June 2, 2020 A major study of novel coronavirus infection in human airways adds to evidence that wearing a mask is an important step toward limiting transmission of COVID-19. The lead authors of the study in the journal Cell are UNC-Chapel Hill virology expert Dr. Ralph Baric and pulmonary expert Dr. Richard Boucher.
June 1, 2020 A large-scale HIV study funded by NIAID and ViiV Healthcare halted early after cabotegravir, dosed every two months, showed higher efficacy than a daily oral pill.
June 1, 2020 The novel coronavirus pandemic has created and magnified health challenges on a global scale. In Africa, alumni Michael Wilson and Dr. Laura Hoemeke are working on both a grassroots and a policy level to protect communities and health care services that are most vulnerable.
May 13, 2020 Dengue viruses are estimated to cause ~390 million infections and 100 million cases each year around the globe. Because infection with one of the four unique dengue strains does not provide lasting immunity to the other strains, it has been especially difficult to create an effective vaccine.
May 12, 2020 The website papita.com is home to ITA, an artificial intelligence program that offers unique childcare tips to Spanish-speaking users based on their personal information. The site’s developers hope to promote healthy family habits while lowering parents’ stress — especially now that the COVID-19 pandemic has families on lock down at home.
May 6, 2020 “These results show that the tax is lowering the consumption of sugar-sweetened drinks among an adult cohort over the first three-years of the tax implementation,” says Dr. Shu Wen Ng. “In particular, it lowered the proportion of medium and high consumers of the beverages, while increasing the share of adults who were low-consumers and non-consumers.”
April 30, 2020 When pregnant women are depressed, how important is it that they receive therapy? A first-of-its-kind study found outsize positive effects on mothers’ mental health, financial status and parenting skills even seven years after the birth of their child — and the results could lead to big changes in global public policy. (Photo by Jake Brewer)
April 29, 2020 Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, reported that data from an international clinical trial testing the broad-spectrum antiviral drug remdesivir showed “quite good news” and should result in a new standard of care for COVID-19 patients. Remdesivir was co-developed by researchers in the Baric Lab at the UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health.
April 29, 2020 Governments worldwide have implemented policies in an effort to mitigate the worst effects of the coronavirus pandemic, but the extent to which these policies constrain individual rights has been overlooked, according to Dr. Benjamin Mason Meier. This can have a detrimental impact on the world’s most vulnerable populations.
April 27, 2020 In a time when a pandemic has limited the resources available to meet critical health needs in-person, we have moved into the digital space to seek assistance. In health behavior, students, faculty and alumni are coming together to develop online tools that help health care workers get access to child care and provide mental health support to teens who are feeling increasingly vulnerable. Biostatistics alumnus Andrew Williams is helping to develop software that can assist health care providers in modeling the spread of COVID-19 in order to prepare resources accordingly.
