UTMB News

  • UTMB researchers identify proteins that block immune response to COVID-19

    Researchers from The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston have discovered SARS-CoV-2 proteins that suppress the body's immune response, thereby enabling infection and transmission of the disease. The findings, recently published in the major research journal, Cell Reports, are paramount to understanding the biology of Covid-19 and to developing new vaccines against the disease.

  • Breast Health and Screening Mammography

    Learn more about why screening mammography is important for early detection of breast cancer and how it increases survivability with Dr. Angelica Robinson.

  • UTMB awarded $1.4 million to help reduce teen pregnancies

    The University of Texas Medical Branch has been awarded a two-year, $1.4 million grant focused on helping reduce teen pregnancies. Nearly a quarter of a million babies are born to adolescent females each year. The principal investigator of the study, Dr. Jeff Temple, says the “impacts of teen pregnancy are substantial and persist across the lifespan.”

  • 50 Experts to Trust in a Pandemic

    UTMB’s Vineet Menachery was named one of the 50 people to follow during a pandemic by Elemental, a health and science publication by Medium. Menachery leads one of the few labs in the country that was studying coronaviruses before the pandemic began.

  • The NIH Launches a Global Hunt for Animal-to-Human Diseases

    “We’ve all learned the hard way that every time there is an emergence, that triggers some sort of disorganized scramble,” UTMB's Nikos Vasilakis tells WIRED. UTMB is part of a new network to detect and respond when pathogens jump from wildlife to humans.

  • Bay Area briefs: Online event showcases UHCL's public art

    A roundup of news briefs in the Houston Chronicle included a mention of UTMB’s Tammy Cupit and the university’s effort to share self-care tips with employees. “Monitor your stress levels and pace yourself,” Cupit says in the piece. The story also links back to UTMB’s RISE Task Force website.

  • COPD program decreases 30-day hospital readmission, may increase mortality

    Researchers UTMB found that while the 30-day readmission rate for patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease has decreased, the mortality rate has increased. Both Daniel Puebla Neira and Gulshan Sharma were quoted in the story. This news was also reported in SOUND HEALTH and Lasting Wealth, The Medical News, Brinkwire, Science Magazine, 7thSpace, Medical Xpress

  • The Sealy & Smith Foundation establishes John Sealy Distinguished Chair in Innovations in Molecular Biology at UTMB

    A $1 million gift from The Sealy & Smith Foundation has established the John Sealy Distinguished Chair in Innovations in Molecular Biology at The University of Texas Medical Branch. Dr. Pei-Yong Shi, a professor in the Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Department and vice chair for Innovation and Commercialization, has been named the inaugural recipient.

  • Reasons young women choose a particular contraceptive method

    “If discussions about contraception become more normalized, then improvements in the use of more effective contraceptive methods could potentially occur,” UTMB’s Jacquiline Hirth told Contemporary OB/GYN. Hirth discussed the findings of her survey on women’s choice of contraceptive including some of the surprises gleaned from the data.

  • Health apps pose privacy risks, but experts offer this advice

    When you check your heart rate, track your weight or manage your diabetes with a health app, do you know where the data goes? UTMB's Mohammed Abdullah and Joshua Belillo decided to track it down and found it could be going places you never intended. “Right now, there are no limitations on what companies can do with this data,” said Abdullah. News about their story has been reported widely including in the Sun Sentinel, The Virginian-Pilot, The Register Citizen, Journal Courier, Laredo Morning Times, Big Rapids News, CTPost, Times Union, The Hour, Midland Daily News, Midland Reporter Telegram, Manistee News, StamfordAdvocate.com, Home Health Choices, Brinkwire

  • There's a frantic global race for a COVID vaccine, and Houston hopes to be an ultimate winner

    UTMB’s Camila Fontes was featured on the front page of the Houston Chronicle on Sunday as part of a story on the effort to develop and test a covid-19 vaccine in the Houston area. UTMB’s Scott Weaver, Pei-Yong Shi, Xuping Xie were also included in the story. “I’m a realist,” Fontes told the Chronicle. “I have an opportunity to help everybody else. I want to see my mom and my dad. They’re in El Paso, and if I want to see them, we need a solution.” This news also reported in San Antonio Express-News, Laredo Morning Times, MSN.com, MSN Canada,

  • HEC Exterior

    UTMB Wins Award for Health Education Center

    The University of Texas Medical Branch’s newest facility, the Health Education Center, has won a Best Project Award of Merit from a national construction news publication. The award for the state-of-the-art building on the Galveston Campus will be featured in the Sept. 28 issue of Engineering News-Record. The award will be presented at a virtual ceremony on Oct. 23.

  • forlorn adolescent girl on phone in dark room behind laptop screen

    Cyberbullying - What to do

    Dr. Jeff Temple offers insight and advice on what to do if you or someone you know is plagued by bullying either in person or virtually.