SUMC in the News (11/26/07)

Press release

Stem cell transplant can grow new immune system in certain mice, Stanford researchers find
Stanford researchers have found a way to transplant new blood-forming stem cells into the bone marrow of mice, effectively replacing their immune systems. The accomplishment is a step toward a goal of transplanting human cells with the same result, which could create a new immune system for people suffering from autoimmune or genetic blood diseases.

Print media coverage

New York Times, 11/26/07
Gene therapy study to resume after woman's death
The FDA has given permission for Targeted Genetics to resume a gene therapy clinical trial in which a patient died. Mark Kay, the Dennis Farrey Family Professor in Pediatrics, is quoted here.

United Press International, 11/26/07
Stem cells grow new immune system in mice
This article discusses Stanford researchers' success using blood-forming stem cells to replace the immune systems of mice. Irving Weissman, the Virginia and D.K. Ludwig Professor for Clinical Investigation and director of the Stanford Institute for Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine and co-senior author of the study, provides comment. Weissman is also quoted in articles on BBC.com, BizJournals.com and Palo Alto Online News.

Tucson Citizen (Tucson, Ariz.), 11/26/07
Hurdles remain for new stem cell technique to pay off in medicine
Researchers from Wisconsin and Japan have reprogrammed adult human cells to act like embryonic stem cells. Paul Berg, the Robert W. and Vivian K. Cahill Professor of Cancer Research, provides comment in this Associated Press article, which also appears in the Philadelphia Inquirer, Salt Lake City Deseret News, San Jose Mercury News and South Florida Sun-Sentinel. William Hurlbut, a consulting professor of neurology, is also referenced in a Wall Street Journal opinion piece on the development. A San Francisco Chronicle article discusses the research's impact on biotechnology companies and the mission of the state's stem cell institute; although Stanford is not referenced, the article may be of interest to readers.

Muncie Star-Press (Muncie, Ind.), 11/26/07
Pedometer users go that extra mile
Researchers here have found that the use of a pedometer - a small, inexpensive device that counts the number of steps walked per day - is associated with significant increases in physical activity and weight loss and improvements in blood pressure. Dena Bravata, the study's lead author and a senior research scientist in medicine, is quoted in this story, which also appears in the Poughkeepsie Journal (Poughkeepsie, N.Y.). Bravata is also quoted in a USA Today article that appears in the Asbury Park Press (Asbury Park, N.J.) and in an Associated Press piece that ran in the Butte Montana Standard (Butte, Mon.), Fredericksburg Free Lance-Star (Fredericksburg, Va.), Northwest Indiana Times (Portage, Ind.) and Toledo Blade (Toledo, Ohio). A San Francisco Chronicle article on the study appears in the Edmonton Journal (Canada) and Ventura County Star; articles also appear in the Chicago Sun-Times, San Jose Mercury News and South China Morning Post, and on Palo Alto Online News.

Chicago Sun-Times, 11/25/07
Quick care prevents deaths
A new Stanford/Packard study shows that proactively deploying a children's hospital's "rapid response team" can significantly reduce death rates.

Bridgewater Courier News (Bridgewater, N.J.), 11/25/07
Making scents
This article discusses the safety of chemicals in many cosmetics and household products. Alan Greene, a member of the adjunct clinical faculty, is quoted here.

Sacramento Bee, 11/25/07
Tangled loyalties at top of stem cell institute
This editorial argues that internal conflicts have hurt the oversight committee of California's stem cell institute. Although Stanford is not referenced, this piece may be of interest to readers.

Broadcast media coverage

Today Show (NBC), 11/23/07
Andrew Hsu, a 16-year-old graduate student at the medical school, was featured during this segment. Karl Deisseroth, assistant professor of bioengineering and of psychiatry and behavioral sciences, and graduate student Nick Weiler were also interviewed.

WBAL-TV (Baltimore), 11/23/07
This segment discussed the Stanford study showing that a stem cell transplant can grow a new immune system in certain mice. Similar segments aired on TV stations in Albany, N.Y.; Austin, Texas; Philadelphia; Portland, Ore.; Richmond, Va. and St. Louis.

Business Nation (CNBC), 11/22/07
A growing number of medical centers and academic institutions, including Stanford, have banned students, faculty and medical staff from accepting gifts from pharmaceutical companies. David Magnus was interviewed during this segment, which originally aired earlier in the month. Magnus is director of the Stanford Center for Biomedical Ethics.

WDIO-TV (Duluth, Minn.), 11/22/07
Dena Bravata was interviewed for a segment on her pedometer study. Segments on the study also aired locally on KNTV-TV and on TV stations across the country, including ones in Dallas; Phoenix; Salt Lake City; San Diego and Tampa, Fla.

WRC-TV (Washington D.C.), 11/21/07
This segment discussed the study on the effectiveness of children's hospital's rapid response teams; similar segments aired on TV stations in Champaign, Ill.; Charleston, S.C.; Indianapolis and Madison, Wis.