LEXINGTON, Ky. (Sept. 2, 2020) — A new University of Kentucky College of Medicine study provides insight into how a protein called angiotensinogen (AGT) contributes to blood pressure regulation and atherosclerosis.

AGT is a member of the renin-angiotensin system, a hormone system in the human body that regulates blood pressure and fluid balance. AGT produces angiotensin II, which regulates blood pressure and contributes to atherosclerosis, or the buildup of plaque in the arteries.

The Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion is excited to announce the University of Kentucky College of Medicine’s selection as an inaugural member of the National Center for Pre-Faculty Development, providing a significant opportunity to enrich the education experience and ensure the promotion of career development for all individuals, including those underrepresented within academia.

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Aug. 26, 2020) – The National Science Foundation recently awarded a three-year, $1,163,869 grant to the University of Kentucky to develop new state-of-the-art metabolomics data analysis tools that will derive new data, knowledge and interpretation from the active metabolic state of organisms and ecosystems with broad biological and biomedical applications.

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Aug. 25, 2020) — Working with their colleagues at the University of Pennsylvania, researchers at the University of Kentucky have found that they can differentiate between subtypes of dementia inducing brain disease.

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Aug. 25, 2020) — Research looking at a possible new therapeutic approach for Alzheimer’s disease was recently published in the Journal of Neuroinflammation.

When flipping through almost any medical textbook or research publication, one will find that paragraphs of text are typically broken up with elaborate graphics illustrating the complex scientific processes and information.

These graphics are the work of medical illustrators, professional artists with advanced training in both science and visual communication. The University of Kentucky College of Medicine has two, Thomas Dolan and Matthew Hazzard, who are instrumental in their ability to enhance medical instruction, patient education, and research within the college.

The COVID-19 pandemic has created an ever-changing environment requiring quick adjustment, especially in the field of research. In response to the pandemic, scientists at UK ceased non-essential research activity in the spring, and education was moved to online platforms. While these measures were necessary to ensure safety for faculty and learners, graduate students in the University of Kentucky College of Medicine Integrated Biomedical Sciences (IBS) PhD program saw their progress interrupted.

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Aug. 24, 2020) – Kidney stones are infamously painful. Even at their tiniest size, these mineral deposits can wreak havoc as they exit the kidneys, leading to the type of breathtaking pain that’s often compared to the experience of giving birth.

But for Middlesboro resident Michael Slusher, that pain turned out to be a wake-up call for something much more serious.

“I’m probably the only person who says, ‘Thank God for a kidney stone,’” he said. “Because it discovered my kidney cancer before it metastasized.”

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Aug. 20, 2020) – By the time the pandemic forced many patients and providers into telemedicine, ophthalmologist Dr. Ana Bastos de Carvalho had been using it for years. As co-founder of the University of Kentucky’s Global Ophthalmology (UKGO) program, she has helped build and expand a statewide telemedicine eye screening program for diabetic patients in disadvantaged rural and urban communities.

HAZARD, Ky. (Aug. 19, 2020) — The 6th Annual Appalachian Research Day (ARD): Come Sit on the Porch will be held as a virtual seminar series, beginning Sept. 16, 2020. ARD is an annual event hosted by the University of Kentucky Center of Excellence in Rural Health (CEHR) to share results of health research conducted with communities in Appalachia.“Disseminating health disparities research findings at the local level is something our Center is strongly committed to,” said Dr.

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Aug. 18, 2020) — The University of Kentucky Society of Postdoctoral Scholars (SOPS) hosted their first Research Pitch Competition where 19 postdocs and fellows showcased their research with one-minute elevator pitches.

Cannabinoids have been widely used in medicines to control pain, nausea, and vomiting and to stimulate appetite, especially in cancer patients. As it is through effective research that we are able to understand and advance new options, the UK College of Medicine and Markey Cancer Center faculty are now looking to understand if there is a role for Cannabinoids in the treatment of a deadly cancer in men, prostate cancer.

LEXINGTON, Ky. (April 10, 2020) — On and off campus, members of our UK community are working to ensure that the university can keep its promise to our state — to educate, serve, research and heal. That's why UKNow is launching this new "#TogetherUKY" series to thank some of the UK faculty and staff who are a representation of all our employees who are working hard in numerous areas and departments around our campus. We can't continue our mission without their commitment, resilience and collaborative spirit during this challenging time.

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Aug. 13, 2020) — PDS Biotechnology, a clinical stage immunotherapy company, has announced positive results from preclinical testing conducted at the University of Kentucky College of Medicine of its COVID-19 vaccine candidate, PDS0203. 

Nika Larian, a postdoctoral researcher in the University of Kentucky College of Medicine’s Department of Pharmacology and Nutritional Sciences, has been awarded a Science & Technology Policy Fellowship with the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). The AAAS Science & Technology Policy Fellowships (STPF) aim to support evidence-based policymaking by leveraging the knowledge and analytical mindset of science and engineering experts, and foster leaders for a strong U.S. science and technology enterprise.

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Aug. 11, 2020) — With the morning sun rising in the sky at the University of Kentucky’s sprawling Spindletop Farm, Patrick Perry is in high spirits, smiling behind his reflective shades as his tractor roars to life. His student workers, UK seniors Chris Bankes and Tyler Miles, take Styrofoam float beds loaded with tiny seedlings of the plant Artemisia annua and attach them to a mechanical transplanter hitched to the tractor.

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Aug. 10, 2020) — Most of us have heard the phrase that some stress is good. Timothy Ainger, Ph.D., assistant professor in the University of Kentucky Department of Neurology, says the word ‘some’ is key. Ainger specializes in neuropsychology which is the brain-behavior relationship. He says it is true that a small to moderate amount of stress or pressure does help a person focus and perform at their best.

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Aug. 6, 2020) — For a couple of years now members of the University of Kentucky Spinal Cord and Brain Injury Research Center (SCoBIRC), in collaboration with UK College of Arts and Sciences, have been working to increase the representation of Black undergraduate students in neuroscience.

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Aug. 6, 2020) — The connection between art and medicine has been a focus of medical education institutions for decades.

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Aug. 5, 2020) — COVID-19 has dramatically altered everyday life around the globe. Ongoing research studies are not immune to the disruptions and changes caused by the global pandemic. Researchers at the University of Kentucky’s Sanders-Brown Center on Aging (SBCoA) are continuing their important work amid COVID-19 by implementing many safety guidelines and protocols. While navigating this uncharted territory for many, Alzheimer’s disease and dementia research poses an added obstacle as the aging population is believed to be at greater risk from the virus.