NIH Awards CUNY Medicine $19.3 Million to Launch the New York Center for Minority Health Equity and Social Justice

In a milestone for health equity in New York City and beyond, the City University of New York (CUNY) School of Medicine has been awarded a $19.3 million grant over five years from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to create a center focused on addressing the interrelated health problems of underserved communities. This is the largest NIH grant awarded to CUNY in its history and it will support the creation of the New York Center for Minority Health Equity and Social Justice (NYC-MHESJ) as part of the National Institute of Minority Health and Disparities (NIMHD), Research Centers in Minority Institutions (RCMI) network. Learn more.

SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University Leads National Efforts to End Helicopter Research

Downstate published a significant study, Ending Domestic Helicopter Research, in Cell Press earlier this year. The study, led by W. Marcus Lambert, Ph.D., Downstate’s Associate Vice President for Research Strategy and Operations; Marlene Camacho-Rivera, Sc.D., M.S., MPH, Assistant Dean for Student Affairs, School of Public Health; Carla Boutin-Foster, M.D, MSc., Associate Dean, Office of Diversity Education and Research; Moro O. Salifu, M.D., MBA, MPH, MACP, Chair, Department of Medicine; and I examined the detrimental impacts of domestic helicopter research. Learn more.

Albert Einstein College of Medicine: COVID-19 Sharply Boosts Risk for Blood-Fat Disorders

A new study led by researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine involving more than 200,000 adults found that the COVID-19 pandemic caused a 29% increase in risk for developing dyslipidemia, a condition involving abnormal lipid (fat) levels in the blood. Seniors and people with type 2 diabetes were even more strongly affected, experiencing an approximately two-fold increased risk for developing dyslipidemia, which is a major risk factor for cardiovascular diseases such as heart attack and stroke. Learn more.

Jacobs School of Medicine & Biomedical Sciences at University at Buffalo: Breakthrough Clinical Trial Reveals Better Treatment for Advanced Hodgkin Lymphoma

New results from a phase 3 clinical trial are expected to change the way advanced stage classic Hodgkin lymphoma is treated in newly diagnosed adolescents and adults. The details appear in a study published Oct. 16 in The New England Journal of Medicine. Learn more.

University of Rochester School of Medicine & Dentistry: In Landmark Study, Immunotherapy Boosts Survival of Advanced Hodgkin Lymphoma

A treatment that rallies the immune system to destroy cancer raised the survival rate for advanced Hodgkin lymphoma patients to a remarkable 92 percent, suggesting a new standard therapy for the disease. The New England Journal of Medicine published the innovative clinical trial results this week, along with an editorial that supports the new treatment for all stages of this disease. Learn more.

Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai Researchers Uncover Why Some Leukemia Cells May Resist Treatment

Research from the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai provides new insights into acute myeloid leukemia (AML) and its resistance to a common treatment. The study, titled “RAS-mutant leukemia stem cells drive clinical resistance to venetoclax” and published this morning in the October issue of Nature, was led by Eirini Papapetrou, MD, PhD, Professor of Oncological Sciences at Icahn Mount Sinai. Learn more.

Albert Einstein College of Medicine: Scientists Discover That Special Immune Cells Stop Metastatic Cancer

Metastatic disease—when cancer spreads from the primary tumor to other parts of the body—is the cause of most cancer deaths. While researchers understand how cancer cells escape the primary site to seed new tumors, it’s not well understood why some of these wayward cancer cells spawn new tumors—sometimes decades later—while others do not. Learn more.

Cardiology

Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai: After a Heart Attack, the Heart Signals to the Brain to Increase Sleep to Promote Healing

A heart attack can trigger a desire to get more sleep, allowing the heart to heal and reduce inflammation—and this happens because the heart sends special signals to the brain, according to a new Mount Sinai study. This research is the first to demonstrate how the heart and brain communicate with each other through the immune system to promote sleep and recovery after a major cardiovascular event. Learn more.

New York Medical College: Pregnant Women with Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension Can Deliver Safely with Careful Management

While women with pulmonary arterial hypertension are discouraged from getting pregnant due to the high risk of morbidity and mortality for both mother and child, some patients with PAH  still choose to become pregnant. According to a new study by New York Medical College faculty and students published in Cardiology in Review, these women can successfully bring a child to term with careful management by a team of physicians. Learn more.

Renaissance School of Medicine at Stony Brook University: Brain Imaging of Neuromelanin May be Key to Understanding Extensive Substance Use

A study that used a specialized type of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), named neuromelanin-sensitive MRI, showed that this type of MRI signal was increased in regions of the midbrain in young adults ages 20 to 24 who had an extensive alcohol and drug use history. The research was conducted by a team of investigators in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Health in the Renaissance School of Medicine at Stony Brook University. The findings are published early online in the American Journal of Psychiatry. Learn more.

Weill Cornell Medicine: Magnetically Regulated Gene Therapy Tech Offers Precise Brain-Circuit Control

A new technology enables the control of specific brain circuits non-invasively with magnetic fields, according to a preclinical study from researchers at Weill Cornell Medicine, The Rockefeller University and the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. The technology holds promise as a powerful tool for studying the brain and as the basis for future neurological and psychiatric treatments for conditions as diverse as Parkinson’s disease, depression, obesity and complex pain. Learn more.

New York Medical College: Artificial Intelligence Can Revolutionize Acute Stroke Care

Stroke remains the second leading cause of death worldwide, with many survivors facing life-altering disabilities. A new study by New York Medical College faculty and students, published in Intelligence-Based Medicine, reveals how integrating artificial intelligence in stroke detection could revolutionize stroke care by ensuring faster, more precise interventions. Learn more.

Jacobs School of Medicine & Biomedical Sciences at University at Buffalo JAMA Study: Living in a Redlined Neighborhood in 1940 Was a Risk Factor for Premature Death, and the Disparity Persists Today

People living in redlined neighborhoods in 1940 didn’t live as long as those living in neighborhoods with access to credit and home loans, according to a new paper by researchers at the University at Buffalo and Texas A&M University. That disparity continues today. Learn more.

Renaissance School of Medicine at Stony Brook University Study Shows Use of a Gene Could Halt Diabetic Kidney Disease

New research by Stony Brook Medicine nephrology specialists that centers on targeting key cellular signaling between two types of kidney cells, and inducing a certain gene within those processes, may help prevent or reduce the progression of diabetic kidney disease (DKD), the leading cause of chronic kidney disease worldwide. According to the National Kidney Foundation, approximately one in seven adults in the United States has kidney disease, or more than 35 million people. Learn more.

NYU Grossman School of Medicine: Kidney Transplantation Between Those with HIV Infections Shown Safe & Effective

It is just as safe and effective for people with HIV in need of kidney transplantation to get their organ from donors who are also HIV positive as it is from donors who are not infected with the virus, a new study shows. Survival rates for organ recipients one and three years after the procedure were the same for donors with or without HIV. Also the same were risks of serious side effects, such as infection, fever, and rejection in the donated organ. Learn more.

Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons: In Pioneering Study, Gene Technology Outperforms Standard Newborn Screening Tests

Early results from a study of newborn screening methods show that DNA analysis picks up many more preventable or treatable serious health conditions than standard newborn screening and is favored by most parents who are offered the option. The study—called GUARDIAN—is one of the first large-scale studies in the world to use genome sequencing as a method for newborn screening and is the first to publish preliminary results. Learn more.

Weill Cornell Medicine: A Fully Automated AI-Based System for Assessing IVF Embryo Quality

A new artificial intelligence-based system can accurately assess the chromosomal status of in vitro-fertilized (IVF) embryos using only time-lapse video images of the embryos and maternal age, according to a study from investigators at Weill Cornell Medicine. The new system, called “BELA,” and described in a paper published Sept. 5 in Nature Communications, is the team’s latest AI-based platform for assessing whether an embryo has a normal (euploid) or abnormal (aneuploid) number of chromosomes—a key determinant of IVF success. Learn more.

NYU Grossman School of Medicine: Long-Term, Low-Dose Antiviral Treatment Benefits Patients with Eye Disease & Pain from Shingles

Long-term, low-dose antiviral treatment reduces the risk for potentially vision-damaging bouts of inflammation and infection, as well as pain, which occur when shingles affects the eye, according to new research presented October 19 at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) in Chicago. Shingles occurs when the varicella-zoster virus, which causes chicken pox in children, lies dormant for decades in nerve cells and then starts multiplying again for reasons unknown. Learn more.

Albany Medical College: Pioneers in RNA Research Awarded 2024 Albany Prize

The 2024 Albany Medical Center Prize in Medicine and Biomedical Research has been awarded to three scientists whose discoveries concerning the mechanisms of RNA have led to significant advancements in the understanding of and treatments for a wide array of diseases, including cancer, spinal muscular atrophy, cystic fibrosis, autoimmune conditions, and muscular dystrophy. Learn more.

University of Rochester School of Medicine & Dentistry: The Albany Prize Awarded to Biochemist Lynne Maquat

One of the largest and most distinguished prizes in medicine in the United States, the 2024 Albany Medical Center Prize in Medicine and Biomedical Research was awarded to Lynne E. Maquat, PhD, director of the Center for RNA Biology at the University of Rochester. Maquat and co-winners Howard Y. Chang, MD, PhD, of Stanford University School of Medicine, and Adrian R. Krainer, PhD, of Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, were honored for their research on RNA mechanisms that contribute to a wide range of diseases, including spinal muscular atrophy, cancers, and autoimmune disorders. Learn more.

SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University: Shaping the Future of Neurotrauma Care: Dr. Barthelemy Receives Inaugural Award

Congratulations to Ernest J. Barthélemy, MD, MPH, MA, FCNS, Chief of the Division of Neurosurgery, who received the Inaugural Health Disparity in Neurotrauma Lectureship at the 2024 Annual Scientific Meeting of the Congress of Neurological Surgeons (CNS), held recently in Houston, Texas. This significant award recognizes Dr. Barthélemy’s pivotal work in addressing inequities in neurotrauma care. Learn more.

Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra Northwell: National Institutes of Health Awards First Zucker School of Medicine Student Prestigious Research Fellowship

The Donald and Barbara Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell is proud to announce that MD/PhD student Akash Mishra has been awarded the Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award (NRSA) F30 Fellowship from the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Mishra is the first Zucker School of Medicine student ever to receive this prestigious honor. Learn more.

More News

Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons: CUIMC Rallies on Capitol Hill for Research Funding

Members of the Columbia University Irving Medical Center community joined hundreds of advocates from across the nation in support of medical research on Sept. 19. The annual Rally for Medical Research began in 2013 in response to threatened cuts to the National Institutes of Health budget. CUIMC is a silver sponsor of the rally, and our investment sustains the efforts of medical research advocates. Learn more.