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Daily Mail
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Incredible 19th century 'Mona Lisa' painting worth fortune found hidden away in most unlikely of places
A remarkable 19th century painting has been miraculously found hidden away in a storage closet at a closed-down seafood restaurant. People cleaning out the space discovered the 1844 oil painting of John Beale Davidge, a historic surgeon who became known to locals after a deadly yellow fever outbreak plagued Baltimore in 1797. He then went on to teach courses in medicine before founding the College of Medicine of Maryland, now the University of Maryland School of Medicine, in 1807. The work of art was stumbled upon on May 29 inside Bertha's Mussels, an eatery in Fells Point that was shut down in 2023, according to a July 15 news release from the university. Though the painting once 'hung on Bertha's walls,' it eventually became forgotten and locked in an abandoned closet until Carolyn Brownley, who was helping clean that day, discovered the relic. Brownley immediately contacted her good friend Meg Fielding, the director of the History of Maryland Medicine at MedChi, about the find before it was donated and rehoused to the medical school. Larry Pitrof, the executive director of the Medical Alumni Association of the University of Maryland, compared the painting to Mona Lisa - the highest-valued artwork ever according to the Guinness World Records with a $1 billion price tag. 'This is the only portrait of Davidge that we're aware of that exists. It is certainly the oldest. Until another one shows up, this is our Mona Lisa,' Pitrof told The Baltimore Sun. After finding the historic piece, Brownley texted Fielding, telling her: 'This painting was found among the many relics as we were cleaning out Berthas in preparation for the foreclosure auction,' the Baltimore Fishbowl reported. 'Seems like something that should have a home in the medical archives somewhere. He was quite a guy! founder of the University of Maryland School of Medicine after whom Davidge Hall is named.' Despite sitting in the closet for centuries, when Fielding got her eyes on the painting, fitted with a plaque bearing Davidge's name, she said it was in good condition and only needed a proper cleaning. 'This is such a Baltimore story,' Fielding told The Baltimore Sun. 'I knew who it was right away.' Fielding immediately rushed to tell Pitrof what was discovered, leaving him in 'disbelief.' 'I knew she knew what she had, but I was still in disbelief,' he recalled. 'I had a look at him, and I was like, "Oh my goodness gracious, Meg! How did you come upon this thing?"' According to Pirtof, the newly discovered painting is 'probably' the oldest surviving portrait of the school's founder and first dean. Days after it was spotted, Fielding purchased the painting for an undisclosed amount from Tony Norris, the former owner of Bertha's Mussels - a restaurant only two miles from Davidge Hall. In 1807, Dr. Davidge decided to construct a small building on the campus where he and his colleagues, Dr. James Cooke and Dr. John Shaw, to hold lectures and educate students. It was there that they also performed dissections, something that was considered a 'danger' at the time, per the Medical Alumni Association for the University of Maryland. 'There was danger in teaching anatomy during this time because of the public outcry that usually occurred whenever the act of dissecting cadavers was discovered,' the website detailed. Rage grew so much, that just after a week of opening the doors to the building, 'a riot broke out resulting in complete destruction of the edifice.' That same day, 'resolution establishing the new medical school was introduced in the Maryland General Assembly,' the site read. Davidge was born in Annapolis, about 50 minutes outside of Baltimore, in 1768. He died at the age of 61 in 1829. He was the son of John Davidge, a former captain in the British Army. When he was young, his single mom tried to get him to become a cabinet maker, but he dreamed of being in the medical field. He was so passionate about becoming a doctor that Davidge financed his educations by 'obtaining aid from friends and coming into possession of some slaves through the death of a relative,' according to a page that details the history of medicine in the state from 1752-1920. Davidge owned eight slaves, per the University of Maryland, Baltimore's 1807 Commission on Slavery and Racism. 'We don't know what happened to his slaves or whether he eventually freed them,' Pitrof stated. 'We didn't find evidence in his last will and testament that he owned any slaves at the time of his death.' During the yellow fever epidemic in Baltimore, Davidge stunned locals after he decided to stay and treat affected patients. 'No one knew where yellow fever came from. Doctors like everyone else died from yellow fever, and doctors like everyone else fled for the hills. But not John Davidge,' Pitrof said. 'He had a theory that yellow fever wasn't contagious, which turned out to be true. The common mosquito was the culprit. He stayed in Baltimore and treated patients with yellow fever and was a calming presence in the city.' He said the painting is currently on view inside the Davidge Building, but it will soon be removed temporarily when renovations take over on the building's interior. 'The painting is stunning. Make no mistake, there will be a prominent location for it once the building reopens,' Pitrof added.
Irish Times
22-06-2025
- General
- Irish Times
Family fallouts: ‘I can't describe the heartache of not having a relationship with my sister'
In the grand constellation of human relationships , siblings are ever-present and strangely overlooked. We may have shared bunk beds or fought over dinner scraps, yet as adults, sibling bonds can become emotionally charged, distant, or even estranged. 'Your siblings are the people you're likely to know the longest in your life,' says Dr Geoffrey Greif, a professor at the University of Maryland School of Social Work and co-author of Adult Sibling Relationships. 'You'll likely know them longer than your parents, longer than your spouse, longer than your friends.' Greif has spent decades studying how siblings shape our lives and our identities. One of his core ideas is that 'nobody grows up in the same family'. Even children raised under the same roof can inhabit completely different emotional worlds. 'I've never had the experience of having me as a sibling,' he says. Birth order, shifting parental relationships, financial change, illness, trauma, even time itself – all of these shape how children are parented, and how they see their siblings. 'There's no one truth in any one family,' Greif says. 'Even in a loving household, you're being parented by people who are changing all the time.' READ MORE Most adult siblings, Greif says, exist somewhere between closeness and conflict. He names three defining characteristics of sibling relationships: affection, ambivalence, and ambiguity. Some siblings talk daily; others drift apart and don't talk for years. Many hover in an undefined middle ground – bound by blood but estranged by personality or pain. Research on this dynamic is surprisingly scant. Siblings are hard to study because they are hard to standardise, and every family constellation is different: being the eldest of three girls isn't comparable to being the eldest boy in a family of seven, for example, and families have different value systems and lifestyles. Much of the existing research into siblings relies on individual interviews, which often means only one side of the sibling story is being told. [ How to cope with squabbling siblings: Five expert tips on handling competitive children Opens in new window ] But the research we do have paints a striking picture. One study found that the warmth a person felt from their sibling at 23 predicted lower depression in midlife . Another, tracking participants for 30 years, found that closeness with a sibling in childhood – but not with a parent – predicted emotional wellbeing at 50. A study of more than a million Swedes found that one's risk of dying from a heart attack rose after a sibling's death, not only due to shared genetics, but also because of the emotional toll of losing such a central figure in their lives. Even distant siblings can provide what Greif calls 'instrumental support', such as help with ageing parents. When these ties rupture, the loss is both emotional and operational. Difficulties often surface during moments of family transition – especially illness or death. 'You can go off in your 20s and climb mountains and not need to interact with your siblings,' Greif says. 'But when your parents are in their 70s or 80s and they need care, suddenly you're back in a room with them, trying to figure out how to share responsibility.' These reunions often reopen old wounds. Birth order hierarchies reassert themselves. Resentments return. The golden child may still act entitled; the scapegoat still feels excluded. And when in-laws, grandchildren, and property are added to the mix, it's no longer just a sibling story. 'It becomes a whole system,' Greif says. 'And that's where things can get really hard.' Muireann* is estranged from her twin sister Saoirse*. Their parents had a tumultuous relationship and their mother was often left alone trying to care for the girls and work to keep the family afloat. Despite their mother's best efforts, the girls were often left in situations that were unsafe, which resulted in emotional difficulties for both of them. Now in their late 30s, the women no longer speak. 'Our relationship was the most vital one I had through childhood. I can't describe the heartache of not having a relationship with my sister,' she says. 'We were super close from the beginning – talking to each other across our cots. It was magic for a lot of our childhood.' In school, Saoirse was bullied, which caused a growing distance between them. 'It broke her. I felt, in hindsight, really guilty for not standing up for her.' [ 'I work for a company owned by siblings who don't talk to each other. It's ruining my life' Opens in new window ] Over time, their paths diverged – Muireann became fiercely independent, her sister grew increasingly reliant on their mother. Tensions escalated until, one Christmas, a violent altercation ended with Muireann locking her sister and mother inside the house to escape. 'I want to get back in touch with her,' Muireann says. 'I just don't think this should last forever. I spend a lot of time worrying for her. I wonder if she misses me.' In Ireland, sibling estrangement violates the sacred narrative of family unity. 'My mother would always say, 'The worst thing that could happen is you kids not staying close,'' says Sadhbh* (44), who grew up with two brothers. 'There's still this blood-is-thicker-than-water thing. The biggest sin you can commit is to air your family's dirty laundry by going no contact.' But Sadhbh's mother's worst fear has been realised. What started as childhood slagging between Sadhbh and her brothers became a dysfunctional dynamic between the adult siblings where cruelty, verbal abuse, and aggressive competitiveness was normalised as 'banter'. When Sadhbh started therapy as an adult, she realised the impact this dynamic was having on her self-esteem and anxiety. 'I never went to therapy for my childhood. I went for panic. And then the therapist was like, 'Hang on. No, there's a lot of stuff you think is normal, but it's not normal'. I've had therapists ten years apart from each other repeat the same thing to me: 'Stop talking to your family.' And I was just like, 'No, that's not an option'.' For years, Sadhbh tried address the dynamic with her brothers and invite them to have a more loving relationship, but they didn't change how they spoke to her. 'My older brother, he just wants to poke and poke and poke and have a debate and win. It's like he's still a teenager who has to have this sibling rivalry. And I don't have the energy for it. And I tried a lot with him, but it's just exhausting. It's just the same, and then there's apologies and 'Come on, you're my sister, love you, let's go for a drink – but his behaviour has not changed at all.' Sadhbh cut off contact with her younger brother first, then her older brother a few years later. 'I'm so bone sad and hurt, but that's grief at a loss I've chosen. I'd rather be lonely as f**k and be safe – like emotionally safe.' Sadhbh highlights how families often get stuck in unhealthy dynamics and prefer to let issues to fester rather than try to evolve and change. 'You get scapegoated if you are trying to question things, evolve, call the dysfunction out. And often we just choose, 'Well, I'd rather not be ostracised'. But then you're just putting up with really unhealthy family dynamics.' As a family therapist, adolescent mental health specialist and a former chair of the Family Therapy Association of Ireland, Dr Monica Whyte has worked extensively with individuals and families navigating complex relationships. She believes Irish history and culture plays a unique role in shaping how Irish families respond to conflict. 'There's what I call a silencing pressure ... pressure to keep families quiet around certain things – around addiction, abuses of power, things like that. There's a cultural pressure to be silent in order to keep up the family image. And that pressure often means people can't talk about what's really happening, even with their own siblings. 'The culture of silence in Irish families can't be separated from our institutional history. For decades, we had state and church-run systems that divided up power and communication – there was no transparency, and no sharing of stories. That structure has left a mark on how families operate. Information is compartmentalised. Pain is hidden. And a lot of families learned that secrecy was a form of protection – even when it was causing damage.' This cultural focus on the family can result in pressure on family members to tolerate mistreatment or even more serious breaches of trust and safety. 'There's often a huge loyalty to family, and it can feel like betrayal to speak up or step back,' says Whyte. 'But some of the biggest breaches in families are the result of trauma – abuse, addiction, chaos. When someone walks away from their family, often it's not because they're giving up, but because they're trying to survive. That can be very hard for Irish families to accept. There's a lot of stigma still around going no contact. And often, when someone tries to set a boundary, the family sees it as rejection, not protection.' The introduction of new people to the family can create issues. When sibling relationships become strained, in-laws are often part of the story, Greif says. 'Most often, the complaints that come up are about relationships with mom and dad,' he says, 'but right behind that is: who did my sibling marry?' Romantic partners bring their own values, dynamics, and loyalties into the mix and these can shift the sibling dynamic. In these moments, the sibling at the centre of the in-laws often feels torn. 'You can't be neutral,' Greif says. 'You're the bridge between two people who would never have to interact if it weren't for you. And that means you have to step up. You have to actively help navigate that relationship.' Increasingly, one of the most volatile forces in sibling estrangement is political polarisation. 'Let's say I voted for Kamala Harris and my sister-in-law voted for Trump, and let's say I have a trans child. I can't stand the idea that someone in my family would support someone who doesn't support my child's rights.' He pauses. 'There are lines that people just can't cross.' For some people, breaking off contact with a family member is a necessary act of self-preservation. But Greif worries about the long-term emotional costs – especially when those decisions are handed down to future generations. 'If I'm estranged from my brother, what message am I giving my children?' he asks. 'That this is how we deal with conflict? That if something gets hard, we walk away?' Family therapist Karen Gail Lewis has spent decades working with adult siblings in Washington DC. She has identified 'four ghosts' – four hidden dynamics that shape and often sabotage adult sibling relationships. The first, frozen images, refers to the way we continue to see our siblings as they were decades ago. Lewis describes how her own brother still sees her as 'Little Blanche', the dutiful girl who couldn't possibly rebel – an image that can feel infantilising. While some frozen images are rooted in pain or conflict, others are born of admiration: the idealised frozen image. 'Sometimes, we don't resent our siblings – we revere them,' she says. 'And when they fall from that pedestal – cheat on a spouse, vote differently, fail in some visible way – it can feel like a betrayal not just of trust, but of identity.' Fionn* (41) idolised his sister growing up. Ailbhe* was five years older, and was confident and popular in a way that introverted and sensitive Fionn admired. When Fionn was in his mid-20s and his long-term girlfriend cheated on him, Ailbhe was his rock. It took him a long time to recover from the heartbreak and betrayal. Three years ago, when Fionn discovered that Ailbhe had cheated on her husband, he couldn't bear to look at her. 'She saw how much that broke me and then did it to her husband – it shattered my faith in her and in relationships generally. I never, ever thought she'd do that to someone and it made me think I'd never be able to be sure about anyone.' When Ailbhe's husband discovered the affair, the couple decided to work through it and are still together, but Fionn didn't speak to his sister for over a year. They're now 'civil' but Fionn admits he still finds it hard to reconcile the perfect image he had of his sister with what he now knows. 'Her husband has forgiven her, so I guess it doesn't make sense why I can't fully, but it's hard,' says Fionn. 'I wish I didn't know. I miss her.' Her now or the image he had of her? 'Both.' The second of Lewis's four ghosts is 'crystallised roles'. These are the rigid family roles assigned in childhood – the smart one, the rebel, the clown – which, over time, calcify into identities we cannot shake. A woman cast as the 'responsible one' may feel she must always hold everything together, while her 'troublemaker' brother is never expected to contribute. Even when siblings try to swap roles – the rebel gets sober, the golden child burns out – the family story often resists updating. The third is 'unhealthy loyalty'. Lewis recalls a man who had once been a high achiever but, after losing his job during the recession, felt an unexpected sense of relief. 'He said, 'Now when I visit my family, I feel more comfortable. I'm not so different from them any more.'' For years, his success had made him feel like an outsider. Without knowing it, he had been holding himself back – out of love, perhaps, but love in a distorted form. Finally, the fourth ghost is 'sibling transference', or the way we unconsciously replicate early sibling dynamics in our adult relationships with others. A woman who learned to manage her impulsive brother as a child may find herself drawn to a partner with similar traits. A man who felt invisible next to his overachieving sister may find himself triggered by competitive colleagues. We don't necessarily marry our siblings, Lewis says, but we often re-enact our sibling roles with those closest to us. Despite the deep significance of these dynamics, sibling therapy is not common. 'Therapists aren't trained to do this work,' says Lewis. 'Psychology schools don't teach sibling therapy. So even therapists who might be interested often don't have the tools.' Lewis trains other therapists, and sees this specialisation as urgent. 'I'm 81 in two weeks. I want this work to continue. I don't charge for training – I just want my expenses covered. I trained therapists in Estonia last year. I'd love to come to Ireland if anyone's interested.' Lewis says many siblings who seek therapy together aren't doing so from a place of harmony, and often, one sibling is driving the reconnection. 'One says, 'I haven't talked to her in six years, but we ran into each other and she agreed to come once just to shut me up.' But more often than not, they come back.' The work is often brief but transformative. 'Sibling therapy is often shorter than individual or couple therapy. People say, 'I've been in therapy 20 years for my trauma.' But if you never worked through how that trauma played out between you and your siblings, there's still residue.' Lewis is careful not to impose a one-size-fits-all notion of success on sibling therapy, saying, 'Some siblings end up close. Others get to 'We can be civil'. Some drop out of therapy and I think, 'Well, that didn't go anywhere,' and months later I get a letter saying it changed their lives. You just never know.' What she sees as most valuable is the opportunity to tell the truth and be heard. 'When siblings talk – really talk – about what it was like growing up together, things shift. Not always into harmony. But into clarity. And that's something most people never get to do.' Whyte agrees that there needs to be more awareness and access to therapy that isn't just focused on one person. 'In Ireland, we have a heavy reliance on individual models of therapy,' she explains. 'That means you're often working one-to-one, without hearing the different perspectives and stories within the family. So a lot of stories remain untold and unheard.' Whyte practices systemic family therapy, a collaborative approach that works with family members together – siblings, parents, even grandparents – to understand relational patterns and make meaning of shared experiences. Unlike individual therapy, which focuses on internal emotional states and personal growth, systemic therapy examines how people interact, how roles are reinforced, and how patterns get repeated – often unconsciously -across generations. 'Systemic family therapy looks at how we live our lives in connection with others – our family of origin, but also the family we create for ourselves,' she says. 'It's not just about individual change. It's about systemic change – looking at how we make meaning together, and how we can shift our shared dynamics.' But sibling therapy also requires a therapist with the right orientation – and access to that expertise can be uneven across the country. 'If someone doesn't live near a systemic therapist, they might only be offered individual therapy – psychodynamic, CBT, or otherwise – and those are valid approaches, but they don't necessarily bring the family into the room,' Whyte says. 'And that can limit what's possible in terms of repair.' Not every sibling story ends in reconciliation. For some people, like Sadhbh, distance feels like the only option to ensure her emotional safety. But Lewis and Greif believe that the stories we tell ourselves about our siblings – and the roles we play in theirs – can be rewritten, if we're willing to listen. 'You can't argue someone out of their pain,' Greif says. 'If your sister says, 'You never let me in your room as a kid,' don't say, 'You were annoying'. Say, 'I can understand why that hurt you'.' For those who unable to access therapy, Lewis offers a free downloadable book called Are You a Sibling? with practical tools and advice, and a guide for therapists on running sibling retreats. For individuals thinking of reaching out to a sibling they are estranged from, she recommends starting from a place of curiosity. 'If you're considering reconnecting, start by asking yourself, 'What's my frozen image? What role have I clung to? Am I holding myself back out of some warped sense of loyalty? Understanding yourself is the best place to start from.' *The names of siblings in this piece have been changed to protect the anonymity of interviewees.
Daily Mail
14-06-2025
- Politics
- Daily Mail
USA Fencing makes dramatic policy change months after female fencer protested facing a trans rival
USA Fencing has voted to amend policies that prioritize LGBTQ-friendly states as host venues and prevent the playing of the national anthem at certain events. The governing body's board of directors agreed on the decision following months of criticism over a female fencer who was infamously punished for refusing to face a transgender opponent earlier this year. Stephanie Turner, 31, was competing in a tournament at the University of Maryland back in April when she took a knee and walked out of her match against trans rival Redmond Sullivan, who was born a man. After refusing to compete, Turner was issued a 'blackcard' by fencing officials - which suspended her from the competition. The controversial decision has sparked outrage on social media among users left dismayed by a female athlete being punished for choosing not to line up against a biological male. Despite the uproar, USA Fencing issued a statement justifying its decision while supporting Sullivan, 20, and the inclusion of trans athletes in women's sports. In the wake of that controversy, which saw woke pro-trans chairman Damien Lehfeldt scrutinized by federal lawmakers at a congressional hearing last month, USA Fencing's directors voted the changes surrounding LGBTQ-friendly sites and the national anthem at a board meeting last Saturday, reports Fox News. USA Fencing announced in an official statement that it has 'adopted a streamlined policy that applies criteria prioritizing cost, safety and convenience to every national-event bid across all 50 states.' The new policy is said to ensure host cities meet 'stringent member-safety and cost-efficiency standards.' The previous host site policy gave preference to cities without laws that 'harm members of the LGBTQ communities' and states that do not 'have laws undermining the reproductive health of women'. States on the 'do not allow' list included Florida, Indiana, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee and Texas. The tweaked national anthem policy, which will go into effect at the 2025 Summer Nationals and be reviewed annually, will 'provide consistent, respectful minimum guidance for honoring the flag and anthem across nine annual tournaments.' In December of last year, the board saw a vote to play the national anthem at the start of tournaments voted down. However, USA Fencing said in a statement to Fox News: 'The anthem has always been played at the start of every national tournament. The Board simply wrote that long‑standing practice into policy and added that it will also be played on any U.S. holiday that occurs during an event, such as Independence Day, which falls during our upcoming Summer Nationals.' Weeks after Turner took a knee instead of face a trans rival, Lehfeldt - the controversial chairman of USA Fencing - endured a brutal interrogation by lawmakers over his stance on transgender athletes, including why he once compared concerned parents to the Ku Klux Klan. The incident involving Turner shone a light on Lehfeldt, who previously wrote in a blog post that 'transgender women are women' and '(they) deserve the right to compete with the gender they identify with.' Since returning to office, however, Donald Trump has signed an executive order entitled 'Keeping Men Out of Women's Sports'. On May 7, both Turner and Lehfeldt appeared at a hearing involving a Subcommittee on Delivering on Government Efficiency (DOGE). The hearing was shown a photo, apparently posted on social media by Lehfeldt, in which he made a profane two-finger gesture at the camera with the caption 'Game day'. He was grilled by lawmakers including chairwoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, with his governing body accused of 'ignoring science' and putting 'politics ahead of women and the law.' Greene pressed him on why USA Fencing's 'site selection policy' for tournaments takes into account an area's policies on abortion and LGBT rights. 'We try to have tournaments in sites that are safe for all of our members. Period,' he said. But Lehfeldt refused to answer whether he would 'want (his) daughter to change in front of biological men in locker rooms? Yes or no.' The chairman responded to Greene: 'My daughter isn't really something that should be part of this hearing, respectfully.' Greene later posted a clip of the incident on social media and wrote: 'He couldn't say 'NO.' That tells you EVERYTHING. These people have lost all common sense.' Turner, meanwhile, claimed she was left feeling 'isolated and strangled' by USA Fencing, having spent '7,000 hours training and over $100,000' on her fencing career. Lehfeldt eventually said the organization would comply with law changes regarding transgender athletes in women's sports.
Associated Press
10-06-2025
- Health
- Associated Press
BioAegis Therapeutics Announces US Navy Contract to Support Phase 2 Study of Recombinant Human Gelsolin, for Inflammasome-Driven Decompression Sickness (DCS)
NORTH BRUNSWICK, N.J., June 10, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- BioAegis Therapeutics, a pioneering biotech company at the forefront of innovative therapies for acute and chronic inflammatory diseases, announces that it will conduct a Phase 2 study of rhu-pGSN for decompression sickness (DCS) under a contract awarded by the U.S. Navy's Office of Naval Research to the University of Maryland School of Medicine (UMSOM). This work is the culmination of an extended collaboration with Dr. Stephen Thom, Professor of Emergency Medicine at UMSOM. The Company's portfolio is built around gelsolin, a highly conserved and critical immune regulatory protein which rebalances dysfunctional inflammation without suppressing immune function. Phase 2 Clinical Trial of Rhu-pGSN The study, 'Rhu-pGSN to Mitigate Proinflammatory Responses to Decompression in Healthy SCUBA Divers,' NCT06216366 is being conducted under a contract with the Office of Naval Research with the University of Maryland. It will investigate the use of rhu-pGSN as a pre- or post-exposure intervention in healthy trained SCUBA divers exposed to controlled hyperbaric conditions. The study is designed to assess the impact of rhu-pGSN on key inflammatory responses and microparticle production associated with decompression. Decompression sickness occurs when inert gas bubbles form in the bloodstream and tissues due to rapid pressure changes, triggering an inflammatory cascade. Previous studies have shown that individuals with DCS exhibit depleted levels of plasma gelsolin and elevated levels of microparticles that contain inflammatory cytokines. In animal models, supplementation with rhu-pGSN both prevented and mitigated DCS-related complications. This randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study will enroll healthy trained SCUBA divers at a single site and expose them to a standardized hyperbaric protocol (30 meters of seawater for 35 minutes). Participants will be randomized into three groups to receive either pre-exposure or post-exposure rhu-pGSN, or placebo. The study will assess a broad range of outcomes including plasma gelsolin levels, inflammatory markers like IL-1β, gas bubble formation, and well-being metrics. Dr. Thom states, 'If successful, this study could transform the way we manage decompression sickness by providing a portable, field-deployable treatment option. Reducing our reliance on hyperbaric chambers would greatly expand our ability to treat DCS in remote or operational environments, improving outcomes and readiness, a key goal for the Navy.' BioAegis and University of Maryland are co-applicants on a patent filing listing Dr. Thom as an inventor. Gelsolin: A Multitasking Protein for Complex Inflammatory Conditions Rhu-pGSN holds immense promise as a therapeutic intervention for serious acute and chronic conditions due to its multifaceted mechanism of action. In critical illness, gelsolin levels collapse, causing adverse outcomes. Supplementing gelsolin addresses this deficit directly, restoring immune balance while preserving host defense and rhu-pGSN has been shown in animal studies to: Supplementation with the recombinant gelsolin protein holds promise to address the overzealous inflammatory response associated many inflammatory diseases without suppressing immune function. About BioAegis BioAegis Therapeutics Inc. is a NJ-based clinical-stage private company whose mission is to capitalize on a key regulatory component of the body's immune system, plasma gelsolin, to prevent adverse outcomes in diseases driven by inflammation. BioAegis has the exclusive license to broad, worldwide intellectual property through Harvard-Brigham and Women's Hospital. It holds over 40 patents issued for coverage of inflammatory disease, infection, renal failure, neurologic disease, and frailty. BioAegis will also have U.S. biologics exclusivity and has recently filed new IP in areas of unmet need. BioAegis' lead product, rhu-pGSN, is currently being studied in a 600-patient global Phase 2 trial for patients with moderate to severe Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS). This project has been supported in whole or in part with federal funds from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services; Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response; Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA), under contract number 75A50123C00067. NCT05947955 Investor Inquiries: Steven Cordovano 203-952-6373 [email protected] Media Inquiries: Christine Lagana [email protected]
CBS News
09-06-2025
- Business
- CBS News
Johns Hopkins, University of Maryland seeks to join Harvard lawsuit against Trump administration over federal funding
Johns Hopkins University seeks to join Harvard lawsuit against Trump over funding cuts Johns Hopkins University seeks to join Harvard lawsuit against Trump over funding cuts Johns Hopkins University seeks to join Harvard lawsuit against Trump over funding cuts Johns Hopkins and the University of Maryland are trying to join 16 other universities in backing Harvard's legal battle with the Trump administration over federal funding. The two filed a brief on Friday, arguing that the cuts will disrupt ongoing research. This comes after months of the administration cutting funding for dozens of schools. So far, that brief is unopposed. JHU loses research funding Johns Hopkins has made adjustments after losing millions in federal funding. In April, the university said it lost more than $800 million from USAID grant terminations. Since January, Hopkins said, 90 grants have ended with the loss of $50 million in federal research funding. This led the university to lay off more than 2,200 workers globally, implement a hiring freeze, and pause annual pay increases. The university said it would also reduce the number of research projects and cut back spending in certain areas. University of Maryland faces cuts At the University of Maryland College Park, more than 40 research grants and contracts worth about $12 million were canceled due to federal cuts targeting diversity, equity, and inclusion programs. The University of Maryland, Baltimore laid off 30 full-time staff and eliminated 30 vacant positions after cuts to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and other research funding. UMB also announced a "modest salary reduction" that they said would impact about 1,000 employees, including university leadership, primarily at the medical school. In response to the cuts, the University System of Maryland voted to authorize potential furloughs and temporary salary reductions for university employees. What about Harvard's legal battle? In April, the Trump administration froze $2.2 billion in grant funding after the school refused to comply with President Trump's list of demands that followed an investigation into the school's handling of alleged antisemitism during pro-Palestinian protests last year. Harvard is one of 60 universities nationwide being investigated.
