SaiOx, a Tucson-based technology startup, has received a patent from the U.S. Patent Office for its new respiratory assist device aimed at assisting COVID-19 patients. The device, Hespiro, delivers both helium and oxygen to the user while capturing exhaled gas in a closed-off "rebreather" system. It was developed by Dr. Sairam Parthasarathy, a University of Arizona pulmonologist at the College of Medicine - Tucson, and Dr. Marvin J. Slepian, a Regents Professor and cardiologist in the UArizona Sarver Heart Center.

Arizona passed 200,000 COVID-19 cases this week and is likely to register its 5,000th death this weekend, but despite those somber milestones experts said the numbers are all moving in the right direction – for now. "I think we've gone through several experiences now where we've let up on some of these things and opened a bit too quickly," said Dr. Daniel Derksen, director of the University of Arizona Center for Rural Health. "People got relaxed and less careful about going to places like bars, the public congregating in large gatherings, or even large numbers of people not wearing masks."

Though no single drug is a "game-changer," experts say medications and improved standard care seem to be reducing death rates. "A common mistake is to get excited and be chasing things that may seem esoteric, and to abandon the things we know work well," said Dr. Christian Bime, a researcher and ICU medical director at the University of Arizona College of Medicine - Tucson. "Good old-fashioned public health may seem boring, but it works."

How the Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health pivoted to keep its annual camp up and running during a summer without in-person activities.

A conference hosted by two University of Arizona Health Sciences centers brings researchers together to forge new partnerships, accelerate drug discovery.

Roberta Diaz Brinton, director of the Center for Innovation in Brain Science at the University of Arizona, is investigating whether the drug allopregnanolone – a naturally occurring brain steroid – could promote a process called neurogenesis, which triggers brain cell growth and might restore cognitive function.

Coronavirus cases nationally are falling from their July peaks and some hard-hit states are showing signs of improvement – a hopeful sign even as the country deals with about 1,000 COVID-19 deaths every day. Arizona, once one of the hardest-hit states, has seen a dramatic improvement after Gov. Doug Ducey, who initially resisted stronger measures, closed bars and allowed localities to require masks. “Definitely things are improving and they’re actually improving quite dramatically,” said Joe Gerald, an associate professor at the University of Arizona's Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health.

Dr. Amelia Gallitano, an associate professor, basic medical sciences and psychiatry, was named to the Phoenix Business Journal's "Outstanding Women in Business" list.

While leading health organizations such as the World Health Organization and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommend the use of hand dryers, experts say misinformation about this equipment remains. Kelly Reynolds, a professor and Department Chair at the Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health at the University of Arizona, offered an explanation as to the root of these misconceptions, stating that, “Consumers may only read (sensationalized) headlines which can influence public opinion toward biased or erroneous conclusions, (but) the fact is, the breadth of data available does not favor one hand drying method as being more hygienic or safer.”