Uncommon Bacterium Found in Guts of Children with Autism
Published: May 16, 2012
Researchers at Columbia’s Center for Infection and Immunity (CII) have discovered an uncommon bacterium, Sutterella, in the intestines of 12 of 23 children who had both autism and GI problems. The study’s 9 control subjects, who had GI problems but not autism, were negative for the bacterium. Children with autism frequently suffer from gastrointestinal (GI) disturbances ...
Aspirin and Common Blood Thinner Equally Effective for Most Heart Failure Patients
Published: May 9, 2012
A 10-year multi-center study found that aspirin and the blood thinner warfarin (brand name Coumadin®) were equally effective at preventing a combined risk of death, stroke, and cerebral hemorrhage in heart failure patients with normal heart rhythm. Patients taking warfarin had slightly more than half the risk for stroke than those taking aspirin, but more than ...
Anthrax Toxin Receptor Necessary for Successful Pregnancy
Published: May 8, 2012
Columbia researchers have found that a protein called Anthrax Toxin Receptor 2 (ANTXR2) is necessary for successful labor and birth. In a study led by Jan Kitajewski, PhD, Charles and Marie Robertson Professor in Ob/Gyn, female mice lacking ANTXR2 were able to get pregnant but unable to deliver. Older female mice were less likely to get ...
Cancer Patients Prep Their Own Breasts for Reconstruction
Published: April 11, 2012
A small remote-controlled device implanted in a woman’s chest allows her to expand her chest tissue at home, without injections, before having reconstructive surgery. Currently, breast cancer patients often undergo several months of saline injections to expand the tissue. Columbia’s lead investigator on the multi-site trial, Jeffrey Ascherman, MD, professor of clinical surgery, says that saline ...
Illegal Wildlife Trade Opens New Route for Pathogen Transmission
Published: April 6, 2012
When researchers confiscated smuggled parcels of African bush meat at five major US airports and screened them for a variety of dangerous pathogens, 20 percent were positive for a known zoonotic infection (simian foamy virus) and/or two herpes viruses (cytomegaloviruses and lymphocryptoviruses). The findings show the potential for disease transmission via illegal trade and the ...