Media Coverage

A profile of Noel Rose, MD, PhD, professor emeritus at Johns Hopkins University and an alumnus of the Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, notes that he is considered the “father of autoimmunity.” The story describes Rose’s arrival at UB in 1951 and his work with Ernest Witebsky, MD, resulting in the discovery that the immune cells of rabbits could destroy their own thyroid glands, ultimately leading to the discovery of what causes Hashimoto’s disease in humans.

Articles about research on a parasitic infection that causes seizures and psychiatric illness cites the work of Ira J. Blader, PhD, professor of microbiology and immunology, who collaborated with the study. The lead researcher met Blader after he delivered a seminar at Virginia Tech. Blader studied Toxoplasma gondii and wanted to understand how specific strands of the parasite impacted the retina in mouse models.

Several news outlets reported on UB partner company Garwood Medical Devices, which has been granted a “Breakthrough Devices” designation that will expedite review of the company’s BioPrax device by the FDA. BioPrax, developed to treat biofilm infections on prosthetic knee implants, was created using technology licensed from UB. The electrical stimulation method that BioPrax uses was developed through a multidisciplinary collaboration between the labs of Mark Ehrensberger, PhD, associate professor of biomedical engineering, and Anthony A. Campagnari, PhD, SUNY Distinguished Professor of microbiology and immunology.

An article on HowStuffWorks about how often people should wash their coffee cups interviews Terry D. Connell, PhD, professor of microbiology and immunology. “Streptococci, staphylococci and any number of resident or transient oral bacteria, which may include potential pathogens, may reside in unwashed cups,” Connell said. “And, of course, if someone else should drink from one’s cup, bacteria from their mouths can be transferred into it.”

Thomas A. Russo, MD, professor of medicine and chief of the Division of Infectious Diseases, and John K. Crane, MD, PhD, professor of medicine, provided their knowledge on the subject after a recent outbreak of foodborne botulism in California.

Anthony A. Campagnari, PhD, senior associate dean for research and graduate education and professor of microbiology, immunology and medicine, is quoted in a report on a new UB study that has developed a model for how the bacteria Staphylococcus aureus can trigger severe, sometimes deadly secondary bacterial pneumonia in some people who are subsequently infected with influenza A virus.

A report on a research study that found the parasite that causes Toxoplasmosis alters neural pathways specifically related to the neurotransmitter gamma-Aminobutyric acid, or GAMA, quotes Ira Blader, associate professor of microbiology and immunology.  “Our work is the first showing that an infection can alter this enzyme’s localization in the brain,” he says.

Research led by Amy Jacobs, PhD, research associate professor of microbiology and immunology, has won a National Science Foundation award to further study the way Ebola viruses enter cells in an effort to develop delivery methods for treatment of the infection.

The bioactive protein interleukin-10 successfully treats chronic, precancerous intestinal inflammation, according to a UB animal study featured on the cover of Cancer Research and led by Allen Y. Chung, a student in the Medical Scientist Training (MD/PhD) Program.

Anders P. Hakansson, PhD, assistant professor of microbiology and immunology, is studying a protein-lipid complex from human milk that can re-sensitize bacteria to existing antibiotics.

Stanley A. Schwartz, MD, PhD, distinguished professor of medicine, comments on a plastic device that transfers vibrations to the airways in the lung. The device has helped emphysema patients, and it is now being tested in asthmatics. “When the lungs pick up this vibration, they amplify the vibration, and that’s what helps mobilize the sputum,” says Schwartz.

By testing surfaces in day care centers, UB researchers led by Anders P. Hakansson, PhD, assistant professor of microbiology and immunology, have revealed that two infection-causing bacteria can survive well outside a human host.

Along with other researchers, Anders P. Hakansson, PhD, of the Department of Microbiology and Immunology, has examined the mechanism that makes Streptococcus pneumonia bacteria — located in the mucous linings of the throat and nose — travel into the lungs, middle ear or bloodstream and cause diseases.

A new gonorrhea treatment has successfully eliminated gonococcal infection from female mice and prevented reinfection, according to research published by UB scientists from the Department of Microbiology and Immunology and UB’s Witebsky Center for Microbial Pathogenesis and Immunology.

A review of an in-vivo study led by Michael W. Russell, PhD, professor of microbiology and immunology, hails results of a sustained-release cytokine treatment that helps clear gonorrhoea infection and prevent reinfection.