Health and Medicine

The prospect of doing human clinical trials with stem cells to treat diseases like multiple sclerosis may be growing closer, say scientists at the University at Buffalo and the University at Rochester, who have developed a more precise way to isolate stem cells that will make myelin.

A tiny piece of a critical receptor that fuels the brain and without which sentient beings cannot live has been discovered by University at Buffalo scientists as a promising new drug target for Alzheimer's and other neurodegenerative diseases. The research on the NMDA (N-methyl-D-aspartate) receptor was published online Oct. 11 in Nature Communications.

A University at Buffalo microbiologist whose lab has been studying the human papilloma virus for years, says that parents should have their children vaccinated with Gardasil, the HPV vaccine.

Surgeons should add their voices to social media and online discussions, while taking care to fully understand the potential security and medical-legal implications. That's the message from two surgeons -- and avid Twitter fans -- in the University at Buffalo School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, who recently co-authored "Making Social Media Work for Surgeons and Patients," an article published in the Bulletin of the American College of Surgeons.

Scientists at the University at Buffalo have received $1.3 million from the National Institute of Mental Health to test how tiny, magnetic particles can be used to remotely control neurons in the brains of mice. If the work is successful, the research team will have given neuroscientists a powerful, new tool: a non-invasive technique for triggering activity deep inside the brain.

Even the smallest of home renovations can change the life of someone with a disability. Widening a doorway or adding grab bars around a toilet can mean the difference between independence and dependence -- between comfort and discomfort in one's own home.

It's not estrogen produced by body fat that causes low levels of testosterone in type 2 diabetic men, according to a University at Buffalo study published last month in Diabetes Care.

Lady Gaga and other celebrities commenting on bullying have the chance to teach young people about the horrors of bullying abuse, says the director of the University at Buffalo's Alberti Center for the Prevention of Bullying Abuse, a power that makes it important they act responsibly.

Before treating their first, live human patient, University at Buffalo students in the five health sciences schools will be able to safely practice a full range of medical procedures, from inserting catheters and delivering babies to resuscitating injured patients, thanks to the new Behling Simulation Center, which holds its grand opening today.

Buffalo Bills offensive lineman Demetrius Bell was looking forward to the team' first game of the 2009 regular season, having spent his entire rookie season the year before on the inactive roster. Bell had earned the left tackle spot for the opener against the New England Patriots, his first NFL career start. The Bills lost 25-24, but No. 77 went on to start in five more games that fall. It was during his sixth game that Bell suffered a knee injury that took him out of the game and off the playing field for nearly a year.