This is a round-up of relevant news and media stories involving the Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry. We appreciate you relaying information which is relevant to faculty members in your respective areas.
TOP STORY
CTV Edmonton: U of A scientists find gene that causes form of blindness
A team of researchers led by a professor at the University of Alberta has identified a gene that causes the onset of pigmentary glaucoma. The discovery could lead to new treatment for the condition. Michael Walter, professor and chair of medical genetics at the U of A, is quoted.
RESEARCH
TEC Edmonton is celebrating the commercial potential of the emerging technologies coming out of the University of Alberta. The non-profit organization helped start up 11 new companies, while assisting local researchers obtain nine new patents in 2018. Nanostics-a diagnostics firm capable of identifying prostate cancer with a couple of drops of blood-and Tevosol Inc-the company responsible for an Ex-Vivo Organ Support System capable of keeping organs warm and oxygenated, as though they were still alive-are mentioned as two prominent successes of the past year.
The Orange County Register: Pets: Tips to help animals with arrival of a new baby
Raising children alongside pets has a range of benefits. A University of Alberta study led by pediatrics professor Anita Kozyrskyj found that babies living with furry pets in the first few months of life have reduced risk of allergies and obesity.
Global News: 5 fantastic health innovations from Edmonton in 2018
Year-end round-up of top medical innovations in Edmonton cites research done at the U of A.
Science Daily: Hidden culprit in heart failure
A research team led by scientists at the University of Alberta have pinpointed a hidden culprit that leads to dilated cardiomyopathy. Gavin Oudit, professor of cardiology at the U of A, is quoted. Coverage also appears in Global News Edmonton, CBC Radio Active, Radio-Canada, The Irish Sun, Health Thoroughfair and Drug Target Review.
The Weather Network: Cold weather and booze
Turns out, cold weather can lead us to drink more alcohol. Juan Gonzalez-Abraldes, a professor of gastroenterology at the U of A, is interviewed. No link.
Fort McMurray Today: Report finds depression, suicidal thinking in students increased after wildfire
A U of A report into the mental-health issues facing Fort McMurray students between grades 7 and 12 found that 31 per cent of students who went through the May 2016 wildfire have symptoms consistent with a diagnosis of depression. Story also runs in the Edmonton Journal, Edmonton Sun, Ottawa Citizen and others.
Edmonton Journal: Schizophrenia identified in brain scans: U of A researchers
Patient brain scans are being used to identify schizophrenia, a diagnosis historically reliant on subjective data of patient experiences, say U of A researchers. Psychiatry professor Andrew Greenshaw was a co-author of the study. Coverage also appears in Research Matters and Tech Circle.
Story mentions technology being commercialized by Darren Freed and Jayan Nagendran that allows organs intended for transplant to survive outside the body for a longer period.
EXPERT
MDLinx: Congenital malformations not increased after maternal ondansetron use
U of A Obstetrics and Gynecology resident Melissa Lavecchia gives expert comment regarding a new study showing that maternal first-trimester use of ondansetron for nausea and vomiting is not linked with congenital malformations.
Good Times: Your Health Questions: Do I really need a checkup every year?
Neil Bell, a professor of family medicine at the U of A, gives expert comment on the topic of annual checkups.
Adam Abba-Aji, an assistant clinical professor of psychiatry at the U of A, gives expert comment on the topic of seasonal affective disorder.
Forbes: What Does "Dead" Mean? The Debate Continues Some 50 Years After Harvard Defined Death.
Fifty years after Harvard Medical School defined brain death, a new report commemorates the concept and raises new and lasting questions about what it means to be dead as well as implications for organ transplantation. Ari Joffe, a clinical professor of pediatrics at the U of A and a member of the John Dossetor Health Ethics Centre, is noted as an author on the report.
Global News: New breast cancer screening guidelines are outdated and dangerous, experts say
A letter from 130 experts on breast cancer says new screening guidelines proposed by the Canadian Task Force on Preventive Health Care are outdated and "dangerous." The new guidelines were released in December and are meant to help guide medical practitioners. Scott Klarenbach, a professor of medicine at the U of A who served on the task force, gives expert comment.
PEOPLE, PARTNERSHIPS AND EDUCATION
CBC News: 'Amazing honour': Edmonton BioWare founders receive Order of Canada
Ray Muzyka and Greg Zeschuk, '92 MD, co-founders of the internationally successful video-game software company BioWare, are among the 103 Canadians appointed this year to the Order of Canada. The pair were in medical school together at the University of Alberta before they founded BioWare with fellow student Augustine Yip.
Edmonton Journal: Lab-made meat: Edmonton startup hopes to break into growing industry
Future Fields is hoping to break through in the growing cultured meat industry by producing chicken products in a lab. The start-up was granted lab and office space through the UAlberta Health Accelerator program. Lead scientist and co-founder Matt Anderson-Baron, a cell biology PhD candidate at the U of A, is quoted.
CBC News: Tackling unconscious bias: U of A lectures give students a lesson in Indigenous health
A new three-part lecture series at the U of A focuses on gaps in health care for Canada's Indigenous people. MD student Brandon Zhao has helped organize the new series on Indigenous health intended for doctors-in-training at the university.
My Yellowknife Now: Health and Wellness presentation coming to Yellowknife
A presentation on the health and wellness of the Northwest Territories was held at the Yellowknife Museum in January. Sangita Sharma from the U of A's Indigenous and Global Health Research Group was a featured speaker.
The Gateway: How to be a superhero: A Q&A with neurosurgeon and citizen-scientist astronaut Shawna Pandya
Shawna Pandya's life reads like the origin story of a superhero before they get their powers. The Gateway interviewed Pandya last year while she was in Prince Albert, Saskatchewan completing her residency training in family medicine.
David Eisenstat, chair of the U of A's Department of Oncology, has been named to the Terry Fox Research Institute national executive as Alberta Node Leader.
The Gateway: Medical students lobby for improved organ donation rates
Medical students from the University of Alberta and the University of Calgary are pressing the provincial government to improve their track record on deceased organ donations.
Global News: Family Matters podcast recap
U of A family physician Stephanie Liu has launched her blog, Life of Dr. Mom, to offer an evidence-based alternative to the misinformation she found on many mom blogs.
Edmonton Journal: U of A students develop program to combat childhood obesity, mentor youth
A group of U of A students are hoping to put their studies into practice by leading a new physical activity program for Edmonton kids. Peter Anto Johnson, a graduate student in the Department of Pediatrics, came up with the idea of the program as a way to combine his interests-running and preventive health. The program, called Physical Literacy for Active Youth (PLAY), aims to address pediatric obesity, by promoting exercise and playing outdoors.
A new dental clinic run through the Boyle McCauley Health Centre will double the capacity for vulnerable Edmontonians and provide hands-on dental care experience for U of A students. The School of Dentistry raised $1.5 million to help pay for the expansion. Coverage also appears in Global News, CTV News, City News, Edmonton Sun and CBC News.