UCSF’s Wellness Expo Focuses on Healthy Eating, Fostering Happiness UCSF’s Robert Lustig, MD, talks with Valerie Taormina, community relations manager at the American Heart Association, after his keynote address during the 2012 UCSF Wellness Expo on Jan. 18. It’s not easy to give a 90-minute talk that includes mitochondrial adaptation, glucose metabolism, the seasonal fruit […]

Fending Off Cardiovascular Disease A study of data from over a quarter of a million people confirmed that traditional risk factors for cardiovascular disease (CVD), such as high blood pressure, substantially raise the chance of major CVD events like heart attack or stroke over the course of a lifetime. The finding reinforces the importance of […]

A conversation with Stanford psychologist Fred Luskin on forgiveness and its health benefits Last month, we introduced a Scope feature that gives readers the opportunity to ask questions of our medical school faculty and researchers. Fred Luskin, PhD, a research associate at the Stanford Prevention Research Center and co-founder of the Stanford Forgiveness Project, served as our first guest and […]

Whole-Genome Sequencing of 2011 E. Coli Outbreaks in Europe Provides New Insight Into Origins, Spread of Disease Boston, MA — Using whole-genome sequencing, a team led by researchers from Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) and the Broad Institute has traced the path of the E. coli outbreak that sickened thousands and killed over 50 people in […]

New initiative for better teaching. Scholars, experts explore creative approaches to instructing, learning. Harvard’s ambitious new initiative to spark innovative teaching and learning kicked off with a daylong conference on Friday that drew together authorities and scholars from the University and beyond to debate, discuss, and share ideas in the field. The inaugural conference was […]

The search for life’s stirrings. Nobel laureate Szostak says knotty problems sometimes have simple solutions. Nobel Prize winner Jack Szostak’s research focuses on understanding primitive cells, how they might have been created, and how they might have behaved and divided. Rose Lincoln/Harvard Staff Photographer Scientists studying how life arose on Earth are stumped by several […]

Restricted Diet Affects Surgery Risk A new study in mice suggests that several days on a restricted diet may help the body better cope with the stress of surgery. The findings point the way toward potential strategies for reducing surgical risks in people. When blood flow to an area stops during surgery and is then […]

Genetic basis for anthrax susceptibility in humans discovered by Stanford scientists Mikhail Martchenko is the first author of a study that showed great variability in the way that cells from different people respond to the anthrax toxin. Anthrax toxin is a deadly poison. But it doesn’t affect all people the same way. Research published today […]

For cutting-edge biomedical materials, try corn. Students explore plant-derived materials for wound closures, tissue engineering. Eliza Grinnell/ SEAS/ Students in the undergraduate teaching labs at SEAS are investigating plant-based materials that may help regrow damaged neurons. The team includes (from front to back) Godwin Abiola ’14, Undergraduate Studies in Biomedical Engineering Assistant Director Sujata Bhatia, […]

State Economy to Get Big Jolt with Proposed New Tax on Cigarettes, Study Finds Voters to Consider State Ballot Measure on June 5 A new UCSF analysis has found that a state ballot initiative to increase the cigarette tax would create about 12,000 jobs and nearly $2 billion in new economic activity in California.   […]