News
BU Alzheimer's Research Team Receives Donation from Senior Living Residences
Senior Living Residences (SLR) Compass Memory Support team presented Robert Stern, PhD, director of the Alzheimer's Disease Clinical & Research Program and ADC Clinical Core with a check supporting BU’s clinical research. “We are delighted that the Compass communities are continuing to fundraise on our behalf. This provides tremendous support for our research and is another... More
GMS Summer Interns Win Awards at ABRCMS
Two students in the Division of Graduate Medical Sciences (GMS) 2011 Summer Undergraduate Research Program have received awards at the Annual Biomedical Research Conference for Minority Students (ABRCMS). More
Sugar-Free Doesn’t Mean Worry-Free according to GSDM researcher: acids in artificial sweeteners may erode tooth enamel
The ubiquitous term “sugar-free” may trigger a false sense of security, says Sok-Ja Janket. She has long suspected that diet sodas and sugar-free candy, chewing gum, and other products, although preferable to sugar-sweetened products when it comes to preventing cavities, can also take a toll on dental health. As lead researcher in a review study recently... More
Two BUSchool of Medicine Faculty to be Named to Professorships Nov. 29
Two BU School of Medicine faculty members will be named to professorships: Barbara E. Corkey, PhD as the Zoltan Kohn Professor in Medicine and Avrum Spira, MD, MSc as the Alexander Graham Bell Professor in Health Care Entrepreneurship. The installation will be held on Tuesday, Nov. 29 at 3:30 p.m. in the 670 Albany... More
BU School of Medicine Researchers Find Increased Risk of Stroke, Death in Hospitalized Patients with Severe Sepsis and New-Onset Atrial Fibrillation
A recent study led by researchers at Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) shows an increased risk of stroke and mortality among patients diagnosed with severe sepsis and new-onset atrial fibrillation (AF) during hospitalization. Allan J. Walkey, MD, assistant professor of medicine at BUSM and a pulmonologist at Boston Medical Center (BMC), is the lead author... More
SPH Contributes to Groundbreaking Global Study: Treating developing world children with pneumonia at home
Pneumonia—dubbed “the forgotten killer of children” by UNICEF—is the leading cause of death worldwide for children under five years old. A breakthrough study by researchers from Boston University, Save the Children, and the World Health Organization (WHO), published online Friday in the British medical journal The Lancet, has found that allowing community health workers to treat... More
GSDM Students Make BU Proud at Hinman Symposium
Sultan Mohammed DMD ‘13 won Most Outstanding Presentation in Clinical Research at this year’s Hinman Symposium, which took place in Memphis, Tennessee, Oct. 28-30, for his poster, “Upregulation of Cthrc1 N-glycoprotein Marks OSCC Tumor Spread.” “The work I presented investigated the role of N-glycosylation on the planar cell polarity pathway in oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC),”... More
Happy 20th Birthday TranSComm!
TranSComm (Transportation Solutions for Commuters, Inc.), the group that coordinates the transportation needs of staff and students of BMC, Boston University Medical Campus (BUMC) and Boston Healthcare for the Homeless, celebrated its 20th anniversary Oct. 18. Festivities included cake and awards for staff and those who helped launch the program. “We were one of the first... More
GSDM Office of the Associate Dean for Research Launches Website
During the last week of October the Office of the Associate Dean for Research launched a new website, http://www.bu.edu/dental-research/. The website will serve as a helpful resource for the GSDM and BU research community. Designed as a one-stop shop for pertinent research news, upcoming events, and current federal and non-federal funding opportunities, the site will allow... More
Attend Nov. 15 CTSI Drug & Device Development Seminar, “Developing New Drugs: 10 Issues to Consider”
Join Manuel A. Navia, PhD, as he discusses “Developing New Drugs: 10 Issues to Consider.” Dr. Navia is Executive-in-Residence at Oxford Bioscience Partners located in Boston. This seminar is one in a series that explore Drug and Device Development sponsored by the Boston University CTSI . The seminars are open to BU doctoral... More
ASPH Honors SPH Faculty Member with Distinguished Research Award
Lauren A. Wise, an associate professor of epidemiology, received the 2011 ASPH/Pfizer Young Investigator's Award for Distinguished Research in Public Health at the annual meeting of the ASPH in Washington, DC, Oct. 29-Nov. 2. This was held in conjunction with the American Public Health Association Annual Meeting & Exposition, the world's oldest and largest gathering of... More
BUSM Researcher Awarded Two NIH Grants Totaling Over $11 Million
Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) researcher Robert Lafyatis, MD, recently was awarded two grants from the National Institutes of Health’s (NIH) National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases. A 5-year, $8 million Centers of Research Translation (CORT) (P50) grant as well as a 5-year $3.3 million (P30) grant. Funding from both grants will be used to study systemic sclerosis (SSc) also known as scleroderma, a rare and complex rheumatic disease involving widespread scarring and vascular disease within multiple organ systems. More
High-dose Melphalan and Autologous Stem Cell Transplantation Increases Survival Among AL Amyloidosis Patients
A team of researchers led by Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM), has found treatment of selected immunoglobulin light chain (AL) amyloidosis patients with high-dose melphalan and autologous stem cell transplantation (HDM/SCT) resulted in a high organ response rate and increased overall survival (OS), even for those patients who did not achieve a hematologic complete... More
PLoS ONE Recognizes Helmerhorst for GSDM Research
An article on GSDM Associate Professor Dr. Eva Helmerhorst’s research was recently published in PLoS ONE. The article titled, “Identification of Rothia Bacteria as Gluten-Degrading Natural Colonizers of the Upper Gastro-Intestinal Tract,” explains developments that have been made in her research which is currently funded by an R01 award from the National Institute of Allergy... More
Nov. 2 Workshop, Building Successful Research Teams: Preventing and Managing Conflict
Anyone familiar with collaborative research initiatives knows that even the best ideas can flounder when individual researchers fail to communicate and work together as a team. Understanding the factors that contribute to the successful functioning of a team is critical to anyone who leads or participates in collaborative science. Faculty, post-docs, graduate students, and others interested in this topic are invited to attend a free workshop on Wednesday, Nov. 2, which will explore strategies for building and sustaining successful and dynamic research teams. More
GSDM Changing Smiles, Changing Lives
Katy Bednar DMD 12 recently returned from a mission trip with Dentistry for All (DFA) to Comitancillo, in the region of San Marcos, Guatemala. Her stay in Guatemala lasted a total of 18 days, including travel time to the remote rural area, ten hours outside of any major city. Bednar had an excellent experience on... More
BUSM Dean Elected to Institute of Medicine, Karen Antman joins highly regarded national advisory group
Karen Antman, provost of the Medical Campus and dean of the School of Medicine, has been elected to the Institute of Medicine of the National Academies. The institute, which advises policy makers and professionals on medical and health issues, announced yesterday that Antman is one of 65 people chosen this year for outstanding professional achievement... More
Experts Gather at ARC Symposium on Obesity, Inflammation and Cancer, Oct. 25, 1-5 p.m.
The Obesity, Cancer and Inflammation ARC, co-directed by Drs. Gerald Denis and Barbara Nikolajczyk, is hosting a symposium focused on the cellular, molecular and epidemiological connections between obesity and cancer, some of which are likely based on inflammatory factors. This Symposium will be held on Tuesday, Oct. 25, 1-5 p.m. at 650 Albany Street, EBRC conference room 714. More
Postdocs Honored and Entertained During National Appreciation Day
On a beautiful fall day approximately 130 postdocs and those who support them wound their way around tables filled with ice cream and toppings, enjoying the jazz music provided by the band assembled by Dr. Rafael Ortega. This celebration, held on Monday, September 19 on Talbot Green, marked National Postdoc Appreciation Week. The ice cream... More
Bicknell Lecture at BUSPH Oct. 28
While conventional wisdom holds that early diagnosis is good, Dartmouth Professor H. Gilbert Welch views it as a major problem for modern medicine, with myriad social, medical and economic implications. In his new book, "Overdiagnosed: Making People Sick in the Pursuit of Health," Welch and co-authors Lisa Schwartz and Steven Woloshin write about the hazards of looking too hard for illnesses in healthy people, including additional procedures that carry no benefit but may cause harm, higher health-care costs and psychological detriments. More
Attend Oct. 18 CTSI Drug & Device Development Seminar: The Excitement of Drug Development in Medicine – Barriers and Rewards
Have you wondered how to develop creative ideas into marketable products? Have you wondered whether the molecules you are working on in the lab might be turned into drugs to effectively treat disease? The Boston University CTSI is pleased to announce the first in a series of seminars that explore Drug and Device Development. The... More
Researchers from BU School of Medicine and College of Engineering Receive Grant to Develop Improved Virus Detection System
A team of researchers from Boston University’s School of Medicine (BUSM) and College of Engineering (COE) have been awarded a five-year, $4.8 million National Institutes of Health (NIH) grant to develop a low-cost, multiplexed virus detection platform. Based on technologies developed with seed funding from Boston University’s Photonics Center, the resulting diagnostic platform should... More
GSDM Reps Attend ASDA Eastern Regional Meeting
Six student representatives from GSDM attended the ASDA Eastern Regional Meeting in Buffalo, New York, September 23-25. The group took part in lectures, seminars, and advocacy training alongside students from thirteen other dental schools. The conference focused on leadership development, advocacy training, and involvement in organized dentistry. Featured speakers included ADA President-elect Dr. William Calnon, 2008-10... More
Free Flow Cytometry Core Facility Training Seminar, Oct. 19
The BUMC Flow Cytometry Core Facility is holding the annual autumn training seminar to introduce new users to flow cytometry. This seminar, “How to run flow cytometry experiments” will be held on Wednesday, Oct. 19, at the BUSM Instructional Building in room R103 from 1 – 2 p.m. It will be presented by Flow Cytometry Core... More
Oct. 12 Public Health Forum to Examine Inequities in Health Care Access for Immigrants
In 2006, Massachusetts enacted a pioneering health care reform law that promised universal health insurance coverage. State policymakers jettisoned a piece of this landmark commitment in 2009 when they barred more than 30,000 low-income legal immigrants from part of the health care reform program that subsidizes health insurance premiums for those with very limited means. Health... More