• Glial cells – a family of cells found in the human central nervous system and, until recently, considered mere “housekeepers” – now appear to be essential to the unique complexity of the human brain. Scientists reached this conclusion after demonstrating that when transplanted into mice, these human cells could influence communication within the brain, allowing the animals to learn more rapidly.
  • Surgeons at the University of Rochester recently introduced a new device to treat potentially deadly aortic aneurysms in the abdomen, reducing the need for invasive surgery and a lengthy recovery.
  • As if space travel was not already filled with enough dangers, a new study out today in the journal <em>PLOS ONE</em> shows that cosmic radiation – which would bombard astronauts on deep space missions to places like Mars – could accelerate the onset of Alzheimer’s disease.
  • A psychiatrist and a new Medical Center program take on the challenges of health care for the growing population of older adults.
  • A computer model of the heart wall predicted risk of irregular heart rhythms and sudden cardiac death in patients, paving the way for the use of more complex cardiac models to calculate the consequences of genetic, lifestyle and other changes to the heart.

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Nurse Scientist Susan Groth Receives National Award For Commitment to Women's Health »
June 17, 2013

Susan W. Groth, assistant professor of nursing at the School of Nursing will be presented today with an award from the Association of Women's Health, Obstetric and Neonatal Nurses (AWHONN) in recognition of her research into the variety of factors that contribute to obesity in women, including genetic pre-disposition, behavioral and environmental components.

U of R Medical Students Launch Monthly La Noche de Español »
June 13, 2013

Students at the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry are launching Spanish Night at UR Well. The student-run health clinic provides acute care to Rochester’s uninsured and homeless. Beginning June 18, UR Well will have Spanish-speaking translators available every third Tuesday of the month from 6 p.m. until 9 p.m.

Medical Center Mourns the Loss of Phillip P. Bonanni, M.D. »
June 12, 2013

Gifted teacher, respected colleague, physician leader, and patient care champion Phillip P. Bonanni, M.D., passed away on June 10 after a short illness. He was 74. A graduate of the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry, Bonanni was a member of the UR faculty who admitted patients to Strong Memorial and...

Wilmot Cancer Center Receives National Recognition for Quality Care to Cancer Patients »
June 10, 2013

The James P. Wilmot Cancer Center at the University of Rochester Medical Center has received the 2012 Outstanding Achievement Award by the American College of Surgeons’ Commission on Cancer—a consortium of professional organizations dedicated to improving patient outcomes and quality of life for cancer patients. The award acknowledges 79 U.S. health care facilities...

Scientists Coax Brain to Regenerate Cells Lost in Huntington’s Disease »
June 06, 2013

Researchers have been able to mobilize the brain’s native stem cells to replenish a type of neuron lost in Huntington’s disease. In the study, which appears today in the journal Cell Stem Cell, the scientists were able to both trigger the production of new neurons in mice with the disease and show that...

Researchers Identify Genetic Signature of Deadly Brain Cancer »
June 03, 2013

A multi-institutional team of researchers have pinpointed the genetic traits of the cells that give rise to gliomas – the most common form of malignant brain cancer. The findings, which appear in the journal Cell Reports, provide scientists with rich new potential set of targets to treat the disease.