Dr. Tim Allerton, Assistant Professor and Director of the Vascular Metabolism Laboratory at LSU’s Pennington Biomedical Research Center, has been awarded a prestigious National Institutes of Health (NIH) R01 research grant totaling up to $3.6 million to investigate a promising new approach to treating one of the fastest-growing forms of heart failure.

 

The five-year grant from the NIH National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute will support research into heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF), a condition that affects millions of Americans and is now the most common form of heart failure. Unlike other forms of heart failure, people with HFpEF have a heart that ejects a normal amount of blood with each beat. However, the heart muscle has difficulty relaxing and filling properly, which can lead to debilitating fatigue and exercise intolerance. Research from Dr. Allerton’s laboratory has shown that these symptoms are also driven by abnormalities in skeletal muscle and blood vessel function, which further impair exercise capacity and overall physical function.

High cost of in-person abortion services, logistic problems of travel, and dependent care make access to abortion care challenging for those with low-income. A recent study reveals that food insecurity shapes the preference for telehealth abortion services. Telehealth abortion represents a remote, low-cost, non-discriminatory care option enabling access to reproductive health services irrespective of financial status. This study has public health implications, as increasing access and affordability of telehealth abortion will uphold reproductive rights.

Tooth enamel is the hardest substance in the human body, yet once damaged, it cannot regenerate naturally. To overcome this limitation, scientists are investigating the biology of enamel-forming cells and the molecular signals that guide their development. In a new study, researchers combined cutting-edge stem cell and organoid technologies to explore these mechanisms, generating insights that could help pave the way for future biological approaches to tooth repair.

A team of scientists led by Isha Jain at Gladstone Institutes showed that when a protein called HTRA2 malfunctions, it leads to a dangerous buildup of excess oxygen in the tissues. And, they found that breathing air with reduced oxygen levels dramatically extends lifespan and improves brain function in mice with motor neuron degeneration, a disorder caused by defective HTRA2.