A Sampling of Clips for 
July 28, 2006

* UCSD faculty and staff may obtain a copy of an article by e-mailing the University Communications Office

Study Promises
Better Drug Delivery to Fight ALS
Forbes, July 27 -- Drugs to treat amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) can be delivered to the brain and spinal cord through cerebrospinal fluid, UCSD researchers report. Working with rats, researchers delivered therapeutic molecules called antisense oligonucleotides to the brain and spinal cord through cerebrospinal fluid. They were able to do so at doses that slowed the progression of ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig's disease. More

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Guam's Deadly Stalker:
On the Loose Worldwide?
Science, July 28 -- The case has taken more twists and turns than the most convoluted episode of the hit TV series “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation.” The killer, a fatal neurological disorder that paralyzes some victims and robs others of their minds, preyed on the Chamorro people of Guam for more than a century. Then, beginning in the 1950s, it began to retreat. Certain that something in the environment was behind the outbreak, researchers have beaten a path to the Western Pacific island in hopes that unmasking the culprit would offer clues to a mystery of profound importance: the role of environmental factors in neurodegenerative diseases around the world. (Quotes Douglas Galasko, a neurologist at UCSD, who oversees an ALS-PDC research project on Guam funded by the U.S. National Institutes of Health) More

Land of Extremes: Prevention
and Care Range From Bold to Bleak
Science, July 28 --In contrast to other countries in Latin America and the Caribbean, which tend to downplay the extent of the spread of HIV among men, Mexico candidly reports that the primary driver of its epidemic is men who have sex with men--many of whom do not consider themselves gay or bisexual. Since 2003, the government has also had a policy of universal access to antiretroviral drugs, and this year the government reported that everyone who has been identified with advanced disease is receiving treatment. (Mentions research by UCSD) More

Obesity, Blood Glucose
Tied to Enlarged Prostate
Reuters, July 27 -- BPH, or benign prostate hyperplasia, is a common condition in older men, but the risk of developing the condition seems to be increased by obesity and high blood sugar levels, researchers report. "BPH is a significant public health problem," Dr. J. Kellogg Parsons from UCSD told Reuters Health. "Our findings suggest that, with the current epidemics of obesity and diabetes, BPH will pose an even greater problem in the near future." More

New Type of Volcano Pops Up
Live Science, July 28 -- A series of mysterious eruptions in the western Pacific could be caused by a new type of volcano, a new study suggests. These small volcanoes may be widespread on ocean floors where the mantle just under the crust is squeezed out by tectonic forces when one plate moves under another, the researchers explained."The possibility of this type of volcanism had been proposed in the past, but had never been adequately documented," said study co-author Naoto Hirano of Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UCSD. More

Scientist: Inject Sulfur
into Air to Battle Global Warming
Live Science, July 28 -- One way to curb global warming is to purposely shoot sulfur into the atmosphere, a scientist suggested today. Injecting sulfur into the second atmospheric layer closest to Earth would reflect more sunlight back to space and offset greenhouse gas warming, according to Nobel laureate Paul Crutzen from the Max Planck Institute for Chemistry in Germany and the Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UCSD. More

Apocalypse in Progress
LA Weekly, July 26 -- The morning I talked to Daniel Pinchbeck over the phone from his home in New York, much of New England was submerged in floods. A week or two later, researchers at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography released the news that a warming planet had increased wildfires fourfold, and one more set of scientists blamed last year’s rash of hurricanes on rising temperatures in the Gulf of Mexico. More

A Hard Look at Aerosols
Christian Science Monitor, July 27 -- If you are concerned about man-made climate change, keep an eye on aerosol pollution. The concentrations of tiny particles, called aerosols, that float in the global atmosphere are on the rise. And so, the aerosol hunt is on. (Mentions research by Chul Eddy Chung and Veerabhadran Ramanathan at Scripps Institution of Oceanography) More

Lebanese Culture on Display
San Diego Union-Tribune, July 28 -- While recent photos of Lebanon depict a nation in turmoil, more than 400 San Diegans gathered last night to take a look at a different side of the Middle East nation: its art, entertainment and culture. Andrew Chammas, a 20-year-old UCSD biology student who returned from Lebanon on Monday, said the gathering was a chance to show off an aspect of the country that does not get much attention. More

UCSD to Lead Research Effort
The San Diego Daily Transcript, July 27, 2006 – UCSD will lead a five-year research project as part of a major bi-national initiative to improve survival from cardiac arrest and severe trauma, the school announced Thursday. More

Strategic Eyes Set
on UCSD Arts & Humanities Department
Golden Triangle News, July 27 -- UCSD has been referred to as the “Caltech of the UC system.” Engineering, biomedical science, physical science, information technology — this is where it’s at. So, how does the Arts and Humanities Division fare in the mix? Surprisingly well. While UCSD lacks New York City’s reputation in theatre and dance, the department is ranked third in the nation, after New York University and Yale University. New Media Arts ranks sixth in the nation. More

UCSD Awards
$1 Million Water-quality Contract
San Diego Daily Transcript, July 26 -- The San Diego office of international engineering services company AMEC has been awarded a four-year, $1 million-plus contract by UCSD for water-quality monitoring at Scripps Institution of Oceanography. More

Community Clinics Score Well in Health Study
North County Times, July 27 -- Community health clinics have done a better job than has been appreciated in helping the uninsured and reducing expensive trips to emergency rooms, according to a draft study of San Diego County's health care "safety net." (Mentions UCSD Medical Center) More

Jury Convicts Man of Murdering Wife
San Diego Union-Tribune, July 28 -- A Kensington man who fatally stabbed one of his two wives testified he covered up the killing because he thought police wouldn't believe he acted in self-defense. (Quotes John Wixted, a professor of psychology at UCSD) More