NYSTEM (New York Stem Cell Science), on behalf of the Empire State Stem Cell Board recently, announced the 2020 release of the Request for Applications (RFA). Approximately $50 million is available to support about 70 awards.

Congratulations to scientists and advocates who have worked hard to raise the profile of stem cell research in New York!

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As public health authorities in China institute travel restrictions to prevent further spread of a new coronavirus, there are still critical unknowns about the virus. We talked with CUIMC experts about the latest developments with the virus and what New Yorkers need to know. Take a closer look.

In the largest genetic sequencing study of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) to date, researchers have identified 102 genes associated with risk for autism. The study also shows significant progress towards teasing apart the genes associated with ASD from those associated with intellectual disability and developmental delay, conditions which often overlap. The study results are published online January 23 in the journal Cell. Take a closer look.

Early intervention for symptoms associated with autism spectrum disorder – even before the condition is formally diagnosed – is critical for helping families improve outcomes for their children, according to updated recommendations from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP). The new clinical report to guide diagnosis and care of children with autism is the AAP’s first in 12 years and reflects changes in how autism is diagnosed and treated. Take a closer look.

When prostate cancer spreads it is often a deadly disease, but now a Stony Brook University-led research team believes a new approach that inhibits a specific fatty acid binding protein (FABP) may be the key to halting disease progression. Their research results on FABP5 inhibitors as promising therapeutic agents against metastatic prostate cancer led to a new five-year grant from the National Cancer Institute (NCI) totaling $4.2 million to advance the research to 2025. Take a closer look.

Dr. Stacy Blain is an NIH-funded investigator leading several translational studies on the role of p27 and cyclin D-cdk4 (D-K4) in cancer. The CDK4 targeting drugs (CDK4i), such as Palbociclib (Ibrance@) are approved as a frontline treatment for metastatic Hormone (HR)+, Her2- patients. Targeting DK4 has long been a type of holy grail in the oncology field as it is downstream of almost all oncogenic signaling pathways. However, while CDK4i therapy increases progression-free survival (PFS), many patients exhibit primary resistance, and ultimately, the majority develop secondary resistance. Take a closer look.

Marijuana use is on the rise as more states legalize it for medicinal and recreational purposes, and physicians are fielding more questions about its safety. Although smoking tobacco is responsible for approximately one in four deaths from cardiovascular disease, the effects of smoking marijuana on the heart are not fully understood. Some studies suggest that marijuana can trigger heart attacks and strokes in some users. Take a closer look.

If you’re an African American man, there could come a day when ordering a tight-fade haircut, a little off the sides or even a shaved-to-the-scalp baldy could help save your life. A new study indicates that the barbershop, long considered an important space for African American men, can be a highly effective venue to screen black men for diabetes – a potentially deadly illness that affects black men at a disproportionately high rate. Take a closer look.

The approval on Dec. 19, 2019 by the Food and Drug Administration of a fast-acting insulin for children with diabetes mellitus came about with the help of researchers and providers at the University at Buffalo, UBMD Pediatrics and Oishei Children’s Hospital, as well as some highly committed Western New York families. Take a closer look.

An inexpensive program using trained community members to deliver a structured program based on cognitive behavioral therapy by telephone was able to improve daily functioning, self-reported physical activity, and overall quality of life among diabetic patients with chronic pain, according to a clinical trial led by investigators at Weill Cornell Medicine, the University of Wisconsin-Madison and the University of Alabama at Birmingham. Take a closer look.

Adverse outcomes from childhood exposures to lead and mercury are on the decline in the United States, likely due to decades of restrictions on the use of heavy metals, a new study finds. Despite decreasing levels, exposure to these and other toxic chemicals, especially flame retardants and pesticides, still resulted in more than a million cases of intellectual disability in the United States between 2001 and 2016. Furthermore, as the target of significantly fewer restrictions, experts say, flame retardants and pesticides now represent the bulk of that cognitive loss. Take a closer look.

Generalized convulsive status epilepticus (CSE) is a serious, potentially life threatening condition which requires medical intervention. Evidence for first line treatment was shown for benzodiazepines, mostly in out of hospital settings. Although, this controls up to two thirds of CSE, the remaining third is benzodiazepine refractory and requires further treatment. There is little to no evidence on the choice of further antiepileptic medication. Take a closer look.

Cerebral edema, swelling that occurs in the brain, is a severe and potentially fatal complication of stroke. New research, which was conducted in mice and appears in the journal Science, shows for the first time that the glymphatic system – normally associated with the beneficial task of waste removal – goes awry during a stroke and floods the brain, triggering edema and drowning brain cells. Take a closer look.

Diversity of the patients we serve is no secret at Montefiore in the Bronx, where I practice. You see it in their faces, clothing, languages, and accents. The people present an extraordinary array of ancestries, making the borough a microcosm of the world. As a healthcare provider, you may wonder about your treatments; maybe one size doesn’t fit all? Does something embedded in our genetic histories lead individuals toward different disease courses, therapeutic responses, and outcomes? Take a closer look.

Proteins that contain metal, known as metalloproteins, play important roles in biology, regulating various pathways in the body, which often become targets for lifesaving drugs. While the amount of metal in such proteins is usually tiny, it is crucial to determining the function of these complex molecules. Take a closer look.

In a new study published in the American Journal of Emergency Medicine, Adam Singer, MD, et al reported that quickly correcting high potassium levels, a condition known as hyperkalemia, in emergency department patients cut mortality in that population by half. In the study, Singer, professor and vice chair of research for the Department of Emergency Medicine in the Renaissance School of Medicine at Stony Brook University, and colleagues, reviewed nearly 115,000 Stony Brook University Hospital ED visits during 2016 and 2017, finding the mortality rate was significantly reduced in this patient cohort (6.3 % vs. 12.7 %). Take a closer look.

Tegan Lee always thought of himself as “a very systematic thinker,” the sort of person who solves problems quickly and efficiently. It’s a style that served him well through a long career as a project manager and consultant in the tech industry. But two years ago, when Lee was in his late 50s, a diagnosis of late-onset bipolar disorder forced him into early retirement-and upended his life. “I wouldn’t wish this on anybody,” says Lee. “I was very motivated to get better. Take a closer look.

Ninety percent of health professionals believe a lack of education is the greatest barrier to patients receiving vaccinations, according to research conducted by a group of scientists from Touro College of Osteopathic Medicine – Middletown. The research was presented recently at the Annual Council of Osteopathic Student Government Presidents Winter Research Symposium. Take a closer look.

Montefiore Medical Center, the University Hospital of Albert Einstein College of Medicine, has received a $5.9 million grant from the National Cancer Institute (NCI) to build on its success recruiting minority and underserved patients into cancer clinical trials and delivering the highest quality cancer care. This new grant, part of the NCI Community Oncology Research Program, is a continuation of funding first awarded in 2014. Take a closer look.

Dr. Gonzalo Torres, Medical professor and Chair of the Department of Molecular Cellular & Biomedical Sciences at the CUNY School of Medicine, received two awards totaling $2.5 million. The National Institute of Neurological Disorders/NIH has awarded $ 1.25 million to Dr. Gonzalo Torres and the CUNY School of Medicine to establish the Mentoring Institute for Neuroscience Diversity Scholars through an R25 mechanism. Take a closer look.

Marina K. Holz, Ph.D., dean of the Graduate School of Basic Medical Sciences, was appointed to a three-year term of the Women in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Committee of the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology to advocate for women in biochemistry and molecular biology, both in academia and in industry. Take a closer look.

Dolores Hambardzumyan, PhD, MBA, has been appointed Senior Faculty in the Department of Neurosurgery and a member of The Tisch Cancer Institute at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. Her research focuses on developing novel therapeutic pathways for the treatment of glioblastoma, a type of brain tumor that is among the most deadly forms of human cancer. She is also exploring the relationship between cancer cells and immune cells within the tumor. Take a closer look.

Kicking off 2020, a year marking the beginning of a new decade and a new era of innovative medicine, NYIT College of Osteopathic Medicine welcomed its Center for Biomedical Innovation with a grand opening on January 15. New York Tech faculty, staff, and students gathered at NYIT de Seversky Mansion, where Jerry Balentine, D.O., dean of NYITCOM and vice president for Medical Affairs and Health Sciences, introduced the center as a means for state-of-the-art collaboration and education. Take a closer look.