Name: Why do some bodies respond differently to disease?
Uploaded: 2024-10-14T13:43:35Z
Duration: 4 min 30 s
Description: TED Fellow and equity bioengineer Erika Moore investigates how cells controlling inflammation behave differently depending on a patient's background. By focusing on the "who" behind the disease, Moore is uncovering why certain diseases disproportionately affect certain ethnicities, paving the way for more inclusive and effective health care.

Erika Moore: Why do some bodies respond differently to disease?

Why do some bodies respond differently to disease?

TED Fellow and equity bioengineer Erika Moore investigates how cells controlling inflammation behave differently depending on a patient's background. By focusing on the "who" behind the disease, Moore is uncovering why certain diseases disproportionately affect certain ethnicities, paving the way for more inclusive and effective health care.

Immune cells like macrophages respond differently depending on a person's background, shaping how diseases appear and heal in each body. For example, lupus affects women of color at strikingly high rates, yet medical research rarely adjusts for patient diversity. By building mini-tissues from patient cells, scientists found that ancestry influences blood vessel inflammation, revealing why some groups suffer more severe illness. Examining the 'who' behind disease could transform health care for everyone.