Focus: Hidden - Maryland

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Risk of developing age-related macular degeneration higher in patients with AIDS Denver, Colo. – Patients with acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) have a four-fold increase in their risk of developing intermediate-stage age-related macular degeneration (AMD) compared to people of the same age who are not infected with HIV, according to results from the Longitudinal Study of the Ocular Complications of AIDS (LSOCA). The research is being presented at the 2015 Annual Meeting of the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (ARVO) this week in Denver, Colo.

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Researchers have identified a genetic link between schizophrenia and strabismus, a condition involving misalignment of the eyes. The research is being presented at the 2015 Annual Meeting of the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (ARVO) this week in Denver, Colo.

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Researchers have determined that the three-dimensional organization of DNA in photoreceptor cells plays a crucial role in their function. The research is being presented at the 2015 Annual Meeting of the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (ARVO) this week in Denver, Colo.

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As the realities of legalized marijuana take hold in four states and the District of Columbia, legislators and regulators could learn a lot from the successes – and failures – of the tobacco and alcohol industries in keeping their harmful products out of the hands of children and adolescents.

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A cross-institutional team of researchers have identified a signaling substance (MuIS) that may predict patients who will have poor muscle regeneration outcomes following hip surgery. Testing patients for the presence of MuIS before surgery may help clinicians better plan for those who will need more intensive rehab post-surgery.

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Leber congenital amaurosis (LCA) is an inherited disorder that causes vision loss starting in childhood. This is the latest report from an ongoing clinical trial of gene therapy for the disorder, funded by the National Eye Institute (NEI), part of the National Institutes of Health.

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Investigators have discovered a new class of drugs that may more effectively treat retinoblastoma, a cancer of the retina that develops in children. The research is being presented at the 2015 Annual Meeting of the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (ARVO) this week in Denver, Colo.

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Shifting detection to even earlier than currently used tests, scientists have used vection to identify mild glaucoma. The research is being presented at the 2015 Annual Meeting of the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (ARVO) this week in Denver, Colo.

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Researchers have developed a new method of purifying stem cells that is faster, more efficient and less expensive than current methods for treating diseases of the retina. The research is being presented at the 2015 Annual Meeting of the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (ARVO) this week in Denver, Colo. The new stem cell purification process involves growing stem cells on a special chip containing a computer system. Each stem cell is monitored closely, and the lower quality cells are removed as soon as they are identified.

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Five bold projects will develop new technology to noninvasively image cells of the eye in unprecedented detail. The National Eye Institute (NEI) announced the awards as part of its Audacious Goals Initiative. NEI has committed $3.8 million to the projects in 2015 and up to $17.9 million over the next five years, pending the availability of funds. NEI is part of the National Institutes of Health.

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The following articles are freely available online from Physics Today (www.physicstoday.org), the world's most influential and closely followed magazine devoted to physics and the physical science community.

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A new study by Johns Hopkins researchers concludes that most U.S. clinical registries that collect data on patient outcomes are substandard and lack critical features necessary to render the information they collect useful for patients, physicians and policy makers.

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Oxidative stress has been long known to fuel disease, but how exactly it damages various organs has been challenging to sort out. Now scientists from Johns Hopkins say research in mice reveals why oxidation comes to be so corrosive to heart muscle.

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Bats fly with breathtaking precision because their wings are equipped with highly sensitive touch sensors, cells that respond to even slight changes in airflow, researchers demonstrated.

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The Johns Hopkins Berman Institute of Bioethics will enroll its first class of master’s degree students in Fall 2015, offering a multidisciplinary Master of Bioethics (MBE) program for full-time and part-time students.

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The Genetics Society of America (GSA) and Executive Producer Rochelle Easton Esposito, PhD, are pleased to announce that Conversations in Genetics, an oral history of our intellectual heritage in genetics, is now available for free online viewing at http://www.genestory.org/.

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Studying fruit fly larvae, Janelia scientists have mapped the entire neural circuit involved in combining vibration and pain sensations used in triggering an escape behavior.

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ARVO is combining presentations from some of the top researchers in TBI with perspectives from three blinded U.S. military veterans, who will share their stories of vision loss as a result of TBI suffered in combat situations. The vets’ presentation will be followed by a moderated Q&A/ discussion, in which attendees are encouraged to participate. Former NFL running back Terrell Davis will speak about the need for more research to support veterans, athletes and others whose lives have been devastated by TBI.

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Joan Miller, MD, FARVO and Napoleone Ferrara, MD, will present on their pioneering work on the protein VEGF, which ultimately led to treatment for age-related macular degeneration and diabetic retinopathy at the ARVO 2015 Annual Meeting in Denver. Miller and Ferrara are among seven recipients of the $1.3 million António Champalimaud Vision Award, the world’s highest distinction in ophthalmology and visual science, for their pioneering work to treat AMD and diabetic retinopathy, the leading cause of blindness in people over age 50.

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Ian Crozier, an infectious disease specialist, signed on with the World Health Organization and arrived in Kenema, Sierra Leone to help in the fight against the Ebola outbreak in August 2014. Within a few weeks, he himself contracted the disease and was evacuated to Emory University Hospital in Atlanta in critical condition. Crozier and physicians will share their perspective at ARVO 2015 closing session.

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Doctoral nursing student Lorenzo Nava earns Fulbright Scholarship; will look at obesity in South Korea and how nations can grow wealthier without health concerns that can come with it.

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Children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, or ADHD, are significantly more likely to have an eating disorder — a loss of control eating syndrome (LOC-ES) — akin to binge eating, a condition more generally diagnosed only in adults, according to results of a new Johns Hopkins Children’s Center study.

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Scientists report that a new study of HIV-infected men in Uganda has identified a temporary, but potentially troublesome unintended consequence of the procedure: a possible increased risk of infecting female sexual partners while circumcision wounds heal.

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A one-day conference examining the state of the science on post-traumatic stress disorder and suicidality among U.S. military service members and veterans will take place on May 4, 2015.

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Current public health guidelines recommend that only gay men and people with HIV should be routinely screened for extragenital gonorrhea and chlamydia, given the high burden of these sexually transmitted infections (STIs) in this at-risk population.

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The first study of its kind evaluating ordering patterns of children’s meals when provided with healthier menu items and changes in restaurant revenues shows potential for both improved children’s health and restaurant growth. This study, published in The Obesity Society’s scientific journal Obesity, shows promise for other restaurateurs looking to promote healthy eating among children while remaining competitive in the marketplace.

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The secret desire of urban daydreamers staring out their office windows at the sad brick walls of the building opposite them may soon be answered thanks to transparent light shutters developed by a group of researchers in South Korea. A novel liquid crystal technology allows displays to flip between transparent and opaque states -- hypothetically letting you switch your view in less than a millisecond from urban decay to the Chesapeake Bay.

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A team of researchers from National Tsing Hua University and the National Health Research Institutes in Taiwan has developed a technique to more effectively grow and screen embryos prior to implantation.

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A new technique for visualizing the rapidly changing electronic structures of atomic-scale materials as they twist, tumble and traipse across the nanoworld is taking shape at the California Institute of Technology. There, researchers have for the first time successfully combined two existing methods to visualize the structural dynamics of a thin film of graphite.

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From noise in buildings and open park spaces to musical instruments, human voices and the vocalizations of animals on the ground, in the air and underwater, the science of sound is all around. The world's largest scientific meeting devoted to this fascinating, many-faceted field of acoustics will take place next month in Pittsburgh.

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Trillions of microorganisms inhabit us—inside and out. Scientists are surveying these microbial metropolises to learn more about their role in health. Here are a few details of what researchers have learned so far.

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Over the last seven years, thousands of undergraduate students have sequenced and analyzed the genomes of bacteria-infecting viruses, known as bacteriophages. Those genomes are now the focal point of a new study that examined the genetic diversity of 627 phages isolated from a single species of bacteria. The study shows a continuum of genetic diversity rather than discrete groups within the population of bacteriophages studied.

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An NIBIB grantee has developed an ultrafast camera that can acquire two-dimensional images at 100 billion frames per second, a speed capable of revealing light pulses and other phenomena previously too fast to be observed.

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In chemotherapy drug handling, hepatitis identification and treatment, and beating back superbugs, nurses crunch the numbers and take the lead.

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Janelia Research Campus scientists have found that a set of neurons is responsible for the unpleasant feelings associated with hunger. The neurons do not drive an animal to eat, but rather teach an animal to respond to sensory cues that signal the presence of food.

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Review concludes that intramuscular injection of testerosterone replacement therapy confers greater health benefits and lower cardiovascular risks than transdermal administration by skin patch or gel.

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Scientists have discovered that neurons are risk takers: They use minor “DNA surgeries” to toggle their activity levels all day, every day. Since these activity levels are important in learning, memory and brain disorders, the researchers think their finding will shed light on a range of important questions.

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The peak time for seeking information on topics related to HIV, such as prevention and testing, is at the beginning of the week, while risky sexual behaviors tend to increase on the weekends, according to a new analysis by researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and the Monday Campaigns.

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Stroke is a frequent and dreaded complication of atrial fibrillation. But predicting which of the estimated six million Americans with a-fib are at highest risk has long challenged physicians weighing stroke risk against the serious side effects posed by lifelong therapy with warfarin and other blood thinners.

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Researchers performing sophisticated motion studies of heart MRI scans have found that specific altered function in the left atrium of the heart may signal stroke risk in those with atrial fibrillation and, possibly, those without it.

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Tick-borne diseases are a major public health problem around the world. Now, just in time for spring and the explosion of ticks in forests, lawns and trails, a new study by researchers from China and the University of Maryland School of Medicine has uncovered a never-before-seen illness transmitted by ticks. It’s possible that the disease could be a “substantial health threat” to humans and animals in areas where the carrier tick is common, the authors say.

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To accommodate 21st century ethical concerns and begin resolving discordant approaches to medical ethics training, scholars from leading medical schools across the United States have issued updated education recommendations in the journal Academic Medicine.

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Researchers from Drexel University demonstrate that ultrasound can increase the rate at which heart cells beat and describe the settings that can do so most effectively.

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Researchers look at which form of exercise—strength, endurance or a combination of both—work best in tandem with diet to reduce weight and change body composition among obese study participants. Results are published in the Journal of Applied Physiology.

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A Johns Hopkins engineer, supported by a major NIH grant, is leading a multi-institution team that wants to keep bacterial infections from dodging the dwindling arsenal of drugs that destroy the deadly microbes.

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NASA and ESA are celebrating the Hubble Space Telescope's silver anniversary of 25 years in space by unveiling some of nature's own fireworks - a giant cluster of about 3,000 stars called Westerlund 2.

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Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health researchers say that while a large majority of newborns are exposed in their earliest days to bisphenol A (BPA), a much-studied chemical used in plastics and in food and soda can linings, they can chemically alter and rid their bodies of it.

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At 1pm EDT on Fri., April 24, classrooms across the nation will be able to participate in the Hubble Space Telescope's 25th anniversary in a national "teach-in" sponsored by STScI in Baltimore, Maryland. Watch on YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XHD1pR4Ma1w . For detailed information on how to participate in the event, visit http://hubble25th.org/go/Teach-In .

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Children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, or ADHD, are significantly more likely to have an eating disorder — a loss of control eating syndrome (LOC-ES) — akin to binge eating, a condition more generally diagnosed only in adults, according to results of a new Johns Hopkins Children’s Center study. The findings, reported ahead of print April 9 in the International Journal of Eating Disorders, suggest a common biological mechanism linking the two disorders, and the potential for developing treatment that works for both.