July 2013 News from the Medical Schools: Research

Jul

2013

The Associated Medical Schools of New York (AMSNY) brings you the following compilation of the most recent updates and news on research from the academic medical centers in the state.

For the e-newsletter, click here.

North Shore-LIJ Microbiologist Receives Award for Research

July 25, 2013 – “North Shore-LIJ Health System Senior Medical Director and Chief of Infectious Disease Diagnostics, Pathology and Laboratory Medicine Christine Ginocchio, PhD, was recently given the Becton Dickinson award by the American Society for Microbiology for her lifetime accomplishments in research in clinical microbiology.”

For more information, click here.
_{© 2013 Merion Matters. All rights reserved.}

Funds to Accelerate University of Rochester Tech Commercialization Charts Progress

July 22, 2013 – The University of Rochester’s Technology Development Fund was created in 2010 to identify promising new technologies and help scientists conduct the research and development necessary to bring these ideas closer to market. Of the nine projects funded since 2010, four have advanced to the initial stages of commercialization, two have met key benchmarks, and one is still very early in its development.

For more information, click here.
_{© 2013 University of Rochester. All rights reserved.}

University at Buffalo Researchers Recognized at Melatonin Biology Conference

July 17, 2013 – “The University at Buffalo’s Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology was prominently represented at the “Melatonin Biology: Actions and Therapeutics” conference.”

For the full story, click here.
_{© 2013 University at Buffalo. All rights reserved.}

University at Buffalo Pediatrician Honored With National Award for FAS Research

July 17, 2013 – “Luther K. Robinson, MD, professor of pediatrics, has been honored with the National Organization on Fetal Alcohol Syndrome’s 2013 Excellence Award. The award recognizes Robinson’s career-long dedication to studying and preventing fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS), a prenatal condition that leads to developmental disabilities as well as physical deformities.”

For the full story, click here.
_{© 2013 University at Buffalo. All rights reserved.}

Stony Brook’s Center for Biotechnology Names Two Bioentrepreneurs-in-Residence

July 12, 2013 – “The Center for Biotechnology at Stony Brook University has appointed two BioEntrepreneurs-In-Residence (B-EIR), whose role will be to launch new bioscience ventures in the Long Island region based upon commercially promising biomedical technologies developed by Stony Brook University with the goal to spur economic development in the region.”

For the full story, click here.
_{© 2013 Stony Brook University. All rights reserved.}

Upstate Student is One of Only Four in US to Receive Special Fellowship to Study Lupus

July 8, 2013 – “Hans Kim of Upstate Medical University is one of four students in the United States to receive a Gina Finzi Memorial Student Summer Fellowship from Lupus Foundation of America. The fellowship, with an award of $4,000, is given to foster interest in a career in lupus research and to support efforts of tomorrow’s lupus scientific thought leaders.”

For the full story, click here.
_{© 2013 SUNY Upstate Medical University. All rights reserved.}

University at Buffalo’s New CTRC Imaging Center is Western New York’s First Devoted Exclusively to Research

July 1, 2013 – “University at Buffalo biomedical researchers now have round-the-clock access to the most advanced imaging scanners available, as a result of four major acquisitions in the new imaging facility in UB’s Clinical and Translational Research Center (CTRC), which is Western New York’s first biomedical imaging facility dedicated exclusively to research.”

For more information, click here.
_{© 2013 University at Buffalo. All rights reserved.}

Two Mount Sinai Researchers Named “Inventors of the Year” by New York Intellectual Property Law Association

June 28, 2013 – “The New York Intellectual Property Law Association (NYIPLA) has honored two researchers at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai with its 2013 Inventor of the Year Award in recognition of their work on Niemann-Pick Disease, or NPD. Their discoveries led to a drug for the treatment of the disease.”

For the full story, click here.
_{© 2013 The Mount Sinai Hospital. All rights reserved.}

Upstate Enrolling Newly Diagnosed Patients with Advanced Kidney Cancer in Phase Three Clinical Trial

July 22, 2013 – “Newly diagnosed patients with metastatic renal cell carcinoma may be eligible to participate in a phase three clinical trial at Upstate Medical University to determine if investigational immunotherapy will improve survival when combined with standard treatment. Upstate is one of the first sites in the country to offer the clinical trial to patients.”

For the full story, click here.
_{© 2013 SUNY Upstate Medical University. All rights reserved.}

New Cancer Imaging Technology Shows Promise

July 18, 2013 – “A new imaging technology that combines ultrasound and laser technologies has been shown to be highly effective in identifying prostate cancer. The system, developed by University of Rochester Medical Center (URMC) researchers, could also ultimately be deployed to detect and track breast, kidney, liver, skin and thyroid cancers.”

For the full story, click here.
_{© 2013 University of Rochester Medical Center. All rights reserved.}

Clinical Trials for Cancer, One Patient at a Time

July 17, 2013 – “Columbia University Medical Center (CUMC) researchers are developing a new approach to cancer clinical trials, in which therapies are designed and tested one patient at a time. The patient’s tumor is “reverse engineered” to determine its unique genetic characteristics and to identify existing drugs that may target them.”

For the full story, click here.
_{© 2013 Columbia University. All rights reserved.}

Nerves Play Key Role in Triggering Prostate Cancer and Influencing Its Spread

July 11, 2013 – “Researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University have found that nerves play a critical role in both the development and spread of prostate tumors. Their findings, using both a mouse model and human prostate tissue, may lead to new ways to predict the aggressiveness of prostate cancer and to novel therapies for preventing and treating the disease.”

For the full story, click here.
_{© 2013 Albert Einstein College of Medicine. All rights reserved.}

Fondation Leduqc Awards $6 Million Grant for Global Research Network for Cardiac Regeneration

July 1, 2013 – “The Fondation Leducq in Paris, France, dedicated to improving human health through international efforts to combat cardiovascular disease, awarded a $6 million grant award to a new global research network of cardiovascular scientists which includes three researchers from the Cardiovascular Research Center at Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai.”

For the full story, click here.
_{© 2013 The Mount Sinai Hospital. All rights reserved.}

Cutting Back on Fat and Sugar (in the Diabetic Liver)

July 19, 2013 – “Two physician-scientists at Columbia’s Naomi Berrie Diabetes Center show that, in mice, inhibiting a protein in the liver called Notch reduces glucose production and decreases liver fat at the same time.”

For the full story, click here.
_{© 2013 Columbia University. All rights reserved.}

New University at Buffalo Study Finds Liraglutide Benefits Obese, Type 1 Diabetics

July 17, 2013 – “For obese patients with Type 1 diabetes, a key measure of diabetes control improves when liraglutide is added to insulin, according to a new University at Buffalo study. The study builds on previous UB research that demonstrates significant benefits for well-controlled Type 1 diabetics.”

For the full story, click here.
_{© 2013 University at Buffalo. All rights reserved.}

Upstate Study Shows Effectiveness of Primary Care-Based Approach to Prevent Diabetes

July 11, 2013 – “According to a new study at Upstate Medical University, an intensive lifestyle intervention, proven to help people lose weight to prevent diabetes, also works in primary care when delivered over the telephone to obese patients with metabolic syndrome. Lifestyle changes that lead to weight loss can prevent or slow the development of diabetes.”

For the full story, click here.
_{© 2013 SUNY Upstate Medical University. All rights reserved.}

Researchers Discover New Way to Block Inflammation in Alzheimer’s, Atherosclerosis and Type-2 Diabetes

July 1, 2013 – “Researchers at NYU Langone Medical Center have discovered a mechanism that triggers chronic inflammation in Alzheimer
s, atherosclerosis and type-2 diabetes. The results suggest a common biochemical thread to multiple diseases and point the way to a new class of therapies that could treat chronic inflammation in these non-infectious diseases without crippling the immune system.”

For the full story, click here.
_{© 2013 NYU Langone Medical Center. All rights reserved.}

University at Buffalo Study Finds Low-Fat Dairy Foods Reduce Insulin Resistance

June 28, 2013 – “A diet that includes plentiful low-fat dairy foods improves measures of insulin resistance, according to a study by University at Buffalo researchers and their Canadian colleagues. Such a diet also has no ill effect on several other health measures, including body weight.”

For the full story, click here.
_{© 2013 University at Buffalo. All rights reserved.}

Insulin Pump Tested at Upstate Represents ‘Major Advance’ Towards Artificial Pancreas

June 27, 2013 – “Upstate Medical University researchers joined diabetes researchers across the country in reporting that an investigational MiniMed integrated insulin pump system with automatic insulin suspension safely reduced nighttime hypoglycemia for people with diabetes without increasing average blood glucose.”

For the full story, click here.
_{© 2013 SUNY Upstate Medical University. All rights reserved.}

New Genetic Cause of Pulmonary Hypertension Identified

July 24, 2013 – “Columbia University Medical Center (CUMC) scientists have identified new genetic mutations that can cause pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH), a rare fatal disease characterized by high blood pressure in the lungs.”

For the full story, click here.
_{© 2013 Columbia University. All rights reserved.}

URMC Contributes to Landmark Study on Origins of Congenital Heart Disease

July 23, 2013 – “In a first-of-its-kind study, scientists identified a group of gene mutations that may be behind up to 10 percent of complex congenital heart defects, the most frequent birth defect and a leading cause of infant death. Up until this point, scientists have understood little about the origin and development of congenital heart disease.”

Mutation Linked to Congenital Urinary Tract Defects

July 17, 2013 – “Researchers at Columbia University Medical Center (CUMC) and collaborators have identified a genetic mutation that causes congenital malformations of the kidney and urinary tract, a common form of birth defect and the most common cause of kidney failure in children.”

Even Healthy-Looking Smokers Have Early Cell Damage Which Destroys Necessary Genetic Programming

July 16, 2013 – “Researchers at Weill Cornell Medical College have found that even smokers who seem healthy have damaged airway cells, with characteristics similar to cells found in aggressive lung cancer.”

Mapping the Experience of an Individual with Dementia

July 22, 2013 – “The University at Buffalo Institute for Person-Centered Care was recently certified in advanced dementia care mapping (DCM). This certification will allow institute researchers to map and provide written as well as in-person feedback to various organizations locally and throughout the U.S. who wish to improve the dementia care and services within their facilities.”

University at Buffalo Study Reveals Molecular Cause of Female Stress Resistance

July 19, 2013 – “A new University at Buffalo animal study suggests that brain-produced estrogen makes females more resilient to stress than males. The study also points toward possible therapies to help males improve their response to stress.”

Seldom-Studied Neurons May Be Essential for Most Essential Functions

July 8, 2013 – “Neurons in the brain that are rarely analyzed by scientists because of their chaotic signaling may be essential for most brain functions, according to a study by Stefano Fusi, PhD, and other neuroscientists at Columbia University Medical Center and MIT.”

Urine Biomarker Test Can Diagnose as well as Predict Rejection of Transplanted Kidneys

July 4, 2013 – “A breakthrough non-invasive test, developed at Weill Cornell Medical College, can detect whether transplanted kidneys are in the process of being rejected, as well as identify patients at risk for rejection weeks to months before they show symptoms, by measuring just three genetic molecules in a urine sample.”

Study Finds Belly Fat is Associated with Poor Bone Quality

July 3, 2013 – “A study by researchers at Columbia University has found that abdominal fat is associated with poor bone quality and lower bone formation in premenopausal women.”

Chemical Compound Shows Promise as Alternative to Opioid Pain Relievers

July 1, 2013 – “A drug targeting a protein complex containing two different types of opioid receptors may be an effective alternative to morphine and other opioid pain medications, without any of the side effects or risk of dependence, according to research led by the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai.”

Brain’s ‘Garbage Truck’ May Hold Key to Treating Alzheimer’s and Other Disorders

June 27, 2013 – “Researchers at University of Rochester Medical Center point to a newly discovered system by which the brain removes waste as a potentially powerful new tool to treat neurological disorders like Alzheimer’s disease. In fact, scientists believe that some of these conditions may arise when the system is not doing its job properly.”

ADHD Drug Shows Promise in Treating Addiction

June 26, 2013 – “A single dose of a commonly-prescribed attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) drug helps improve brain function in cocaine addiction, according to an imaging study conducted by researchers from the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai.”

Highlights

Cancer

Cardiology

Diabetes

Genetics

Other Studies

North Shore-LIJ Microbiologist Receives Award for Research

Funds to Accelerate University of Rochester Tech Commercialization Charts Progress

University at Buffalo Researchers Recognized at Melatonin Biology Conference

University at Buffalo Pediatrician Honored With National Award for FAS Research

Stony Brook’s Center for Biotechnology Names Two Bioentrepreneurs-in-Residence

Upstate Student is One of Only Four in US to Receive Special Fellowship to Study Lupus

University at Buffalo’s New CTRC Imaging Center is Western New York’s First Devoted Exclusively to Research

Two Mount Sinai Researchers Named “Inventors of the Year” by New York Intellectual Property Law Association

Upstate Enrolling Newly Diagnosed Patients with Advanced Kidney Cancer in Phase Three Clinical Trial

New Cancer Imaging Technology Shows Promise

Clinical Trials for Cancer, One Patient at a Time

Nerves Play Key Role in Triggering Prostate Cancer and Influencing Its Spread

Fondation Leduqc Awards $6 Million Grant for Global Research Network for Cardiac Regeneration

Cutting Back on Fat and Sugar (in the Diabetic Liver)

New University at Buffalo Study Finds Liraglutide Benefits Obese, Type 1 Diabetics

Upstate Study Shows Effectiveness of Primary Care-Based Approach to Prevent Diabetes

Researchers Discover New Way to Block Inflammation in Alzheimer’s, Atherosclerosis and Type-2 Diabetes

University at Buffalo Study Finds Low-Fat Dairy Foods Reduce Insulin Resistance

Insulin Pump Tested at Upstate Represents ‘Major Advance’ Towards Artificial Pancreas

New Genetic Cause of Pulmonary Hypertension Identified

URMC Contributes to Landmark Study on Origins of Congenital Heart Disease

Mutation Linked to Congenital Urinary Tract Defects

Even Healthy-Looking Smokers Have Early Cell Damage Which Destroys Necessary Genetic Programming

Mapping the Experience of an Individual with Dementia

University at Buffalo Study Reveals Molecular Cause of Female Stress Resistance

Seldom-Studied Neurons May Be Essential for Most Essential Functions

Urine Biomarker Test Can Diagnose as well as Predict Rejection of Transplanted Kidneys

Study Finds Belly Fat is Associated with Poor Bone Quality

Chemical Compound Shows Promise as Alternative to Opioid Pain Relievers

Brain’s ‘Garbage Truck’ May Hold Key to Treating Alzheimer’s and Other Disorders

ADHD Drug Shows Promise in Treating Addiction