A team of researchers from MSK and Weill Cornell Medicine is expanding the understanding of how a decades-old treatment for bladder cancer works — an understanding that could help improve the effectiveness of immunotherapies more broadly.

A relatively new therapy used to treat pulmonary arterial hypertension in those with mild to moderate disease was found to be effective at preventing death in those with more advanced disease. Results were published on Wednesday, May 28,  in The New England Journal of Medicine and could have “transformative implications” for patients, according to an editorial that accompanied the study written by Bradley Maron, MD, Professor of Medicine and Director of the Hypertension Program at the University of Maryland School of Medicine.

Salk Institute scientists analyzed almost 200 cannabis genomes to create the most comprehensive, high-quality, detailed genetic atlas of the plant to date. The atlas reveals unprecedented diversity and complexity within the species, sets the stage for advances in cannabis-based agriculture, medicine, and industry, and builds on a 10,000-year long relationship between humans and cannabis, showing that cannabis can be as important as other crops like corn or wheat.