UI Health

The bacteria that causes food poisoning, salmonella, is known to lurk in raw meat, on pets, and in unpasteurized dairy products. But UI Health and University of Illinois College of Medicine researcher Kiwook Kim asked why some salmonella infections remain in the intestine, causing uncomfortable symptoms like vomiting and diarrhea, while others show into life-threatening, full-body symptoms.

In a new study, he and his team found that immune cells in a portion of our abdomen, called the mesentery, play a critical role in suppressing — or exacerbating — salmonella infection.

“Understanding the relationship between [immune cells] in this portion of the gut can help us manipulate immune cells and develop therapies to treat gastrointestinal infections,” Kim said.

Learn how our immune cells protect us from food poisoning: https://bit.ly/4p5yAc2

Justis Hill is an aspiring physician double-majoring in public health and chemistry who will join UIC Retzky College of Pharmacy and University of Illinois Cancer Center researcher Yu Gao’s lab this summer as a member of our Undergraduate Cancer Research Exploration and Training Experience (U-CREATE)!

Summer programs, like U-CREATE, are a critical part of our Cancer Center’s mission to build pathways that train future generations of cancer researchers. Throughout the summer, students will immerse themselves in cancer research to gain skills and experience, as well as mentorship from physicians and researchers from across UI Health.

“How to properly take care of cells, follow certain deadlines and details, not contaminate the data, you know, proper lab skills,” Hill said. “I plan to use everything I learn this summer back at school and in my next lab setting.”

Congratulations, Justis! We can’t wait to see the skills you’ll gain and the impact you’ll make this summer 💚💙

Sunny days ahead at our University of Illinois Cancer Center ☀️👋

We had a great time joining our friends from across the Illinois Medical District for this year's IMD Pride Walk 🏳️‍🌈

Thanks to everyone who came out to show our hospital's support for LGBTQ+ community and our mission to deliver equitable care to all!

It's all in the details.

There are currently no FDA-approved drugs to treat an aggressive form of brain tumor, known as a high-grade glioma, in children. Chemotherapies to treat adult gliomas work by interfering with DNA synthesis. However, its efficacy is unproven in children, due to molecular differences between child and adult tumors.

But UI Health researchers in our University of Illinois Cancer Center and University of Illinois College of Medicine received a five-year, $2.67 million grant from the National Cancer Institute to change that.

“Although they’re both called brain cancer, pediatric brain cancer and adult brain cancer are not the same on the molecular level,” said the study's leader researcher Tohru Yamada.

Learn how Yamada's group is planning to tackle this currently uncurable disease: https://bit.ly/4etZdnD