�鶹��ý Advancing Health Worldwide News

Engineers Create Mini Microscope for Real-Time Brain Imaging

Andy Fell — September 12, 2025

�鶹��ý researchers have created a miniaturized microscope for real-time, high-resolution imaging of brain activity in mice. The device is a significant step toward revolutionizing how neuroscientists study behavior and perception in the brain.

�鶹��ý Health’s IFM Fund Backs Delix Therapeutics in First Investment

Andy Fell — September 10, 2025

�鶹��ý Health Ventures, part of the Innovation and Economic Development Office (IEDO) at the University of California, Davis, today announced the first investment from its Investing in the Future of Medicine (IFM) Fund, backing Delix Therapeutics. Delix, a �鶹��ý spinout, is developing non-hallucinogenic neuroplastogens for major depressive disorder (MDD) and other serious neuropsychiatric and neurodegenerative conditions.

Total-Body PET Imaging Takes a Look at Long COVID

Andy Fell — August 28, 2025

Using total-body PET imaging to get a better understanding of long COVID disease is the goal of a new project at the University of California, Davis, in collaboration with UC San Francisco. The project is funded by a grant of $3.2 million over four years from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, part of the National Institutes of Health.

New Cancer Drug Could Help Cats and People

Amy M Quinton — August 28, 2025

A new cancer treatment for cats could help humans too. New �鶹��ý cat clinical trial using UCSF developed drug shows the disease was controlled in 35% of cats, with minimal side effects.

This Snail’s Eyes Grow Back: Could They Help Humans do the Same?

Andy Fell — August 06, 2025

Human eyes are complex and irreparable, yet they are structurally like those of the freshwater apple snail, which can completely regenerate its eyes. Alice Accorsi, assistant professor of molecular and cellular biology at the University of California, Davis, studies how these snails regrow their eyes — with the goal of eventually helping to restore vision in people with eye injuries.

Psychedelics and Non-hallucinogenic Analogs Work Through the Same Receptor, Up to a Point

Andy Fell — August 04, 2025

Understanding exactly how psychedelics promote new connections in the brain is critical to developing targeted, non-hallucinogenic therapeutics that can treat neurodegenerative and neuropsychiatric diseases. To achieve this, researchers are mapping the biochemical pathways involved in both neuroplasticity and hallucinations.

The Color Lab Uncovers the Soothing Effects of Light

Jocelyn C Anderson — July 28, 2025

Veronica Then wore an electroencephalogram, or EEG, cap and stood in front of a black curtain with a white square placed behind her like a target. Studio lights beamed down from the ceiling as a panel of judges watched. The judges were anonymous, clad in white lab coats and white facemasks.

Finding Human Brain Genes in Duplicated DNA

Andy Fell — July 21, 2025

What makes the human brain distinctive? A new study published July 21 in Cell identifies two genes linked to human brain features and provides a road map to discover many more. The research could lead to insights into the functioning and evolution of the human brain, as well as the roots of language disorders and autism.

What Cats May Teach Us About Long COVID

Amy M Quinton — July 14, 2025

�鶹��ý researchers find cats could help us learn about long COVID. They've found a new cell therapy boosts immune systems in cats with severe coronavirus.

Health Professions Students From Disadvantaged Backgrounds Often Faced Childhood Adversity

Amy M Quinton — June 25, 2025

�鶹��ý graduate health professions students from socially disadvantaged groups are more likely to have had encountered adversity in their childhood.

Disposable E-Cigarettes More Toxic Than Traditional Cigarettes

Katherine E Kerlin — June 25, 2025

They may look like travel shampoo bottles and smell like bubblegum, but after a few hundred puffs, some disposable, electronic cigarettes and vape pods release higher amounts of toxic metals than older e-cigarettes and traditional cigarettes, according to a study from the University of California, Davis. For example, one of the disposable e-cigarettes studied released more lead during a day’s use than nearly 20 packs of traditional cigarettes.

Toddlers’ Eye Movements Predict Ability to Judge Memories, New Research Suggests

Andy Fell — June 11, 2025

The simple act of looking and comparing may be the first step toward learning how to judge what we remember, a skill that is fundamental to learning and making decisions.

New research from the University of California, Davis, has found that toddlers who tend to look more closely at and compare paired images during a memory task are more aware of the accuracy of their own memories a year later. This finding connects the earliest process of seeking information with the developing ability to judge the accuracy of memories.

Could Dietary Changes — Even After Obesity — Help Prevent Pancreatic Cancer?

Amy M Quinton — June 04, 2025

�鶹��ý researchers find low-fat diets slowed pancreatic precancer development in mice, even after weight gain.

Telehealth Can Improve Care for Cats with Chronic Health Issues

Amy M Quinton — June 03, 2025

�鶹��ý researchers found telehealth visits can improve care for cats with feline arthritis.

New Book Details the Good, Bad and Unexpected of Ibuprofen

Andy Fell — June 03, 2025

What you don’t know about ibuprofen, one of the world’s most popular painkillers, could well fill a book — and that book has just been published, authored by Professor Aldrin Gomes and 36 of his current and former students at the University of California, Davis.

“Ibuprofen is an affordable and widely used medication that has transformed pain management for millions worldwide,” said Gomes, who teaches in the Department of Neurobiology, Physiology and Behavior. “However, its story serves as a powerful reminder of the delicate balance between benefit and risk.”

Cell Biologist Elected as a Fellow of the Royal Society

Andy Fell — May 20, 2025

Neil Hunter, a professor in the Department of Microbiology and Molecular Genetics at the University of California, Davis, and an investigator with the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, has been elected as a fellow of the Royal Society in London.

This prestigious appointment, announced May 20, was offered to only 70 scientists across the world.

“I’m thrilled and surprised,” said Hunter. “The acknowledgment means a great deal to me, because it’s an election by some of the best scientists in the world.

Wily Parasite Kills Human Cells and Wears Their Remains as Disguise

Andy Fell — May 12, 2025

The single-celled parasite Entamoeba histolytica infects 50 million people each year, killing nearly 70,000. Usually, this wily, shape-shifting amoeba causes nothing worse than diarrhea. But sometimes it triggers severe, even fatal disease by chewing ulcers in the colon, liquefying parts of the liver and invading the brain and lungs.

The Secret to Happiness Lies Within You, Or Society — Or Both

Andy Fell — May 02, 2025

What is the secret to happiness? Does happiness come from within, or is it shaped by external influences such as our jobs, health, relationships and material circumstances? A new study published in Nature Human Behaviour shows that happiness can come from either within or from external influences, from both, or neither — and which is true differs across people.

Researchers Develop an LSD Analogue with Potential for Treating Schizophrenia

Andy Fell — April 14, 2025

University of California, Davis, researchers have developed a new, neuroplasticity-promoting drug closely related to LSD that harnesses the psychedelic’s therapeutic power with reduced hallucinogenic potential.

The Gut Health Benefits of Sauerkraut

Amy M Quinton — April 14, 2025

A new �鶹��ý study suggests that sauerkraut could help protect your gut, an essential part of overall health.