Albert Einstein College of Medicine has appointed nationally recognized education leader Yoon Kang, M.D., as its inaugural vice dean for education, following a national search.
Just as you can’t make an omelet without breaking eggs, scientists at Albert Einstein College of Medicine have found that you can’t make long-term memories without DNA damage and brain inflammation. Their surprising findings were published online today in the journal Nature.
As we age, our hematopoietic (blood-forming) stem cells (HSCs) become less able to produce new red and white blood cells and other vital blood components—contributing to chronic inflammation and accelerating the onset of blood cancers and degenerative diseases.
Researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine have found that the virus responsible for chikungunya fever can spread directly from cell to cell—perhaps solving the longstanding mystery of how the virus, now emerging as a major health threat, can manage to escape antibodies circulating in the bloodstream.
Albert Einstein College of Medicine and Montefiore Health System have announced a collaboration with Lehman College of the City University of New York (CUNY) to launch the Einstein Discover Research Program. This unique research experience provides hands-on laboratory and scientific training for students from groups historically underrepresented in science and medicine, resulting in Master of Science (M.S.) degrees from CUNY.
Helping your mother make pancakes when you were three…riding your bike without training wheels…your first romantic kiss: How do we retain vivid memories of long-ago events? As described in a paper published online on April 25 in Neuron, researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine have found the explanation.
Type 2 diabetes (T2D) is surging among U.S. children. The number of youths under age 20 living with the disease has nearly doubled between 2001 and 2017, and yet—aside from increases in childhood obesity—the reasons for this disturbing increase are not clear. The National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), has awarded the Children’s Hospital at Montefiore (CHAM) and Albert Einstein College of Medicine a six-year, $4.1 million grant to identify the biological and social factors that cause children and adolescents to develop the condition.
Albert Einstein College of Medicine has named Reginald Leon Hayes, B.S., B.Mus., M.Div., the assistant dean for diversity enhancement. In this role, Mr. Hayes will focus on promoting diversity, equity, and engagement for current and prospective medical students and those in Einstein’s pathway programs. Mr. Hayes began his new role in late January.
Neighborhood redevelopment, which transforms low-income neighborhoods through rezoning, new construction and renovation, can lead to health benefits, such as greater access to fresh produce, improved housing, and more green spaces. But these advantages may not extend to all area residents. More information is needed about the impact of redevelopment, also known as urban renewal, on health, particularly if it contributes to inequities among middle-aged and older adults.
Cardiology researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine and Montefiore Health System have received a five-year, $5.2 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to explore the underlying causes of heart failure among Hispanics/Latinos, who are at heightened risk for heart disease. Investigators will take a novel approach to assess risk: by simultaneously evaluating heart function and the relationship between the heart and the aorta, the large artery that conveys oxygen-rich blood from the heart’s left ventricle to the rest of the body.
Investigators at Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Montefiore Health System, Regenstrief Institute, and Indiana University School of Medicine have received an $11 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to evaluate an Einstein-developed test for assessing cognitive impairment and dementia.
Ulrich Steidl, M.D., Ph.D., an internationally recognized leader in cancer and stem cell biology, has been named the chair of the department of cell biology at Albert Einstein College of Medicine. Dr. Steidl assumes his new position as Arthur Skoultchi, Ph.D., who has led the department with distinction for 24 years, steps down from departmental leadership. Dr. Steidl is currently professor of cell biology, of oncology, and of medicine; interim director of the Ruth L. and David S. Gottesman Institute for Stem Cell Research and Regenerative Medicine; and the Edward P. Evans Endowed Professor for Myelodysplastic Syndromes at Einstein; and deputy director of Montefiore Einstein Cancer Center (MECC) and co-director of MECC’s Blood Cancer Institute.
The National Institutes of Health has awarded Albert Einstein College of Medicine a five-year, $6.6 million grant to lead a New York-based consortium of medical schools to train young scientists in kidney, urology, and hematology research.
Immune checkpoint inhibitors such as Keytruda and Opdivo work by unleashing the immune system’s T cells to attack tumor cells. Their introduction a decade ago marked a major advance in cancer therapy, but only 10% to 30% of treated patients experience long-term improvement. In a paper published online today in The Journal of Clinical Investigation (JCI), scientists at Albert Einstein College of Medicine describe findings that could bolster the effectiveness of immune-checkpoint therapy.
Albert Einstein College of Medicine has appointed national diversity innovator and emergency medicine physician Lynne M. Holden, M.D., senior associate dean for diversity and inclusion (D&I). Dr. Holden, a member of Einstein’s faculty since 1996, is an accomplished leader both within her medical discipline and in her efforts to help diversify the medical workforce.
Researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine have now received a five-year, $3.4 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to assess the tradeoffs between soccer’s aerobic brain benefits and the adverse effects from heading in a study employing neuroimaging, exercise testing, and cognitive testing.
Bronx county has the country’s fifth-highest rate of HIV diagnosis—but the lowest rate in New York State for use of HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), medications that are extremely effective in preventing HIV infection. Physician-researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine and Montefiore Health System have received a five-year, $4.2 million grant from the National Institutes of Health to compare two strategies for improving PrEP access and use in the Bronx.
Albert Einstein College of Medicine researchers have been awarded a five-year, $3.5 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to study the effects of COVID-19 on the brains of adults who had mild or asymptomatic infection. Using neuroimaging, cognitive, and immunological tests, the investigators will examine if SARS-CoV-2 infection induces lasting changes in the brain and affects neurocognitive function.
A mysterious form of diabetes known as malnutrition-related diabetes afflicts tens of millions of people in Asian and sub-Saharan African countries. Its victims—mainly thin and impoverished adolescents and young adults—rarely live more than a year after diagnosis. Their young age and thinness suggest type 1 diabetes (T1D), but insulin injections usually don’t help and can even cause death from low blood sugar. Nor do patients seem to have type 2 diabetes (T2D), which is typically associated with obesity.
The National Cancer Institute-designated Montefiore Einstein Cancer Center (MECC) has partnered with the Price Family Foundation to fund eight research teams developing novel cancer therapies and improving cancer outcomes for historically marginalized communities in the Bronx.
Approximately 1 in 50 people who suffer a traumatic brain injury (TBI) will develop post-traumatic epilepsy (PTE)—with the risk of PTE significantly higher in people with severe TBI. PTE is characterized by recurring seizures that begin a week or more after the brain injury, and there is currently no way to identify those at risk for developing PTE or to prevent its onset.
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has awarded Albert Einstein College of Medicine a five-year, $11.3 million grant to renew the Einstein-Rockefeller-CUNY Center for AIDS Research (ERC-CFAR) and expand its efforts to prevent, treat and cure HIV infection, and thereby reduce the burden of HIV, locally, nationally, and internationally.
CAR-T therapy, a form of immunotherapy that revs up T-cells to recognize and destroy cancer cells, has revolutionized the treatment of blood cancers, including certain leukemias, lymphomas, and most recently, multiple myeloma. However, Black and Hispanic people were largely absent from the major clinical trials that led to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval of CAR-T cell therapies.
Diagnosing Alzheimer's disease can be a complex and time-consuming process, requiring evaluations ranging from brain scans to cognitive and lab tests to reviews of medical history and symptoms. Simpler and faster ways to diagnose the disease are urgently needed. Researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine have been awarded a five-year, $4.2 million National Institutes of Health (NIH) grant to detect behavioral markers for Alzheimer’s that are present early in the course of the disease, before it can be clinically diagnosed. Results could help scientists identify people at risk for Alzheimer’s and related problems, such as falls, and lead to new preventive strategies.
To help address the rising tide of Alzheimer’s disease nationwide, researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine in collaboration with faculty at Pennsylvania State University and other institutions, have received a five-year, $32 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to support the ongoing Einstein Aging Study (EAS), which focuses on both normal aging and the special challenges of Alzheimer’s disease, and other dementias. EAS was established at Einstein in 1980 and has been continuously funded by the NIH.
New York State Health Commissioner Mary T. Bassett, M.D., M.P.H., will present the keynote address at Albert Einstein College of Medicine’s 2022 commencement. The ceremony will take place on Wednesday, May 25, 2022, at Carnegie Hall in New York City.
Cigarette smoking is overwhelmingly the main cause of lung cancer, yet only a minority of smokers develop the disease. A study led by scientists at Albert Einstein College of Medicine and published online today in Nature Genetics suggests that some smokers may have robust mechanisms that protect them from lung cancer by limiting mutations. The findings could help identify those smokers who face an increased risk for the disease and therefore warrant especially close monitoring.
The National Cancer Institute-designated Albert Einstein Cancer Center (AECC) has announced the appointment of three faculty members to key leadership positions, reflecting the center’s commitment to basic science, translational, and clinical research and its core principles of diversity, equity, and inclusion.
Revving up a process that slows down as we age may protect against atherosclerosis, a major cause of heart attacks and strokes. In findings published online today in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), scientists at Albert Einstein College of Medicine led by Ana Maria Cuervo, M.D., Ph.D., successfully minimized artery-narrowing plaque in mice that would otherwise develop those lesions. The researchers did so by boosting chaperone-mediated autophagy (CMA), a cellular housekeeping process that Dr. Cuervo discovered in 1993 and named in 2000.
Pancreatic cancer is notoriously difficult to cure or even treat. Now, a new strategy devised by scientists at Albert Einstein College of Medicine has succeeded in making pancreatic tumors visible to the immune systems of mice and vulnerable to immune attack, reducing cancer metastases by 87%. The paper describing the findings published online today in Science Translational Medicine.
In a demonstration of research excellence and entrepreneurial vision, faculty at Albert Einstein College of Medicine have secured two of the five 2022 XSeed Awards, which provide $100,000 in funding for each winning team to advance promising basic science findings that have startup potential. The theme of this year’s competition was neurodegeneration, with proposals offering novel approaches to address key questions about the pathogenesis, progression, diagnosis, or treatment of neurodegenerative diseases.
A research team led by scientists at Albert Einstein College of Medicine has devised a novel and highly promising strategy for overcoming a key cause of cancer deaths: the ability of cancer cells to thrive in the face of chemotherapy drugs designed to destroy them.
Prisons and jails have been fertile ground for COVID-19 outbreaks, leading to millions of cases in the United States. Individuals released from these facilities often transition to other congregate settings, such as homeless shelters and group homes, where COVID-19 infections can continue to spread. Now, Albert Einstein College of Medicine and Montefiore Health System have been awarded a five-year, $3.4 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to test a program aimed at reducing SARS- CoV-2 transmission among people recently released from incarceration.
Albert Einstein College of Medicine and Montefiore Health System have been awarded a three-year, $447,000 grant to grow their addiction medicine education and training programs for medical students and residents. The grant, from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), will fund a new curriculum focused on the diagnosis and care for people with opioid use disorder (OUD), including guidance about medications for addiction treatment (MAT), particularly buprenorphine.
Albert Einstein College of Medicine and Montefiore Health System have been awarded a National Institutes of Health (NIH) grant to establish a multidisciplinary research center focused on treatments for people with both chronic pain and opioid use disorder (OUD).
The Bronx is home to more than 27,000 people living with HIV, the majority of whom are Black or Hispanic men. People living with HIV have an increased risk for depression and substance use, which in turn can make adhering to daily antiviral treatments difficult, negatively impacting both quality of life and overall health.
Now, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) has awarded researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine and Montefiore Health System two five-year grants totaling $7.6 million to study the structural and chemical changes in the brain of people living with HIV, depression, and cannabis use disorder.
Most cancer patients who had no measurable immune response after being fully vaccinated for COVID-19 were helped by a third vaccine dose, according to a new study by investigators at the Montefiore Einstein Cancer Center (MECC). The findings, published online today in Cancer Cell, also show that a “booster” shot is extremely beneficial for all cancer patients, who face a heightened risk of severe disease and dying from COVID-19, and particularly in people who have a blood cancer.
As part of a recently launched international phase 3 clinical trial, Montefiore Health System and Albert Einstein College of Medicine are investigating whether the Merck antiviral pill, molnupiravir, now approved in Britain for treating COVID-19, can prevent COVID-19 in unvaccinated individuals living with people who have contracted the disease. Montefiore-Einstein is the first and only New York State site for the trial and was selected due to its diverse patient population and expertise in clinical trials of COVID-19 and other infectious diseases.
Ulrich G. Steidl, M.D., Ph.D., co-director of the Blood Cancer Institute and associate director of basic science at the Albert Einstein Cancer Center (AECC), has received a prestigious Outstanding Investigator Award from the National Cancer Institute (NCI).
Armed with a novel strategy they developed for bolstering the body’s immune response, scientists at Albert Einstein College of Medicine have successfully suppressed HIV infections in mice—offering a path to a functional cure for HIV and other chronic viral infections. Their findings were published today in the Journal of Clinical Investigation.
Albert Einstein College of Medicine has received a five-year, $4 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to support the New York Regional Center for Diabetes Translation Research (NY-CDTR). One of only seven such centers in the country and the only one in the Northeast, the NY-CDTR promotes collaboration and research on effective strategies to improve diabetes prevention, care, and self-management, with an emphasis on health equity.
The Bronx has been hit disproportionally by COVID-19. For caregivers in the borough, the pandemic has caused unprecedented psychological distress. In addition to existing health disparities, these families now face greater financial insecurity and challenges related to their school-aged children.
A new community-based approach to helping children manage their asthma symptoms will launch in up to 40 public, charter, and parochial schools across the Bronx, and enroll 416 students aged 4-12 years old. The five-year study, titled Evaluation of the Asthma Management Program to Promote Activity for Students in Schools (Asthma-PASS), is supported by a $4.2 million grant from the National Institutes of Health to Albert Einstein College of Medicine and the Children’s Hospital at Montefiore (CHAM).
Albert Einstein College of Medicine has received a five-year, $5 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to support the Rose F. Kennedy Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Research Center (RFK IDDRC), which has been at the forefront of research on normal and abnormal brain development for more than 50 years.
Faculty at Albert Einstein College of Medicine and clinicians at the Rose F. Kennedy Children’s Evaluation and Rehabilitation Center (CERC) at the Children’s Hospital at Montefiore have received three state and federal grants to address health disparities by promoting COVID-19 vaccination among people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD), their families, and caretakers in New York State.
Researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine and the City University of New York Graduate School of Public Health and Health Policy (CUNYSPH) have been awarded a five-year, $14.5 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to continue leading and expand their research on HIV treatment and care in five Central African nations.
International organizations and countries around the world are working to eliminate HIV/AIDS by 2030. To reach this goal, new approaches are needed—particularly among difficult-to-reach groups such as people who inject drugs (PWID), who are 30 times more likely to contract HIV/AIDS compared with the general population.
Today, Albert Einstein Cancer Center (AECC), Albert Einstein College of Medicine, and Montefiore Health System announced that Lauren Hackett, M.P.A., has been appointed the deputy director of administration of AECC and associate vice president of cancer medicine at Montefiore Medicine. Ms. Hackett, who is currently the chief operating officer at the Allen Institute, will assume her new roles in August 2021.
Albert Einstein Cancer Center (AECC), Albert Einstein College of Medicine, and Montefiore Health System today announced that leading cancer biologist Julio Aguirre-Ghiso, Ph.D., has been named founding director of the Cancer Dormancy and Tumor Microenvironment Institute (CDTMI), director of the Gruss-Lipper Biophotonics Center, and co-leader of the AECC Tumor Microenvironment and Metastasis Program. He will also be an endowed professor of cell biology at Einstein. He will assume his new roles on October 1, 2021.