A publication of the UC Davis School of Medicine
A summary of recent news coverage quotes from our experts.
“The potential is enormous.”
– Neurosurgeon David Brandman, M.D., Ph.D., in a Feb. 11 TIME magazine piece naming Brandman and neuroscientist Sergey Stavisky, Ph.D., to the 2026 TIME100 Health List of the World’s Most Influential Leaders in Health. The publication noted their work on developing a brain-computer interface that helped an individual with ALS “speak” again, as part of the BrainGate2 clinical trial.
“We didn’t see any significant adverse effects in any way…in each case, the baby is doing good. The mom is doing good. And the treatment…didn’t interfere with the expected fetal surgery-only benefits.”
– Aijun Wang, Ph.D., co-director of the UC Davis Center for Surgical Bioengineering, in a Feb. 26 Science.org article on the CuRe trial titled “Treating fetuses with stem cells proves safe in milestone spina bifida trial.” Wang is co-inventor of the placental-derived stem cell treatment technology and the study’s co-principal investigator, with Diana Farmer, M.D.
“I hardly ever order from the main entrée menu. There’s too much of too few ingredients, and the portions are almost always too large.”
– Amparo Villablanca, M.D., director of the Women’s Cardiovascular Medicine Program at UC Davis Health, in the Feb. 10 Women’s Health article “Cardiologists Get Real About How They Actually Take Care of Their Hearts.”
“Using vaginal estrogen on the face or body is not evidence-based and not something I recommend… using it off-label introduces safety concerns without any proven benefit. Something made for the vagina is not necessarily effective or safe for the face or other parts of the body and may increase systemic exposure in unpredictable ways.”
– Oma Agbai, M.D., associate clinical professor of dermatology, in an April 1 Guardian article “ ‘Vaginal estrogen as a face filler? I think not’: Experts critique the new skincare trend.”
“The people touting peptides will say things like, ‘thousands of people have taken these peptides so if they were dangerous, we’d know by now.’ This is a big gamble. For many potential risks from peptide use, signals may not yet be clear. For example, cancer risk may emerge only 3–5 more years down the road or longer.”
– Paul Knoepfler, Ph.D., professor of cell biology and human anatomy, in the April 6 STAT News article “What the peptide craze reveals about Americans’ relationship with risk.”
“This is among the largest abnormalities I’ve seen. The brain runs a tight ship. It doesn’t usually let things get too out of balance. So that’s a sizable change.”
– Richard Maddock, M.D., M.S., in a Feb. 27 TODAY.COM article “1 Nutrient People With Anxiety May Need More Of and How To Get It,” about low choline levels in the brains of people with certain anxiety and panic disorders.
