News Archive - Scott LaFee

Radiation Therapy Vital to Treating Brain Tumors, but It Exacts a Toll

Radiation therapy (RT) using high-energy particles is a common and critical component in successfully treating patients with brain tumors but it is also associated with significant adverse effects. In a new study, researchers at the University of California San Diego School of Medicine report that irradiation can cause broader adverse effects, altering the structural network properties in impacted brains and perhaps contributing to delayed cognitive impairments observed in many patients following brain RT.

Cancer Cells Send Signals Boosting Survival and Drug Resistance in Other Cancer Cells

Researchers at University of California San Diego School of Medicine report that cancer cells appear to communicate to other cancer cells, activating an internal mechanism that boosts resistance to common chemotherapies and promotes tumor survival.

Researchers Studying Century-Old Drug in Potential New Approach to Autism

In a small, randomized Phase I/II clinical trial (SAT1), researchers at University of California San Diego School of Medicine say a 100-year-old drug called suramin, originally developed to treat African sleeping sickness, was safely administered to children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), who subsequently displayed measurable, but transient, improvement in core symptoms of autism.

Researchers Studying Century-Old Drug in Potential New Approach to Autism

In a small, randomized Phase I/II clinical trial (SAT1), researchers at University of California San Diego School of Medicine say a 100-year-old drug called suramin, originally developed to treat African sleeping sickness, was safely administered to children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), who subsequently displayed measurable, but transient, improvement in core symptoms of autism.

Dread of Roses: Neurobehavioral Effects Found in Children Exposed to Flower Pesticides

Researchers at the University of California San Diego School of Medicine, with colleagues in Ecuador and Minnesota, have found altered short-term neurological behaviors in children associated with a peak pesticide spraying season linked to the Mother’s Day flower harvest. This study examined children who did not work in agriculture but who lived in agricultural communities in Ecuador.

Novel Phage Therapy Saves Patient with Multidrug-Resistant Bacterial Infection

Scientists and physicians at University of California San Diego School of Medicine, working with colleagues at the U.S. Navy Medical Research Center – Biological Defense Research Directorate (NMRC-BDRD), Texas A&M University, a San Diego-based biotech and elsewhere, have successfully used an experimental therapy involving bacteriophages — viruses that target and consume specific strains of bacteria — to treat a patient near death from a multidrug-resistant bacterium.

Novel Phage Therapy Saves Patient with Multidrug-Resistant Bacterial Infection

Scientists and physicians at University of California San Diego School of Medicine, working with colleagues at the U.S. Navy Medical Research Center – Biological Defense Research Directorate (NMRC-BDRD), Texas A&M University, a San Diego-based biotech and elsewhere, have successfully used an experimental therapy involving bacteriophages — viruses that target and consume specific strains of bacteria — to treat a patient near death from a multidrug-resistant bacterium.

NIH Funds UC San Diego Amazonian Center of Excellence in Malaria Research

The Amazonian Center of Excellence for Malaria Research, headed by Joseph Vinetz, MD, professor of medicine and tropical disease specialist at University of California San Diego School of Medicine, will receive up to approximately $8.3 million over seven years from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health.

Using CRISPR to Reverse Retinitis Pigmentosa and Restore Visual Function

Using the gene-editing tool CRISPR/Cas9, researchers at University of California San Diego School of Medicine and Shiley Eye Institute at UC San Diego Health, with colleagues in China, have reprogrammed mutated rod photoreceptors to become functioning cone photoreceptors, reversing cellular degeneration and restoring visual function in two mouse models of retinitis pigmentosa.

In Four Related Papers, Researchers Describe New and Improved Tools for Stem Cell Research

In a new paper, a large team of researchers led by senior author Kelly Frazer, PhD, professor of pediatrics and director of the Institute for Genomic Medicine at University of California San Diego School of Medicine, describe a new collection of 222 systematically derived and characterized iPSC lines generated as part of the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute’s NextGen consortium.