Duke Clinical Research

06/01/2026

Take a walk. Headphones on. Press play. 🎧

Sit. Stay curious. Fetch something good.🐶 https://medschool.duke.edu/newsroom/podcasts

(Video: A golden retriever wearing headphones, posed as if tuned in to a podcast.)

05/29/2026

When disasters hit, even basic needs become complicated.

After Hurricane Helene, families across the region faced a hidden challenge: safely feeding infants without consistent access to clean water, power, or supplies.

Researchers at Duke Global Health Institute - DGHI are working to better understand and respond to these gaps—so communities are more prepared next time.

Read more: https://globalhealth.duke.edu/news/hidden-struggle-infant-feeding-after-helene?utm_source=duke-today&utm_medium=partner&utm_campaign=duke

(Image: Volunteers with the SAFE Infant Feeding Team sort through boxes of donated infant formula in Asheville, N.C., in the weeks after Hurricane Helene hit western North Carolina in September 2024.)

The Hidden Struggle of Infant Feeding After Helene DGHI’s Aunchalee Palmquist documents how community volunteers supported breastfeeding mothers in the weeks after Hurricane Helene, highlighting an often-overlooked part of disaster recovery. Volunteers with the SAFE Infant Feeding Team sort throug...

05/27/2026

How does the brain learn something as complex as birdsong? 🧠🎶

Duke researchers are uncovering how songbirds build those skills... one neural connection at a time.

This work helps scientists better understand how the brain forms and refines learned behaviors, with implications for speech, learning, and neurological disorders.

Take a closer look at the science behind it:
🐦 https://medschool.duke.edu/news/how-songbirds-learn-sing-one-brain-connection-time

(Image: A small zebra finch with a bright red beak, orange cheek patches, and patterned brown and white feathers perches on a branch)

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Study pinpoints a single brain connection in songbirds that helps turn practice into skill, offering one of the clearest explanations yet of how the brain learns complex behaviors like speech and music.   

05/26/2026

A new Duke study is taking a more precise approach to understanding how brain circuits respond to stress—and how they might be rewired to support resilience.

By targeting specific neural pathways, researchers are uncovering new possibilities for treating stress-related conditions in a more personalized way.

🔬 Read more: https://medschool.duke.edu/news/study-unveils-precise-way-rewire-brain-circuits-boost-resilience-stress

(Image: Portrait of Dr. Kafui Dzirasa wearing a white lab coat and glasses, seated in a laboratory environment.)

Broken or disrupted circuits in the brain contribute to many neurological disorders. A new custom-built biological “wire” developed at Duke University School of Medicine points the way toward a new treatment approach — bypassing broken brain connections, rather than relying on long-term medica...

05/22/2026

Memorial Day: Honoring Service Through Care

During World War II, Duke faculty, alumni, and trainees served overseas as part of the Duke 65th General Hospital in Suffolk, England—caring for more than 17,250 Allied soldiers and airmen, with an astonishing 0.4% mortality rate.

U.S. Surgeon General Norman T. Kirk recognized their impact, noting that their “faithful effort” saved lives—even in cases that seemed beyond hope.

This Memorial Day, we remember those who served and sacrificed—and we honor the caregivers who stood beside them. Their legacy continues today across Duke Health and Duke research, where commitment to care, innovation, and service remains at the core of what we do.

🔗 Explore this powerful history: https://exhibits.mclibrary.duke.edu/sixty-fifth/introduction.html

(Image: Members of the 65th General Hospital with tents and camping gear on Duke University’s east campus parking lot. The unit was activated in 1940 and received orders to report to Fort Bragg for active duty in 1942, where they spent fifteen months training before heading to England.)

05/21/2026

🌡️ Extreme heat is rising. What does that mean for our health and communities?

Duke researchers are digging into the real-world impacts of rising temperatures, from human health to ecosystems and infrastructure. What they are finding is clear. Extreme heat is more than just uncomfortable. It is a growing public health and environmental challenge.

🔬 Key takeaways:
• Extreme heat is becoming more frequent, more intense, and longer lasting
• It is the #1 weather-related cause of death in the U.S.
• Health impacts go beyond heat stroke, including kidney disease and long-term stress on the body when nights stay hot
• Effects extend across communities and environments, from farmworkers to coral reefs

At Duke, teams across medicine, engineering, policy, and environmental science are working together to better understand these risks and how we can adapt and stay safe.

🌍 Read more: https://today.duke.edu/2026/05/extreme-heat-rising-what-are-duke-researchers-learning-about-its-impacts

(Image: Two people walking along a Duke campus path under trees, sharing an umbrella in warm sunlight.)

Extreme Heat Is Rising. What Are Duke Researchers Learning About Its Impacts? From kidney disease to coral reefs, heat affects our world in complex, interconnected ways Image As temperatures keep creeping up, Duke researchers are investigating how heat affects health, ecosystems, economics and beyon...

05/20/2026

Today is Clinical Trials Day 🧪

Celebrated globally every May 20, this day honors the critical work of clinical research professionals and marks the anniversary of the first randomized clinical trial in 1747.

But at its core, progress in research always comes back to people.
To the participants who take part in research, and to the study teams who make it possible every day—thank you.

Your partnership is what turns research into real care for our community and beyond.

Every step forward in medicine starts with people.

(Image description: A colorful graphic showing a large red heart with many raised hands reaching toward it. A blue banner with at the top reads “Clinical Trials Day — Because of You.”)

05/18/2026

📅 May 26 | From Durham to real-world impact 🌆

How does research actually turn into better health for people and communities?

Join Duke’s Clinical and Translational Science Institute and the Duke Clinical Research Institute for “Trustworthy Translation – Stories of Today, Visions of Tomorrow,” a one-day event focused on moving research beyond discovery and into real-world impact.

Hear from researchers, healthcare professionals, and community partners sharing how collaboration, trust, and practical approaches help research reach the people it’s meant to serve. Topics include community-engaged research, improving access to data, and responsibly using new tools like artificial intelligence.

🎤 Keynote speaker: Dr. Robert Califf — founding director of the Duke Clinical Research Institute, principal investigator of Duke’s first Clinical and Translational Science Award, and former U.S. Food and Drug Administration Commissioner

🤝 Additional speakers and panelists from across healthcare, research, and community organizations including:
Durham Public Schools
Durham Technical Community College
Lincoln Community Health Center, Inc
North Carolina Central University
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

📍 Durham, NC
🔗https://ctsi.duke.edu/news-events/trustworthy-translation-stories-today-visions-tomorrow

(Image description: View of downtown Durham, NC with the Duke Clinical Research Institute building centered in the skyline.)

05/15/2026

Improving maternal and child health isn’t just about adding services—it’s about understanding how care systems connect (or don’t) for families.

A new Duke-led research initiative is taking a statewide approach, studying how clinical care, public health, and community supports work together during one of the most critical windows: pregnancy through early childhood. 👶

By generating real-world evidence across these systems, researchers aim to identify what actually improves maternal well-being, reduces preterm birth, and supports healthy early development—and use those insights to drive change across North Carolina.

Supported by the Pritzker Children’s Initiative, this work focuses on turning research into practical, connected solutions for families.

🔗 Learn more:
https://madeforthis.duke.edu/stories/transformative-grant-empowers-duke-to-launch-statewide-maternal-and-child-health-initiative/

(Image description: A clinical exam room with a patient seated on an exam table while a clinician in a Duke lab coat stands nearby holding a handheld prenatal monitoring device. Medical equipment, including a wall-mounted blood pressure unit, is visible behind them.)

Duke University has received a $30 million, 10-year grant from the Pritzker Children’s Initiative to improve maternal and early childhood health across North Carolina. The effort will bring together experts in clinical care, economics, policy, and public health — alongside families and communiti...