have found. An antibody called anti-CD47, which is being tested as an anti-cancer agent, reverses fibrosis in mice.

To develop a potential antiviral treatment, Stanford researchers adopted an unusual approach: Rather than trying to disable viral enzymes, they targeted proteins the infected individual makes — and the virus needs.

The researchers will be given funding by the Chan Zuckerberg Biohub to develop tools and technologies that support the organization’s goal of curing, preventing or managing every disease.