Science & Medicine

Up to two percent of Texans have epilepsy. Dr. Charles Szabo at UT Health San Antonio has developed an epilepsy surgery program and is leading groundbreaking research and clinical trials that offer hope to those with the seizure disorder who don't respond to existing medications.

CTE can rob a person of their memories and ability to make decisions and plans. It can also cause a person to become a threat to themselves and, sometimes, others. But the disease, caused by repeated head trauma, can't be definitively diagnosed before death. A San Antonio researcher hopes to help change that.

UT Health San Antonio oncologist Josephine Taverna envisions a revolution in lung cancer treatment.

Exercise can improve function and slow disease progression in people with Parkinson's disease, but why? A UT Health San Antonio researcher is studying patients who exercise and play virtual reality games to see if she can figure out the answer.

Caregivers for members of the military and veterans experience depression at a higher rate than any other group in the nation and that can be lethal.

Remote technology can bring health interventions to patients who may struggle to get themselves to care because of where they live or how much money they have. Tae Joon Moon, Ph.D., has found that transdermal alcohol monitors are a remote tech that might help treat people with alcohol use disorder.

Cancer care is about to experience a silver tsunami.

THX mice can be used to study anything that requires a vigorous human immune response, from cancer medications to vaccines and organ transplantation. The mice were created at UT Health San Antonio using human stem cells, but what makes them unique is they also received a dose of estrogen. This is the critical point, according to Dr. Paolo Casali, that leads to the development of a robust human immune system in THX mice.

Shivani Ruparel, Ph.D., Associate Professor and Director of Research in the Department of Endodontics at UT Health San Antonio, and her team are working on potential analgesics to help mitigate cancer pain.

The chemical cross-communication between the guts and other organs that occurs when a person metabolizes nutrients begins before we open our mouths, when we see or smell food. The answer to why some people develop obesity, diabetes, and other metabolic disorders, and why some people respond so well to medicines like Ozempic, might lie in those signals. UT Health San Antonio endocrinologist Dr. Marzieh Salehi is studying that communication in patients with spinal cord injury.