Researchers from around the state of Ohio met today at the 34th annual Ohio Physiological Society meeting to discuss their research. Although many of the presentations were not on comparative physiology topics, I found some particularly interesting and thought I would share them with you anyway. Here goes:
Dr. Katherine Vest and her research team (Kierra Ware, Yu Zhang, Thomas Whitlow) from the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine presented their research on copper. Did you know that copper is important in many physiological processes in the body? Copper homeostasis is important because too little or too much copper can result in disease. Too little copper can cause Menkes disease resulting in muscle weakness. The team presented research focused on the importance of copper regulation in maintaining healthy muscles.
Another condition marked by muscle weakness and muscle loss is the genetic disease GNE myopathy. Bri Giones et al., (Mount St. Joseph University) presented data collected under the direction of Dr. Kelly Crowe on their search for biomarkers to assess therapies for the condition.
Thomas Kwiatkowski et al. from Ohio State University (under the direction of Dr. Noah Weisleder) presented their research on developing therapies to help repair muscle in conditions such as muscular dystrophy or muscle injury.
Soham Parikh, Courtney Sulentic and Sharmila Mukhopadhyay (Wright State University) presented their research on developing novel bio-mimetic scaffolds to help promote wound healing.
Lubna Abu-Niaaj, Greg Harris and Sarah Pixley (University of Cincinnati) presented research exploring the use of magnesium-based materials that are biodegradable as a novel way to help repair nerves following an injury.
Christopher Waker, Thomas Brown and Robert Lober (Wright State University) discussed their work searching for potential treatments for fatal brain tumors.
Ameet et al., (University of Cincinnati) under the direction of Dr. Laura Conforti, discussed a potential new approach to treating lupus with the help of nanoparticles. Similarly, Danielle Spanbauer, Sarah Williams, and Thomas Brown (Wright State University) are exploring the use of nanoparticles to deliver treatments to specific targets in the body. In particular, they are hoping to use this method to target the placenta in cases of preeclampsia.
Source:
Ohio Physiological Society
Categories: Aging, Comparative Physiology, Diet and Exercise, Nature's Solutions, Physiology on the Road
Tags: American Physiological Society, biomimetic, Copper, dystrophy, genetic, glioma, injury, lupus, Menkes, muscle, myopathy, nanoparticles, nerve, Ohio, physiology, preeclampsia, repair
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