Jan 31, 2020 | Microbiome, News Roundup
Happy New Year! A selection of health news from the University of Chicago and around the globe curated just for you.
Five things you can do to make your microbiome healthier
Fruits and veggies, exercise, and probiotics—yes—but also add resistant starch (like beans and potatoes, especially if refrigerated after cooking) and experiment with different fibers (including whole grains, legumes, and cruciferous veggies like broccoli, kale, cabbage, cauliflower, and bok choy) to maximize your microbiome. (The Conversation)
The difference between celiac, non-celiac gluten sensitivity, and gluten allergy
UChicago pediatric gastroenterologist Ritu Verma, MD, medical director of the University of Chicago’s Celiac Disease Center, explains the characteristics and treatment of each. (The Forefront)
Human health is in the hands of bacteria
Martin Blaser of Rutgers University writes about the dangers of antibiotics overuse and makes the case for a microbiota vault, to preserve ancestral microbes for future generations. (Time)
Installing air filters in classrooms can have large educational benefits
In the face of growing proof of impact of air pollution on cognition, researchers from New York University found that installing $1,000 air filters in a Los Angeles school affected by a massive gas leak raised a class’s test scores as much as cutting class size by a third. (Vox)
Exposure to diesel exhaust particles linked to susceptibility for pneumococcal disease
Streptococcus pneumonia, a common cause of pneumonia and meningitis, usually live harmlessly in the nose and throat of healthy people, but research shows diesel particulates reduce the ability for the immune system to keep these bacteria in check. (Science Daily)
Jan 3, 2020 | Cancer, Immunology, Microbiome, News Roundup
A selection of health news from the University of Chicago and around the globe curated just for you.
Microbes living in the tons of plastics in the oceans
Jessica Mark Welch and colleagues at UChicago’s Marine Biological Laboratory at Woods Hole, MA, aim their new microscopy technique at microplastic samples from the ocean to characterize the extensive biofilms on ocean plastic. (Agro Ecology Innovations)
Staph vaccines likely to work better if administered earlier
Research by former UChicago faculty member Julian Bubeck-Wardenburg, now at Washington University in St. Louis, suggests that vaccinating infants before their first encounter staph, either just after birth or via their mothers during pregnancy, would likely generate a stronger immune response. (Futurity)
Microbial inequity
To the host of ways people experience inequity, add the microbiome: A University of Maine scientist argues that access to fibrous foods, parks, good air quality, other infrastructure affect the development of a healthy microbiome. (The Conversation)
UChicago faculty lauded yet again
Thomas Gajewski, MD, PhD, Abbvie Foundation Professor of Cancer Immunotherapy, is honored with the 2019 Award for Immuno-Oncology from the European Society for Medical Oncology (Healio)
Gut neurons are anti-salmonella warriors
Research from Harvard Medical School have found that nerves in the gut not only regulate the cellular gates that admit microorganisms, but actively boost the number of protective microbes there. (ScienceBlog)
Sep 27, 2019 | Food Allergies, Immunology, Microbiome, News Roundup, Research
A selection of health news from the University of Chicago and around the globe curated just for you.
Will these startups help biotech take root in Chicago?
Tom Gajewski is stepping into the spotlight with Pyxis Oncology, a cancer-therapy startup. He and co-founders John Flavin and David Steinberg raised $22 million to launch the spinout from his lab. (Crain’s Chicago Business)
Can gut bacteria heal food allergies?
How manipulating the microbiome could reverse and prevent peanut allergies and more. Cathryn Nagler featured. (Elemental by Medium)
Study finds an unexpected link between farming and immune system evolution
A new study by University of Chicago Medicine genetic researcher Luis Barreiro found the immune systems of hunter-gatherers showed more signs of positive natural selection, in particular among genes involved in the response to viruses. (phys.org)
Wash U team finds the ‘signature’ of guts that don’t get c. diff
Researchers have found the molecular signature of a healthy gut microbiome—the kind of bacterial community that keeps Clostridium difficilein check even in the aftermath of antibiotic treatment. (Futurity)
With new grants, Gates Foundation takes an early step toward a universal flu vaccine
Scientific teams from inside and outside the world of influenza research have been awarded funding to try to unlock mysteries that could provide the foundation for a future universal flu vaccine. Patrick Wilson featured. (STAT)
Human breast milk may help babies tell time via circadian signals from mom
The composition of breast milk changes across the day. Researchers believe this “chrononutrition” may help program infants’ emerging circadian biology. (The Conversation)
Just four nights with less sleep can alter fat storage
Restricting sleep for just four days alters how the body metabolizes fats and changes how satisfying meals seem, according to a new study with 15 healthy men. (Futurity)
Jul 1, 2019 | News Roundup
A selection of health news from the University of Chicago and around the globe curated just for you.
Technology commercialization expert to head Polsky Center
Jay Schrankler has been appointed associate vice president and head of the University of Chicago’s Polsky Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation. Schrankler transformed the University of Minnesota’s technology transfer office, generating more than $550 million in revenue over 10 years and helping launch startups that have raised $420 million to date. (UChicago News)
Rotavirus vaccine also apparently reduces risk of type 1 diabetes
Babies fully vaccinated against rotavirus in the first months of life have a 33 percent lower risk of developing type 1 diabetes than unvaccinated peers, according to a new study from the University of Michigan. The babies also had a 94 percent lower rate of hospitalization for rotavirus and a 31 percent lower rate of hospitalization for any reason. (NYTimes)
A vaccine against stress may be one step closer to reality
University of Colorado Boulder scientists identified a soil-based bacterium (Mycobacterium vaccae) that “vaccinated” immune cells against inflammation and thereby tuned down the flight-or-fight response in mice, both in the short run and longer term. (Psychology Today)
Findings link gut bacteria and fibromyalgia
Long a mystery disease that causes widespread chronic pain, fatigue, and cognitive difficulties in two to four percent of the population, fibromyalgia has no known cure. McGill University researchers found that people with fibromyalgia have a distinctive makeup of gut bacteria, and the more severe the symptoms, the more pronounced the microbial differences. (Psychology Today)
How do your food choices influence your microbiome?
Food label nutrition facts are important, but don’t tell you much about how they affect your gut microbes. Scientists at the University of Minnesota hope that greater specificity in food labeling may one day help us fine-tune our diets to our gut needs. (The Conversation)
May 29, 2019 | Microbiome, Neuroscience, News Roundup
A selection of health news from the University of Chicago and around the globe curated just for you.
Improving care for young hearts
Ivan Moskowitz is investigating the genetic causes of pediatric congenital heart disease (CHD) in an effort to improve diagnosis and treatment of children born with this condition. A recent gift from The Heart of a Child Foundation will help support his research. (Give to Medicine)
Antibiotic treatment alleviates Alzheimer’s disease symptoms in male mice
Researchers at the University of Chicago have demonstrated that the type of bacteria living in the gut can influence the development of Alzheimer’s disease symptoms in mice. Sangram Sisodia featured. (UChicago Medicine)
Addressing social needs and structural inequities to reduce health disparities
“Entering Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, a cutting-edge issue is addressing social determinants of health, which are especially critical among diverse Asian American ethnic groups that vary in education, income, and acculturation,” writes UChicago Medicine’s Marshall Chin. (NIMHD Insights)
Phage therapy to prevent cholera infections—and possibly those caused by other deadly bacteria
Discovered a little more than 100 years ago, bacteriophages, or phages, are generating renewed interest as potential weapons to fight bacteria that are resistant to multiple antibiotics. (The Conversation)
Common food additive found to affect gut microbiota
Experts call for better regulation of a common additive in foods and medicine, as research reveals it can impact the gut microbiota and contribute to inflammation in the colon, which could trigger diseases such as inflammatory bowel diseases and colorectal cancer. (ScienceDaily)
Apr 30, 2019 | Cancer, Microbiome, News Roundup
A selection of health news from the University of Chicago and around the globe curated just for you.
Providing a community of support for young women
The region’s first pediatric lupus clinic opens at Comer Children’s Hospital thanks to the generosity of the Handley family and Lakeshore Recycling Systems. The clinic aims to help adolescents manage the physical and psychosocial challenges of living with lupus. Melissa Tesher featured. (Give to Medicine)
Drug delivery technique makes cancer immunotherapy more effective
Researchers in the Institute for Molecular Engineering at the UChicago have developed a new way to target immunotherapies and deliver them directly to tumors, helping to both reduce side effects and make the therapies more effective in treating cancer. Jeffery Hubbell and Melody Swartz featured. (UChicago Medicine)
Your sexual partners can change your microbiome, a new study in mice finds
People’s sexual partners could impact both their gut microbiome and their immune system, according to a new study from the University of Colorado, Denver. (STAT)
Gut microbiome directs immune system to fight cancer
Researchers identified a cocktail of 11 bacterial strains that activated the immune system and slowed the growth of melanoma in mice. Thomas Gajewski quoted. (Drug Target Review)
The Microbiome Center continues its focus on the broader world of microbes
Co-director Cathy Pfister, PhD, says the resources and research infrastructure being developed by the DFI are a tremendous boon for all researchers studying the microbiome at UChicago. The DFI’s emphasis on human health also allows the Microbiome Center to focus its efforts across many environments. (UChicago Medicine)
