A May 12 article in the Imperial Valley News highlighted clinical trials led by Agustin Garcia, associate professor of clinical medicine at the Keck School of Medicine; Huyen Pham, assistant professor of clinical obstetrics and gynecology at the Keck School; and Yvonne Lin, assistant professor of obstetrics and gynecology at the Keck School, studying breast, ovarian and cervical cancer immunotherapies. Health Canal also covered the trials.

A May 11 article in the Economist featured research by Michael Habib, assistant professor of research in cell and neurobiology at the Keck School of Medicine, and a colleague studying how a flying pterosaur caught its dinner. They studied 36 birds and 20 bats, assessing bone densities and other measurements with that of the pterosaur’s fossils. The study found the prehistoric creature probably sat in wait for prey, then swooped after it.

On May 10, the Los Angeles Times reported the recruitment of professors Arthur Toga, Paul Thompson and more than 100 faculty, researchers and staff, including graduate students, postdoctoral fellows and others from the UCLA Laboratory of Neuro Imaging to the Keck School of Medicine.

USC President C.L. Max Nikias said it was part of a hiring initiative that has brought two-dozen esteemed academics to the university in the past three years. “They are people who are well established, they are the kings and queens of where they are,” Nikias said. The story mentioned the Campaign for USC, which aims to raise $6 billion by 2018.

Toga said the ability to expand at USC “seemed far greater than the opportunities” at UCLA. “USC has stepped up to the plate to do this,” Thompson said. The Los Angeles Times ran a second story and a live chat about the acquisition.

A May 10 article in Futurity highlighted research by Cheng-Ming Chuong, professor of pathology at the Keck School of Medicine, and colleagues, finding that stem cells appear to create the patterns in feathers. The researchers found that variations in the timing of cell development and positioning of the progenitor cells create the feathers’ distinct designs.

On May 9, CNN ran an op-ed by Ismael Nuno, assistant professor of clinical cardiothoracic surgery at the Keck School of Medicine, about his daughter’s eating disorder.

As a result of the disorder, she developed cardiac arrhythmia, which eventually killed her. “As a parent of one of these young girls, I can warn other parents of some possible red flags. … If they see them, parents should seek help for their child,” Nuno wrote.

A May 9 story in the San Marino Tribune covered a tribute dinner for Michael John Patzakis, who served as chairman of the Department of Orthopaedics at the Keck School of Medicine for 21 years.

A May 9 article on Health Canal featured research led by Debu Tripathy, professor of medicine at the Keck School of Medicine, which found that hormonal therapy given with the anti-HER2 antibody trastuzumab (Herceptin) and chemotherapy is associated with improved survival and progression-free survival outcomes, compared to no hormonal therapy. Daily RX also covered the research.

A May 8 article in The New York Times mentioned costs of surgical procedures at the Keck Hospital of USC. Los Angeles Times ran a story that also mentioned costs at Los Angeles County+USC Medical Center. KPCC-FM, CBS News Los Angeles affiliate KCBS-TV and ModernHealthcare also reported on the story.

A May 8 broadcast on ABC News Los Angeles affiliate KABC-TV interviewed Wendy Mitchell, professor of clinical neurology and pediatrics at the Keck School of Medicine and director of pediatric neurology at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, about migraines in children.

A May 8 story on NBC News cited research led by Gabriel Zada, assistant clinical professor of neurosurgery at the Keck School of Medicine, which found that the age-adjusted incidence of malignant tumors in the parts of the brain closest to where people hold their phones rose significantly from 1992 and 2006 in California. Reuters and Techno Buffalo also mentioned the research.

A May 6 article in The Missourian highlighted research by Ihab Hajjar, assistant professor of medicine at the Keck School of Medicine, which found patients taking a certain class of drugs used to treat high blood pressure had less of the brain plaque characteristic of Alzheimer’s disease after they died.

A May 6 story on The Huffington Post mentioned that David Agus, professor of medicine and engineering at the Keck School of Medicine and Viterbi School of Engineering, hosted a “What is Cancer” questions and answer session at TEDMED 2013.

An April 28 article by Health Day featured research by Keck School of Medicine doctoral student Yue Liao and colleagues who found that young people are more likely to be influenced to smoke by peers in middle school than in high school. Virtual Medical Centre also covered the research.