West Virginia University scientists knew it was coming. When health officials confirmed the first three cases of a COVID-19 variant in West Virginia late Friday (Feb. 19), they were not surprised. In fact, WVU researchers had, in recent weeks, already formed a partnership with colleagues at Marshall University and the Department of Health and Human Resources to identify SARS-CoV-2 variants.
In an ongoing effort to support West Virginia University’s commitment to keeping its campus community and others safe, the School of Public Health is partnering with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to conduct an eight-week mask observation study.
Prompted by a lack of independent, third-party evaluations of these devices, a research team of WVU neurologists led by Joshua Hagen, director of the Human Performance Innovation Center at the WVU Rockefeller Neuroscience Institute, tested the efficacy of eight commercial sleep trackers.
Antibiotic resistance is not exclusively a health issue. It’s a national security threat, as the Department of Defense has tapped a team of West Virginia University scientists to help exterminate the enemy – infectious biological agents.
Dr. Clay Marsh, West Virginia’s Coronavirus Czar and West Virginia University Health Sciences vice president and executive dean, will address the House Committee on Energy and Commerce’s Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations Tuesday, Feb. 2 at 11 a.m. Congressman David McKinley invited Marsh to discuss West Virginia’s successful COVID-19 vaccine rollout with the bipartisan group of legislators.
Pregnancy doesn’t have to sabotage athletes’ fitness. Shon Rowan—a researcher with the WVU School of Medicine—and his colleagues used a wearable device called WHOOP to monitor the heart rate and heart rate variability of women before they conceived, throughout pregnancy and after giving birth. The data that the researchers collected from the WHOOP devices suggests that some women may be in better shape after delivering their babies than they were before they became pregnant.
As a new year begins – and the inevitable wave of health-related resolutions go into effect – one West Virginia University researcher reminds parents in particular of the critical role they play when it comes to shaping their children’s self-image and lifelong relationship with food.
Although it may seem that the COVID-19 vaccine came from out of nowhere, it underwent the same rigorous testing that all vaccines do. Ivan Martinez—a virologist with the WVU School of Medicine and Cancer Institute—discusses how the vaccine was made, why it’s safe, and how it will make our lives better in 2021.
One silver lining to COVID-19 restrictions, based on a recent report, is a 2.4 billion-ton plummet in global carbon emissions. Yet worldwide carbon output remains astronomical – 34 billion tons – and experts project an uptick in 2021.
Cancer treatment isn’t just a matter of shrinking or removing a tumor. It also involves preserving or improving the patient’s quality of life. Rehabilitation services—such as behavioral therapies to alleviate pain and exercise to reduce fatigue—are a valuable way to do that. But they often aren’t included in cancer patients’ plans of care.