Inside Einstein ::: Albert Einstein College of Medicine


November 2007-March 2008
	Research Round-up Community Health: Major Study of Latinos—On December 7, 2007, the medical school celebrated the opening of its Study of Latinos (SOL) Clinic at Fordham Plaza. The clinic will serve as the site for Einstein’s participation in the Hispanic Community Health Study—an unprecedented and landmark study that will ultimately evaluate the health status of 16,000 people of Hispanic/Latino origin nationwide. The Bronx is one of only four study sites for the study (which also include Chicago, Miami, and San Diego) selected by the National Institutes of Health. Einstein researchers and co-investigators at our University Hospital, Montefiore Medical Center, are currently enrolling participants from the Bronx (4,000 in total), ages 18 to 74, and will study their cardiovascular health, diet, exercise habits and other health behaviors. The overall focus of the study is to identify both the prevalence of, and risk factors for, a variety of diseases and disorders among the Hispanic/Latino population, with the ultimate goal of improving health. Principal investigators for the study are Sylvia Smoller, Ph.D. and Robert Kaplan, Ph.D., professor and associate professor of epidemiology and population health, respectively. New York State Stem Cell Research Grant—This January, former Governor Eliot Spitzer and current Governor David Paterson announced the allocation of $14.5 million in initial grants from the $600 million multi-year stem cell research program established by the Empire State Stem Cell Board. Einstein was among a select group of institutions to receive the largest grant amount of $1 million. The funds will support the work of researchers in Einstein’s Institute for Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine. Governor Paterson has been a standard bearer for developing such a program, and the announcement of the grants and the program affirms the Administration’s support for stem cell research and training in New York State and positions New York as a leader in the field. The American Journal of Preventive Medicine reported on a paper by Dr. Paul Marantz and Dr. Michael Alderman, which argues that the government should, under most circumstances, issue Dietary Information vs. Dietary Guidelines, to allow the public to make informed decisions about what they eat. Media coverage of the article included *The Boston Globe, Reuters Health News Service* and other media outlets nationwide. (January 28, 2008) In addition, *SciAm.com* (the website for Scientific American) featured Dr. Marantz, who is associate dean for Clinical Research Education at Einstein and co-director of the Institute for Public Health Sciences of Yeshiva University, in an extensive podcast interview about the paper. (February 13, 2008) The Journal of Clinical Investigation published research by Dr. Ana Maria Cuervo, associate professor of anatomy and structural biology, describing the mechanisms underlying the onset of Parkinson’s disease. Reuters News Service, ABC News, MSNBC, the Washington Post, and Health Day News Service were among national and international media to report on the research (January 2 to 8, 2008) The "Early Edition" online issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences reported on research led by Dr. David Silver resulting in the discovery of two genes that cells use to store fats, a finding that could lead to new approaches to treating obesity. Dr. Silver is assistant professor of biochemistry at Einstein. The article also was covered in the following media: *Washington Post, U.S. News & World Report, and BBC Worldwide News. (December 17, 2007) The "Early Edition" online issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences* reported on animal research led by Dr. Nancy Carrasco that found that the chemical perchlorate, a common contaminant of water supplies, can collect in breast milk and cause cognitive and motor deficits in newborns. Dr. Carrasco is professor of molecular pharmacology at Einstein. Media coverage of the study included the Washington Post and Science News. (December 6, 2007) Please note: To view journal articles for which links are not available you may want to look at PubMed Central http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/fprender.fcgi?tabindex=1 to see if the journal title is listed. Or, you can request a copy of the article by using the Interlibrary Loan Service at your local public library. Major Grants The National Cancer Institute of the National Institutes of Health awarded the Albert Einstein Cancer Center the competitive renewal of its five-year, $19.4 million Core Support for Cancer Center Grant. This grant, led by Dr. I. David Goldman, director of Einstein's Cancer Center, supports the Center's mission to bring together all the diverse strengths of the College of Medicine to focus on and foster basic, clinical, population-based, and translational research that addresses all aspects of the cancer problem. Einstein's Bronx Center to Reduce and Eliminate Ethnic and Racial Health Disparities (Bx CREED), led by Dr. H. Alvin Strelnick, professor of clinical family and social medicine, received a five-year, $5.7 million competitive renewal grant from the National Center on Minority Health and Health Disparities of the National Institutes of Health, to support Bronx CREED's research and training programs aimed at eliminating health disparities in the Bronx and beyond. Dr. Norman Fleischer, the Jacob and Jeanne E. Barkey Professor of Medicine, and Dr. Jeffrey Pessin, director of Einstein's Diabetes Research Center and professor of medicine and of molecular pharmacology, received a two-year competitive renewal grant totaling $2.4 million from the National Institute of Diabetes, Digestive and Kidney Diseases of the National Institutes of Health, to support Einstein's Diabetes Research and Training Center and its research programs investigating the prevention, treatment, and complications of diabetes. HOME

November 2007-March 2008

Research Round-up

Community Health: Major Study of Latinos—On December 7, 2007, the medical school celebrated the opening of its Study of Latinos (SOL) Clinic at Fordham Plaza. The clinic will serve as the site for Einstein’s participation in the Hispanic Community Health Study—an unprecedented and landmark study that will ultimately evaluate the health status of 16,000 people of Hispanic/Latino origin nationwide. The Bronx is one of only four study sites for the study (which also include Chicago, Miami, and San Diego) selected by the National Institutes of Health. Einstein researchers and co-investigators at our University Hospital, Montefiore Medical Center, are currently enrolling participants from the Bronx (4,000 in total), ages 18 to 74, and will study their cardiovascular health, diet, exercise habits and other health behaviors. The overall focus of the study is to identify both the prevalence of, and risk factors for, a variety of diseases and disorders among the Hispanic/Latino population, with the ultimate goal of improving health. Principal investigators for the study are Sylvia Smoller, Ph.D. and Robert Kaplan, Ph.D., professor and associate professor of epidemiology and population health, respectively.

New York State Stem Cell Research Grant—This January, former Governor Eliot Spitzer and current Governor David Paterson announced the allocation of $14.5 million in initial grants from the $600 million multi-year stem cell research program established by the Empire State Stem Cell Board. Einstein was among a select group of institutions to receive the largest grant amount of $1 million. The funds will support the work of researchers in Einstein’s Institute for Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine. Governor Paterson has been a standard bearer for developing such a program, and the announcement of the grants and the program affirms the Administration’s support for stem cell research and training in New York State and positions New York as a leader in the field.

The American Journal of Preventive Medicine reported on a paper by Dr. Paul Marantz and Dr. Michael Alderman, which argues that the government should, under most circumstances, issue Dietary Information vs. Dietary Guidelines, to allow the public to make informed decisions about what they eat. Media coverage of the article included The Boston Globe, Reuters Health News Service and other media outlets nationwide. (January 28, 2008) In addition, SciAm.com (the website for Scientific American) featured Dr. Marantz, who is associate dean for Clinical Research Education at Einstein and co-director of the Institute for Public Health Sciences of Yeshiva University, in an extensive podcast interview about the paper. (February 13, 2008)

The Journal of Clinical Investigation published research by Dr. Ana Maria Cuervo, associate professor of anatomy and structural biology, describing the mechanisms underlying the onset of Parkinson’s disease. Reuters News Service, ABC News, MSNBC, the Washington Post, and Health Day News Service were among national and international media to report on the research (January 2 to 8, 2008)

The "Early Edition" online issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences reported on research led by Dr. David Silver resulting in the discovery of two genes that cells use to store fats, a finding that could lead to new approaches to treating obesity. Dr. Silver is assistant professor of biochemistry at Einstein. The article also was covered in the following media: Washington Post, U.S. News & World Report, and BBC Worldwide News. (December 17, 2007)

The "Early Edition" online issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences reported on animal research led by Dr. Nancy Carrasco that found that the chemical perchlorate, a common contaminant of water supplies, can collect in breast milk and cause cognitive and motor deficits in newborns. Dr. Carrasco is professor of molecular pharmacology at Einstein. Media coverage of the study included the Washington Post and Science News. (December 6, 2007)

Please note: To view journal articles for which links are not available you may want to look at PubMed Central http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/fprender.fcgi?tabindex=1 to see if the journal title is listed. Or, you can request a copy of the article by using the Interlibrary Loan Service at your local public library.

Major Grants

The National Cancer Institute of the National Institutes of Health awarded the Albert Einstein Cancer Center the competitive renewal of its five-year, $19.4 million Core Support for Cancer Center Grant. This grant, led by Dr. I. David Goldman, director of Einstein's Cancer Center, supports the Center's mission to bring together all the diverse strengths of the College of Medicine to focus on and foster basic, clinical, population-based, and translational research that addresses all aspects of the cancer problem.

Einstein's Bronx Center to Reduce and Eliminate Ethnic and Racial Health Disparities (Bx CREED), led by Dr. H. Alvin Strelnick, professor of clinical family and social medicine, received a five-year, $5.7 million competitive renewal grant from the National Center on Minority Health and Health Disparities of the National Institutes of Health, to support Bronx CREED's research and training programs aimed at eliminating health disparities in the Bronx and beyond.

Dr. Norman Fleischer, the Jacob and Jeanne E. Barkey Professor of Medicine, and Dr. Jeffrey Pessin, director of Einstein's Diabetes Research Center and professor of medicine and of molecular pharmacology, received a two-year competitive renewal grant totaling $2.4 million from the National Institute of Diabetes, Digestive and Kidney Diseases of the National Institutes of Health, to support Einstein's Diabetes Research and Training Center and its research programs investigating the prevention, treatment, and complications of diabetes.

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