News & Events

A whole-genome sequencing approach shows early promise over current commercial methods for identifying more patients likely to benefit from PARP inhibitor cancer treatments, according to a study led by Weill Cornell Medicine and NewYork-Presbyterian investigators. The findings suggest further development of this approach is merited.

As first-year Weill Cornell Medical College student Sarah Mansour memorialized 28 people who donated their bodies to the institution’s Gross Anatomy program, she quoted a passage from the novel Gilead by Marilynne Robinson that she said served as a perfect testament to the donors’ ultimate gift.

‘“There is a kind of patience that comes from believing the future will remember us kindly, even if it does not remember us by name,’” said Mansour, reading the passage during Weill Cornell’s...

immunofluorescent image of gut cells and neurons

Pain-sensing neurons in the gut kindle inflammatory immune responses that cause allergies and asthma, according to a new study by Weill Cornell Medicine. The findings, published Jan. 7 in Nature, suggest that current drugs may not be as effective because they only address the immune component of these conditions, overlooking the contribution of neurons.

“Today’s blockbuster biologics are sometimes only 50% effective and...

By Syl Kacapyr

A class of ultrasmall fluorescent core-shell silica nanoparticles developed at Cornell is showing an unexpected ability to rally the immune system against melanoma and dramatically improve the effectiveness of cancer immunotherapy, according to a new study led by Weill Cornell Medicine and Cornell Engineering researchers.

The particles, known as Cornell prime dots, or C’dots, have already been tested in human clinical trials as a cancer diagnostic and a drug...

illustration of stem cells differentiating into B cells

Immune cells called B cells make antibodies that fight off invading bacteria, viruses and other foreign substances. During their preparation for this battle, B cells transiently revert to a more flexible, or plastic, stem-cell-like state in the lymph nodes, according to a new preclinical study from Weill Cornell Medicine investigators. The results could help explain how many lymphomas develop from mature B cells rather than from stem cells, as many other cancers do, and guide researchers in...

female doctor taking blood pressure of an older woman

Women with severe coronary heart disease causing narrowing or blockages in the arteries may derive greater long-term benefits from coronary artery bypass grafting compared with percutaneous coronary intervention, also known as stenting, according to a large study by Weill Cornell Medicine investigators. Bypass surgery uses a blood vessel from another part of the body to reroute blood flow around a narrowed or blocked artery. Stenting is a minimally invasive procedure that uses a catheter to...

Amid a changing and challenging time for academic medicine, Weill Cornell Medicine is poised to thrive in the coming years, with a planned expansion of its clinical enterprise serving as an engine for overall institutional growth, Dean Robert Harrington conveyed Dec. 16 during his biannual State of Weill Cornell Medicine address.

Weill Cornell, like many...

Video of Folate deficiency: How it can rewrite your genes and fuel cancer

Genetic alterations lie at the heart of cancer development, but scientists may have been overlooking a powerful driver of these changes—the everyday nutrients that feed our cells. “Most efforts have focused on known carcinogens—like tobacco smoke or radiation,” said Dr... Read More

AI-generated image of intestines with microbes superimposed

Gut microbes may play a key role in training a mother’s immune system to adapt to the developing fetus during pregnancy, according to a preclinical study by Weill Cornell Medicine investigators.

The findings, published Dec. 17 in Cell, show that beneficial gut bacteria help prevent immune system reactions that can lead to pregnancy loss in mice. The investigators demonstrated that metabolites produced by gut...

Many women assume pelvic floor health issues are simply their fate—part of having vaginal deliveries, getting older, gaining weight or entering menopause. Perhaps they have watched their mothers and grandmothers live with symptoms, such as urinary incontinence and pain. Though pelvic floor disorders happen when the muscles and tissues that support the bladder, bowel and uterus weaken or don’t work properly, they are not a normal part of aging.

But the misconception—that nothing can be...

Three minutes and one slide were all it took for twelve young scientists to turn cutting-edge research into dramatic stories of hope at Weill Cornell Medicine’s tenth annual Three-Minute Thesis (3MT) competition on Nov. 13 in Uris Auditorium. The night showcased bold ideas about tackling Alzheimer’s disease, cancer, infectious diseases and more with creativity and passion.

Students from Weill Cornell Graduate School of...

Why are innovation and entrepreneurship important in academic research? Since the Bayh-Dole Act was passed in 1980, permitting institutions to retain ownership of their inventions arising from federal funding, more than 200 drug treatments and vaccines have been brought to market through academic-commercial partnerships.

Weill Cornell Medicine’s Ninth Annual Dean’s Symposium on Innovation and Entrepreneurship celebrated and fostered this entrepreneurial spirit on Nov. 17 at Weill...

immunofluorescent image of neurons stained for dopamine

Dopamine neurons in a part of the brain called the midbrain may, with aging, be increasingly susceptible to a vicious spiral of decline driven by fuel shortages, according to a study led by Weill Cornell Medicine investigators. The findings offer a potential explanation for the degeneration of this neuron population in Parkinson’s disease.

In the study, published Dec. 5 in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences...

Jacob Wilson knew something had tangibly changed just six months into a clinical trial evaluating an innovative therapy that targets mitochondria, the energy producing structures inside cells.

...

Video of Research Matters: Personalizing Pancreatic Cancer Treatment

It’s not surprising that pancreatic cancer is often referred to as a silent killer. With few early symptoms and an aggressive nature, it has one of the lowest survival rates of all cancers.

“By the time people...

Detailed mapping of CD4⁺ T cells from children with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) has revealed distinct immune cell subsets with likely roles in disease pathogenesis, according to a study led by Weill Cornell Medicine investigators. The findings are poised to redirect lupus research and open the door to more precise therapies that avoid broad immune suppression.

Published Oct. 21 in Nature Immunology, the study used...

The roots of addiction risk may lie in how young brains function long before substance use begins, according to a new study from Weill Cornell Medicine. The investigators found that children with a family history of substance use disorder (SUD) already showed distinctive patterns of brain activity that differ between boys and girls, which may reflect separate predispositions for addiction. The research, published Nov. 21, in...

Chemotherapy activates a stress sensor in immune cells, triggering inflammation and nerve damage, which may help explain why many cancer patients experience debilitating pain as a side effect, according to a new study by Weill Cornell Medicine and Wake Forest University School of Medicine researchers.

Up to half of all patients receiving chemotherapy experience chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy (CIPN), which causes tingling, numbness and pain in the hands and feet. Since there...

A new study has discovered a molecular signal that tumors exploit to exhaust the T cells meant to destroy them—and how silencing that signal could revive the body’s immunity. The study led by Weill Cornell Medicine researchers was published Nov. 17 in Nature Immunology and shows that tumors not only evade the immune system but can actively reprogram immune cells to stop fighting.

“Our dream is to make immune-based...

Hypertension impairs blood vessels, neurons and white matter in the brain well before the condition causes a measurable rise in blood pressure, according to a new preclinical study from Weill Cornell Medicine investigators. The changes help explain why hypertension is a major risk factor for developing cognitive disorders, such as vascular cognitive impairment and Alzheimer’s disease.

The preclinical study,...

Calendar of Events

Whole-Genome Sequencing May Optimize PARP Inhibitor Use

First-Year Students Express Thanks to Families of Anatomy Lab Donors

Pain-Sensing Neurons Kick-Start Immune Responses

Cornell-Developed Particles Supercharge Cancer Immunotherapy

By Syl Kacapyr

B Cells Transiently Unlock Their Plasticity, Risking Lymphoma Development

Bypass Surgery May Offer Greater Long-Term Benefits Compared with Stents for Women

State of Weill Cornell Medicine: A Bright Future

Research Matters: How Folate Deficiency May Alter Genes to Promote Cancer

Microbiome May Aid in Successful Pregnancies

Breaking the Silence on Women’s Pelvic Floor Disorders

Students Break Down Big Science into Inspiring Stories

Improving Lives Through Academic Innovation, Commercialization and Entrepreneurship

Aging Midbrain Neurons Face Energy Crisis Linked to Parkinson’s

The Winding Road from Bench to FDA Approval for First Mitochondria-Targeting Drug

Research Matters: Personalizing Pancreatic Cancer Treatment

New Immune Cell Suspects in Lupus

Early Brain Differences May Explain Sex-Specific Risks for Addiction

Scientists Identify a Molecular Switch to a Painful Side Effect of Chemotherapy

Reviving Exhausted Immune Cells Boosts Tumor Elimination

Hypertension Affects the Brain Much Earlier than Expected