Health and Medicine
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The Multi-theory Model of Health Behavior Change: Understanding Meditation, or ‘Dhyana’ | Professor Manoj Sharma
Meditation is the regular, purposeful practice of becoming aware of one’s bodily sensations, thoughts, or other points of focus. Professor Manoj Sharma, a global health promotion leader and Chair of the Social and Behavioral Health department at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, wished to test whether a health behavioral model that he developed could explain why adults begin and maintain a meditation practice. While this multi-theory model – or ‘MTM’ – has been applied to many health-related behaviors, two domains are core to the model: initiation of a health behavior and sustenance of this behavior.
Professor John Moses | Shapeshifting Antibiotics – Overcoming Multidrug-Resistant Bacteria
Antibiotic resistance is one of the greatest threats currently facing public health. Professor John Moses, based at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, along with a team of international collaborators, has proposed a conceptually unique way to extend the life of clinically used antibiotic drugs.
Dr Maggie O’Haire | Dr Kerri Rodriguez – Service Dogs: Understanding Their Impact on Military Veterans with Posttraumatic Stress Disorder
Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a mental disorder that can develop after experiencing a traumatic event, such as being part of military combat. Dr Maggie O’Haire and Dr Kerri Rodriguez at Purdue University in the USA and their colleagues are working to better understand why and how PTSD service dogs may improve PTSD symptoms among military veterans.
Professor Manoj Sharma | The Multi-theory Model (MTM) of Health Behavior Change: Understanding the Determinants of Breast Cancer Screening
Breast cancer is the most common form of cancer affecting women overall but there are stark differences in breast cancer risk and survival rates between racial and ethnic groups. Breast cancers must be detected at an early stage to ensure timely treatment and the reduction of premature mortality. Professor Manoj Sharma from the School of Public Health at the University of Nevada, USA, is working with colleagues to gain an in-depth understanding of the determinants of undertaking mammogram screening in typically under-represented groups with a view to improving health through behaviour change.
Access to Human Tissue for Collaborative Research
The Collaborative Biorepository for Translational Medicine (CBTM) is based at the University of Cambridge and Addenbrooke’s Hospital in the Cambridge Biomedical Research Centre. Professor Kourosh Saeb-Parsy and the team work to provide reliable access to fresh tissue for collaborative research and to ensure the generously donated tissue has the best chance to make a positive impact.
Dr Alvin Orbaek White | Chemically Recycling Discarded Face Masks into Carbon Nanotubes
Dr Alvin Orbaek White and his colleagues at the Energy Safety Research Institute, based at Swansea University, have shown that chemically recycling discarded face masks to create carbon nanotubes may provide a valuable resource as well as tackle the environmental issue of waste.
Dr Doug Brugge | The Community Assessment of Freeway Exposure and Health Studies: Minimising Exposure to Traffic-related Air Pollution
Professor Michael Bukrinsky at George Washington University in Washington DC is working with scientists across the globe to elucidate the molecular mechanisms behind the comorbidities associated with human immunodeficiency virus so that they can be targeted with therapies.
Professor Michael Bukrinsky | Human Immunodeficiency Virus Co-morbidities: How Lipid Homeostasis Alterations Lead to Cardiovascular and Neurological Disorders
Professor Michael Bukrinsky at George Washington University in Washington DC is working with scientists across the globe to elucidate the molecular mechanisms behind the comorbidities associated with human immunodeficiency virus so that they can be targeted with therapies.
Dr Kristin Parent | Bacteriophage Hunting: Searching for the Tiny Viruses That Kill Harmful Bacteria
Shigellosis is an infection of the Shigella bacteria with over 164 million cases each year leading to 1.1 million deaths. The ever-increasing antibiotic resistance of the bacteria means we need alternatives or supplements to existing antibiotics. Dr Kristin Parent from Michigan State University is working on exciting, collaborative projects hunting for bacteriophages to be used in novel therapeutics.
Sarah Leighton | Can Psychiatric Assistance Dogs Help Military Veterans with Posttraumatic Stress Disorder?
Psychiatric assistance dogs trained to help with mental health symptoms have become increasingly popular as a complementary intervention for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Sarah Leighton and her colleagues from Purdue University and the University of Arizona in the USA are exploring the effectiveness of psychiatric assistance dog partnerships for military veterans with PTSD.
Professor Derrick Robinson | Using Intrabodies to Induce Cell Death in Trypanosome Parasites
Trypanosomes are single-celled parasites that cause life-threatening diseases in humans, domestic livestock and wild animals. In sub-Saharan Africa, infection with a species called Trypanosoma brucei or T.brucei causes African sleeping sickness, which results in organ failure and eventually fatal coma if left untreated. There are limited diagnostic tests and treatments available and much of trypanosome biology remains undiscovered.
Dr Mikail Abbasov | Discovering Unmapped Molecular Targets for Novel Covalent Drugs
Covalent drugs are molecules that irreversibly bind to specific, targeted sites in the body. They work to inhibit the disease-causing functions of certain proteins by preventing them from interacting with other substances. One well-known example is the antibiotic, Penicillin.
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