Health and Well-Being

With new federal funding, a University of Kansas project is expanding access to exercise for people with disabilities. Life Span Institute researcher Lyndsie Koon says the community-based functional fitness program has shown strong results.

Identifying toxic DNA-protein cross-links (DPCs) and the cellular pathways to repair them are the goals of research underway by University of Kansas researcher Luke Erber, assistant professor of medicinal chemistry, and his lab team. The research is being funded by a $1.8 million grant recently announced by the National Institute of General Medical Sciences, a unit of the National Institutes of Health.

School of Pharmacy researcher and associate professor of pharmacology and toxicology Zijun Wang was recently published in Nature Communications. Her research delves into social isolation and how it impacts mental health and substance abuse disorders and potentially discovering drug therapies to intervene.

A new initiative led by the Jayhawk Athletic Performance Laboratory helps Kansas high school athletes train smarter, stay healthier and sets the stage for groundbreaking sports science research.

OASIS at the University of Kansas helps caregivers of autistic children learn evidence-based strategies founded on behavioral science, serving as a critical bridge between diagnosis and intervention.

In a new book chapter, Elizabeth Felix, assistant professor of sociology at the University of Kansas, employs a vignette survey experiment to investigate the extent to which the public wants social distance from people with certain mental illnesses, as well as their romantic partners.

Quincy Johnson, a researcher at the University of Kansas, led a study that used GPS technology to track how far and fast football players run and which positions had the most high-intensity work. They compared the workloads of practices to games, and the findings can help coaches, trainers and athletes find the best balance to properly prepare for a demanding game.

The Positive Psychotherapy Clinic in the University of Kansas School of Education & Human Sciences has served Kansans from 48 counties, with plans to continue growing services. Clinicians report seeing improvements in clients as early as the first session.

The Integrated Health Scholars Program (IHSP) at the KU School of Social Welfare recently received a $2.4 million award through the Behavioral Health Workforce Education and Training Program, funded by the Health Resources & Services Administration.

By studying in minute detail how amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or ALS, affects speech rhythm, a University of Kansas researcher hopes to improve personalized treatment. Panying Rong's research found that when subjects tried to speak more slowly than normal, it helped intelligibility more than trying to speak more clearly.