Posted on | CategoriesImmunology, Inflammation, Infectious Disease / Internal Medicine | PI: Robert A. Campbell, PhD & Matthew T. Rondina, MD

Megakaryocytes and Platelets in Immune and Inflammatory Responses and in COVID-19

Platelets—small cells which circulate in abundance in the bloodstream—are traditionally known for their ability to form clots and stop bleeding. Recent studies, however, have shown that platelets and their parent cells, megakaryocytes, also play a role in inflammation and infection. University of Utah Health investigators Robert Campbell, PhD, and Matthew Rondina, MD, and colleagues discovered that platelets and megakaryocytes respond robustly to infection, including COVID-19. These infection-driven changes in platelets activate clotting mechanisms and thus may contribute to the blood clots that complicate COVID-19 infection. Continue reading → Megakaryocytes and Platelets in Immune and Inflammatory Responses and in COVID-19
Posted on | CategoriesAnesthesiology / Immunology, Inflammation, Infectious Disease | PI: Kai Kuck, PhD

A Rapidly Manufacturable, Open-Source Ventilator for Austere Conditions

At the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, severe ventilator shortages led to dire situations both in developed regions and in low-resource regions where robust and affordable ventilators were already scarce. To address this urgent need, University of Utah Health researcher Kai Kuck, PhD, and colleagues developed Pufferfish, a complete intensive care unit ventilator capable of supporting the continuum from noninvasive ventilation to full mechanical ventilation. Continue reading → A Rapidly Manufacturable, Open-Source Ventilator for Austere Conditions
Posted on | CategoriesImmunology, Inflammation, Infectious Disease / Pediatrics | PI: Christian Con Yost, MD , Guy A. Zimmerman, MD & Elizabeth A. Middleton, MD

Inhibiting Neutrophil Extracellular Traps (NETs) in Immune Injury and Pathologic Clotting

Deficient or excess immune system activities cause many human diseases. To understand the mechanisms of immune injury and their links to pathologic clotting, University of Utah Health investigators Christian Yost, MD, Guy Zimmerman, MD, and colleagues defined features of neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs). Continue reading → Inhibiting Neutrophil Extracellular Traps (NETs) in Immune Injury and Pathologic Clotting
Posted on | CategoriesImmunology, Inflammation, Infectious Disease / Internal Medicine | PI: Andrew S. Weyrich, PhD

The Power of mRNA in Anucleate Platelets

Andrew Weyrich, MD, and his group made the seminal discovery that anucleate human platelets transform messenger RNA (mRNA) into mature products that code for protein. More recently, his group found that a specific type of microRNAs (Dicer1-dependent) and their precursors (megakaryocytes) modulate the expression of target mRNAs important for cellular function. Continue reading → The Power of mRNA in Anucleate Platelets