14 Nov 2010, Posted by Christina Pena in News, 0 Comments
Researchers at the Duke Medical Center have possibly identified a biomarker that measures the progress in breast cancer chemoprevention trials, according to the American Association for Cancer Research.
The researchers tested for protein network signaling in breast cells from woman at high risk for breast cancer. The analysis found three signaling pathways—Akt/mTOR/PI3K/cSrc, EGFR/MEK/ERK and HER2/bcl-2—that indicate an increased risk of getting breast cancer.
If these molecular signals were targeted by drugs, the rate of increased risk of breast cancer could be lowered.
“No one expects to get cancer, so we can’t measure the rate of people who do not get cancer as a measure of success,” Victoria Seewaldt, lead researcher and director of the prevention program at Duke University Comprehensive Cancer Center told AACR. ”The trials would need to be at least 20,000 patients. By identifying this biomarker, we can set up trials that would only need 200 patients.”
14 Nov 2010, Posted by Ziwen Deng in News, 0 Comments
Around a hundred students walked out of the Reynolds Theater on Thursday feeling a little more empowered to make a change in the world—or at least throw plastics in the recycling bin.
Jeff Corwin, best known from his show The Jeff Corwin Experience on Animal Planet, delivered a simple but memorable address about the importance of conservation.
His 90 minute lecture centered around conserving the world’s resources and protecting the wildlife that remains. The crowd was clearly drawn by Corwin’s down-to-earth style; they could be heard gasping or laughing with each anecdote that he told.
He spoke of some first-hand tragedies he witnessed while journeying through various habitats, including the disappearance of the last species of the golden Panama frogs.
Some frightening statistics were also used to emphasize his point.
“Sumatra’s forests are going to disappear within ten years,” Corwin said. “And Louisiana is going to lose all of its swamplands in forty or fifty years.”
After the presentation and a brief Q&A, Corwin invited Duke students to reach out locally, both on and off-campus, to address the environmental concerns he listed.
09 Nov 2010, Posted by Christina Pena in News, 0 Comments
Author Pauli Murray’s former home was spruced up by approximately 30 volunteers in the West End this Saturday.
College students, local residents and other volunteers cleaned up her home as a part of a eight-year broader community revitalization effort.
But, Murray, for many— like Barbara Lau—director of Duke University’s Human Rights Center Pauli Murray Project, has become a shining local historical character.
After being denied admission into UNC-Chapel Hill graduate school because of her African-American descendence and Harvard University for her sex, Murray went on to become a civil rights lawyer, poet, storyteller, the first African-American woman ordained in the Episcopal Church and author of Proud Shoes: The story of an American Family.
“We have been working together since 2001 to tell the stories of these communities, and this is really one of the biggest stories we want to tell,” Lau told the Durham News and Observer. “We want more people to know about her. We want this place to become a place where people can learn about her work, her activism for fighting for human rights for everyone.”
09 Nov 2010, Posted by Christina Pena in News, 1 Comments
Wendy Ewald, professor at the Center for Documentary Studies, was honored with the 2010 Visionary Woman Award presented by Moore College of Art & Design Sept. 30.
The award honors women who have had a powerful influence on the visual arts through her work and leadership, according to Duke Today.
Ewald is the creative director of the Literacy Through Photography program, which teaches elementary and middle school students to express themselves through writing and photography.
She has collaborated on projects with children, families and artists throughout the United States for 38 years and received numerous honors including a MacArthur Fellowship, grants from the National Endowment for the Arts and Fulbright Commission as well as solo exhibits in New York for her work.
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