December, 2013 - HSC News

Exploring the connection between Alzheimer’s disease and stroke

By Shelby Roberts

Alzheimer’s disease is the No. 6 cause of death in the United States, and stroke is the No. 4 cause.

Helena Chui, MD, chair, Department of Neurology, Raymond and Betty McCarron Chair in Neurology, and professor of neurology and gerontology at the Keck School of Medicine of USC, recently gave a presentation on Alzheimer’s disease and its relation to stroke on Nov. 6 as the sixth lecture in an ongoing Stroke Seminar Series at the Rio Hando Community Center in Downey, Calif. The event was hosted by the Roxanna Todd Hodges Stroke Foundation. … Read More »

December 24th, 2013|Announcements|

Top Trojan scientists converge at Neuroscience 2013

By Robert Perkins

Several key faculty members from USC presented the latest pioneering research in neuroscience at the Society for Neuroscience’s annual meeting in San Diego in November.
More than 30,000 scientists and collaborators from 80 countries gathered for presentations by luminaries in the field, including USC’s Antonio Damasio, MD, PhD, Berislav Zlokovic, MD, PhD, and Dan Campbell, PhD. … Read More »

December 23rd, 2013|Announcements|

BEST OF THE WURST

Students, faculty and staff on the Health Sciences Campus were treated to German music and a feast of bratwurst, sauerkraut, German potato salad, beer and pretzels to celebrate the coming of October — and the USC Good Neighbors Campaign. … Read More »

December 23rd, 2013|Announcements|

OT symposium convenes scholars of sensory integration research

By Mike McNulty

National experts on the sensory issues tied to autism and other neurodevelopmental disorders exchanged their respective research at the 24th USC Occupational Science Symposium, which brought together dozens of leaders from across the country to assess the field and prioritize future research directions.

Hosted by the USC Division of Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy and its Sensory Integration, Engagement and Family Program, more than 350 researchers, clinicians and educators attended the Nov. 7 event, titled “Sensory Integration at the Crossroads: Diverse Perspectives in Occupational Therapy Research.” … Read More »

December 23rd, 2013|Announcements|

USC researchers apply brainpower to understanding neural stem cell differentiation

By Cristy Lytal

How do humans and other mammals get so brainy? USC researcher Wange Lu, PhD, and his colleagues shed new light on this question in a paper published in Cell Reports on Oct. 24.

The researchers donned their thinking caps to explain how neural stem and progenitor cells differentiate into neurons and related cells called glia. Neurons transmit information through electrical and chemical signals; glia surround, support and protect neurons in the brain and throughout the nervous system. Glia do everything from holding neurons in place to supplying them with nutrients and oxygen, to protecting them from pathogens.

By studying early mouse embryo neural stem cells in a petri dish, Lu and his colleagues discovered that a protein called SMEK1 promotes the differentiation of neural stem and progenitor cells. At the same time, SMEK1 keeps these cells in check by suppressing their uncontrolled proliferation. … Read More »

December 23rd, 2013|Announcements|

Keck School Faculty Council discusses admissions, GME, research funding

By Amy E. Hamaker

The Keck School of Medicine of USC Faculty Council met in a Town Hall meeting on Oct. 15 at the Edmondson Faculty Center on the Health Sciences Campus to discuss medical recruitment, trends and financing in graduate medical education, research trends at the Keck School and faculty recruitment. … Read More »

December 23rd, 2013|Announcements|

Ostrow study illustrates how growth factor defect causes tongue malformation

By Beth Newcomb

New findings about how cell signaling directs tongue development may have big clinical applications for healing tongue defects, according to an Ostrow School of Dentistry of USC study in the Journal of Biological Chemistry.

Yang Chai, DDS, PhD, principal investigator of “Non-canonical transforming growth factor beta (TGFb) signaling in cranial neural crest cells causes tongue muscle developmental defects” and director of the Center for Craniofacial Molecular Biology at the Ostrow School of Dentistry, said the tongue is a unique, highly mobile muscular organ that many view as a “fifth limb.” When the tongue develops improperly or is damaged by injury or disease, it cannot regenerate on its own.

“The current standard of care is to repair the tongue surgically using a skin flap, but it doesn’t have the muscle components to move the tongue and lacks the ability to taste food,” explained Chai. “We want to understand how the tongue is formed and how we can use that knowledge to regenerate the tongue.” … Read More »

December 23rd, 2013|Announcements|

BREAST CANCER SURVIVORS, DOCTORS RECOGNIZED

In recognition of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, six Keck Medicine of USC breast cancer health-care professionals and six breast cancer survivors made an on-field appearance during halftime at the Oct. 26 USC Trojan football game vs. Utah State. … Read More »

December 23rd, 2013|Announcements|

Six USC professors named fellows of AAAS

By Robert Perkins

Four scientists from the Keck School of Medicine of USC have been elected fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), selected for the honor by their academic peers.

AAAS, the world’s largest general scientific society and the publisher of the journal Science, began the tradition of selecting fellows in 1874. The nonprofit organization has been around since 1848. … Read More »

December 19th, 2013|Announcements|

Call to Cure supports USC Norris through art auctions

Art is supporting science thanks to DreamWorks Animation. Once per month for the next year, DreamWorks artists are donating original works for auction on eBay in support of Call to Cure, an organization supporting colorectal cancer research at USC. … Read More »