Health Sciences Research Institute

Address Stigma, Build Strength: UC Merced Co-leads Project to Lower LGBTQ2S+ Use of Nicotine

April 7, 2025

LGBTQ2S+ individuals use tobacco and nicotine products at significantly higher rates than straight and cisgender people, research shows. Reasons can include stress and other health problems brought on by systemic and social prejudice, along with barriers to support for breaking the habit. UC...

Get Up and Move: HSRI Maps Routes for Walking Meetings

As the daytime temperatures cool and the pandemic persists, colleagues at UC Merced’s Health Sciences Research Institute offer a suggestion: Why not take your meetings for a stroll? The...

A woman comforts another woman by holding her hand.

Brain Study 'Turns Off the Brake' to Understand How Sympathy Can Be Increased

A new study by faculty members and students in UC Merced's Department of Cognitive and Information Sciences takes a closer look at the sympathy people have for one another. The...

NCPC Hosting Free Webinar on Policy and the Media

UC Merced's Nicotine and Cannabis Policy Center (NCPC) and the American Heart Association are hosting a free webinar to provide insight on generating media coverage and helping change...

An image depicts a plush toy on top of a mattress.

Research Shows Sleep and Social Support Are Vital to Latina Teen Mothers' Mental Health

It's no surprise that a good night's rest is one of the most important factors for a person's well-being, but not everyone can say they have the luxury of being able to sleep for eight...

From left, professors Linda Hirst, Chris Amemiya and Valerie Leppert.

Researchers Unraveling Mysteries of Electrosensory Gel in Sharks, Skates

Cartilaginous fishes such as sharks and skates have a sixth sense, but it’s not ESP — it’s electrosense. Such fishes use hundreds or thousands of specialized organs to sense prey...

HSRI Receives $1.2 Million to Research Health Impacts From Vehicle-Related Air Pollution

UC Merced's Health Sciences Research Institute (HSRI) has been awarded a $1.2 million grant to study the effects of vehicle emissions on public health and the environment. This award is part...

Antibiotic Resistance Found in Insecticides Commonly Used in California

The over the counter, “safe,” organic-compliant insecticides people purchase at home-improvement stores could be causing a problem that goes far beyond the vegetable garden or farm field...

'Saber Es Poder' Website Offers COVID-19 Resources, Including Vaccine Information

UC Merced and Cultiva La Salud have partnered to launch a new Spanish-language website aimed at providing the community with a wide range of information about the coronavirus. "...

Professor Marc Beutel waits to collect a wastewater sample as a facilities employee helps to remove the manhole covering on campus.

Campus Wastewater Testing Offers COVID-19 Early Warning System, Establishes Protocols for the Future

COVID-19 upended life as we know it, especially among the science community. While some scientists rushed to develop a vaccine, others sought a better understanding of the virus, hoping to predict...