HELIO - Middle-aged adults with type 1 diabetes are more likely to experience depressive symptoms than those without, and extended hyperglycemia and more white matter hyperintensities in the brain may play a role in this difference, according to findings published in Diabetic Medicine by EPI's Caterina Rosano and colleagues.
PITTSBURGH POST-GAZETTE - On the surface, Adriene Rister (IDM) may seem to have made a dramatic career change, from dealing with infectious diseases for the state of Maine to running a children's book store. She sees the mission of both as bettering the community. "In a way, I like to think of this as part of public health...A bookstore should be a community hub, a place to gather around literacy and education, and a place to teach our kids abou...
WPXI - Pitt researchers are looking to lessons learned about Zika when preparing for the possibility of Rift Valley Fever virus, noting that it's important to develop therapies and vaccines now. "We saw the ffects of Zika when it got into a larger population and so our work highlights the need to really do more investigation into what would happen in pregnant women infected with [Rift Valley] virus," said IDM's Amy Hartman, who also pointed out ...
HERALD-MAIL MEDIA - Many Americans who were first exposed to opiates by prescription have continued to misuse the drugs over many years. Until these people either are treated or die of overdoses, they form a "reservoir" of potential victims for the spiraling epidemic, said Dean Donald S. Burke.
The higher a person's immunity to dengue virus, the lower their risk of Zika infection, an international team of scientists reported in the journal Science. The study also provides evidence that Brazil's Zika epidemic has largely petered out because enough people acquired immunity to reduce the efficiency of transmission. The discovery relied on tests for dengue and Zika developed by Marques and his team and patented by Pitt.
CBS.COM - Julia Carter (EPI '17) will be on the upcoming season of Survivor, debuting on February 20. According to her cast bio, while the idea of winning a million dollars factors in, her motivation for competing in the show is to prove to herself that she can do it. Carter says she'll be successful by being a team player and an excellent communicator. "I have charm and wits and I am not afraid to make risky moves." Good luck!
WESA - Whether it's participating in a match program to socialize with immigrant families or lending a helping hand at a soup kitchen, Pittsburghers are volunteering at a nationally recognized rate. Nearly 38 percent of local residents volunteer, placing the city in seventh place nationally for its collective rate of volunteerism.
Jonathan M. Samet, dean of the Colorado School of Public Health, visited Pitt to discuss threats to decision making from powerful stakeholders who undermine scientific evidence by creating doubt. The origins of this “doubt creation” strategy can be traced to actions taken by the tobacco industry and have spread more recently to environmental pollutants, foods, and beverages.
PRODUCTS OF PITTSBURGH - In 2013, Mara Leff (BCHS '16), now director of innovation at the Jewish Healthcare Foundation, moved from Washington, D.C., back to her hometown of Pittsburgh to study global health at Pitt Public Health. Her research took her across the world, although after graduating, Leff would find herself leading programs to help solve global health problems right in her own backyard.
Peng Liu's (BIOST '16, '20) paper "MethylSeqDesign: A framework for Methyl-Seq genome-wide power calculation and study design issues" has been selected for the Distinguished Student Paper Award. Congratulations!
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF INDUSTRIAL MEDICINE - This is the first ever epidemiological study of workers involved in aerospace materials manufacturing. Authored by BIOST's Gary Marsh and Jeanine Buchanich and featuring work from Jessica Graves (BIOST '18, EPID '20), Yimeng (Alice) Lu (BIOST '17), and Sarah Zimmerman (BIOST '13).
WASHINGTONIAN – Lucille Adams-Campbell (EPI ’83) works to increase mammograms, reduce cancer risks, and guarantee minorities’ access to clinical trials as a researcher and professor at Georgetown University. Her work has long focused on equity, uncovering disparities in women and minorities when “nobody else was.” Adams-Campbell received our Distinguished Alumni Award in 1995 and was named Pitt's Legacy Laureate in 2010.
PITTSBURGH POST GAZETTE - Robert Yee was as brilliant as he was modest. "One of the godfathers" of Pitt Public Health, Yee mentored hundreds of students and played a pivotal role as a researcher who made several "breakthrough" discoveries about bacteria.
PITT WIRE - After more than two decades of transformative service to the University of Pittsburgh, Arthur S. Levine has announced his intent to exit his position as senior vice chancellor for the health sciences and the John and Gertrude Petersen Dean in the School of Medicine. In a message to the Pitt community, Chancellor Patrick Gallagher reflects on the unparalleled success Levine has had and his plans to continue advancing research and medi...
FOX NEWS - "It's not about innovation, it's about inflation in existing products," explains Inmaculada Hernandez (HPM '16). "They are the same companies that operate in other countries and they don't show this behavior and that's because in other countries they are lucky to have this regulatory environment that prevents them from doing this."
ASPPH FRIDAY LETTER - Like Zika, infection with Rift Valley fever virus can go unnoticed during pregnancy, all the while doing irreparable - often lethal - harm to the fetus. The results of a new study underscore the importance of disease prevention for pregnant woment and set the stage for vaccine development.
Sponsored by the American Statistical Association's Section on Lifetime Data Science (LiDS) with support from Pitt's Department of BIostatistics, this conference will explore the foundations and frontiers of the field, featuring renowned speakers from around the globe in 3 workshops, 3 plenary talks, and 45+ invited sessions on a broad range of topics in lifetime data science. A poster session, student paper competition, and reception will be h...
NEW YORK TIMES - HPM's Walid Gellad calls the policy changes a "watershed moment" and went on to say, "This is highly significant, espeically at such a high-profile academic center. Leadership matters, and the institution has decided that their leaders should not also be concurrently leading for-profit health companies."
REUTERS - "You really want to see people be independent and able to manage without help from their families or from paid services," said BCHS's Steve Albert. "Presumably if you can improve function with the activities of daily life, you reduce the risk of nursing home placement."
HUGEN staff joined BIOST for their Staff Volunteer and Team Building Day, visiting Global Links to sort medical supplies for distribution in resource-poor communities. Afterwards, they switched gears at Lumberjaxes in Mount Lebanon, where they showed off their axe-throwing skills (Joe Germanoski was the winner!). Staff were glad to work together and unwind before the start of a new term.