Leading the charge against COVID-19

headshots of Asrar Malik and Jalees Rehman

Mitigating lung damage, mortality due to SARS-CoV-2

Oct 5, 2021 11:45 am

In a new paper, researchers at the University of Illinois Chicago report that a drug approved for treating patients with autoimmune disease helped to prevent lung damage and death in mice infected with the SARS-CoV-2 virus, which causes COVID-19 in humans.

UIS to co-host webinar on overcoming misinformation during the pandemic

Nov 18, 2021 2:15 pm

The UIS Springfield Center for State Policy and Leadership and the Community Health Roundtable are partnering to host a free virtual public webinar, “Overcoming Misinformation during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Mainstream and Social Media, Public Health, and Outreach to the General Public and Disadvantaged Populations.”

book cover with buliding with needle on top and covid molecules

Report explores how public policies failed Black, Latino Chicagoans during COVID-19

Dec 2, 2021 1:00 pm

A new report issued today from the UIC Institute for Research on Race and Public Policy analyzes how national and local policies related to health care, mental health care, housing, child care and education, and social assistance failed to meet the needs of Chicago’s Black and Latino residents and contributed to the health disparities in COVID-19 infections, hospitalizations and deaths.

Pandemic impact on waste

Dec 3, 2020 1:45 pm

Anne-Marie Hanson, associate professor of environmental studies at the University of Illinois Springfield takes a look at the impact of COVID-19 on waste patterns, waste workers, and waste habits.

Pandemic-stressors' impact on STIs in young Kenyan women

Dec 6, 2021 3:15 pm

UIC researchers have been awarded $2.6 million in research funding from the National Institutes of Health to study how pandemic-related stressors influence sexual behavior and risk of sexually transmitted infections among girls and young women in Kenya.

Adapting HIV/AIDS interventions

Dec 8, 2020 3:30 pm

A research project being co-led by a UIUC social work professor is exploring whether interventions that have been effective at engaging high-risk populations in HIV/AIDS testing and treatment can be adapted to achieve similar effects in mitigating COVID-19.

CDC endorses Test to Stay strategy piloted by IDPH, SHIELD Illinois

Dec 20, 2021 8:15 am

A new CDC report published today confirms that the Test to Stay program, created locally by IDPH and operated by SHIELD Illinois, can help keep kindergarten through grade 12 (K-12) students in the classroom.

SHIELD Illinois launches free testing site at DePaul's Loop Campus

Jan 18, 2022 4:30 pm

SHIELD Illinois, the University of Illinois System’s in-state, non-profit COVID-testing unit, is partnering with DePaul University and the Chicago Department of Public Health (CDPH) to launch a free community testing site at DePaul’s Loop Campus.

Illinois tax revenue losses lower than expected during pandemic

Jan 26, 2021 11:00 am

The pandemic hit state tax revenues hard last spring when a widely restrictive stay-at-home order was in effect, but much of that early loss was recovered in subsequent months, according to the report from the University of Illinois’ Institute of Government and Public Affairs.

This is the safest place in Illinois

Feb 4, 2021 8:15 am

How the U of I developed its own COVID-19 test and deployed it more than a million times (and counting).

UIS hosts webinar on impact of COVID-19 on youth

Feb 18, 2021 8:45 am

The UIS Innovation Hub, UIS Center for State Policy and Leadership and the Community Health Roundtable will host a free public webinar titled “Impact of COVID-19 on our Youth: Learning, Playing & Socializing” at Noon Friday, Feb. 19 via Zoom.

Anna Lopez works on laptop and mobile phone at desk

Volunteers help Chicago residents without internet connect to COVID-19 vaccines

Mar 23, 2021 10:30 am

A UIC computer science student created a volunteer group on Facebook aimed at helping individuals from Chicago's Black and brown communities book vaccine appointments online.

Program innovates to help prisoners continue to learn during COVID

Apr 13, 2021 10:15 am

UIUC's Education Justice Project was able to keep some of its prison courses going through paper correspondence and video instruction during the pandemic, when online learning was not an option.

Researchers scour Twitter to analyze public attitudes about COVID-19 vaccinations

May 2, 2022 1:15 pm

A new study from the University of Illinois Chicago examines key themes and topics from almost three million COVID-19 vaccine-related tweets posted by individuals and explores the trends and variations in public opinions and sentiments about vaccines and vaccination programs

Study: Black girls’ health ‘heavily impacted’ by COVID

May 2, 2022 1:15 pm

The physical, psychological and sexual development of Black adolescent girls has been “heavily impacted” by the COVID-19 pandemic, said UIC College of Nursing assistant professor Natasha Crooks, PhD, RN.

SHIELD Illinois opens two free COVID testing sites in Chicago

May 19, 2022 4:00 pm

SHIELD Illinois opened two additional free community testing sites in Chicago this month, bringing its total number of locations statewide to 44. The newly opened community sites increase access to COVID testing in underserved communities.

patient in hat and mask getting vaccination in arm

UIC leads new collaborative to reduce COVID-19 disparities

May 24, 2021 8:15 am

The University of Illinois Chicago has been selected by the National Institutes of Health as the principal site of a multi-center collaborative in the Chicago area that will bolster research and outreach to help communities disproportionately affected by COVID-19.

Masked Black male with orange SHIELD t-shirt h gloves handing test tube to man

UIUC receives APLU award for COVID-19 testing program

Jul 6, 2021 8:00 am

The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign has received the inaugural Research Response to Community Crisis Award from the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities for its COVID-19 testing program.

In survey, COVID-19 vaccine recipients report changes in menstrual bleeding

Jul 22, 2022 9:45 am

In a survey of more than 35,000 people, UIUC anthropology professor Kathryn Clancy and her colleagues collected evidence that many individuals experience menstrual changes after COVID-19 vaccination.

Illinois K-12 public schools can access free SHIELD Illinois COVID-19 testing

Aug 5, 2021 12:45 pm

The llinois Department of Public Health announced that it has expanded access to free COVID-19 testing to al K-12 public schools across Illinois outside of Chicago, which received its own funding.

Schools can choose to utilize the SHIELD Illinois saliva-based test developed by the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.

Paper: Perception of COVID-19 vulnerability hurts job prospects

Sep 15, 2021 9:30 am

Job seekers’ perceived risk of contracting and falling seriously ill from COVID-19 may take a significant mental health toll and ultimately affect their ability to secure employment, says new research co-written by Yihao Liu, a professor of labor and employment relations and of psychology at Illinois.

Antibodies from original strain COVID-19 infection don't bind to variants, study finds

Sep 22, 2021 8:30 am

People infected with the original strain of the virus that causes COVID-19 produced a consistent antibody response. However, those antibodies don’t bind well to new variants, according to a new UIUC study.

Citizen COVID-19 blogging project

Oct 21, 2020 2:15 pm

Ruby Mendenhall and Robin Wilson at the University of Illinois have come together to lead a blogging project on COVID-19 throughout Illinois. They've signed-up citizen scientists to share their perspectives.

Detecting outbreaks through wastewater

Oct 27, 2020 1:45 pm

The Walder Foundation has awarded a Discovery Partners Institute science team led by UIC $1.25 million to develop a prototype capability for detecting COVID-19 outbreaks and trends in Chicago’s wastewater.

shadow of female professor writing on white board

Early, mid-career women experienced higher stress than other academics during pandemic

Dec 13, 2021 12:30 pm

The COVID-19 pandemic has disproportionately affected women who are early and mid-career academic faculty members, according to a recent study by University of Illinois Chicago researchers.

four researchers standing, facing the camera

UIUC researchers look to duck antibodies to help fight next pandemic

Feb 13, 2023 11:00 am

Could an analysis of ducks’ antibodies help engineer new therapeutics for humans, and potentially develop tools to fight the next pandemic? A team including many UIUC scientists has been tasked with finding out.

close up of dental instruments in mouth of patient

Study: 2% of asymptomatic pediatric dental patients test positive for COVID-19

Apr 26, 2021 1:00 pm

A study by a University of Illinois Chicago pediatric dentist has shown a novel way to track potential COVID-19 cases — testing children who visit the dentist. The study also showed an over 2% positivity rate for the asymptomatic children tested.

COVID-19 research on wastewater systems to track pandemics

Oct 25, 2022 12:45 pm

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced $1,000,000 in research grant funding to the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign to improve wastewater monitoring to rapidly detect the emergence and spread of infectious disease in the current COVID-19 pandemic, and to detect other pathogens that could cause future pandemics.

Clinical trials for blood clot prevention

Nov 18, 2020 1:30 pm

UIC will conduct three clinical trials for studying blood clot prevention in patients with COVID-19. Blood clots are one of the leading complications of COVID-19.

downward trend arrow with COVID-19 symbols

Economic impact of COVID-19

Dec 1, 2020 1:45 pm

Kenneth Kritz, distinguished professor of public administration at UIS, examines the economic impact of the pandemic on the United States economy.

UIS hosts webinar on "Getting our Lives Back"

Mar 10, 2021 10:15 am

The University of Illinois Springfield Innovation Hub and UIS Center for State Policy and Leadership will host a free public COVID-19 webinar titled “Getting our Lives Back: The Opportunities that Lie Ahead” at Noon Friday, March 12 via Zoom.

Saliva test being expanded in Champaign-Urbana community

Mar 24, 2021 10:15 am

OSF HealthCare announced a new partnership with the University of Illinois Tuesday that will expand the U of I’s saliva-based COVID-19 test into the broader Champaign-Urbana community.

helathcare worker swabbing nose of patient

UIC to research long COVID-19 with $22 million from the NIH

Apr 7, 2022 9:30 am

A team of University of Illinois Chicago researchers is projected to receive approximately $22 million from the National Institutes of Health over four years to research long COVID-19.

Study maps COVID-19 health disparities in Greater Santiago

Apr 27, 2021 1:00 pm

People up to age 40 living in economically depressed municipalities in the Greater Santiago, Chile, metropolitan area were three times more likely to die as a result of the infection than their counterparts in wealthier areas, researchers report in the journal Science.

Study finds green spaces linked to lower racial disparity in COVID-19 infection rates

Apr 28, 2021 8:15 am

A higher ratio of green spaces at the county level is associated with a lower racial disparity in coronavirus infection rates, according to a new study.

Phase 3 monoclonal antibody clinical trial

Oct 29, 2020 2:00 pm

Researchers at UIC are now enrolling people into a phase 3 clinical trial that will test if a monoclonal antibody treatment will help protect uninfected individuals from acquiring or getting sick from COVID-19 after someone in the household tests positive for COVID-19.

Profs. Johnson and Wooldridge with Chancellor Jones outside trailer

New mobile COVID-19 lab prototype

Nov 6, 2020 1:00 pm

The Grainger College of Engineering at UIUC has completed the prototype for a mobile laboratory designed to demonstrate a way to rapidly deploy the saliva-based test for COVID-19 developed at the university.

Chicago neighborhood with children playing

Neighborhoods and death rates

Dec 3, 2020 1:45 pm

A new study led by researchers at the University of Illinois Chicago has found that Chicago neighborhoods with barriers to social distancing, including limited access to broadband internet and low rates of health insurance, had more COVID-19 deaths in spring 2020.

Vaccine hesitancy among healthcare workers

Dec 6, 2021 3:30 pm

According to a new study by UIC researchers, approximately 3 in 20 health care workers surveyed reported being hesitant about getting their COVID-19 vaccinations.

First vaccine doses in Chicago

Dec 15, 2020 12:45 pm

Five front-line medical workers, including UI Health's Dr. Marina Del Rios, received the vaccine against COVID-19 in Chicago on Tuesday, December 15, marking an important milestone in the fight against the coronavirus.

Models predict optimal airplane seating for reduced viral transmission

Dec 21, 2021 12:15 pm

A new study led by a UIUC computer science professor and aviation risk expert calculated the optimal ways to seat passengers on airplanes based on the most recent data on aerosol transmission of the virus that causes COVID-19.

Stephanie Crawford, Wayne Giles, Phoenix Matthews

UIC experts part of vaccine work group

Jan 15, 2021 1:45 pm

Several UIC faculty are members of the Chicago Scientific COVID-19 Vaccine Work Group. This group, convened by the Chicago Department of Public Health, is tasked with independently evaluating whether or not the proper scientific and regulatory review has taken place for authorizing emergency use for COVID-19 vaccines.

Safer Community app has roots in U of I testing program

Feb 10, 2021 12:30 pm

William Sullivan, a professor of landscape architecture at UIUC, led the team that developed the Safer Illinois app. Since 1992, he said his focus at the university has been on how to create healthier cities.

UIC tests Cook County Jail wastewater to catch early outbreaks

Mar 5, 2021 8:00 am

On a recent morning, a UIC team, accompanied by doctors from the jail's Cermak Health Services and the Chicago Department of Health, showed NBC5 how they take samples from sewers at six different sites inside the jail complex.

female researcher performing testing in lab

IDPH expands COVID-19 testing to elementary schools

Jun 10, 2021 8:45 am

To help ensure schools can more safely resume in-person learning, the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) announced it is expanding access to no-cost and low-cost COVID-19 testing to elementary schools across Illinois. Schools can choose to utilize the saliva-based covidSHIELD test developed by the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.

Patient in rear-view car mirror getting testing instructions

Pop-up Rantoul testing clinics

Dec 2, 2020 1:45 pm

An interdisciplinary team of scientists at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign is working with clinicians and community researchers to expand access to COVID-19 testing by providing pop-up testing clinics for agricultural workers and others at various locations in Rantoul, Illinois.

Developing therapeutic intervention for respiratory diseases like COVID-19

Dec 14, 2021 9:30 am

Through the support of the American Lung Association, a UIUC bioengineering professor is developing a therapeutic intervention for respiratory diseases like COVID-19 by engineering commensal microbes to produce & deliver treatment at the infection site.

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