Editors: Natalia
Gavrilova and
Stacy Tessler Lindau
CCBAR
News:
The
Chicago Core on Biomeasures in Population-Based Health and Aging
Research (CCBAR) at the NORC University of Chicago Center on Demography
and Economics of Aging will host a fall conference entitled "Biosocial
Approaches to Urban Health and Aging" on Tuesday, October 25th, 2011
from 7:30am to 5pm at the Gleacher Center in downtown Chicago. Rose
Anne Kenny, MD, PI of the innovative Irish Longitudinal Study on Ageing
will present the keynote lecture. Please contact Pleasant Radford
(pradford@babies.bsd.uchicago.edu) if you are interested in
participating.
CCBAR member, Stacy Tessler Lindau, MD, MAPP, gave a lecture "Methods
development and application: Lessons from the National Social Life,
Health, and Aging Project" at the Cells to Society (C2S) Sixth Annual
Summer Biomarker Institute on the Evanston campus of Northwestern
University on June 7, 2011. More information about this event can be
found at the C2S website <http://www.northwestern.edu/ipr/c2s/events/biomarkers.html>
.
In June, CCBAR held its second community-oriented hands-on training
session on blood spot methods in conjunction with the University of
Chicago Urban Health Initiative South Side Health and Vitality Studies.
16 representatives from the university and 5 from the community
participated in this training session. Dr. Lindau's C2S lecture
included discussion about the process and value of including community
members in training about biological methods being used in
population-based research.
Blood spot collection at the June training
session organized by SSHVS and CCBAR.
We
appreciate contribution from Pleasant Radford, Lisa Teverbaugh and
Natalie Watson who helped to prepare this section of newsletter.
Evolution:
Male harassment can doom species
The males of many species demonstrate behaviours that are harmful to
females. Some, for example, can physically damage females during
courting or mating. Daniel Rankin at the University of Zurich in
Switzerland and his team now demonstrate that such sexual conflict can
lead to a
City
living marks the brain
Neuroscientists study social risk factor for mental illness.
Demographics:
The growth of nations
Michael Sargent enjoys a social history of how height and lifespan
increased during the Industrial Revolution.
Comparison
of Effect Sizes Associated With Biomarkers Reported in Highly Cite...
Many biomarkers are proposed in highly
cited studies
as determinants of disease risk, prognosis, or response to treatment,
but few eventually transform clinical practice.
Objective: To examine whether the
magnitude of the effect sizes of biomarkers proposed in highly cited
studies is accurate...
The
Thin Line Between Hope and Hype in Biomarker Research [Editorial]
The
Fountain of Youth?
Aging results in a slow
deterioration of biological structures. Even
budding yeast undergo replicative aging, with cells dying after
producing a limited number of offspring. However, the effects of aging
? [Read more]
Anticholinergic
effects of common drugs are associated with increased mortali...
The
combined anticholinergic effects of many common drugs increase the
risk of cognitive impairment and death in people aged over 65, a large
scale study of the long term effect of drugs on health...
Social
neuroscience: Stress and the city
Many of us were raised or currently
live in an urban environment. A
neuroimaging study now reveals how this affects brain function when an
individual is faced with a stressful situation. See Letter p.498
The Best
Medicine
A
quiet revolution in comparative effectiveness research just might save
us from soaring medical costs
Nutrition:
Anomalous role for dietary salt in diabetes mellitus?
Prevailing
guidelines advocate a low-salt diet to mitigate progression
of renal and cardiovascular disease in patients with diabetes mellitus.
However, two recent cohort studies in patients with type 1 and type 2
diabetes mellitus associate lower salt intake with increased rates of
end-stage renal d...
Epidemiology:
Outcomes of diabetes mellitus in Asian Americans
A
recent study of health outcomes among Asian Americans and Pacific
Islanders with diabetes mellitus demonstrates that use of broad racial
categories can mask important differences in risks among ethnic
subgroups and emphasizes the importance of appropriate classifications
as a strategy for improvin...
Dementia:
Overweight or obesity during midlife is associated with late-life d...
Being
overweight or obese during midlife is associated with increased
risk of dementia later in life, according to a Swedish twin study
involving 8,534 individuals.The findings relating to obesity, defined
as BMI >30, have been shown in previous reports. However, the
effect of being
Value-driven
attentional capture [Psychological and Cognitive Sciences]
Attention
selects which aspects of sensory input are brought to
awareness. To promote survival and well-being, attention prioritizes
stimuli both voluntarily, according to context-specific goals (e.g.,
searching for car keys), and involuntarily, through attentional capture
driven by physical salienc...
Vitamin
D and Prevention of Cardiovascular Disease and Diabetes: Why the Evid...
Television
Viewing and Risk of Type 2 Diabetes, Cardiovascular Disease, and A...
Prolonged television (TV) viewing is
the most
prevalent and pervasive sedentary behavior in industrialized countries
and has been associated with morbidity and mortality. However, a
systematic and quantitative assessment of published studies is not
available.
Drug boosts
growth factor to jump-start rapid antidepressant response
A study in mice has pinpointed a pivotal new player in triggering the
rapid antidepressant response produced by ketamine. By deactivating a
little-known enzyme, the drug takes the brakes off rapid synthesis of a
key growth factor thought to lift depression, say researchers supported
by the National Institutes of Health.
New
videos, website offer important resources for people affected by
diabetes
New videos to help people make lifestyle changes and cope with the
demands of diabetes were announced by the U.S. Department of Health and
Human Services' National Diabetes Education Program (NDEP). The series
of three- to five-minute videos, address topics such as setting goals
to improve health, living with diabetes, finding the support you need,
as well as segments on diabetes prevention and physical activity.
NIH
researchers slow immune attack on ovaries in mice
In a study of mice, researchers have slowed an immune system attack on
the ovaries. The mice developed a disorder resembling primary ovarian
insufficiency (POI), a menopause-like condition that affects women
under the age of 40, sometimes years or even decades before normal
menopause. The study was conducted by scientists at the National
Institutes of Health and the University of California, San Francisco
(UCSF).
Difficulty
estimating quantity linked to math learning disability
Researchers funded by the National Institutes of Health have discovered
that the innate ability to estimate quantities is impaired in children
who have a math learning disability.
NIH
researchers identify new marker to predict progressive kidney failure,
death
A high level of a hormone that regulates phosphate is associated with
an increased risk of kidney failure and death among chronic kidney
disease (CKD) patients, according to a recent study led by researchers
at the University of Miami and funded by the National Institute of
Diabetes and Digestive Diseases and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) at the
National Institutes of Health. Results are in the June 15 issue of the
Journal of the American Medical Association.
NIH
expands reach of national clinical and translational research consortium
The National Institutes of Health announced that it will provide $200
million over five years to five health research centers to speed
scientific discoveries into treatments for patients. The grants were
awarded as part of the Clinical and Translational Science Awards (CTSA)
program, which is led by the NIH's National Center for Research
Resources (NCRR).
NIH
researchers find new clues about aging
National Institutes of Health researchers have identified a new pathway
that sets the clock for programmed aging in normal cells. The study
provides insights about the interaction between a toxic protein called
progerin and telomeres, which cap the ends of chromosomes like aglets,
the plastic tips that bind the ends of shoelaces.
Potential
new target for smoking cessation without weight gain
A new study uncovers a brain mechanism that could be targeted for new
medications designed to help people quit smoking without gaining
weight. This research, funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse
(NIDA), part of the National Institutes of Health, shows that a
specific subclass of brain nicotinic receptor is involved in nicotine's
ability to reduce food intake in rodents. Prior research shows that the
average weight gain after smoking is less than 10 pounds, but fear of
weight gain can discourage some people who would like to quit.
NIH
Announcements
Specialized
Centers of Research (SCOR) on Sex Differences (P50)
Funding Opportunity RFA-OD-11-003 from the NIH Guide for Grants and
Contracts. The ORWH and participating organizations and institutes seek
to expand the Specialized Centers of Interdisciplinary Research (SCOR)
on Sex Differences. These centers will provide opportunities for
interdisciplinary approaches to advancing studies in sex differences
research. Each SCOR should develop a research agenda bridging basic and
clinical research underlying a health issue that affects women.
Exceptional,
Unconventional Research Enabling Knowledge Acceleration
(EUREKA)...
Funding Opportunity RFA-NS-12-005 from the NIH Guide for Grants and
Contracts. This FOA solicits Research Project Grant (R01) applications
from institutions/organizations proposing exceptionally innovative
research on novel hypotheses or difficult problems, solutions to which
would have an extremely high impact on biomedical or biobehavioral
research in the epilepsies. This FOA is for support of new projects,
not continuation of projects that have already been initiated. It does
not support pilot projects, i.e., projects of limited scope that are
designed primarily to generate data that will enable the PD/PI to seek
other funding opportunities. Interventional clinical trials are also
not appropriate for this FOA.
Limited
Competition: Addressing Health Disparities in Maternal and
Child Heal...
Funding Opportunity PAR-11-241 from the NIH Guide for Grants and
Contracts. The Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child
Health and Human Development (NICHD), requests applications to
implement developmental community-based participatory research (CBPR)
projects planned and developed by recipients of the Phase I
Academic-Community Partnerships Conference Series awards under
PAR-08-106 and RFA-HD-06-019. This FOA provides support for community
based participatory research (CBPR) projects that were identified and
planned during the Phase I grant award. Only one CBPR project will be
supported per grant award. The areas of emphasis include: infant
mortality; sudden infant death syndrome; fibroid tumors; childhood,
adolescent, and/or adult obesity; literacy; techniques for outreach and
information dissemination; pediatric and maternal HIV/AIDS prevention;
and violence prevention.
NIH
Fiscal Policy for Grant Awards FY 2011
Notice NOT-OD-11-068 from the NIH Guide for Grants and Contracts
NIMHD
Health Disparities Research (R01)
Funding Opportunity RFA-MD-12-001 from the NIH Guide for Grants and
Contracts. The purpose of this Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA)
is to solicit innovative research that can directly and demonstrably
contribute to the elimination of health disparities. Research aims may
include, but are not limited to, biological mechanisms; behavioral
strategies; lifestyle factors; environmental, structural, and economic
factors; cultural and family influences; delivery system interventions;
medical procedures and regimens (including alternative therapy), and
medical assistive devices and health information technologies. Projects
may involve primary data collection or secondary analysis of existing
datasets.
NIMHD
Resource-Related Minority Health and Health Disparities Research
(U24)
Funding Opportunity RFA-MD-11-005 from the NIH Guide for Grants and
Contracts. This funding opportunity announcement (FOA) encourages
applications from organizations to provide support for conducting
minority health and health disparities resource-related research
activities that support the objectives and research strategy outlined
in the NIMHD FY 2009-2013 Health Disparities Strategic Plan. The
priority areas for this initiative are: Bioethics Research, Global
Health Research, Data Infrastructure and Dissemination, and Healthcare
for Rural Populations Research.
Modification
of the Biographical Sketch in NIH Grant Application Forms
(PHS 3...
Notice NOT-OD-11-045 from the NIH Guide for Grants and Contracts
Events
Conferences:
The Summer Institute in
LGBT Health at the Center for Population
Research in LGBT Health at the Fenway Institute, Boston, July
18-August
12, 2011.
Applications are due April 18, 2011
Gerontological
Society of America's 64th Annual Scientific Meeting,
November 18-22, 2011, Boston Hynes Convention Center, Boston, MA.
Abstracts Deadline: March 15, 2011
Population
Association of America Annual meeting, San Francisco, CA.
The 2012 Annual Meeting will be held May 3-5 at the Hilton San
Francisco Union Square Hotel. The 2012 Call for Papers will be
available at the end of July, http://paa2012.princeton.edu/.
NIH Videocasts:
• The Role
of Science Policy and Communications in Advancing Public
Health Impact
NIMH OSPPC Director Candidate Presentation
Air date: 7/11/2011 12:00:00 PM Eastern Time
• Basic
Science and Clinical Application of Vascular Endothelial Growth
Factor
Fifth Sayer Vision Research Lecture
Dr. Napoleone Ferrara, winner of a 2010 Lasker Award, will deliver the
fifth Sayer Vision Research Lecture.
Ferrara, a Fellow at Genentech, Inc., has spent nearly 30 years working
to understand the mechanisms of angiogenesis (formation of new blood
vessels). He is credited with isolating and cloning vascular
endothelial growth factor (VEGF), a protein that plays a key role in
angiogenesis. Ferrara and colleagues showed that cancerous tumors are
able to g...
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
This Newsletter is supported by a grant from the National
Institute on
Aging, National Institutes of Health (Grant No. 5 P30 AG012857)
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