Health and Medicine| news.illinois.edu
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — A molecule made by bacteria in the gut can hitch a ride to the kidneys, where it sets off a chain reaction of inflammation, scarring and fibrosis — a serious complication of diabetes and a leading cause of kidney failure — according to a new study from researchers at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and Mie University in Japan.| News Bureau
The question of what restroom a transgender person should use has become a national debate. Kathryn Anthony, an Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture Distinguished Professor of architecture at the University of Illinois, has testified before Congress on the issue of gender parity in public restrooms in federal buildings. Anthony, also the author of “Designing for Diversity: Gender, Race, and Ethnicity in the Architectural Profession,” talked about potty politics with News Bure...| News Bureau
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Large language models are built with safety protocols designed to prevent them from answering malicious queries and providing dangerous information. But users can employ techniques known as “jailbreaks” to bypass the safety guardrails and get LLMs to answer a harmful query.| News Bureau
A camera-trap caught this picture of a leopard in Serengeti National Park in Tanzania.| News Bureau
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Even in an age of affluence and abundance in which round-the-clock consumerism and overspending are the norm, limits and constraints can still serve a purpose. According to new research co-written by a University of Illinois expert in new product development and marketing, resource scarcity actually translates into enhanced consumer product-use creativity.| News Bureau
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Neurobiologists at Northwestern University and the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign found the brain’s internal GPS changes each time mice navigate a familiar, static environment.| News Bureau
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Flightpath Biosciences, Inc., a clinical stage biotechnology company focused on the development of precision therapeutics targeting bacterial pathogens, has licensed a class of antibiotics developed at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. The original antibiotic agent, lolamicin, effectively treated bacterial infections in animal models of disease — without wiping out beneficial microbes in the gut. The Illinois team is continuing to develop derivatives of lolami...| News Bureau
The U.S. Department of Agriculture has confirmed 130 cases of H5N1 avian influenza, commonly known as bird flu, in domestic cats. The cases are spread across 23 states, including Illinois. Dr. Leyi Wang, a virologist and professor of veterinary medicine at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, recently identified H5N1 in a cat at the university’s Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory. He discussed how cats contract bird flu, what symptoms to look for and precautions pet owners can take...| News Bureau