News
Researchers Find Insulin Status an Important Determinant of the Positive Effect of Weight Reduction on Vascular Function
Researchers from Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) and Boston Medical Center (BMC) have found that among obese people who had lost considerable weight, those with high insulin levels--a marker of insulin resistance in the body--were the most likely to experience better blood vessel function following the weight loss. These findings appear online in the... More
Sept. 17 – 19: National Postdoc Appreciation Week at BUMC
The Graduate Medical Sciences Office of Professional Development and Postdoctoral Affairs presents the third annual National Postdoc Appreciation Week (NPAW) beginning Tuesday, Sept. 17 through Thursday, Sept. 19. See below for a list of events. Tuesday, Sept. 17: The NPAW will begin with an Ice Cream Social held on Talbot Green right in front of the... More
BUSM Researchers Call for Individualized Criteria for Diagnosing Obesity
With soaring obesity rates in the U.S., the American Medical Association has classified obesity as a disease. This major shift in healthcare policy brings much needed medical attention to obese patients. However, this definition of obesity focuses on a single criterion of Body Mass Index (BMI), which includes a large group of persons with high... More
Salih Reveals Protein’s Functions in Tissue and Bone Formation
Dr. Erdjan Salih, associate professor in the Department of Molecular & Cell Biology, has published his second paper of 2013 on the egg yolk protein phosvitin in the journal Development Biology. The new research has implications for evolution, ex vivo egg embryo development, and regenerative medicine and provides a new understanding of vitamin C (ascorbate). “The... More
BUSM Researchers Find MC1R is a Potent Regulator of PTEN
A person's skin pigment, which determines hair color and skin tone, is influenced by the melanocortin-1 (MC1R) gene receptor. For the population's one to two percent of redheads, a mutation in MC1R accounts for their red hair color and typical light skin. Now researchers from Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) and Boston University School of... More
BUMC Office of Facilities Management is Moving
Effective Aug. 30, BUMC Facilities Management is moving to a new office located on the fifth floor, B500 of the Robinson Building. Facilities Management maintains building systems, custodial services, grounds keeping, receiving, construction and other special services such as furniture rearrangement on campus. The process to request Facilities services remains the same. Facilities Management can... More
BUSM Professor Anand Devaiah, MD, Releases New Textbook on Otology and Neurotology
Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) and Boston Medical Center’s (BMC) Anand Devaiah, MD, FACS, has co-authored a new textbook, “Otology and Neurotology: Otorhinolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery.” “This book is an invaluable reference for residents, fellows, allied health professionals, comprehensive otolaryngologists, otologists, neurologists, and skull base surgeons,” said Dr. Devaiah. “Otology and Neurotology” provides guidance... More
Vigorous Physical Activity Linked to Lower Incidence of Obesity in Young African-American Women
The prevalence of obesity has increased markedly in the U.S. in recent years. According to a new study by researchers from Boston University Slone Epidemiology Center’s Black Women’s Health Study (BWHS), the risk of becoming obese among young African-American women decreased with increasing levels of vigorous activity. The investigators focused on younger women because most... More
Overall and Central Obesity Linked to Delayed Conception in African-American Women, According to BU Researchers
In a first of its kind study, researchers from the Slone Epidemiology Center (SEC) at Boston University (BU) found that African-American women who were overweight or obese had a greater risk of delayed conception and infertility when compared with women who were of normal weight. In addition, women who had larger waist circumferences and greater... More
Marathon Bombing Victims Aided by Rapid Response, Imaging of Injuries
The Boston Marathon bombing brought international attention back to the devastating effects of terrorism. There were numerous victims with severe injuries that needed immediate attention. A novel study in Arthritis Care & Research, a journal published by Wiley on behalf of the American College of Rheumatology (ACR), presents cases from Boston-area hospitals where victims were... More
Experiences of Racism Linked to Adult-Onset Asthma in African-American Women
According to a new study from the Slone Epidemiology Center (SEC) at Boston University, African-American women who reported more frequent experiences of racism had a greater likelihood of adult-onset asthma compared to women who reported less frequent experiences. The study, which currently appears on-line in the journal Chest, was led by Patricia Coogan, DSc, senior epidemiologist... More
Study Finds Physicians Need to Better Recognize Maternal Use of Herbal Supplements while Breastfeeding
In an article published in this month’s issue of Pediatrics In Review, researchers from Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) stress the importance of physicians recognizing that many mothers use herbal supplements while breastfeeding in order to make accurate health assessments for both mother and child. In the US, no existing regulatory guidelines set a standardized... More
BU Gives $8,500 in Grants for Summer Programs and Local Non-profit
Boston University recently gave $8,500 to support programs that support the arts and cultural environment in Roxbury and a summer biotech program for local youth. The grants are part of the on-going program to provide community assistance to local nonprofit organizations. In the last two years, these BU community grants have provided over $20,000... More
Biotechnologist for a Week
In the video above, participants in BU’s SummerLab program imagine they are employees in the research department of a biotechnology company. Photos by Cydney Scott Most 16-year-olds’ appreciation of jellyfish is colored by the creature’s tendency to sting anything it comes in contact with, but a group of area high school students got over... More
Successful Fourth Annual Summer Research Program (SURP) Symposium
The Division of Graduate Medical Sciences (GMS) at Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) hosted the fourth annual summer research symposium on Thursday, Aug. 1, showcasing research projects conducted by visiting students. Karen Antman, MD, BUMC Provost and BUSM Dean welcomed attendees and thanked them for contributing to the success of the program. The SUmmer Research Program (SURP), a... More
Pediatric Neurologist joins Boston Medical Center and Boston University School of Medicine
Alcy Torres, MD, will join Boston Medical Center (BMC) in the department of pediatric neurology and Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) as an assistant professor of pediatrics on Aug. 1. Torres, who has been named one of the city’s best pediatric neurologists by Boston Magazine and other organizations, has dedicated his life to pediatric... More
Architecture of a Fruit Fly: New Clues for Reducing Electrical Surges in the Human Brain
A research team at Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) has identified an important and novel connection between genes that guide the body plan of the common fruit fly and nerve cells in humans that underlie disorders such as epilepsy and anxiety. Results from this study, conducted by faculty within the department of pharmacology and... More
BUSM and Boston Medical Center Partner with Jawaharlal Institute of India to Study TB
Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) and Boston Medical Center (BMC) are partnering with the Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education and Research (JIPMER) to study tuberculosis (TB). This research is supported by a five-year, $2.5 million grant from the Indo-U.S. Vaccine Action Program (VAP). The joint program, based in Pondicherry, India, will establish cohorts of... More
Framingham Heart Study Carries on, Despite Budget Cuts
65-year-old core contract loses 40 percent of funding The Framingham Heart Study, the nation’s longest running large-scale analysis of cardiovascular disease, is facing a budget reduction of $4 million, or about 40 percent of the money it receives through its core contract with the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI). The study will remain open, More
BUSM/BMC Researcher Receives NIH Grant to Study Gonococcal Vaccine Development
Lee Wetzler, MD, associate program director for research in the section of infectious diseases at Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) and an attending physician in the section of infectious diseases in the department of medicine at Boston Medical Center, was awarded a four-year, $2.35 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to... More
Dangerous YouTube Challenges: Fun or Deadly?
“What’s so challenging about cinnamon? ” asks GloZell Green, a comedienne and YouTube personality, before she pours cinnamon into a ladle and proceeds to ingest it in one gulp. Seconds later, viewers watch puffs of cinnamon powder spew from her mouth as though from an erupting volcano. GloZell proceeds to scream and grasp for... More
BUSM’s Sege Named Senior Fellow at the Center for the Study of Social Policy
Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) professor and Boston Medical Center (BMC) physician Robert Sege, MD, PhD, was named a Senior Fellow at the Center for the Study of Social Policy (CSSP) in Washington D.C. The CSSP is a nonpartisan Washington D.C. nonprofit that works with policymakers and communities across the country to promote smart... More
MED Researchers’ Latest Networking Tool
BU Profiles shares expertise, spurs collaboration Imagine a LinkedIn for academic researchers only, and you’ve got the general idea behind BU Profiles, a web-based research networking system aimed at helping researchers build a professional network and find expertise and connections that can supercharge collaborations. The system, which launched on the Boston University Medical Campus in February... More
BU Researchers Conduct Innovative Internet-Based Fertility Study
BU researchers are studying whether selected lifestyle factors can affect fertility, miscarriage and adverse birth outcomes over a 12-month period. PRESTO (PREgnancy STudy Online) is an innovative online fertility study funded by the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) and conducted by researchers at Slone Epidemiology Center at Boston... More
Physicians Slow to Implement HPV Vaccination and Cervical Cancer Screening Guidelines
Despite recent breakthroughs in cervical cancer prevention resulting in new vaccination and cervical cancer screening guidelines, a Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) study published this month’s American Journal of Preventive Medicine found that physicians are slow to implement these guidelines into their practices. Researchers found that less than one third of obstetrician-gynecologists vaccinate their eligible... More