WHSC News Releases for June 1999

June 26 '99	EMORY IMMUNOLOGIST IS SELECTED AS 1999 PEW SCHOLAR John D. Altman, Ph.D., assistant professor of microbiology and immunology at Emory University School of Medicine, has been selected as one of America's most promising biomedical researchers by the Pew Charitable Trusts. Dr. Altman was among 20 young scholars chosen Efrom medical schools and research institutions across the country as 1999 Pew Scholars in the Biomedical Sciences. The honor includes an award of $200,000 to help support Dr. Altman's research over a four-year period. FULL STORY
June 24 '99	EMORY SCIENTISTS DEVELOP UNIQUE TUMOR VACCINE USING PROTEIN TRANSFER TECHNIQUE Scientists at Emory University School of Medicine are creating a tumor vaccine with a novel technique they developed using recombinant proteins to stimulate an immune response. The new technique takes advantage of the same principles that have been successfully used to stimulate the immune system through gene transfer, but without the drawbacks and risks of gene therapy. FULL STORY
June 24 '99	EMORY SCIENTISTS IDENTIFY DRUG STRATEGY TO LIMIT BRAIN CELL DAMAGE DURING STROKE Emory University researchers have identified a new strategy for developing anti-stroke drugs that could protect brain cells from damage during a stroke while at the same time avoiding unacceptable side effects encountered with other anti-stroke drugs. The drugs would represent significant improvements on a class of pharmaceuticals called phenylethanolamines that already have been identified as potentially beneficial in the treatment of stroke. FULL STORY
June 16 '99	ATLANTA PARTICIPANTS SOUGHT FOR RESEARCH STUDY INVESTIGATING OPTIONS FOR TREATING COMMON COMPLICATION OF DIABETES A Local men and women between the ages of 18 and 70 who suffer from diabetes are being sought to take part in a national clinical research trial to test an investigational drug to determine if it can help treat diabetic neuropathy a common complication of both Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes. Interested individuals can call (800) 283-7634 for information on how to receive a free screening for diabetic neuropathy and to learn if they qualify to participate in the research study, taking place at Emory University. Patients do not need to have been diagnosed with diabetic neuropathy to participate. FULL STORY
June 16 '99	NIH CHOOSES EMORY AS SITE FOR ONE OF THREE PARKINSON'S DISEASE RESEARCH CENTERS OF EXCELLENCE Patients with Parkinson's disease can be encouraged that scientists will make substantial progress in the next few years in unraveling the causes of Parkinson's disease and finding new ways to diagnose and treat this disorder, thanks to added muscle from the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS). FULL STORY
June 16 '99	*CHIMPANZEES CAN TELL: What's In a Face?* How do you distinguish friend from foe, or your mother from your aunt? Humans depend mostly on visual cues, while other species use olfactory or auditory methods. Chimpanzees, like humans, also depend on visual discrimination. According to a report in the June 17 issue of Nature, chimpanzees can easily recognize faces of their brethren presented in digitized photographs. This ability to discriminate one group-mate from another has helped chimpanzees evolve to form the most complex of all mammal societies, characterized by individualized relationships, cooperative networks, and stable hierarchies of power. FULL STORY
June 16 '99	EMERGENCY MEDICINE GAINS DEPARTMENTAL STATUS; KELLERMANN NAMED CHAIRMAN The Department of Emergency Medicine is the newest at the Emory University School of Medicine. Arthur Kellermann, M.D., M.P.H., has been named department chairman. Emergency medicine formerly was a division within the medical school's Department of Surgery. Dr. Kellermann has served as acting chief of that division since 1995. FULL STORY
June 15 '99	STILL ROOM FOR IMPROVEMENT IN ANTIDEPRESSANTS, EVEN AMONG NEW MOOD LIFTERS Even among the new classes of antidepressants, "approximately 20-40 percent of patients are treatment resistant or do not respond at all, depending on the definition of response," said Emory University's Charles B. Nemeroff, M.D., Ph.D., in the lecture he delivered on "Problems with Currently Available Antidepressants" at this month's American Psychiatric Association meeting in Washington, D.C. FULL STORY.
June 15 '99	AMERICAN CANCER SOCIETY AWARDS EMORY CANCER INSTITUTE RESEARCH GRANT Cancer research at Emory got a boost with an institutional grant from the American Cancer Society (ACS). The ACS awarded Emory's Winship Cancer Institute a $120,000 Institutional Research Grant which will be used to jumpstart cancer research projects by young researchers. The grant will fund research for the next two years, then will be eligible for renewal based on the success of the researchers who receive grant funding. FULL STORY
June 9 '99	NEW MARKING SYSTEM GIVES SCIENTISTS FIRST REAL VIEW OF IMMUNE MEMORY CELLS A new method of permanently marking T cells has allowed Emory University immunologists and colleagues to overcome one of the most challenging barriers to understanding just how the immune system works. The discovery, which could have far-reaching implications for vaccine development, transplantation and treatment of auto-immune diseases, is reported in the June 10 issue of Nature. FULL STORY
June 9 '99	EARLY STROKE TREATMENT WITH t-PA HAS LONG-LASTING BENEFIT,ACCORDING TO NEJM REPORTOne year after experiencing stroke, patients who received a clot-buster early on were significantly less likely to be disabled than patients who did not receive treatment, reports the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke Recombinant Tissue Plasminogen Activator (rt-PA) Stroke Study Group in this week's issue of the New England Journal of Medicine. FULL STORY
June 5 '99 *previously embargoed*	TOURETTE SYNDROME: Cholinergic Agents may Offer Relief from Tics in Adults with Tourette Syndrome "Significant reduction" in Tourette syndrome symptoms was noted in a study of nine affected adults after they received a medication not usually prescribed for this neurologic disorder, according to data presented by Emory University researchers at this week's 3rd International Scientific Symposium on Tourette Syndrome. FULL STORY
June 2 '99	GOOD FOR BUSINESS:DIAGNOSING ADULTS WITH LEARNING DISABILITIES What does one do about a valued employee who is not measuring up to expectations? Employers, human resource administrators and employees themselves are taking a harder look at the role undiagnosed learning "differences" may play in job performance, says Carole Kant, Ph.D., assistant professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at the Emory University School of Medicine. FULL STORY
June 1 '99	EMORY NAMES MARLA E. SALMON TO HEAD NELL HODGSON WOODRUFF SCHOOL OF NURSING Marla E. Salmon, Sc.D., RN, FAAN, will take the helm of the Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing, Emory University, effective June 1. She assumes the titles associate vice president for Nursing Science, Woodruff Health Sciences Center, and chief executive officer of the Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing. FULL STORY
June 1 '99	'RELEVANCE OF THYROID IN DEPRESSION' DISCUSSED BY EMORY PSYCHIATRIST AT JUNE 15 LECTURE Emory University psychiatrist Philip Ninan, M.D., will discuss at a public lecture the importance of understanding thyroid gland function in treating major depression. FULL STORY

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