Grants will boost work on antivirals for mosquito-borne diseases

JUPITER, Fla. — In the tropics, mosquitoes can do more than leave you with an itchy bite. They can transmit dangerous viral illnesses, such as Zika, dengue…

Thomas Bannister, Ph.D., is seen in his lab at The Herbert Wertheim UF Scripps Institute for Biomedical Innovation & Technology.

UF researchers discover first-of-its-kind compound to target lung cancer cells

JUPITER, Fla. — Inside cells, a large family of proteins known as heat shock proteins function like attentive mother hens. They shepherd less sophisticated…

A representation of the heat shock protein and where the compound binds.

ARDS patients improve with experimental treatment

JUPITER, Fla. — Doctors have few options for patients who develop a life-threatening lung condition called acute respiratory distress syndrome, or ARDS. A…

Joe G.N. Garcia, M.D., the study’s first author and the physician-scientist who developed ALT-100, works with a colleague in a laboratory setting.

Common drug may help HIV medicines work faster and reduce inflammation

JUPITER, Fla. — An FDA‑approved medication called spironolactone, often prescribed as a diuretic, or water pill, for heart and blood pressure conditions, may…

Ambassador Council formed to further high-impact scientific research and educational philanthropy at The Wertheim UF Scripps Institute

JUPITER, Fla. — Eleven local leaders dedicated to the betterment of their community have joined The Herbert Wertheim UF Scripps Institute for Biomedical…

Marti Latour and Jeff Atwater Ambassador Council 2025

Scientists blaze new path to fighting viral diseases

JUPITER, Fla. — In a quest to develop new antiviral drugs for COVID-19 and other diseases, a collaboration led by scientists at The Wertheim UF Scripps…

A team of scientists led by Matthew Disney, Ph.D., of The Wertheim UF Scripps Institute (center), mapped the druggable pockets (violet, green, red, orange, yellow)of a key RNA from the SARS-CoV-2 virus, its frameshift element, and then designed a potential medicine able to prevent viral replication. Collaborators included Arnab Chatterjee of the Skaggs-Calibr Institute for Innovative Medicines (left) and Sumit Chanda, Ph.D., of Scripps Research (right). Illustration by Stacey DeLoye, Cryo-EM model of frameshift RNA by Sandra Kovachka, Ph.D.

Study details how cells power down to overcome viral attack

JUPITER, Fla. — Cells have evolved ingenious ways to defend themselves from viral attack. A recent study from The Wertheim UF Scripps Institute sheds light on…

Skyler Briggs, a graduate student at The Wertheim UF Scripps Institute, shows a microscopic image of lung cells infected with West Nile virus in the process of shutting down their metabolism. He is first author on a recent paper detailing the process co-authored with his mentor, James Burke, Ph.D. / Stacey DeLoye

Study: Gene therapy may block HIV transmission during breastfeeding

JUPITER, Fla.— Delivering broadly neutralizing antibodies against HIV-1 to newborns via gene therapy provided them with multi-year protection from HIV/AIDS…

Antibody-cancer drug combo shows promise against aggressive lymphoma

JUPITER, Fla. — Cancer-hunting antibodies coupled with a natural compound found in soil microbes proved a powerful combination against an aggressive type of…

Research Assistant Professor Dong Yang, Ph.D., incubates the microbe strains to increase the quantities needed for their studies.

Scientists wipe out aggressive brain cancer tumors by targeting cellular ‘motors’

JUPITER, Fla. — A potential treatment for glioblastoma crafted by scientists at The Wertheim UF Scripps Institute renders the deadly brain cancer newly…

Trending story

Mutations disrupt touch-based learning, study finds

JUPITER, Fla. — You may scarcely notice it, but much of what you do every day requires your brain to engage in perceptual learning. To safely cross an…

Wertheim UF Scripps Institute professor Gavin Rumbaugh, Ph.D. and staff scientist Thomas Vaissiere, Ph.D.

The Wertheim UF Scripps Institute, UF Medicinal Chemistry target incurable diseases

JUPITER, Fla. — University of Florida scientists with expertise in drug discovery and chemistry are advancing potential treatments for challenging diseases via…