Firearms are now the leading cause of traumatic death in the United States in both youth and adults, surpassing motor vehicle crashes, according to a study published by faculty researchers at New York Medical College, in Trauma Surgery and Acute Care Open. Between 2009 and 2018, firearms cost Americans 12.6 million years of potential life lost, with most firearm deaths attributable to suicides. Learn more.

 

Led by researchers from NYU Grossman School of Medicine and Hungary’s University of Szeged, a new study in mice and rats found that restoring certain signals in a brain region that processes smells countered depression. Learn more.

 

Messenger RNA vaccines proved their worth in the COVID pandemic, and new software stands to make the already transformative technology even more powerful. Scientists developed an algorithm to identify the most stable, efficient mRNA sequences for vaccines. Learn more.

 

A new method that enables researchers to dial up or tone down the amount of a certain metastatic protein inhibitor (BACH1) within a cell could provide a new path in cancer research that reassesses the effectiveness of protein inhibitors to treat disease. Led by a team of Stony Brook University scientists, the research involves adjusting the levels of BACH1 using a gene circuit placed into human breast metastatic cells. Learn more.

 

A recent study in the journal Lancet Neurology announced the discovery of new biomarker for Parkinson’s disease. The assay, which targets a protein found in the nervous system called alpha synuclein, can detect the disease in both people with Parkinson’s and individuals not yet diagnosed or exhibiting symptoms of the disease, but who are at a high risk of developing it. Learn more.

 

A large-scale study led by researchers at Columbia and Brigham and Women’s Hospital/Harvard is the first to establish that a diet low in flavanols—nutrients found in certain fruits and vegetables—drives age-related memory loss. Learn more.

 

Cross-talk between brain cells and peripheral immune cells can modulate the progression of multiple sclerosis (MS), Mount Sinai researchers have discovered. Their findings reveal a previously unknown way in which the brain and immune system talk to each other and may identify a new therapeutic target for MS and other brain disorders. Learn more.

 

An artificial intelligence (AI) computer program that processes MRI results can accurately identify changes in brain structure that result from repeated head injury, a new study in student athletes shows. These variations have not been captured by other traditional medical images such as CT scans. Learn more.

 

Stem cells from the human stomach can be converted into cells that secrete insulin in response to rising blood sugar levels, offering a promising approach to treating diabetes, according to a preclinical study from researchers at Weill Cornell Medicine. Learn more.

 

A deficiency of taurine—a nutrient produced in the body and found in many foods—is a driver of aging in animals, according to a new study led by Columbia researchers and involving dozens of aging researchers around the world. The same study also found that taurine supplements can slow down the aging process in worms, mice, and monkeys and can even extend the healthy lifespans of middle-aged mice by up to 12%. Learn more.

 

A revolutionary new approach to the topic of congenital birth defects has been published in the pages of the American Journal of Medical Genetics as a cover story (Vol. 19, Issue 6, June 2023). David R. Hootnick, M.D., of the Departments of Orthopedic Surgery, Pediatrics and Cell and Developmental Biology at SUNY Upstate Medical University, has revealed extensive clinical evidence that most human congenital long bone deficiencies of the lower limbs are the result of downstream effects of embryonic arterial dysgenesis. Learn more.

 

In February 2021, at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Citizens’ Committee for Children of New York launched a survey of more than 1,300 young people ages 14 to 24 from across the city. Two of the most-striking findings: 35% of youths surveyed citywide—and half of those in the Bronx—said they wanted or needed mental health services from a professional, yet only 42% of those desiring mental health services reported receiving them. Learn more.

 

Michal Schwartzman, Ph.D., professor and chair of the Department of Pharmacology, and Victor Garcia, Ph.D., assistant professor of pharmacology, along with medical and graduate students working in their labs at New York Medical College (NYMC), recently published a comprehensive book chapter at the invitation of the editors of Advances in Pharmacology that focuses on the latest studies surrounding 20-HETE and its receptor, GPR75. Learn more.

 

Dr. Lai develops immunotherapies and vaccines against viral infections such as Ebola virus, Dengue virus, and Chikungunya virus, which affect millions of people annually in the developing world. A native of Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, Dr. Lai earned a Ph.D. in biophysics at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, before completing postdoctoral fellowships at Harvard Medical School. Dr. Lai joined the Einstein faculty in 2007, where he is currently the Dan Danciger Professor of Biochemistry. He is currently the principal or co-principal investigator of five grants from the National Institutes of Health. Learn more.

 

Weill Cornell Medicine has been awarded a five-year, $11.6 million grant from the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) of the National Institutes of Health to study the effects cannabis, including marijuana and compounds derived from it, may have on the brains of those living with HIV. Learn more.

 

Researchers from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) and Albany Medical College were awarded a $3.3 million grant over five years by the National Cancer Institute to use artificial intelligence (AI) to improve targeted drug therapy in HER2-positive breast cancer treatment. HER2-positive breast cancer tends to grow and spread quickly, but targeted treatments improve outcomes. Learn more.

 

A major challenge in the management of advanced ovarian cancer is the detection and treatment of microscopic or minute tumors, called micrometastases, within the intraperitoneal cavity. To address this clinical challenge, Ulas Sunar, PhD, a SUNY Empire Innovation Associate Professor at Stony Brook University, has recently been awarded a $1 million grant from the National Cancer Institute (NCI). Learn more.

 

UB biochemist Gabriela K. Popescu is leading research on fast neurotransmitter brain receptors that is focused on gaining the basic knowledge necessary for the design of more effective therapeutic approaches for many neuropsychiatric conditions. Her longtime work in the field has been recognized with the highly competitive National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) Research Program Award (R35). Learn more.

 

In a paper published in the journal Academic Medicine, Mount Sinai Health System authors describe progress on the health system’s Road Map for Action to Address Racism, which was developed to unify, systematize, and accelerate antiracism efforts across one of the largest academic medical centers in New York City. Learn more.

 

Investigators increasingly see the value in engaging children and their families in research to ensure that research discoveries improve health for all. As explained in a recent UBNow story, involving children in research entails educational initiatives, targeted recruitment methods and consideration of how children think about research and health care. Learn more.

 

Ninety research abstracts and posters, selected from nearly 300 submissions, were presented and displayed at the 58th Annual Academic Competition and Research Symposium hosted at the Donald and Barbara Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell on May 30, 2023. The event is sponsored by the Office of Academic Affairs at Northwell Health and showcases scholarly work from graduate and undergraduate academic trainee programs through an abstract and poster competition. Learn more.