Prepping for a Pandemic: Duke’s Long History of RNA-based Vaccine Development
As researchers around the world race to build a vaccine that can protect people from COVID-19, many of the frontrunners entering the final stretch—including those developed by biotechnology companies Moderna and BioNtech—are RNA-based vaccines.
Duke Spine Surgeon Offers Awake Surgery to Patients
When you don’t want to miss a thing
Janie Colvin of Fairfax, Virginia, had never had surgery, except for a C-section with her second child. So when the 63-year-old was facing spine surgery, the thought of going under general anesthesia made her uncomfortable in a way that was hard to describe.
“I did not want to be put to sleep,” she said. “The thought of it just weirded me out. Maybe it’s a control thing.”
At the Intersection of Sickle Cell Disease and Geriatrics with Charity Oyedeji
Charity Oyedeji, MD, has been living with sickle cell disease her whole life—she doesn’t have the condition herself, but many in her family do. Her brother died of the disease in infancy, and a cousin with whom she was close died at age 19. As a high school student in Houston, Oyedeji spent summers working at a camp for children with sickle cell disease.
“I’ve always had a personal interest in sickle cell disease,” she says.
Early Detection of COVID-19: How Your Smartwatch Could Help
Duke researchers aim to detect coronavirus infections early in CovIdentify study
News of the first U.S. coronavirus case hit the American public on Tuesday, Jan. 21. For Jessilyn Dunn, PhD, assistant professor in the Departments of Biomedical Engineering and Biostatistics and Bioinformatics at Duke University and director of the Duke BIG IDEAs Lab, the infection in Washington State was a cue to launch a new study—CovIdentify.