The Environmental Protection Agency has awarded a $1.24 million grant to a research team to come up with standards for measuring viruses and other pathogens in treated wastewater for water re-use projects. Samendra Sherchan, associate professor in the Department of Environmental Health Sciences and director of the Water Quality Lab at the School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine, is part of the team.

Chad Roy, professor of microbiology and immunology and director of infectious disease aerobiology at the Tulane National Primate Research Center, and Dr. Gregory Bix, professor and vice chair of neurosurgery and neurology, director of COBALT (COVID-19 Biobank and Library at Tulane), and director of the clinical neuroscience research center, were among a team of scientists who co-authored a review of 115 peer-reviewed studies in Clinical Infectious Diseases. They concluded that the viral dose, or amount of the infectious virus SARS-CoV-2 transmitted from one person to another, does not appear…

A study led by Stacy Overstreet, professor of psychology, shows that when the COVID-19 pandemic forced New Orleans public school teachers to switch from in-person instruction to a virtual or hybrid setting, the transition left many feeling anxious over their ability to impact student learning. The study also reveals that many teachers suffered from anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress. It recommends expansion of access to mental health care, improvement in sick leave and bereavement policies and offering hazard pay.

Tracy Fischer, associate professor of microbiology and immunology at the Tulane National Primate Research Center, led a study published in Nature Communications, investigating how COVID-19 affects the central nervous system. The research team found severe brain inflammation and injury consistent with reduced blood flow or oxygen to the brain, including neuron damage and death. Microhemorrhages, or small bleeds in the brain, were also present. Surprisingly, these findings were seen in subjects that did not experience severe respiratory disease from the virus.

Hannah Frank, an assistant professor in ecology and evolutionary biology and bat expert, is sharing in a $1.25 million award with scientists from other universities to study how to mitigate zoonotic threats. Zoonotic disease — diseases from non-humans that can infect humans — are an increasing problem and threat to human health and well-being. Bats are a particularly important group to understand because they can spread and shed infections including SARS-CoV-2, which do not cause disease in bats but are highly lethal to humans and other animals.

More than two years into the COVID-19 pandemic, behavioral health concerns continue to disrupt the lives of Americans, and addressing those concerns should be a priority, according to a study by the School of Social Work. Published in the journal Scientific Reports, research from Patrick Bordnick, dean of the school, and Tonya Hansel, a disaster mental health expert who oversees the school’s doctorate program, says that despite vaccinations and lifted restrictions, mental health issues continue to be a crucial concern as the pandemic enters a recovery phase. The researchers found increased…

“What emerged in the research is that people have been debating whether the sport is too rough as far back as the game goes. The science is new, but the debate is not.” JENNY MERCEIN, Tulane assistant professor of theatre. Mercein is co-creator, along with playwright KJ Sanchez, of X’s and O’s, a play that examines the lasting physical and neurological impacts from playing football. They presented a reading and panel discussion of X’s and O’s at the Jill H. and Avram A. Glazer Family Club at Yulman Stadium in February. Mercein was raised in a football family. Her father, Chuck Mercein,…

Drinking a little wine with dinner may help lower risks of developing type 2 diabetes, according to researchers at the School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine. Preliminary results of a study by Dr. Hao Ma, a research fellow at the Tulane Obesity Research Center and the Tulane Personalized Health Institute, and others were presented at the American Heart Association’s Epidemiology, Prevention, Lifestyle & Cardiometabolic Health Conference 2022 in Chicago.

Thanks to a symbiotic fungus, many species of morning glories contain elements of powerful psychedelic drugs, according to a Tulane study published in the journal Communications Biology. The seeds of the common tropical vine, whose namesake trumpet-like blooms only open in the morning, contain compounds that could be useful for treating mental and physical diseases as well as promoting well-being, said plant and fungal biologist Keith Clay, chairman of the Tulane Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology.

Live broadcasts, interviews and radio segments, which originally aired between 1949 and 1958, by Vernon “Dr. Daddy-O” Winslow for “Jivin’ with Jax” on WWEZ-AM New Orleans are now available online via the Tulane University Digital Library. These recordings represent the emergence of Black radio in New Orleans, while featuring Winslow’s work as the first African American radio disc jockey on New Orleans airwaves. They are included in the Hogan Archive of New Orleans Music and New Orleans Jazz, a division of Tulane University Special Collections. The digitization project was funded in part by a…