Research Extras

Read about a new cancer biology graduate program meant to immerse young scientists in research much earlier in their education. The program is a partnership between the Winship Cancer Institute and the Laney Graduate School.

The new Lab Land blog highlights research and discoveries in biomedical laboratories in the Woodruff Health Sciences Center.

The largest cystic fibrosis clinic in the nation, shared by Emory School of Medicine and Children's Healthcare of Atlanta, includes research efforts focused on new drug therapies and devices to improve quality of life and longevity. Many more CF children are reaching adulthood and are treated at Emory through one of the few adult CF centers in the Southeast.

Emory will lead a new NIH-fund National Center for Functional Glycomics, focused on an "omics" field that covers all the carbohydrates in the human body and their interactions and links to disease.

Read about the drug discovery success of a recent graduate of the ACTSI Certificate Program in Translational Research. The new program, part of Emory's Laney Graduate School, gives investigators the skills to translate their research from basic science into clinical medicine.

New Genetic Risk Factor Found for Schizophrenia
An abnormal duplication of a large gene region called chromosomal region 7q11.23 has been found to increase the risk of schizophrenia by about 10 times. Because mutations in this region are also linked to autism and disorders of intellectual development, scientists believe there is a neurodevelopmental connection among these conditions. Read more...

Chronic Stress Causes Biological Changes in Pregnant Women
Chronic stress found in minority and low-income pregnant women causes biological changes that reduce the ability to control inflammatory proteins and stress hormones. These changes can lead to significant adverse outcomes for mothers and infants during pregnancy and birth and behavioral and emotional problems in infants and toddlers. Read more...

Oxytocin Could be Basis of Improved Autism Treatment
The chemical oxytocin is known for its role in mother-infant bonding, but it also may affect human relationships generally. A new NIH-funded neuroscience program at Yerkes Research Center will focus on oxytocin to help improve social interactions in autism and schizophrenia through better chemical communication in the brain. Read more...

Lampreys Provide Hints to Immune System Evolution
Lampreys have a sophisticated immune system and a long evolutionary history that makes them a goldmine for discovering how the human immune system works. In addition to white blood cells that resemble human B and T cells, lampreys have a newly identified third type of immune cell that links humans and other vertebrates to their ancient past. Read more...

Eye Movement Rhythm Important to Eye-Tracking Diagnosis
Quick eye movements, called saccades, enable us to scan a visual scene. Electrical signals in the brain reset by a saccade act as a metronome for pushing that information into memory. Because eye tracking is already a promising basis for diagnosing Alzheimer's disease and schizophrenia, more knowledge about the rhythm of eye movements and their connection to memory could bolster the accuracy and power of eye-tracking diagnoses. Read more...