A Report on Discoveries and Achievements at the University of California
Volume 6, Number 5, March 1998
The following is a glimpse of some recent achievements by the faculty,students and staff of the University of California
NAS Awards . . . Two UC researchers have been selected by the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) to receive awards next month for their outstanding contributions to science. UC San Diego professor of political science, Arthur W. Lupia, will receive the NAS Award for Initiatives in Research for his work promoting the importance of political decision-making by voters, legislators and jurors. Thomas Dunne, a professor at UC Santa Barbara’s School of Environmental Science and Management will be awarded the G.K. Warren Prize for his noteworthy research of geologic problems including surface erosion and snowmelt runoff.
Collider Collaboration . . . About a dozen physicists, engineers and technicians from UC Santa Cruz are among those who will participate in an international scientific collaboration to build the Large Hadron Collider, a new high-energy particle accelerator and associated detectors near Geneva, Switzerland. The United States is one of several non-European nations participating in the project, which include Japan, Canada and Russia.
El Niño On-Line . . . A Web site created by the UC Davis Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources is helping soggy California residents cope with the onslaught of El Nino-related storms. The Natural Disaster Information Web Page, which features substantial flood-preparation and flood-cleanup educational information, was put together by a variety of university sources and includes links to organizations such as the American Red Cross and FEMA.
Fat and Cholesterol . . . While Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory researcher Ronald Krauss recommends that people maintain a watchful eye on their fat intake, his study suggests not everyone benefits from a low fat diet. Krauss’ data revealed although one third of the U.S. population experiences lower cholesterol levels with a low fat diet, another one third does not benefit and the remaining one third may actually increase their risk of heart disease with such a diet. Krauss found this phenomenon is due to genetics and highlights the necessity to tailor people’s diets to match the needs of their genetic profiles and risk factors.
Contact Lens Health . . . A common bacterium known to cause eye infections or injured corneas has now been found to damage the healthy eye if it stays in contact long enough. These findings raise concerns about the use of long-wear contact lenses, especially ones about to enter the market which can be worn for a month or longer. Suzanne Fleiszig, a microbiologist at the School of Optometry at UC Berkeley, found that several strains of a bacterium called Pseudomonas aeruginosa are more aggressive than had originally been thought. In Fleiszig’s studies, the damage from this bacterium progresses rapidly, causing damage to the cornea within three hours.
Cancer and Obesity Treatment . . . Researchers at UCLA’s Jonsson Cancer Center have discovered in the laboratory a way to block a specific protein called Stat3, which serves as a messenger for three hormone-like substances that regulate growth and other biological functions in cancer, fat and immune cells. Their findings show promise for designing new treatments and diagnostic techniques for blood, breast, lung and bladder cancers, as well as obesity. Ke Shuai, assistant professor in the Division of Hematology-Oncology, led the study.
Potent Pine Bark . . . An extract of pine bark has proven to be one of the most potent antioxidants, a property that may explain why pine bark has been used in folk medicine around the world for hundreds of years. Lester Packer, a professor of molecular and cell biology at UC Berkeley, screened many natural compounds for antioxidant activity and found that pine bark extract, marketed as Pycnogenol, is the most potent of the lot. Used as a health food supplement, Pycnogenol has been used to stave off diseases from stroke to Alzheimer’s and improve circulation and the effects of aging. Packer found it extended the lifetime of vitamin C in the body, prolonging its beneficial effects as an antioxidant.
Diagnosing Alzheimer’s . . . A new UC San Francisco study suggests non-invasive magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) might increase the likelihood of making an early diagnosis of Alzheimer’s Disease. Through the use of MRI, Michael Weiner, a professor of medicine, radiology and psychiatry, found doctors can examine two alterations in the brain’s hippocampus, the center of memory and cognitive thinking. While a precise diagnosis of Alzheimer’s Disease currently can only be made after the patient dies and autopsy is performed, Weiner’s study suggests doctors can use the results of an MRI scan to predict the onset of the disease much earlier.
Broccoli Therapy . . . In case you needed more motivation to eat broccoli, UC Berkeley researchers have found that one of the chemicals in the green cruciferous vegetable may actually help treat breast cancer. Gary Firestone, a molecular endocrinologist in UC Berkeley’s Cancer Research Laboratory, found the chemical indole-3-carbinol, a component of broccoli and similar vegetables, halts the growth of breast cancer cells without killing normal cells, an attribute that may make it a good cancer therapy in combination with drugs.
Map to Discovery . . . With a helping hand from Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory researchers, two international teams of biomedical scientists have discovered the gene that causes a rare hereditary disorder called Peutz-Jeghers syndrome. The lab’s Human Genome Center provided both teams with the map and clones of DNA for the section of chromosome 19 that contained the gene that predisposes an individual to cancer in many different organs. People born with this syndrome typically develop precancerous polyps in the intestines in their teen years or later.
Protein Mystery Solved . . . A 30 year quest to solve the structure of one of the most important types of proteins in a living cell has been achieved by scientists at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. By creating the first 3-dimensional atomic model of tubulin, a protein that makes such vital life processes as cell division possible, biophysicists Eva Nogales, Sharon Wolf and Kenneth Downing were then able to take a detailed look at tubulin. It included the site where the protein interacts with taxol, an anti-cancer drug derived from the yew tree, which is used in ovarian cancer.
Vessel Replacement . . . In the first successful attempt to make engineered tissue without synthetic scaffolding, a team of researchers at UC San Diego has created a blood vessel made entirely from human cells. The blood vessel displays the function, look and feel of real tissue and could be used for patients who need coronary bypass surgery, or bypass surgery to replace clogged arteries in the legs. The research was headed by Nicolas L’Heureux, a bioengineering post-doctoral fellow.
Synthetic Speech . . . A 3-dimensional, computerized talking head nicknamed "Baldi" is helping hearing-impaired children learn to speak. UC Santa Cruz psychology professor Dominic Massaro and his former student, Michael Cohen, created the cyberhead, which resembles an animated mannequin with moving eyes, brows and mouth. These features provide the visual cues that are a critical part of speech comprehension. The advanced software is expected on the market next year.
Detecting Prions . . . UC San Francisco researchers have made an important advance in the ability to detect prions, the infectious protein that causes "mad cow" disease. The scientists, led by Fred E. Cohen, Stephen J. DeArmond and 1997 Nobel Prize winner, Stanley B. Prusiner, have developed a genetically engineered test mouse that responds much more quickly, reliably and sensitively to the infectious protein than current techniques. The finding could improve the capacity to screen human food, cosmetics and medicinal products for prions, carried by contaminated cows.
Regrowing Bone . . . A new technique to treat bone death in human hips that early results suggest may prevent the need for a total hip replacement was developed by UCLA orthopedic surgeon Jay Lieberman. Osteoregeneration implants a capsule filled with bone-morphogenetic protein, which induces the body to grow new bone.
Information Images . . . A new technique developed by a team of UC San Diego astrophysicists led by Rick Puetter, has made it possible to sift through images for information. The technique, called the "Pixon method," is designed to mathematically extract in the most concise way all the relevant information contained in an image, while tossing out irrelevant electronic matter, technically known as noise. This technique will bring exquisite detail to any image, whether it is an exploding star, an X-ray or family portrait.
Finding Bad Genes . . . A faster method of finding genes in humans that may cause cancer and other diseases has been developed by UCLA Jonsson Cancer Center’s Stanley Nelson. The new procedure, aided by a machine called the DNA scanner, is faster, more efficient and cheaper than any other method for finding predictive genes.
Pollution Busters . . . Cattails and wetland vegetation planted to beautify barren land near a Bay Area oil refinery have put themselves to work as effective pollution busters. According to a new UC Berkeley study led by plant biologist Norman Terry, the wetland is pulling 89 percent of the toxic chemical selenium from millions of gallons of wastewater flowing daily from the refinery and removing it before the dangerous contaminant can reach the San Francisco Bay. Such wetlands could revolutionize water treatment and be a breakthrough environmental advance throughout the western United States, where soils are high in selenium.
Not From Mars . . . Organic material contained in a meteorite once heralded as bearing signs of previous life on Mars is actually from Earth. Scientists at UC San Diego’s Scripps Institution of Oceanography were the first to find the potato-sized rock was actually contaminated by the surrounding Antarctic ice in which it was found. Jeff Bada, a professor of marine chemistry, led the research team.
A Mammoth Find . . . Workers recently uncovered the fossilized remains of a 10,000- to 75,000-year-old mammoth within the three-story deep excavation for the 21st National Ignition Facility at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. Seven ribs, a shoulder bone, skull, jawbone, vertebrae and tusk were found amidst the sandy soil of what is believed to have been an ancient streambed. The bones are undergoing preservation and are expected to be placed under the curatorship of the UC Museum of Paleontology in Berkeley.
Bacteria Battle Pollutants . . . Ordinary bacteria that live on plant roots were transformed into pollution-busters after UC Irvine biochemical and chemical engineer Thomas Wood altered a gene. The high-powered bacteria interacts with the roots and break down trichloroethylene, a common solvent contaminating soil and ground water. Since no additional chemicals were used in the process, this method promises to be a cheaper way to clean up hazardous sites.
Using Water Efficiently . . . Growers across California are using the state’s valuable water resources more efficiently by adopting drip irrigation and micro-sprinkler systems, according to a major survey by the UC Centers for Water and Wildlife Resources. At the same time, many state farmers are adopting fertilizer management practices that help reduce the risk of water contamination due to leaching of nitrogen to ground water reserves. But UC Riverside soil physicist John Letey found it has not translated into a reduction in the amount of fertilizer applied.
Cosmic Simulations . . . Video display simulations of the evolution of galactic structure in the universe, carried out by speedy supercomputers, has been produced by a UC Santa Cruz team of researchers led by cosmologist Joel Primack. The video allows astrophysicists to compare theoretical models that use different assumptions about the types of matter composing the universe.
Shrinking Oil Rigs . . . A consortium of oil and gas producing and service companies is backing the Los Alamos National Laboratory’s development of scaled-down drilling equipment that will improve the oil industry’s ability to detect, monitor and recover more oil from existing reservoirs. Geoengineers will assemble and test the hardware required to cut small-diameter boreholes and insert miniaturized sensors to measure pressure, temperature and other clues to the underground conditions. Long-term sensors to monitor depleted reservoirs will be cheaper and more environmentally friendly than standard rigs.
Sexual Attitudes . . . Ongoing UC Irvine research shows that when it comes to attitudes about extramarital sex, the much-hyped sexual revolution did little to undo American adults’ conservative nature. UCI sociologist Judith Treas compares Americans’ views with those of other countries and found that Americans are markedly more non-permissive in their attitudes towards sex outside marriage than such countries as Sweden, most European nations and Russia.
The Naked Truth . . . UC Riverside creative writing lecturer Judy Kronenfeld has placed the themes of clothing and nakedness in Shakespeare’s play, King Lear, and put it in historical cultural perspective. This was done to explore the complex nuances of clothing and nakedness in sermons, legislation and morality plays during the English Reformation period.
Gambling Risks . . . The widespread increase of legalized gambling in the U.S. over the last decade has been linked to higher suicide rates in major gaming communities such as Las Vegas, Reno and Atlantic City. These cities experienced resident and visitor suicide rates four times higher than their counterparts in non-gaming communities. This finding, based on research by UC San Diego sociologist David Phillips, is the first large-scale, statistical investigation to find a strong link between gambling and suicide.
Sobering News . . . People who abstain from drinking alcohol are not at any greater risk for premature death than those who are light drinkers, according to a new analysis conducted by a team of researchers in the UC San Francisco School of Nursing led by Kaye Fillmore. The analysis provides new information in the ongoing controversy regarding the health benefits of light drinking versus abstaining.
TV Violence . . . Violence continued to decline in network TV series and stabilized in most other programming, but a new source of intense violence called “shockumentary” reality-based specials has increased dramatically. This according to the third annual UCLA Television Violence Report authored by Jeffrey Cole, director of the UCLA Center for Communication Policy.
Capturing Gamma Rays . . . UC Riverside researchers have been awarded a two-year, $1 million grant from the W.M. Keck Foundation of Los Angeles to build a gamma ray telescope to study objects like black holes, pulsars and rapidly moving neutron stars.
Government Grant . . . UCLA’s Ailee Moon, an associate professor of social welfare at the School of Public Policy and Social Research, was awarded a four-year, $1.29 million grant to evaluate the effectiveness of federally funded programs in California that seek to keep at-risk families intact and children out of foster care.
Huntsman Award . . . Russ Davis, professor of oceanography at UC San Diego’s Scripps Institution of Oceanography, was awarded the A.G. Huntsman Award from Canada’s Bedford Institute of Oceanography. Davis was cited in the physical/chemical oceanography category for his contributions to the development of observational and theoretical tools for the exploration of the large-scale ocean circulation.
Research Lecturer . . . UC Santa Barbara literary scholar Richard Helgerson has been named UCSB’s Faculty Research Lecturer for 1998. The highest honor bestowed upon a faculty member by his or her colleagues, the lectureship recognizes extraordinary, scholarly distinction.
AAAS President . . . M.R.C. Greenwood, chancellor of UC Santa Cruz, was installed as president of the American Association of Science, a non-profit professional society dedicated to the advancement of scientific and technological excellence across all disciplines.
Promising Fellows . . . Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory physicists Dick Lee and Max Tabak have been elected fellows of the American Physical Society for their outstanding contributions to physics.
Compiled by Communications Services, Office of the President, Larissa.Branin@ucop.edu