MARCH 18, 2008           We are pleased to send you this twice-monthly newsletter about research in Emory's Woodruff Health Sciences Center. The newsletter will highlight articles about interesting and significant research projects and discoveries from Emory faculty. More stories are available on our research website. David S. Stephens, MD, Vice President for Research, WHSC                     Gold Nanoparticle Probes May Allow Earlier Cancer Detection Using tiny gold particles embedded with dyes, Emory and Georgia Tech researchers have shown they can identify tumors under the skin of a living animal. These tools may allow doctors to detect and diagnose cancer earlier and less invasively. Read more . . .                     A Chip Off the Old Genomic Block For geneticist Michael Zwick, it's not just about knowing where to look for autism susceptibility genes, it's also about knowing how. Finding these genes could lead to better diagnostic tests and ultimately a treatment for autism. Being able to find them using Zwick's new resequencing technology could help personalize medicine for everyone. Read more . . .                     Angiogenesis May Hold Key to Efficient Treatment of Leprosy Scientists are hoping to treat leprosy by taking advantage of one of its most distinctive characteristics--the richly vascularized skin lesions that typify this disease. Led by Jack Arbiser, MD, PhD, professor of dermatology at Emory University School of Medicine. Read more . . .                     Better Childhood Nutrition Increases Productivity, Emory Study Finds Feeding very young children a high-energy, high-protein supplement leads to increased economic productivity in adulthood, especially for men, according to a study by Emory University public health researcher Reynaldo Martorell, PhD, and a team of economists. Read more . . .                     Novel Anti-Cancer Strategy Yields Promising Results in Mouse Research Researchers at Emory School of Medicine have developed a novel anti-tumor compound that represents a distinct strategy: targeting one of the most important "intercept points" for cancer cells. The idea behind the intercept point strategy, which is being tested in early clinical trials in human patients, is to shut down the transmission of a large number of growth signals in cancer cells at once. Read more . . .                     First Line of Defense Against Colds and Flu It may not protect against a bad case of flu, but glutathione may just be the answer to fighting off a mild viral load of influenza. That's what the manufacturers of Sucrets Defense are counting on, based on research by an Emory biochemist. Glutathione is the active ingredient in the popular over-the-counter cold and flu remedy that promises to boost the immune system and fight off infection. Read more . . .