Category Archives: Biochemistry

Biochemistry

‘We will get through this," says Nation’s Doctor: Dr. Jerome Adams – BlackEngineer.com

No doubt about it, COVID is on the mind of the United States Surgeon General. Speaking on television Tuesday, Dr. Jerome Adams indicated there were green shoots of hope. The mitigation is working, Dr. Adams said. It tells us social distancing, practicing good hygiene, and the 30-day guidelines for America are effective and will help us get to the other side of this unfortunate tragedy.

As the country rallies against the coronavirus disease, Dr. Adams said the government will do two million COVID-19 testings this week. The surgeon general added that by the end of the month there will be diagnostic and surveillance testing across the country. The industryis also on board with antibody testing.

According to the medical community, there are tests that check the blood for antibodies providing confirmation of infection and possible protection. And then there are diagnostic tests that confirm whether someone has an active infection, which could be useful to form better estimates of the scale of infection and the death rate of the virus.

Speaking on the death rate of blacks and ethnic minorities, the surgeon general said the CDC is tracking the disease demographically.

The surgeon general said whether we are white, black, brown or yellow, wearing a face mask will help protect ourselves and each other.

Dr. Jerome M. Adams was sworn in as Surgeon General by Vice President Mike Pence at the Office of the Vice President in Washington D.C.

As the No. 1 doctor in the United States, Dr. Adams gives Americans the best scientific information available on how to improve their health and reduce the risk of illness and injury.

Since he graduated in 2002 from the Indiana School of Medicine, which educates future physicians and conducts advanced medical research throughout Indiana, Dr. Adams has put himself on the path to success.

Dr. Jerome Adams distinguished himself as an anesthesiologist at Eskenazi Hospital in Indianapolis, which serves our most vulnerable citizens, and as a clinical associate professor of anesthesiology at Indiana University, Vice President Pence said on his appointment.

As Indiana health commissioner from 2014 to 2017, Adams dealt with infant mortality in high-risk areas and the opioid-fueled-HIV/AIDS epidemic in rural areas.

We had an extraordinarily diverse cabinet when he (Pence) was governor, and he took a chance on this young, African-American guy from the East Coast to be his health commissioner, Adams said at his swearing-in ceremony as the top doctor.

Dr. Adams has a master of public health degree from the University of California at Berkeley, a medical degree from Indiana University School of Medicine, and a bachelors degree in biochemistry and psychology from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County.

How a medical doctor was born

Jerome Adamss father, who is a U.S. military veteran and retired tech Maryland teacher, said that one experience that might have left a lasting impression on his son was going to hospital twenty-two times in one year because of his childhood asthma attacks.

Another experience that served as an inspiration was the Ebola virus outbreak in Zimbabwe. Adams did research in the southern African country as a biochemistry student attached to the Meyerhoff Scholars Program at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC).

A Distinguished Meyerhoff Scholar

According to UMBC, the Meyerhoff program has graduated over 900 students since 1993. To date, alumni from the program have earned 198 Ph. D.s, 239 Masters degrees, as well as 107 M.D. degrees. Some work as scientists, researchers, teachers, and physicians.

As surgeon general, Dr. Adams is a commissioned officer in the Public Health Service Commissioned Corps and by law holds the rank of vice admiral (three stars). The Commissioned Corps of the United States Public Health Service Corps is one of the seven Uniformed Services.

Both the position of Surgeon General, and the United States Public Health Corps that the Surgeon General leads, are an extremely important component of our national health education and response, Dr. Adams said at his nomination hearing chaired by the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee this August.

Prevention, wellness, and health promotion

The Public Health Service Commissioned Corps has approximately 6,500 uniformed health officers who serve in 600 locations around the world to promote, protect and advance the health and safety of America and the world.

Whether we are facing infectious diseases like Ebola and Zika, or natural disasters like earthquakes and Hurricane Katrina, or human-caused tragedies like 9/11 and the opioid epidemic, our country and our world need this ready to respond army of health experts, Dr. Adams said.

He also added that while many people call the surgeon general Americas top doctor one person cant be all things to health and doesnt give proper consideration to the vital role partnerships play in the success of this position, Dr. Adams said.

The position of Surgeon General carries with it tremendous power to convene supporters (as well as detractors), and to facilitate health and wellness discussions, Adams said. The power of the position comes from the even wider array of health crusaders that can be mobilized from a multitude of sectors across our country if the platform is used properly.

Dr. Adams has served in leadership positions at a number of professional organizations, including the American Medical Association, the Indiana State Medical Association and the Indiana Society of Anesthesiologists. He is the immediate past Chair of the Professional Diversity Committee for the American Society of Anesthesiologists

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'We will get through this," says Nation's Doctor: Dr. Jerome Adams - BlackEngineer.com

Biochemistry

The Science Behind The BCG Vaccine – Newstalk 106-108 fm

Luke ONeill, Professor of Biochemistry Trinity College,

We look at the science behind the BCG vaccine, with Prof Luke O'Neil Professor of Biochemistry at Trinity College, MihaiNeteaOIfeInfectious DiseaseSpecialist and Prof of ExperimentalInternal Medicine andPaul Hegarty, Consultant Urologist, Mater Private Hospital & Mater Misericordiae University Hospital.

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The Science Behind The BCG Vaccine - Newstalk 106-108 fm

Biochemistry

2020 UWMadison Distinguished Teaching Awards – University of Wisconsin-Madison

Thirteen faculty members have been chosen to receive this yearsDistinguished Teaching Awards, an honor that annually recognizes some of UWMadisons finest educators. The following testimonials were given, and photographs made, before virtual teaching was instituted in response to COVID-19 but whatever form instruction might take, this group ranks among the universitys best. While the ceremony originally scheduled for April 7 has been postponed, we honor the winners here, and commend all who are teaching in these challenging times.

Photographs byJeff MillerandBryce Richter

Emil Steiger Teaching Award

PaulBlockAssociate professor of civil and environmental engineering

Paul Block teaches graduate students a Hydroclimatology for Water Resources Management class in Engineering Hall. Photo: Jeff Miller

Block has taught each semester since beginning at UWMadison in 2013 at both the graduate and undergraduate level. He creates an intellectually stimulating classroom environment by combining demonstrations, experiential learning, reinforcement and critical thinking in an interactive setting. Block has modernized the content of several courses and significantly upgraded lab facilities, modules and the number of experiments students do. Fluid Mechanics is widely regarded as one of the more difficult engineering courses, but Block uses demonstrations, experiments and visuals to make it engaging and enjoyable. His research and applications connecting climate prediction and water resources systems management have involved international efforts and collaborations, ranging from Ethiopia to Peru and Chile.

Class of 1955 Teaching Excellence Award

William BrocklissAssociate professor, Classical & Ancient Near Eastern Studies

William Brockliss is pictured with artwork titled Sarcophagus with the Allegory of the Four Seasons in the Roman and Greek collection at the Chazen Museum of Art. Photo: Jeff Miller

Brockliss has a gift for engaging students through discussions, activities and presentations, even in high-enrollment courses like his popular Ancient Greek and Roman Monsters course. He has given presentations on classics and the Latin language to students in elementary and high school, acted as a liaison with Latin teachers from Wisconsin high schools, organized three visit days for high-school students on the UW campus, and taught classes for the Odyssey Project, which allows low-income adults to earn college credit. Brockliss has served as a mentor to students with an interest in teaching high school Latin, with three going on to be certified to teach Latin and now employed in Wisconsin high schools.

Chancellors Distinguished Teaching Award

SamuelButcherProfessor of biochemistry

Samuel Butcher is pictured in his office at the Biochemistry Labs. Photo: Jeff Miller

Butcher has been teaching Introduction to Biochemistry for almost two decades, with enrollment growing from 200 students per semester to more than 600. He has been instrumental in reshaping the course with the goal of teaching students to think like a scientist. Theyre focused on learning concepts rather than memorizing facts. Butcher is also committed to accessibility and led an initiative to add more sections of Biochem 501, including courses in the summer and online to increase access. He has been a leader in using technology to make the course material more accessible for all students, regardless of disability or learning style.

Chancellors Teaching Innovation Award

ShuchiChawlaProfessor of computer science

Shuchi Chawla teaches students an Introduction to Algorithms class in Noland Hall. Photo: Jeff Miller

Chawla has risen to the challenge in teaching Computer Science 577: Introduction to Algorithms. When she began teaching the course in 2006, 30 students were enrolled. Today, there are more than 300. To ensure that todays students receive the same high-quality experience as their predecessors, she has restructured the pace of the course, held frequent office hours, and brought in peer mentors (undergrads who have recently taken the course) so that students who are struggling have a variety of resources available when they need help. The peer mentor system has been so successful it has been adopted for other Computer Science courses.

William H. Kiekhofer Teaching Award

Kathleen CulverAssociate professor of journalism and mass communication

Kathleen Culver teaches a Journalism 563: Law of Mass Communication class in Helen C. White Hall. Photo: Jeff Miller

As the driving force behind Journalism 202: Mass Media Practices, Culver is responsible for giving students a solid foundation for success in the rapidly changing media landscape. Her effectiveness is evident in the words of the many students she has guided and mentored, both in and out of the classroom. Culver has trained media educators from across the country at the Poynter Institute for Media Studies, and as director of the Center for Journalism Ethics, she serves as a source for reporters on questions of journalism ethics, digital innovations in journalism, and other contemporary issues.

Chancellors Inclusive Excellence Award

RamziFawazAssociate professor of English

Ramzi Fawaz is pictured at Stanford University, where he is currently on leave as a 2019-2020 faculty fellow. By Steve Castillo, courtesy of Stanford Humanities Center

Fawaz has added many innovative courses to the English departments offerings, with titles such as Queer about Comics, Gay is Good: Queer Visions of Freedom Since the 1970s and America in the 1990s. In an open, welcoming setting that encourages students to share their thoughts and feelings about the course material, he challenges students to step out of their comfort zones and examine their views of the world. Fawazs influence on teaching extends well beyond the university. Among his many outreach activities, he frequently participates in interviews and panel discussions on teaching and has written a widely read article on trigger warnings in the classroom.

Chancellors Distinguished Teaching Award

ChristineGarloughProfessor of gender and womens studies

Christine Garlough talks with students during a Gender and Womens Studies 449 course in Chamberlin Hall. Photo: Bryce Richter

Garlough believes classrooms should address real-world issues with rigor and compassion, guiding students to pursue knowledge and develop their own voices. She inspires critical thinking and self-reflection in a supportive learning environment. Her approach mixes lecture, discussion and small group participation. Students in large lectures can be disinclined to connect with others in a sea of strangers, but Garlough regularly creates opportunities for dialogue and engaged listening. Students eagerly engage with others every class period and even change seats over the course of the semester so they can benefit from discussion with a variety of classmates holding different perspectives.

Chancellors Distinguished Teaching Award

EricaHalversonProfessor of curriculum and instruction

Erica Halverson talks with students at Thoreau Elementary School in Madison during a Whoopensocker outreach program event. Photo: Bryce Richter

Halversons work focuses on teaching and learning in and through the arts. From First-Year Interest Groups to graduate-level courses, she is known for challenging her students to understand themselves and their world differently. She designed and teaches Arts Integration for Teaching and Learning, a unique course that engages future elementary school teachers in understanding and using various art forms in their teaching. The students learn to create art that represents their experiences and to think about how they might bring the arts into their future classrooms not only for the arts own sake, but also in support of core concepts like reading and math.

Excellence in Community-Based Learning Teaching Award

AndreaHicksAssistant professor of civil and environmental engineering

Andrea Hicks is pictured in her office in Engineering Hall. Photo: Bryce Richter

Hicks used a $5,000 grant from the Morgridge Center for Public Service to turn her Environmental Sustainability Engineering course into a community-based learning course. She works with the UniverCity Year program, which connects the UW with Wisconsin communities, to find class projects. Her students then work on problems identified by counties, villages and school districts. Students evaluate the problem and potential solutions using the three paradigms of sustainability: environment, economy and society. Community partners use the students work to advance projects in areas such as renewable energy and wastewater treatment. Students love the opportunity to take what theyve learned in the classroom and apply it to real-life problems.

Chancellors Distinguished Teaching Award

IrenaKnezevicProfessor of electrical and computer engineering

Irena Knezevic talks with a graduate student during a progress check-in meeting. Photo: Bryce Richter

ECE 235: Introduction to Solid State Electronics is a required course with a large enrollment and difficult subject matter. But 10 years ago, Knezevic reimagined how the fundamentals of quantum mechanics could be introduced to undergraduate engineering learners and revamped the course. She developed a successful approach thats been adopted by everyone who teaches it. She began redesigning the course before she had been granted tenure a time when junior faculty typically devote most of their time to research. Her reward was the knowledge that students would more easily master difficult material and would approach the course with enthusiasm rather than dread.

Chancellors Inclusive Excellence Award

LoriLopezAssociate professor of communication arts

Lori Lopez talks with students during a Communication Arts 250 course in the Educational Sciences Building. Photo: Bryce Richter

In teaching everything from large introductory courses to small graduate seminars, Lopez has earned high marks and glowing comments from students for her approach to controversial topics such as racism. As the creator and chair of her departments Diversity and Equity Committee, she has added mini trainings to monthly department meetings, on topics such as trans-inclusive pedagogy, universal design, diversifying the syllabus, and diversity accommodations. Lopez is also committed to creating opportunities for learning outside of the classroom and created Madisons Asian American Media Spotlight, a film festival that invites filmmakers from across the country to screen their films on campus and engage in discussions with students.

Chancellors Distinguished Teaching Award

JenniferRatner-RosenhagenProfessor of history

Jennifer Ratner-Rosenhagen talks with audience members during a public lecture in the Elvehjem Building. Photo: Bryce Richter

Ratner-Rosenhagen teaches U.S. intellectual history a topic she acknowledges might seem forbidding, arcane and dull to undergrads. But she brings it to life and gives her students the confidence to believe that they can do important intellectual work. Her innovative undergraduate courses build on students interests and guide them in thinking about how key ideas in U.S. intellectual history relate to their own lives. In her course titled A History of Your Parents Generation: 1970s-90s, students interview their parents about their memories of that time. Outside the classroom, she founded the Intellectual History Group grad students and faculty who meet to discuss books, articles and dissertation chapters.

Van Hise Outreach Teaching Award

KateVieiraAssociate professor of curriculum and instruction

Kate Vieira talks with students during a Curriculum and Instruction 596 class session in the Teacher Education Building. Photo: Bryce Richter

Vieiras work focuses on issues of literacy among everyday people, especially those at the margins of society. She explores literacy and writing as a means of social change. Her outreach work has taken her to Colombia, where she has worked with community members using writing to help people build peace after the violence of a decades-long civil war. Locally, she has forged connections between South American educators and the Madison community. Two of her collaborators from Colombia visited last May to co-lead workshops at East and West high schools, meet with local Latinx writers, and share pedagogical practices with representatives of the Greater Madison Writing Project.

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2020 UWMadison Distinguished Teaching Awards - University of Wisconsin-Madison

Biochemistry

UB initiative will help Kaleida increase, speed up COVID-19 testing in Erie County – UB Now: News and views for UB faculty and staff – University at…

Thanks to the fast action of two UB faculty members, Kaleida Health Labs will have two more crucial tools to help it fight the COVID-19 crisis in Erie County.

Last week, John Tomaszewski, SUNY Distinguished Professor and Peter A. Nickerson PhD Professor of Pathology and Anatomical Sciences in the Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, and Norma J. Nowak, a professor in the Department of Biochemistry in the Jacobs School, identified two pieces of equipment in the UB Biorepository that they felt could be deployed to Kaleida Health Laboratories on Flint Road in Amherst to assist with the processing of COVID-19 test kits.

The equipment was not in active use due to the current pause in research at UB.

Tomaszewski, who is also chief of service at Kaleida Health Laboratories, outlined the developments that led up to the equipment transfer.

In mid-March, the Erie County Department of Health Laboratories received a limited number of Centers for Disease Control and Prevention-issued SARS/COV2 test kits. Those tests required an intense manual testing process. The county labs ran out of the necessary reagent after approximately a week of testing, he said.

Then, Kaleida Health Laboratories adapted Abbott Laboratories equipment that had previously been used for clinical trial hepatitis C testing in an academic-health system partnership arrangement between Andrew Talal, a UB investigator, and Kaleida Health Laboratories. Those machines have been used to good effect for COVID-19 test processing for the past 14 days. During most of this time, Tomaszewski said, Kaleida Health Labs has been the highest volume health system testing facility in Buffalo for SARS/COV2.

Last week, manufacturer Perkin Elmer released an Emergency Use Authorization for its nucleic acid extraction equipment, which would allow the health system to supplement the Kaleida Health COVID-19 testing. UB had two of those machines on hand in the UB biobank at the Clinical and Translational Research Center.

Tomaszewski and Nowak proposed to Venu Govindaraju, UBs vice president for research and economic development, that UB transfer the machines to the Kaleida lab.

After review by counsel from SUNY and Kaleida, the agreement was signed Monday, and the equipment was moved on Tuesday. By Thursday, Kaleida expected to receive reagents needed to perform the tests and will begin validation of a laboratory-developed test leveraging its high complexity testing status.

Govindraju said his office fully supports this transfer, and thinks this is an excellent opportunity for UB to demonstrate its agility and community orientation during times of crisis.

This will be huge, Tomaszewski said. When fully implemented, it will allow us to triple our testing capacity. This is the university responding to a health care crisis as a true partner.

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UB initiative will help Kaleida increase, speed up COVID-19 testing in Erie County - UB Now: News and views for UB faculty and staff - University at...

Biochemistry

Court told stabbing victim tried to act as ‘peacemaker’ – RTE.ie

A 17-year-old boy tapped a kitchen knife on his leg a number of times before he lunged forward and stabbed a student in the neck in Cork last January, the Central Criminal Court heard today.

The teenager has pleaded guilty to the murder of 20-year-old Cameron Blair, who tried to act as "a peacemaker" at a house party on Bandon Road on 16 January.

Thebiochemistry studenthad earlier allowed the accused and his two friends into the party.

Healso acted as a "good Samaritan" when he brought a drunk sleeping homeless man into the house because he was concerned about him.

The court also heard that Cameron did not realise he had been stabbed and laughed it off before he collapsed and later died.

His final words were"don't worry lads, I don't want to be fighting", before he smiled and closed his eyes.

Defence counsel Brendan Grehan read an apology from the 17-year-old in which he said he was "deeply remorseful" for what he had done.

He is due to be sentenced later this month.

Cameron was a sportsman, a rugby player, a student in biochemistry and a black belt in karate.

The 20-year-old went to a student party at a house on the Bandon Road in Cork on 16 January this year and agreed to watch the door.

The 17-year-old who killed Cameron arrived with an 18-year-old, a 14-year-old and a drunk homeless man and although the others in the house did not want to admit them, Cameron said they were "tome" which means "sound" and let them in.

The three drank with the students inside but at one stage went into the kitchen and armed themselves with knives.

The court heard they had become paranoid.

One of the students got them to arrange a cannabis deal for him and bought 50 worth, another got worried and got them out of the house by telling them the party was finishing and that everyone was going into town.

The 17-year-old had the large kitchen knife down his trousers and got one of the students to buy him more drink at the off licence.

When he returned to the house, Cameron was at the door preventing them from getting back in.

The court heard he was"acting as the peacemaker and trying to keep the situation calm".

A number of students called garda and said there were men outside with knives trying to get in, but Cameron insisted they were "sound".

He said to one of the three "will you tell your friends to relax" and shook his hand.

CCTV footage of the murder was also shown to the court.

Detective Sergeant Martin Canny said that the 17-year-old "paced up and down" and "tapped the knife on the back of his leg" a number of times before he lunged forward in a downward motion and stabbed Cameron once in the neck.

The accused waited around 12 seconds before he ran and caught up with the 18-year-old and a group including those who had sold the student the cannabis.

The 14-year-old ran in another direction.Garda saw them running away as they rushed to the scene.

The 17-year-old had been wearing gloves and threw them and the large kitchen knife, the murder weapon, down a steep embankment that night before going to stay with his grandfather.

The area was described in court as "impenetrable" and it took garda two days to recover the items.

His DNA was found on the gloves while Cameron's was found on the knife.

When asked for his clothes, he first gave garda a different set other than those he was wearing on the night, but when they retrieved them Cameron's blood was found on the boy's jacket.

Cameron's parents and brother gave victim impact statements in court today.

His mother Kathy said she screams at the injustice of this, she is no longer living, only existing, and that positivity and kindness came naturally to Cameron.

"The price of immense love is immense grief when that person is taken from you" she said, "we will be paying that price for the rest of our lives," she said.

Noel Blair said the sight of his son on a trolley will haunt him to his dying day, adding "the full weight of what you have taken hits me hard".

He said: "The death of a son is described as the ultimate grief and I now know this to be true."

His brother Alan said he stares in disbelief at Cameron's name on the plaque in the graveyard.

"You have robbed me and my brother of his life," he said.

He also said Cameron wrote a wish list that he was ticking off, which included learning to drive, studying and living to 100.

In his apology, the 17-year-old saidCameron"was nothing but nice to me on that night".

"He did nothing wrong to me. I think about that night first thing in the morning and last thing at night. If only I could turn back the clock and walk away. I will never forgive myself."

Mr Justice Paul McDermott said caseswhere a juvenile is convicted of murderdo not attract the mandatory life sentence appropriate to an adult.

He said the court hasto consider the appropriate sentence to be imposed under the Children's Act 1908 and coulddispose of the case today.

The judge said he was sorry the case cannot be brought to a conclusion today and put it back until later in the month.

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Court told stabbing victim tried to act as 'peacemaker' - RTE.ie

Biochemistry

Peter Chien Named an American Academy of Microbiology Fellow – UMass News and Media Relations

The American Academy of Microbiology (AAM) recently honored Peter Chien, professor in biochemistry and molecular biology by naming him to the 2020 class of Fellows of the Academy based on his record of scientific achievement and original contributions that have advanced microbiology. The AAM is the honored leadership group within the American Society of Microbiology (ASM), one of the oldest and largest scientific societies in the world.

Chien says of the honor, This recognition from the AAM reflects the cumulative work of the amazing group of students and trainees in my lab. I am thankful for all the work this team put into our science,and humbled by the recognition for our efforts."

Chiens lab studies the highly-regulated cellular cleanup system in which specialized proteins called proteases degrade damaged or no-longer-needed proteins. In bacteria, these cleanup systems help cells defend against antibiotics and other stresses. One effort in the Chien lab is to find ways to target these proteases to improve the ability of antibiotics to kill pathogens, even for bacteria that have become antibiotic resistant.

The AAM says that its 68 new members join 2,500 others who represent all subspecialties of the microbial sciences and are involved in basic and applied research, teaching, public health, industry and government service. The academy reports that the class of 2020 represents fellows from11 countries including Australia, Austria, Brazil, Chile, China, France, Germany, Israel, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and the United States. Election to the Academy is by nomination only and is a distinction given for lasting contributions to the field of microbiology.

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Peter Chien Named an American Academy of Microbiology Fellow - UMass News and Media Relations

Biochemistry

Science Addition to Open in Time for Fall 2020 Classes – Bethel University News

Do we pursue what is possible when it may not be ethical? What core beliefs from Scripture guide us in scientific exploration?" Barnes asks. "As we think about beginning-of-life and end-of-life challenges, how will the teachings of Jesus inform our thinking?

With questions like that in mind, the space is designed for Christ-centered community in tandem with cutting-edge research. There are interactive, multimedia-equipped classrooms; private labs for student-faculty research teams; and 27 fume hood-equipped work stations. An environmental studies storage space will function as a mudroom, of sorts, where students will be able to go outdoors for hands-on labs and then stow nets, waders, and other equipment in a dedicated room. A chemistry prep room will keep lab materials at the ready, with dishwashers and ample counter space. Perhaps most noticeable, a cantilevered portion of the building features floor-to-ceiling windows that give entry-level science classrooms and lounges stunning views of Lake Valentine.

This feature alone is a significant step for us since our previous facilities have been on the second floor and in the center of the building. Being able to see Gods creation through the windows as we teach, and to be able to step outside quickly and easily to further investigate the beauty of the natural world, is an exciting new step, explains Professor of Biology Jeff Port. He adds that labs are more intentionally designed and appropriately sized for the number and type of students in a typical course. Many of our existing spaces were not originally designed as laboratory spaces ... This addition provides spaces for students to explore science at Bethel and find success in their academic experience.

Professor of Chemistry James Christenson notes that theres been tremendous growth within some program areas since Bethels Academic Center (AC)where current science labs are locatedwas built in the 1970s. Today, biochemistry is an integral pillar of the healthcare field and has become a popular major for future doctors, physicians assistants, and medical researchers, he says. Learning has also become much more hands-on in recent years, with dozens of Bethel student-faculty research teams working on projects for national and international publication.

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Science Addition to Open in Time for Fall 2020 Classes - Bethel University News

Biochemistry

Review: A Chinese American woman grapples with race, romance in ‘Days of Distraction’ – USA TODAY

Mark Athitakis, Special for USA TODAY Published 7:00 a.m. ET March 30, 2020

Days of Distraction, by Alexandra Chang.(Photo: Ecco)

Jing Jing, narrator of Alexandra Changs spiky and contemplative debut novel, Days of Distraction (Ecco, 336 pp., out of four), is a tech journalist. And like every tech journalist, part of her job is worrying about how many people are reading her. I am consistently middling, with the occasional bump, she notes.

Shes talking about page views, but shes also talking about everything. As a Chinese American woman on a staff with few people of color, shes underpaid and promised a raise ... someday. Shes scraping by in San Francisco and wants to move, but her living situation is a function of her boyfriend, J, whos applying to Ph.D. programs in biochemistry. Her parents have split, with her father living back in China and imploring her to visit. But she feels too at odds with herself to make a decision to go.

Until she has her life sorted out, her work is a series of racist microaggressions and banal job tasks. I post about an app-controlled massage pillow, an app-controlled oven, an app-controlled blood pressure monitor, an app-controlled fork, she writes. Sometimes the bumps are potholes.

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This seems like extremely thin fictional material, but Chang has plainly inhaled the work a generation of contemporary novelists Jenny Offill, Rachel Cusk, Dana Spiotta with a knack for making gripping fiction out of banality. The lack of outward drama in Days of Distraction belies the stormy consciousness of a woman whos struggling to define her identity as others try to do the job for her.

A main trigger for Jing Jings reckoning is Js landing a slot in Cornells biochemistry program. To spell her loneliness in upstate New York, she takes a job at a history museum, where she stumbles on a photo of Kin Yamei, a pioneering Chinese American doctor with a fiercely independent streak. (Her divorce was the stuff of national news in 1904.) Kin isnt exactly a mirror for Jing Jing though she does have second thoughts about her relationship with J but she helps her feel less alone in her disconnection.

Early on, she craves Js assuredness as a white man: If there were an app that let me see the world as J sees the world, Id pay more than two dollars for it and would give it five out of five stars, she writes. But no one filter will resolve her identity. Visiting her father in China is not the revelation she hopes for, and the country reveals its own class and racial divides, not to mention dads prattling on about meals. What I wanted were answers, she thinks, and all Im getting is food commentary.

Author Alexandra Chang(Photo: Alana Davis)

Changs strength is her ability to give a sense of confusion contours: Jing Jings observations are pointed, witty, and free of easy resolutions. And Changs deadpan style offers up moments of absurd humor. (A former editor offers up some work: Do you want to do a roundup review of mechanical pencils? No rush, its evergreen.)

Ultimately, though, Chang shows the challenge of trying to raise issues about racism that even those closest to her wish to avoid. Struggling to spark a conversation nobody wants to have, she conducts an engrossing one with herself.

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Review: A Chinese American woman grapples with race, romance in 'Days of Distraction' - USA TODAY

Biochemistry

Greek-American Dr. Tom Maniatis on New Findings and Insights into ALS – The National Herald

Dr. Tom Maniatis, the Isidore S. Edelman Professor of Biochemistry and Principal Investigator at Columbia's Mortimer B. Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute. Photo by Eleni Sakellis

NEW YORK According to a news release dated March 27, Columbia scientists have provided new insights into how mutations in a gene called TBK1 cause amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), a progressive neurodegenerative disease that robs patients of movement, speech, and ultimately, their lives. The researchers found that ALS-associated mutations in TBK1 can have both positive and negative effects on the progression of disease in mice genetically modified to have ALS-like symptoms.

These findings, reported on March 27 in the scientific journal Neuron, provide both genetic and mechanistic insights that could lead to novel strategies for the development of treatments for ALS.

One of the greatest challenges to finding a cure for ALS is using genetic data to understand the diseases underlying mechanisms, said the studys senior author, Tom Maniatis, PhD, a principal investigator at Columbias Mortimer B. Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute.

For example, neurodegenerative diseases such as ALS involve multiple cell types that are constantly changing as the disease progresses, so a drug that is beneficial in the early stages of the disease could be detrimental at later times. Our study provides a glimpse into the complex relationship between ALS genetics and its mechanisms, and highlights the challenge in developing safe and effective drugs to treat the disease, commented Dr. Maniatis, the Isidore S. Edelman Professor of Biochemistry at Columbias Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons.

ALS is a disease of the spinal cord, which can be triggered by the accumulation of misfolded proteins in motor neurons, the nerve cells in the spinal cord that drive movement.

The human TBK1 gene is one of more than 25 genes that have been shown to associate with or cause ALS when bearing a mutation. TBK1 is a central player in multiple cellular functions, including autophagy, a process that removes misfolded proteins, damaged bits of cells, and bacterial pathogens. TBK1 is also required for the antimicrobial interferon response, which protects cells from bacterial and viral infections.

TBK1 helps cells clear away clumps of misfolded proteins and defends the body against invading viruses and bacteria, said Valeria Gerbino, PhD, an associate research scientist in the Maniatis lab, and the papers lead author. And because individuals with certain mutations in TBK1 have ALS, we wanted to develop a deep, mechanistic understanding of how these mutations affect cellular functions in the spinal cord during the course of the disease.

Working in partnership with The Jackson Laboratory, Drs. Maniatis and Gerbino inserted ALS-causing TBK1 mutations in mice. These mice showed no signs of motor neuron disease.

This was not surprising, as only a few of the many human ALS mutations tested thus far in mice by other ALS researchers have resulted in motor neuron disease, said Dr. Maniatis, who is also director of Columbias Precision Medicine Initiative.

In an attempt to overcome this problem, the researchers inserted TBK1 mutations into an already established mouse model of ALS: the SOD1 mouse. Dr. Gerbino and collaborators at the Zuckerman Institute then tracked disease progression in these mice.

These new mice displayed striking differences in disease progression compared to mice that only bear the SOD1 mutations. Specifically, the disease onset began earlier.

We found that mice bearing both SOD1 and TBK1 mutations experienced earlier movement abnormalities compared to those bearing only SOD1 mutations, said Dr. Gerbino. A closer examination of the mice also revealed damage to motor neurons and the loss of muscle connections earlier than expected.

To further investigate this phenomenon, the scientists examined another group of SOD1 ALS mice, in which the TBK1 gene was deleted only in motor neurons, and not in other cells in the spinal cord. The team found that the absence of TBK1 activity in motor neurons alone led to the loss of autophagy in these cells. This loss led to an increase in the accumulation of harmful proteins, earlier death of motor neurons, and lost neuron-muscle connections. These observations demonstrated that early disease onset was a consequence of losing TBK1 in motor neurons.

Paradoxically, however, disease progression slowed down later in disease, and mice with TBK1 loss of function in all cells lived 25 percent longer than both the mice bearing only SOD1, as well as those mice for which the TBK1 gene was deleted only in motor neurons.

The team next investigated precisely how TBK1 mutations influenced other cells in the spinal cord. The researchers discovered that the interferon response was suppressed in glial cells, namely astrocytes and microglia. The interferon response, while critical for defense against infections in healthy people, can be toxic if over produced (as in the case of ALS mice), and can trigger a cascade of cellular processes that are toxic to motor neurons.

The loss of TBK1 in microglia and astrocytes clearly diminishes the interferon response in the spinal cord of ALS mice, said Dr. Maniatis, who is Evnin Family Scientific Director and Chief Executive Officer at the New York Genome Center. This correlates with significantly extending their lives.

Our study provides an example of how multiple pathways within and between cells can be targeted through manipulation of a single gene, and how modifying these pathways in ALS can be beneficial or detrimental at different stages of disease progression, Dr. Gerbino added.

Dr. Maniatis argues that this type of foundational, discovery-driven research will move the needle toward treatments that focus on the underlying mechanisms driving ALS and its devastating symptoms.

All neurodegenerative diseases ultimately begin with genes, said Dr. Maniatis. As we continue to gather critical genetic information, we can identify mutations, like those in TBK1, which will provide additional mechanistic insights. These genes and the pathways they control will hold the key to developing drugs that make a difference in the life of ALS patients.

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Greek-American Dr. Tom Maniatis on New Findings and Insights into ALS - The National Herald

Biochemistry

Former University of Birmingham Professor Michael Wakelam dies after suspected coronavirus infection – University of Birmingham

Mike Wakelam served as Professor of Molecular Pharmacology in the Institute of Cancer Studies from 1993-2007

The University of Birmingham was devastated to hear the news of the death of Professor Michael Wakelam, a former member of staff and an alumnusof the College of Medical and Dental Sciences.

Michael Wakelam died from respiratory complications arising from a suspected Covid-19 infection.

Michael Wakelam served as Professor of Molecular Pharmacology in the Institute of Cancer Studies from 1993-2007 before leaving to become director of the Babraham Institute, Cambridge.

Micheal's links to the University of Birmingham go beyond his teaching and research as he had also obtained his BSc in Medical Biochemistry (1977) and PhD in Biochemistry (1980) from Birmingham as well. Before taking up his post in 1993 at the University, Michael had pursued post-doctoral research at the University of Konstanz in Germany and Imperial College London as a Beit Memorial Fellow. In 1985 he was appointed as a lecturer in Biochemistry at the University of Glasgow.

Michael Wakelam also was a Honorary Professor at the University of Birmingham, as well as a Honorary Professor of Lipid Signalling in the Cambridge University Clinical School. He also served as a visiting Professor at Kings College London and as a Fellow of the Royal Society of Biology and a member of the Academia Europaea. In 2018 Mike received the Morton Lectureship from the Biochemical Society.

Paying tribute to Michael Wakeham, Professor David Adams, Pro-Vice-Chancellor and the Head of College of Medical and Dental Sciences said:

"The College of Medical and Dental Sciences was devastated to hear last night about the death of Professor Michael Wakelam from a suspected Covid-19 infection. Mikes links to Birmingham go even further back as he was an undergraduate and then PhD student in Biochemistry here. Those of you who knew Mike will remember him not only as a superb scientist but also as a warm, supportive and highly collaborative colleague, Mike will be greatly missed. Our thoughts go out to his wife Jane and sons Alex and Patrick."

Michael Wakelam had over twenty years research experience in the area of cell signalling and communication; a major focus of his research was upon the use and development of advanced lipidomics methodologies in determining the functions of individual lipid molecular species in the regulation of signalling pathways in normal and cancer cells and in inflammatory responses.

Michael Wakelam is survived by his wife Jane and their two sons Alex and Patrick.

For more information or interviews, please contact:Hasan Salim Patel, Communications Manager (Arts, Law and Social Sciences) or contact the press office out of hours on +44 (0)7789 921 165.

The University of Birmingham is ranked amongst the worlds top 100 institutions. Its work brings people from across the world to Birmingham, including researchers, teachers and more than 6,500 international students from over 150 countries.

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Former University of Birmingham Professor Michael Wakelam dies after suspected coronavirus infection - University of Birmingham