Genome sequence deepens mysteryof inconspicuous sea creature
The newly sequenced genome of an easily overlooked marine animal, a pancake of cells called a placozoan, is helping biologists unravel the origins of animals.
(26 August)

Screening for diabetes in an emergency setting
In the U.S. about 5.7 million people are unaware that they have diabetes. In an ambitious clinical study at Highland Hospital, a UC student is testing the ER's potential to help address one of the "big" diseases of the developed world and its epidemic proportions among the poor.
(31 July)

University virologist named Keck Distinguished Young Scholar
Britt Glaunsinger, a University of California, Berkeley, virologist and an assistant professor in the Department of Plant and Microbial Biology, has won a W. M. Keck Foundation grant, an award given to innovative young scientists in the area of biomedical research.
(29 July)

New light shed on how intracellular pathogens trigger the immune system
Disease-causing microbes like the food-borne bacterium Listeria monocytogenes specialize in invading and replicating inside their animal hosts' own cells, making them particularly tricky to defeat. But a new study led by UC Berkeley biologists has identified a molecular alarm system in which the intracellular pathogen sends out signals that kick the immune response into gear.
(14 July)

Parasite vaccines within reach
Even though parasites are complex creatures, the mammalian immune response to them is surprisingly simple. This finding by UC Berkeley researchers provides hope that creating vaccines for parasitic diseases such as malaria may be more straightforward than initially thought
(02 July)

Old muscle gets new pep in UC Berkeley stem cell study
When UC Berkeley bioengineers tweaked how adult stem cells reacted to biochemical signals regulating cell division, they gave muscle in old mice a shot of youthful vigor. The research sets the path for research on new treatments for age-related degenerative conditions, including muscle atrophy and Alzheimer's disease.
(16 June)

Personal genomes may lead to personalized vitamin supplements
As the cost of DNA sequencing drops, it may become common for people to have their complete genomes sequenced. Personal genomes will not only tell people about their genetic susceptibility to cancer and heart disease, but also will tell them which vitamins can improve their health. Some day, we all may take personalized vitamin supplements.
(02 June)

5 new HHMI investigators to be announced May 27
Five UC Berkeley faculty members have received one of the most sought-after honors in biomedical research: appointment as Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) investigators with guaranteed research support for five, 10 or more years into the future.
(27 May)

New campus-wide alliance for global health launches May 14
From projects to prevent mothers from dying during childbirth to the development of low-cost treatments and diagnostics for drug-resistant tuberculosis, UC Berkeley is bringing together global health research from across the campus in an ambitious interdisciplinary initiative to be officially launched on Wednesday, May 14.
(08 May)

More focus needed for effective HIV prevention strategies in Africa, says new policy paper
A new policy analysis led by public health researchers at UC Berkeley and Harvard University says that the most common HIV prevention strategies - including condom use, HIV testing, vaccine research and abstinence - are not backed by rigorous studies and are having limited impact on the epidemic in Africa. More resources are needed for two less popular interventions - male circumcision and reduction of sexual partners - that have been proven effective in Africa, the researchers argue.
(08 May)

CIRM awards $20 million for stem cell research facilities
The California Institute for Regenerative Medicine has awarded $20.18 million to UC Berkeley to build centralized stem cell laboratories in a new research building, the Li Ka Shing Center for Biomedical and Health Sciences, now under construction.
(07 May)

CIRM awards $20 million for stem cell research facilities
The California Institute for Regenerative Medicine has awarded $20.18 million to UC Berkeley to build centralized stem cell laboratories in a new research building, the Li Ka Shing Center for Biomedical and Health Sciences, now under construction.
(07 May)

Engineers harness cell phone technology for use in medical imaging
With an innovative concept developed by UC Berkeley engineers, the ubiquitous cell phone could one day be used to make medical imaging accessible to billions of people around the world. Using off-the-shelf components, the researchers demonstrated the feasibility of using a mobile phone to transmit raw data from a medical scan to a central server for processing, and then receiving the final image for display on its screen.
(29 April)

Low cortisol levels found in kids whose mothers show signs of depression
A new study of young children living in extreme poverty found that those whose mothers showed symptoms of depression had low levels of cortisol, a hormone activated during times of stress, compared with children whose mothers did not exhibit depressive symptoms.
(21 April)

More clues to midlife dementia that erases personality
UC Berkeley and UCSF researchers are uncovering more clues to a mystifying dementia that robs its victims of empathy, emotion regulation and social competence and leads to an early death. This is the first in-depth study of emotional processing in patients with frontotemporal lobar degeneration (FTLD), a neurogenerative disorder that often surfaces in middle age. Researchers from UC Berkeley and UCSF's Memory and Aging Center say FTLD is easy to overlook because it goes after the parts of the brain that control emotions while sparing functions such as memory, calculation and navigation.
(15 April)

New study finds glamorization of drugs in rap music jumped dramatically over two decades
A new study finds that references to illegal drug use in rap music jumped sixfold in the two decades since 1979, the year when rap made its way from inner-city urban areas to a mainstream audience. Moreover, illegal drug use became increasingly linked during this time period to wealth, glamour and social standing, raising red flags about its potential influence on young listeners, said Denise Herd, UC Berkeley associate professor and author of the study.
(01 April)

Growth hormone also guides brain wiring
A human hormone known to stimulate the growth of cells throughout the body has a new role - helping to set up the proper nerve connections in the odor center of the brain, according to UC Berkeley neuroscientist John Ngai.
(26 March)

Folate intake linked to genetic abnormalities in sperm, says new study
It may not be just women who need extra folate in their diets to reduce the risk of birth defects. A new study by researchers at UC Berkeley and the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory puts the spotlight on the other sex, finding that healthy men who report lower levels of the nutrient folate in their diets have higher rates of genetic abnormalities in their sperm.
(19 March)

UC Berkeley and Stanford University launch joint stem cell research
Two leaders in biomedical research – UC-Berkeley and the Stanford School of Medicine – will join forces in a new stem cell initiative that will catalyze research and serve as a magnet for scholars from around the world. The Siebel Stem Cell Institute, established by the Thomas and Stacey Siebel Foundation, is a joint initiative between the Berkeley Stem Cell Center and the Stanford Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine Institute.
(12 March)

School of Public Health to honor its ‘heroes’ in annual ceremony
On April 2, the School of Public Health (SPH) will honor three individuals and one organization at its 12th annual Public Health Heroes Awards ceremony, to be held at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in San Francisco.
(12 March)

Extra cash from government program linked to better child development, new study says
Children in impoverished families that received an extra amount of cold, hard cash from a government support program were taller, less likely to be overweight, and scored higher on cognitive, motor and language tests, compared with kids in families that received less money, says a new UC Berkeley-led study.
(06 March)

More public health professionals needed to avert crisis, warns new report
UC Berkeley's School of Public Health was part of a first-of-its-kind assessment warning of a major public health workforce crisis in the U.S. unless there is an immediate influx of funding for recruitment and training of public health professionals. The report, released Feb. 27 by the Association of Schools of Public Health (ASPH), found that more than 250,000 additional public health workers are needed by 2020.
(27 February)

Strong community networks linked to fewer recurring heart problems, new study finds
A new UC Berkeley-led study shows that low-income patients with existing heart problems are significantly less likely to have another heart attack or a recurrence of chest pain if they live in a county with higher measures of trust, cooperation and social networks – something researchers call "social capital."
(26 February)

National Academy of Sciences hosting Katherine Sherwood's 'Golgi's Door' show
Some 11 paintings and prints by UC Berkeley art professor Katherine D. Sherwood on display through Feb. 22 in the National Academy of Sciences' Rotunda Gallery in Washington, D.C. contrast historic and contemporary medical imaging with ancient symbols of magic, mystery and healing from around the globe.
(08 February)

Youngest student to publish ADHD memoir
Freshman Blake Taylor can add "self-help author" to his resume as he enters his second semester this week at UC Berkeley. After two years of writing his life story during vacations, his memoir "ADHD & me: what I learned from lighting fires at the dinner table is available in bookstores. Taylor is being considered the youngest American to publish a personal account of his life with ADHD.
(24 January)

UC policy report says chemical exposures cost state estimated $2.6 billion
Serious gaps in existing laws regulating the production and use of hazardous chemicals fail to protect public health and the environment, according to a new report released Jan. 17 by researchers at UC Berkeley and UCLA. As a result of this inadequate oversight, chemical and pollution-related diseases among children and workers in California cost the state's insurers, businesses and families an estimated $2.6 billion in direct and indirect costs, says the report.
(17 January)

Economist examines costs of extreme cold weather
Fatalities in the continental United States tend to climb for several weeks after severe cold spells, ultimately numbering 360 per chilly day and 14,380 per year, according to a new study co-authored by a University of California, Berkeley, economist.Deaths linked to extreme cold account for 0.8 percent of the nation's annual death rate and outnumber those attributed to leukemia, murder and chronic liver disease combined, the study reports. Cold-related deaths also reduce the average life expectancy of Americans by at least a decade, it says.
(19 December)

Stem cell grant will spur research on rejuvenating muscle
Irina Conboy, a young assistant professor who hopes embryonic stem cells can rejuvenate aging muscles, is the recipient of a $2.25 million research grant from the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM).
(14 December)

Avoid raising ungrateful kids
Reams of academic research abound across the country on how to raise happy children, but who has the time to read this myriad of findings, boil down the facts, and then turn them into practical parenting advice? UC Berkeley's Greater Good Science Center is taking on the job with its new Web site on how to foster joy and avoid brattish behavior in children.
(13 November)

Sleep loss linked to psychiatric disorders
In the first neural investigation into what happens to your emotions when you don't sleep, results from a UC Berkeley brain imaging study suggest that while a good night's rest can regulate your mood and help you cope with the next day's emotional challenges, sleep deprivation excessively boosts the part of the brain most closely connected to depression, anxiety and other psychiatric disorders.
(22 October)

Mental-health priorities: increasing awareness, decreasing stigma
Mental Health Awareness Week takes place at Berkeley starting on Monday, Oct. 15. Lectures, a self-administered "mental-health check-in" survey, and a panoply of "address your stress" activities (free massages, anyone?) are among the key elements of this expanded program.
(10 October)

Neuroscientists connect neural activity and blood flow in new brain stimulation technique
UC Berkeley neuroscientists have for the first time measured the electrical activity of nerve cells and correlated it to changes in blood flow in response to transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), a noninvasive method to stimulate neurons in the brain. Their findings, reported in the Sept. 28 issue of the journal Science, could substantially improve the effectiveness of brain stimulation as a therapeutic and research tool.
(27 September)

Stanley Hall dedication heralds new era of bioscience innovation
When Stanley Hall is officially dedicated on Friday, Sept. 28, it will represent the promise of a new era in interdisciplinary bioscience research at UC Berkeley. The state-of-the-art facility will be a catalyst for innovations that may one day lead to new treatments or preventions for diseases, more environmentally friendly sources of energy and better ways to clean up pollutants.
(26 September)

Pleasant odors perceived the same by different cultures
Are people's taste preferences totally dependent on culture, or are there universal likes and dislikes? A cross-cultural study by UC Berkeley and Israeli neurobiologists shows that the odors people perceive as pleasant or unpleasant are the same around the world. In fact, they've created a way to predict the degree of pleasantness of new chemicals.
( 20 September )

Young innovator in cancer research chosen for NIH award
A young UC Berkeley researcher with ambitious plans to identify tissue-specific cancer drugs has been chosen to receive a National Institutes of Health New Innovator Award, one of 29 to be announced Sept. 19.
(18 September)

Flies prefer fizzy drinks
Fruit flies like a splash of soda water in their drinks, according to UC Berkeley neuroscientist Kristin Scott and her colleagues. They discovered that the insect has specialized taste cells for carbonated water, probably to encourage them to binge on food with microorganisms like yeast and bacteria that give off carbon dioxide.
(29 August)

Compound in broccoli has immune-boosting properties, finds new study
A compound found in broccoli and related vegetables may help boost the immune system, according to a new UC Berkeley-led study. Researchers found that mice fed mice a solution of the compound, 3,3'-diindolylmethane (DIM), had increased blood levels of cytokines, proteins which help regulate the cells of the immune system, and were better able to clear reoviruses from their intestines.
(20 August)

Researchers report northern Uganda PTSD, preference for violence findings
In an upcoming issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), researchers at the University of California, Berkeley's Human Rights Center and Tulane University's Payson Center for International Development report high rates of symptoms of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and depression in residents of conflict-ridden northern Uganda. They also find that those with such symptoms favor violent -- rather than peaceful -- means to resolve their country's conflict.
(27 July)

Drug resistance argues against mutation theory of cancer
Most cancer researchers are convinced that cancer results from a handful of genetic mutations that kick a cell into uncontrolled growth. UC Berkeley genetics researcher Peter Duesberg disagrees, and finds support for his "chromosomal" theory of cancer in the development of drug resistance by many cancers.
(26 June)

Cancer death rates remain high decades after exposure to arsenic, new study finds
A new study by researchers at UC Berkeley and in Chile has found that death rates from lung and bladder cancer remained high decades after residents in northern Chile were exposed to high levels of arsenic in their drinking water. That a population's cancer mortality rates from an environmental health hazard remained high so long after exposure is unprecedented, the authors say.
(12 June)

Agonized pose tells of dinosaur death throes
Like investigators out of CSI or Cold Case, UC Berkeley and Montana paleontologists find clues to a dinosaur's demise in its peculiar death pose. They argue that the open-mouthed, head-back posture of many dinosaur fossils tells of an agonized death from brain damage and suffocation.
(06 June)

HIV in breastmilk killed by flash-heating, new study finds
Research led by UC Berkeley and UC Davis has found that breast milk naturally infected with HIV can be treated with a simple method of flash-heating, providing hope that HIV-positive mothers in developing countries will soon be able to more safely feed their babies.
(21 May)

New teaching, research building gets go-ahead
The outdated and seismically poor Warren Hall is set for demolition in 2008, to be replaced by a modern, five-story teaching and research building that will house stem cell research as well as work on infectious diseases, cancer and brain disorders. The Li Ka Shing Center for Biomedical and Health Sciences should open for business in 2011.
(17 May)

Don Minkler, champion of family planning and professor emeritus of public health, dies at 85
Dr. Donald H. Minkler, UC Berkeley professor emeritus and a renowned leader in women's health and family planning, has died at the age of 85. Minkler died of Alzheimer's disease at Salem Lutheran Home in Oakland on Friday, May 4.
(10 May)

Researcher offers steps to help doctors move past anger with patients
A UC Berkeley bioethicist addresses the challenge when anger or frustration enters into a doctor-patient relationship. She provides guidelines to help physicians empathize with their patients, particularly when faced with negative emotions.
(08 May)

Training taking place to spot depression
Spring green stickers are sprouting around the UC Berkeley as part of a campaign to help students who are depressed or suffering from other mental illnesses to locate faculty and staff members trained to help.
(30 April)

Leaving no Pop-Tart unscrutinized
A cohort of 26 Berkeley faculty members, students, and service-unit representatives, called the Campus Nutrition and Physical Activity Work Group, is working to make healthier food options more available on campus.
(25 April)

"Stories in the Time of Cholera" wins top anthropology prize
Charles L. Briggs and Dr. Clara Mantini-Briggs of UC Berkeley, win top anthropology book prize for "Stories in the Time of Cholera"
(02 April)

2007 public health heroes to be honored March 23
The person who helped wipe out smallpox, a diet educator, a health care administrator and a hospital servicing the Chinese community are being honored by the UC Berkeley School of Public Health. D.A. Henderson, Dean Ornish, David Kears and Chinese Hospital will receive Public Health Heroes Awards at a March 23 ceremony at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in San Francisco.
(19 March)

Sharing genes a common affair, studies show
Bacteria are known to share genes among different species, but how common is it in other organisms, including mammals like us? Two new studies show that most bacteria have genes or large groups of genes shared by other bacteria, and even among higher organisms, gene sharing is the rule rather than the exception.
(08 March)

School of Public Health to honor its 'heroes'
Three individuals and one organization will be honored on Friday, March 23, at the 11th annual Public Health Heroes Awards Ceremony in San Francisco. The award, founded by the School of Public Health (SPH), is presented to innovative leaders who have made meaningful contributions to the protection and promotion of health.
(07 March)

Use of ADHD medication soars worldwide
The use of psycho-stimulant drugs to treat attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder has more than tripled worldwide since 1993, challenging widespread assumptions that this neuro-developmental disorder is concentrated in the United States, according to new research from UC Berkeley.
(06 March)

Smoking increases risk of TB infection, new study finds
People who smoke have a greater risk of becoming infected with tuberculosis (TB) and of having that infection turn into active TB disease, according to a new meta-analysis of 24 studies by UC Berkeley researchers. Overall, a smoker has about a 2.5 times greater risk of contracting active TB than does a non-smoker in the same population.
(26 February)

New medical technique punches holes in cells, could treat tumors
A large animal study has shown that certain microsecond electrical pulses can punch nanoscale holes in the membranes of target cells without harming collagen fibers and other vascular tissue structures. The new medical technique, called irreversible electroporation (IRE) and developed at UC Berkeley, is a potential breakthrough in minimally invasive surgical treatments of tumors.
(12 February)

Conference on Feb. 16-17 to explore "What's Left of Life?"
A group of scholars, artists, social scientists, biologists and public intellectuals will gather at the University of California, Berkeley, Feb. 16-17 to explore connections between their own work and a world beset on one hand by ongoing wars, genocides, and epidemics and on the other by life-extending technologies, the promises of stem cell research and potent new pharmaceuticals.
(08 February)

Atkins Foundation pledges $10 million to Center for Weight and Health
The Dr. Robert C. and Veronica Atkins Foundation has pledged $10 million to UC Berkeley's Center for Weight and Health to support nutrition research and obesity prevention programs. The announcement was made Wednesday, Jan. 24, at the 2007 California Childhood Obesity Conference in Anaheim.
(25 January)

Conference to prevent childhood obesity kicks off this week
More than 1,700 researchers, educators, public health professionals and others dedicated to solving the nation's obesity crisis are meeting in Anaheim for the 2007 California Childhood Obesity Conference. The four-day conference, which begins Tuesday, Jan. 23, is considered the largest meeting on childhood obesity in the United States. It is being organized by UC Berkeley's Center for Weight and Health, the California Department of Health Services, the California Department of Education and the California Endowment.
(22 January)

Stigma of mental illness explored
As Congress considers legislation that would require the same health coverage for mental illness as for physical ailments, UC Berkeley psychologist Stephen Hinshaw publishes a book that explores the enduring stigma of disorders ranging from depression and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder to schizophrenia and autism.
(16 January)

Peptide targets latent papilloma virus infections
Infection with the human papilloma virus, the major cause of cervical cancer, is forever -- the virus remains latent in skin cells, ready to flare up at any time to create warts on the skin or the genitals. A new finding, however, offers hope that a drug could halt spread of the virus into new cells, and perhaps even eliminate the virus from the body.
(02 January)