In a MedicalNewsToday article about a study that explored whether herbs and spices influence the health of the gut microbiome, David Clarke, M.D., says: “In this study, people who consumed larger amounts of polyphenols in their diet had higher levels of beneficial bacteria in their gut and lower levels of more toxic bacteria. However, there are other possible explanations for the findings of the study.”

OHSU scientists advance a technique to turn a skin cell into an egg. This discovery could help same-sex couples, others have children genetically related to both parents.

OHSU scientists advance a technique to turn a skin cell into an egg. This discovery could help same-sex couples, others have children genetically related to both parents.

In a Medscape article that explores whether the transplantation of ovarian tissue, often performed to extend fertility among women and adolescents with cancer, might also be used to delay or prevent menopause in healthy women, Paula Amato, M.D., says: "While theoretically possible, my biggest question is, how is this better than egg freezing in your 20s or 30s combined with hormone replacement for the aging benefits, given the risks associated with potentially multiple surgeries?"

A feature story about the many Lasker Award winners who have advanced eye health notes 2023 Lasker-DeBakey Clinical Medical Research Award winner David Huang, M.D., Ph.D., co-invented optical coherence tomography, or OCT.

Approximately 20,000 people participated in the annual fundraiser/run/walk for Doernbecher Children's Hospital.

In a National Geographic story about caffeine intake, Adrienne Hughes, M.D., says people with chronic liver disease may be more sensitive to its effects “due to impaired ability to metabolize caffeine.”

Researchers at the University of Oregon and OHSU, led by Sancy Leachman, M.D., Ph.D., studied whether digital campaigns can increase the public’s knowledge of melanoma and promote the practice of self-examining one’s skin for new and unusual moles. Autumn Shafer, an associate professor at the University of Oregon, says: “It's the only cancer that you can look and see with your own eyes. But people don't really know what melanoma is or how to check their skin for it.”

In a story about some rural Oregon clinics closing due to staffing issues, Eric Wiser, M.D., says a shortage of rural physicians can be attributed to a variety of factors, including residents largely training in urban areas and fewer physicians focusing on primary care.

A study published in Neurology finds more than one in 10 cases of multiple sclerosis begin after age 50, with more rapid progression to disability and less exposure to and benefit from disease-modifying therapies. In an accompanying editorial, Dennis Bourdette, M.D., and co-authors write: "The observation that relapsing LOMS [late-onset MS] leads to disability three times faster than relapsing AOMS [adult-onset MS] places LOMS in a high-risk category for disability. These observations call for further investigation about the safety and efficacy of MS DMT [disease-modifying therapies] in LOMS and investigations of why cases with LOMS are at higher risk of disability progression than AOMS ... patients with LOMS should be prescribed a high-efficacy DMT based on their relapse and MRI activity and not barred from such treatment based on their age."