Strategic Themes

Prevalence of pregnancy UTIs underscores need for better screening, treatment in low- and middle-income countries

April 7, 2020
Prenatal screening for urinary tract infections (UTIs) is standard practice in high-income countries because of the risk that untreated UTIs pose during pregnancy. But women in low- and middle-income countries (LMIC) are still in need of screening and treatment that is accessible and accurate due to social and environmental risk factors that may contribute to the high prevalence of UTIs in pregnancy.

A new antiviral drug heading into clinical trials offers hope for COVID-19 treatment — in part because it can be taken as a pill

April 6, 2020
Scientists are hopeful that a new drug — called EIDD-2801 — could change the way doctors treat COVID-19. The antiviral shows promise in reducing lung damage, has finished testing in mice and will soon move to human clinical trials.

The Gillings Community Responds to COVID-19: Equipment, Emergency Response and Water Surveillance

April 3, 2020
Doctoral student Alex Gertner is teaming up with fellow students and experts across the UNC System to make PPE for health care workers in need. Alumna Pooja Jani is at the epicenter of a pandemic, helping to coordinate New York City's emergency public health response. Meanwhile, alumni Scott Meschke, Christine Stauber and Joe Brown are collaborating on ways to monitor wastewater to track the spread of COVID-19.

Can social media help track the spread of disease?

March 30, 2020
Disease surveillance means monitoring the spread of disease through populations in order to establish patterns and minimize harm caused by outbreaks. In a recent article, UNC researchers explored how to effectively and ethically include social media and broader Internet tracking as part of public health surveillance.

UNC researchers propose new method for identifying core functions of evidence-based interventions

March 24, 2020
Putting evidence-based interventions into practice can be difficult when health care settings and populations differ from the original context of the intervention. A new study that includes research from the Department of Health Policy and Management tackles that challenge by proposing a theoretical framework that could enable effective adaptation into healthcare policy, practice and research.

‘100% Vitamin C’ marketing claims increase appeal of sugary fruit drinks

March 24, 2020
Sugar-sweetened beverages are a major factor in the obesity epidemic among both children and adults, and fruit-flavored drinks with added sugar are by far the most popular variety of these among children. In a new study, UNC researchers examine how adding vitamin claims, fruit images and health warnings to the labels of fruit drinks affected consumers’ perceptions.

Food for All Partnership addresses COVID-19 impact on food systems

March 23, 2020
UNC-Chapel Hill’s Food for All Partnership convened an urgent virtual meeting to discuss the impact of COVID-19 on food systems in North Carolina — and to brainstorm potential responses.

UNC researchers to address arsenic-induced diabetes with $12.2M grant

March 16, 2020
Researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill will band together across disciplines to find and formulate solutions for arsenic-induced diabetes in the state. The 5-year program is funded through a highly competitive award from the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, which totals $12.2 million.

Soldavini receives inaugural UNCG/NCCC Engaged Scholarship Prize

March 11, 2020
Jessica Soldavini, a doctoral candidate in the Department of Nutrition at the Gillings School, is the winner of the first-ever UNC Greensboro/North Carolina Campus Compact Engaged Scholarship Prize in the graduate student category. She received a $500 award during the 2020 PACE Conference.

New research could help caregivers identify exclusive breastfeeding challenges in the first week of life

March 11, 2020
While breastfeeding is recommended as the sole source of nutrition in the first six months of a baby's life, for some new moms, that is not always possible. Dr. Alison Stuebe and her research team have identified a set of clues that can help clinicians recognize in as early as the first week when feeding interventions and supplemental nutrition may be necessary.