Stanford School of Medicine

Research Spotlight Archive



Stanford scientists pinpoint key proteins in blood stem cell replication A family of cancer-fighting molecules helps blood stem cells in mice decide when and how to divide, Julien Sage, PhD, and other scientists have found. More »



DNA study reveals evolution of beer yeasts New research by Stanford geneticists indicates that the brew, which accounts for the majority of commercial beer production worldwide, owes its existence to an unlikely pairing between two species of yeast. More »



Model could help estimate tumor size Sam Gambhir, MD, PhD, and other researchers have begun to map out a way to correlate the levels of blood biomarkers with cancer volume. The effort will guide the development of new tests to facilitate early detection. More »



Running slows the aging clock, Stanford researchers find Regular running slows the effects of aging, according to a new medical school study that has tracked 500 older runners for more than 20 years. More »



Plants make vaccine for treating cancer Plants could act as safe, speedy factories for growing antibodies for personalized treatments against a common form of cancer, according to a new study. More »



Glenn Chertow and other Stanford researchers propose new standard for value of life A new study shows that $50,000—the average figure used internationally as a "threshold" for making medical allocation decisions—is too low. More »



Platypus genome reveals evolutionary path that gave mammals reproductive edge School of Medicine researchers have turned to the odd-looking platypus to understand the genesis of an evolutionary tour de force that led to a reproductive advantage possessed by most of today?s mammals. More »



Inflammation triggers cell fusions that could protect neurons, Stanford research shows A surprise finding suggests that chronic inflammation may trigger the fusion of bone marrow-derived blood cells with certain neurons, and that may play a role in protecting neurons against damage. More »



Stanford researchers unmask proteins in telomerase, a substance that enables cancer Researchers have identified two new proteins that make up the telomerase complex, which repairs the tips of chromosomes and is implicated in cancer and aging. The discovery provides new targets for cancer treatments. More »



Human family tree mapped out in new detail by Stanford genetic sequencing effort Researchers have created the highest resolution map of human genetic diversity to date, providing insight into how groups of people throughout the world are related. More »



Study finds video games activate reward regions of brain in men more than women Allan Reiss, MD, and his colleagues have a pretty good idea why your husband or boyfriend can’t put down the Halo 3. More »



Researchers to push frontiers of stem cell studies Over the past year, the Institute for Stem C ell Biology and Regenerative Medicine has gathered momentum from an influx of funds and the arrival of top-notch researchers, including Renee Reijo Pera, PhD, to lead the efforts. More »



Stanford researchers sniff out gene that gives dogs black fur A discovery about the genetics of coat color in dogs could help explain why humans come in different weights and vary in our abilities to cope with stress. More »



Researchers find disease genes hidden in discarded data Previously hidden obesity-related genes have been uncovered from old experiments by Atul Butte and other researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine and Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital. The finding suggests that useful information about many medical disorders may be languishing in mountains of discarded data. More »



Stanford continues winning ways with two more NIH Pioneer Awards Thomas Clandinin, PhD, (right) and Mark Schnitzer, PhD, have been awarded 2007 Pioneer Awards from the National Institutes of Health for their work exploring brain function in fruit flies. More »



Study finds that some transplant patients could live free of anti-rejection drugs People with organ transplants, resigned to a lifetime of anti-rejection drugs, may now have reason to hope for a respite, say Minnie Sarwal, MD, PhD, and other medical school researchers. Using a simple blood sample, the scientists have identified for the first time a pattern of gene expression shared by a small group of patients who beat the odds and remained healthy for years without medication. More »



Stanford researchers find brain pathway of depression in rats Scientists’ hunt for the cause of depression has implicated so many suspects and found so many treatments with different mechanisms that the condition remains an enigma. Now Karl Deisseroth and other researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine have identified one unifying principle that could explain how a range of causes and treatments for depression converge. More »



Stanford researchers find cancer stem cells in colorectal tumors Researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine have identified the cancer stem cells that propagate tumors in colon and rectal cancer, a discovery that could lead to improved treatment of this deadly cancer. More »



Flies show links between sleep, immune system in Stanford study Go a few nights without enough sleep and you’re more likely to get sick, but scientists have no real explanation for how sleep is related to the immune system. Now, David Schneider, PhD, and other researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine are finding that fruit flies can point to the answers. More »



Adult stem cells may have smarts to guard against cancer Some bewildering behavior in the stem cells of muscles has led Stanford researchers to an unexpected discovery that could explain why cancer isn't more common. More »



Stanford gets $7 million in state stem cell grants Stanford researchers received more than $7 million in the first round of research grants approved by the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine. Stanford faculty received 12 grants, more than any other individual institution. More »



Brain chemicals may aid treatment of Parkinson's Marijuana-like chemicals in the brain may point to a treatment for the debilitating condition of Parkinson's disease. Robert Malenka, MD, PhD, and other school researchers report that endocannabinoids, naturally occurring chemicals found in the brain that are similar to the active compounds in marijuana and hashish, helped trigger a dramatic improvement in mice with a condition that mimics Parkinson's. More



Closing in on genes linked to severe depression Some people may be genetically predisposed to depression, but the genes responsible haven't been identified. Now, a team of researchers led by Douglas Levinson has located a specific region rife with promise on one chromosome. More



Genetic signature predicts recurrence of breast, prostate and other cancers Researchers working with breast cancer stem cells have found 186 genes that can predict the risk of recurrence in breast cancer patients. Additionally, the same genes predict the recurrence of prostate cancer, lung cancer and medulloblastoma, the most common form of childhood brain cancer. More



Molecule linked to autoimmune disease relapses identified at Stanford The ebb and flow of such autoimmune diseases as multiple sclerosis, lupus and rheumatoid arthritis has long been a perplexing mystery to scientists. But new findings by Lawrence Steinman and other Stanford researchers bring scientists closer to solving the puzzle, identifying a molecule that appears to play a central role in these relapses. More



Esther Lederberg, pioneer in genetics, dies at 83 Esther Miriam Zimmer Lederberg, PhD, professor emeritus of microbiology and immunology, whose more than half-century of studies opened the door for some fundamental discoveries in microbial genetics, died Nov. 11 at Stanford Hospital of pneumonia and congestive heart failure. She was 83. More



Stanford asked to join cancer genome effort In a nod to Stanford's expertise in high-throughput genomics, the School of Medicine has been designated as one of seven schools nationwide to become a Cancer Genome Characterization Center. More



Krasnow takes over as chair of biochemistry department The connection between the basic research of biochemistry and patient-care activities can be difficult to discern, but Mark Krasnow aims to make the relationship between the two realms more readily apparent. More



Emphasis on cancer stem cells grows with recruitment of second top scientist As Philip Beachy, PhD, moves his lab from Johns Hopkins University to the Stanford School of Medicine, he brings an additional piece to a puzzle that lies at the heart of the school's cancer research efforts: What is the role of cancer stem cells in the disease's progression? More



Voilá! New laboratory tool makes proteins vanish faster Researchers, including graduate student Lystranne Maynard-Smith, have developed a faster way to temporarily rid a cell of a targeted protein. The method is available to labs, and a number are already using it. More



More than pretty faces for brain region, study finds Researchers have taken the closest look yet at a region of the brain that was thought to be devoted solely to face recognition and discovered that this particular patchwork of neurons does much more: It also responds to such objects as cars, animals and sculptures. More



New animal model offers opportunity to develop therapies for lymphedema Millions of cancer survivors face a lifetime of swelling and discomfort, caused by an untreatable buildup of fluid in their tissues. Medical school researchers have created an animal model for this complex condition, called lymphedema, taking the first steps toward understanding its behavior. More



Gene linked to mental retardation in Down syndrome Neurologist William Mobley, MD, PhD and other school researchers have identified one possible cause of mental retardation in Down syndrome. The culprit is a gene that, when overexpressed, causes neurons responsible for attention and memory to shrivel and stop functioning normally. More



Kyoto Prize awarded to inventor of cell sorter A search for life on Mars, the first ink-jet printer and nuclear weapons testing seem unlikely inspirations for a machine that changed the face of science and medicine. But to hear developer Leonard Herzenberg tell it, it all makes perfect sense. The Stanford researcher’s feat of improbable alchemy, as well as his strong commitment to share his scientific and social accomplishments with others, has garnered him a 2006 Kyoto Prize, Japan’s equivalent of the Nobel Prize. More



Advocates for stem cell research to gather at Stanford for national summit In an effort to energize those who wish to influence the debate on stem cell research, a leading national scientific policy group dedicated to advancing such work is holding its second annual conference, called “Stem cell policy and advocacy summit: Empowering the pro-cures coalition.” The School of Medicine is the co-host. More



Scientist wins $4 million to research uncharted territory: How immune system influences spread of breast cancer Peter Lee had only recently turned his attention to breast cancer on the day in spring 2005 when he learned of a grant for research into the disease. Still, the reviewers were clearly intrigued by his work on how analysis of immune cells could predict the outcome of a patient with breast cancer. More



Old compound finds new life in molecular imaging studies Until recently two of the popular tools biologists had at their disposal for watching molecules within cells fell short of the ideal. But after a yearlong hunt, a team of Stanford scientists has turned up a new way of watching proteins in real time in living animals. More »



If it worked in Troy, then why not with cancer? Another seemingly impenetrable wall has succumbed to the Trojan horse strategy. This time, instead of the ramparts of Troy and a wooden steed filled with soldiers, it's the wall of the blood vessel that is breached by an immune cell carrying tumor-killing viral particles. More »



Human research protection program wins accrediting group's highest rating After a rigorous review, Stanford has won full accreditation from the Association for the Accreditation of Human Research Protection Programs, considered the gold standard for participant safety in research trials. More »



National Cancer Institute funds new nanotechnology center The National Cancer Institute has established eight centers for honing the tiny tools of nanotechnology to reveal, monitor and treat cancer. One of them is to be based at the medical school, under the direction of Sanjiv Sam Gambhir. More »



Stem cells on trial: Fate of Stanford's new stem cell lines in limbo as lawsuit delays funds For Eric Chiao, PhD, the money made available by Proposition 71 represents more than a theoretical boost to stem cell work in California — it's the difference between continuing to develop new lines of embryonic stem cells at Stanford and finding a new job. More »



Low-fat diet no panacea for preventing cancer for women Older women who simply reduce the amount of total fat in their diet won't generally reduce their risk of breast or colorectal cancer or heart disease, according to the latest findings from the federally funded Women's Health Initiative. More »



Scientific fraud unpreventable, Donald Kennedy warns No journal has an infallible mechanism for detecting scientific fraud, according to Science editor-in-chief and Stanford University president, emeritus, Donald Kennedy, PhD. "Scientific fraud is not new and is not rare," he said during his talk at a stem cell symposium held Jan. 20. "Luckily it's not common either." More »



Packard doctor's data-mining technique strikes genetic gold A new method to mine existing scientific data may provide a wealth of information about the interactions among genes, the environment and biological processes, say Atul Butte and other researchers at Stanford, Lucile Packard Children's Hospital and Harvard. More »



Discovery of sea squirt gene yields clue to human immune system Researchers have pinpointed the source of the sea squirt's ability to fuse together with its kin, offering potential for new insights into how human natural killer cells determine whether material in the body is friend or foe. More »



Hormone finding offers new hope for obesity drug When the appetite-enhancing hormone ghrelin was discovered a few years ago, researchers thought they had found the last of the major genes that regulate weight. They were wrong. Introducing obestatin, a newly discovered hormone that suppresses appetite. The finding, published in the Nov. 11 issue of Science, offers a key to researchers developing treatments for obesity. More »



Protein has Jekyll-and-Hyde role in cancer growth Tumor-suppressor proteins work to inhibit tumor growth in our bodies and when they win, they spare us a battle with cancer. But one such protein, menin, appears to have a split personality. Though menin is well-known for its ability to suppress endocrine tumors, researchers at the School of Medicine have discovered that it is also a key player in the development of some forms of acute leukemia. More »



NIH awards grant to launch major new biomedical computation center The National Institutes of Health announced Sept. 29 that it has awarded the School of Medicine a grant of $18.8 million to develop a National Center for Biomedical Ontology along with several other collaborating institutions. The goal of the center is to design and implement a new generation of computer systems that will enable researchers to share, compare and analyze data gathered from large biomedical experiments. More »



Stanford awarded stem cell grant Pehr Harbury arrived at his sister’s house in Boston on Sept. 15 an ordinary man and left a genius. And his family didn’t notice a thing. Although Harbury learned that afternoon when returning a phone message that he had been named a MacArthur Fellow—a national honor frequently called the “genius grant”— he had to keep his excitement to himself. More »



Stanford awarded stem cell grant Funding to begin training a cadre of scholars in adult and embryonic stem cell research was awarded Sept. 9 to the School of Medicine, when the state agency that oversees stem cell research announced its first set of grants. More »



Survey measures effect of children's brain tumor treatment Before conducting research that involves putting human stem cells into the brains of nonhuman primates such as monkeys or apes, scientists and oversight committees should consider a series of ethical criteria, according to a policy paper released in the July 15 issue of Science. More »



Ethical guidelines suggested for research that puts human stem cells in primates Before conducting research that involves putting human stem cells into the brains of nonhuman primates such as monkeys or apes, scientists and oversight committees should consider a series of ethical criteria, according to a policy paper released in the July 15 issue of Science. More »



Older stem cells less likely to prevent leukemia, infections Older people are more prone to infections and have a higher risk of developing leukemia. Now researchers at the School of Medicine have one hint as to why: The group found that in mice, the bone marrow stem cells responsible for churning out new blood cells slow down in their ability to produce immune cells, leaving older mice with fewer defenses against infection. More »



True cancer-causing genes revealed by new technique, say Stanford researchers New research under the direction of Paul Khavari, MD, PhD, professor in the Program in Epithelial Biology at the Stanford University School of Medicine and chief of the dermatology service at the Veterans Affairs Palo Alto Healthcare System, shows a novel and more effective way of testing which mutations cause cancer and which are mere research distractions. The work is published in the June issue of Nature Genetics. More »



Top stem cell researchers moving west to Stanford Last November, when California voters approved a measure to fund stem cell research, experts predicted that some of the country's finest scientists would make their way to the Golden State. Now two such researchers have done just that: Stefan Heller, PhD, associate professor of otolaryngology at Harvard Medical School, and Michael Clarke, MD, professor of internal medicine at the University of Michigan Medical School in Ann Arbor, announced that they are joining the Stanford Institute for Cancer/Stem Cell Biology and Medicine. More »



Two forms of pain relief better than one, study finds Children who received spinal anesthesia during open heart surgery experienced less pain after the operation and were less dependent on narcotics during the hours after surgery than children who received only general anesthesia, according to a new study from Stanford and Lucile Packard Children's Hospital researchers. More »



Early doses of AIDS drugs prolonged babies' lives Identifying and treating HIV-infected newborns is a race against the clock, according to a newly-published study from the School of Medicine and Lucile Packard Children's Hospital. Researchers found that HIV-infected infants treated with one or two antiretroviral drugs within two months of birth were less likely to develop AIDS by their third birthday than those who were 3 or 4 months old when treatment was initiated. Infants who received a combination of three antiretroviral drugs did even better. More »



Anthrax attack response needs both antibiotics, vaccine The most cost-effective way to treat people potentially exposed to anthrax in a bio-terrorist incident, Stanford researchers say, is with the timely use of both antibiotics and vaccination—after the attack. More »



Research sheds light on immune system mystery Two decades after the discovery of the gamma delta T cell, scientists at the School of Medicine have for the first time through experiments on mouse cells determined how this mysterious soldier in the immune system identifies its targets. More »



Scientist does a gut check In sheer numbers, the bacteria that live inside of us outnumber our own cells tenfold. The prevalence of these tiny organisms has inspired Les Dethlefsen, PhD, a postdoctoral scholar in microbiology and immunology at the School of Medicine , to try to identify the many varieties found in the human body and to see how these communities of microbes change over time. More »



Protein that helps skin cancer spread identified A protein that normally helps hold the skin intact is also needed by skin cancer cells as they spread to other regions of the body, researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine have discovered. Identifying this protein's role opens the door for stopping the spread of this deadly cancer-the second most common cancer type in the United States. The work, which appeared in the March 18 issue of Science, is the first published research implicating the protein, collagen VII, in cancer. More »



Dancing with data adds to the show As he moved about the room, the dancer wore only blue shorts and 50 silver balls the size of marbles that stuck to his skin, mapping out his physique. It was not the latest in avant-garde costuming, but a class experiment to understand the art and science of movement, a part of a weeklong series of campus activities celebrating the choreographer Merce Cunningham. More »



Young blood helps to heal aging muscles Any older person can attest that aging muscles don't heal like young ones. But it turns out that's not the muscle's fault. A study led by Thomas Rando, MD, PhD, shows that it's old blood that keeps the muscles down. More »



Universal voluntary HIV screens prolong life without substantial cost increase Expanding HIV screening would be a relatively cost-effective way to increase life expectancy and decrease disease transmission. That is the conclusion of researchers at the Veterans Affairs Palo Alto Health Care System and the School of Medicine who conducted a cost-effectiveness analysis of doing routine HIV screening. More »



Stanford study finds new method improves chemotherapy survival in mice Seeking to find a way to lessen patients’ vulnerability to deadly infections following chemotherapy, researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine have figured out a way to boost the immune function in animals following such treatments. Their approach involves increasing the pool of cells that give rise to neutrophils, a type of white blood cell that is critical for fighting bacterial and fungal infections but is particularly ravaged by chemotherapy. More »



Study of owls reveals that early learning leaves lasting changes in brain Educational toys can leave a mark on more than just a parent’s checkbook—they can also leave a permanent imprint on a child’s brain. That’s according to a School of Medicine study in owls showing that early learning experiences forever change the brain’s structure. More »



Obesity linked to hormonal changes, lack of sleep The less you sleep, the more weight you may gain. So say School of Medicine researchers, who found in a recent study that sleep loss leads to higher levels of a hormone that triggers appetite, lower levels of a hormone that tells the body it’s full and an increased body mass index. More »



First genetic glimpse into aging kidney shows how cells grow old For the first time, researchers at Stanford University School of Medicine have examined how kidneys change at a molecular level with the passage of time. What they found suggests that all human cells age in a similar way, supporting one theory about how cells grow old. More »



Collaborative projects brewing one year later at Clark Center As the Clark Center marks its first anniversary, scientists around the country are watching to see whether it succeeds in fostering innovative. collaborations. The $138 million building is ground zero for the university's Bio-X initiative, which aims to usher in a new era in science by bridging the gulfs between medicine, engineering and other disciplines. More »



Pizzo to help oversee state stem cell research effort Medical school Dean Philip Pizzo, MD, on Friday became the first person named to serve on the committee that will oversee the distribution of roughly $3 billion in state funds for embryonic stem cell research. His appointment came just three days after California voters resoundingly approved Proposition 71, authorizing the spending of as much as $295 million annually for the next 10 years for stem cell work in the state. More »



Prop. 71 victory opens new era for research With the approval of Proposition 71, labs across California can stop dreaming about working with embryonic stem cells and start expanding their research programs. The measure establishes the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine, which will provide approximately $3 billion over the next 10 years to support stem cell research in California. Stanford, UC-San Francisco, UC-San Diego and other medical research institutions in the state are likely to be among the recipients of the state funds. More »



Stanford scientists help bring study of smallpox virus into ‘molecular age’ Stanford University School of Medicine researchers have discovered details about the molecular effects of the smallpox virus, helping to shed light on why the disease is such a devastating killer. More »



"Genius" award goes to Stanford researcher who investigates how nasty bugs evade detection Julie Theriot, PhD, was stunned by the early morning telephone call Sept. 21, informing her that she had just joined the club that includes some of the world’s most creative minds. Theriot, an assistant professor of biochemistry and of microbiology and immunology at the Stanford University School of Medicine, had received one of the rare MacArthur Fellowships, meaning that she would be free to spend $500,000 in the next five years in pursuing her passion for biology, wherever it may take her. More »



Stanford Researcher Finds Chronic Illnesses Not Adequately Addressed By Current Health-Care Policies Current methods of delivering health care to kids are woefully unable to cope with a pediatric disease pendulum that has swung from acute to chronic illnesses, says a researcher at the Stanford University School of Medicine and Lucile Packard Children's Hospital. In addition, some of the most effective clinical advances for children may increase the disparity between children teetering on the bottom rung of the social and economic ladder and their more fortunate peers. More »