UTMB News Articles

UTMB’s Dr. Giulio Taglialatela commented on a A new study has found a link between rapid eye movement (REM) sleep and Alzheimer’s disease. "Our brains use sleep to clear out toxic proteins, like those associated with Alzheimer’s, and these results show that the cleaning mechanism is less effective when it takes someone longer to enter the REM cycle," Taglialatela tells Fox News.

"This research could introduce a new perspective to the discussion of preventing and mitigating the devastating effects of stroke and related brain injuries,” said Dr. Matias Costa about research presented at the annual Society of Neurointerventional Surgery’s meeting discussing use of GLP-1 inhibitors to minimize the impact of strokes and brain injuries.

“Standard lab assays don’t capture the physical forces acting on blood inside constricted arteries,” UTMB’s Dr. Misbahud Din tells Dawn. The publication featured UTMB’s Din and Dr. Yunfeng Chen and their research into how physicians assess a patient’s risk of arterial blood clots.

“Declared eliminated from the United States in 2000, measles has returned not because the virus has changed, but because we have,” writes Dr. Jarrel De Matas in a guest column for the Daily News. It’s a crisis not of misinformation but of meaning, he writes, and what’s need are better storytellers.

UTMB’s Dr. Stephen B. Williams spoke to Renal + Urology News for a story on trial findings show that the NeuroSAFE technique leads to a significant improvement in patient-reported erectile function scores and early urinary continence scores compared with standard robot-assisted radical prostatectomy. “For experienced centers with access to high-quality pathology support, NeuroSAFE may shift the paradigm for function-preserving prostate cancer surgery,” Williams said.

Eleven UTMB staff and students have been included in the 2025 “40 Under 40” list created annually by The Galveston County Daily News. This year’s honorees were profiled in a special publication in the July 16 edition of The Daily News.

A growing body of research suggests human connection is critical “in fostering recovery, improving well-being, and building resilience for individuals facing mental health challenges,” writes Dr. Hasan Yasin in his Daily News column.

“Every measles outbreak is a failure of public health infrastructure and public trust,” Dr. Scott C. Weaver says in a statement by the Global Virus Network. The GVN, a worldwide coalition of virology centers of excellence, calls for the vaccination of unvaccinated children and adults, stronger public health messaging, improved outbreak surveillance and focused efforts in underserved communities.

Some of the world’s most dangerous toxins are being exploited as important new medical therapeutics, write Drs. Norbert Herzog and David Niesel in their latest Medical Discovery News column.

UTMB’s Dr. Chih-Ying Li was featured in this story on rehab hospitals that have serious incidents of patient harm and perform below average on safety measures. Li’s said in an interview that a research study she conducted found the profit status of a rehab facility was the only characteristic associated with higher unplanned readmissions. This news was also published in The New York Times.

“What was once a relatively predictable seasonal threat has evolved into a year-round concern in many areas,” Dr. Dennis Bente says. Gizmodo published a lengthy Q&A with Bente about the ticks and the diseases they carry.

ER visits for tick bites are at the highest levels since 2019 and a large driver may be the record-high tick populations UTMB’s Dr. Dennis Bente tells CBS News. "While tick bites are more common in the summer because of increased outdoor activity, evidence shows that people must stay vigilant year-round now that ticks are also active in the winter because of warming driven by climate change,” Bente said.