In two recent studies, researchers in the lab of Vasili Petrenko, professor of earth and environmental sciences, determine that reducing fossil fuel use and methane emissions from human activities are key targets in curbing climate change.

1. Permafrost in the soil and methane hydrates deep in the ocean are large reservoirs of ancient carbon. As soil and ocean temperatures rise, the reservoirs have the potential to break down, releasing enormous quantities of the potent greenhouse gas methane.

University researchers including Michael Dyonisius, a graduate student in Petrenko’s lab, and their collaborators studied methane emissions from a period in Earth’s history partly analogous to the warming of Earth today. Their research, published in Science, indicates that even if methane is released from these large natural stores in response to warming, very little actually reaches the atmosphere.

“One of our take-home points is that we need to be more concerned about the anthropogenic emissions—those originating from human activities—than the natural feedbacks,” Dyonisius says. Read more here.

2. Methane emissions to the atmosphere have increased by approximately 150 percent over the past three centuries, but it has been difficult for researchers to determine exactly where these emissions originate; heat-trapping gases like methane can be emitted naturally, as well as from human activity.

University researcher Benjamin Hmiel, a postdoctoral associate in Petrenko’s lab, and collaborators measured methane levels in ancient air samples and found that scientists have been vastly underestimating the amount of methane humans are emitting into the atmosphere via fossil fuels. In a paper published in Nature, the researchers indicate that reducing fossil fuel use is a key target in curbing climate change.

“Placing stricter methane emission regulations on the fossil fuel industry will have the potential to reduce future global warming to a larger extent than previously thought,” Hmiel says. Read more here.

More than 30 principal investigators are currently engaged in research using the imaging resources of the University’s Center for Advanced Brain Imaging and Neurophysiology (CABIN), which houses a state-of-the-art Siemens 3T whole-body horizontal-bore Prisma magnet.

CABIN, led by John Foxe and Jianhui Zhong, serves as a hub for neuroscientists, technicians, biostatisticians, data scientists, and biomedical engineers. These multidisciplinary teams are necessary to not only develop study protocols, but also interpret the mountains of data that are providing scientists with an ever more detailed portrait of the human brain. For example:

• Feng (Vankee) Lin, associate professor in the School of Nursing, is harnessing neuroimaging technologies in an effort to develop new diagnostic tools for early detection of Alzheimer’s disease and dementia.
• Giovanni Schifitto, professor in the Department of Neurology, is employing neuroimaging to study inflammation in the brain and its association with cerebral small vessel disease, stroke, and cognitive impairment.
• David Dodell-Feder, an assistant professor in the Department of Psychology, is employing imaging technologies in the field of psychotic spectrum disorders, such as schizophrenia, to see if the social deficits in these patients can be overcome by “training” specific areas of the brain.

A common thread across the field of neuroimaging is how to store, share, and analyze the vast quantities of information produced by a technology that is constantly advancing and yielding increasingly detailed images of brain structure and function. New public and private initiatives are creating vast imaging resources for data sharing and machine learning and artificial intelligence are allowing researchers to accelerate the process of extracting information from images and data. These advances, along with scanners that are producing ever-higher resolution images, are poised to revolutionize the field in the coming years. Read more here.

Researchers and administrative, academic and clinical departments at the University – in addition to local companies and nonprofits – can find solutions for their data problems by sponsoring student practicum projects through the Goergen Institute for Data Science.

One capstone project, sponsored by Erika Ramsdale, an assistant professor of medicine (hematology/oncology) at the Medical Center, involved using new machine learning techniques to improve the ability to identify aging cancer patients at high risk of accidental falls.

“We found the team of (data science) students to be highly engaged, easy to work with, very responsive, and extremely capable and bright,” Ramsdale says. “They brought a new set of skills to our team, allowing us to substantially improve and accelerate our data cleaning processes, and they taught us new techniques for analysis of patient-reported outcomes data.”

Read more here. Questions? Contact Ajay Anand.

A new High Content Imaging Core User Facility in 228 Goergen Hall on the River Campus provides access to high speed and live sample imaging.

The facility, operated by the Department of Biomedical Engineering, serves students and researchers alike. It provides access and training to operate the state-of-the-art Dragonfly Spinning Disc Confocal, as well as expert advice for sample preparation and experimental set up.

Spinning disk confocal microscopy projects a series of 1,000 or more parallel excitation light beams through multiple pinholes or slits onto a specimen. The technique is used for high speed imaging of living cells expressing fluorescent proteins or stained with membrane-permeant synthetic dyes.

Effective March 1, the facility will begin charging these user fees for the Dragonfly Spinning Disc Confocal.

For more information, contact William Houlihan (whouliha@ur.rochester.edu).

To learn more about this and other biomedical core facilities, go to http://www.hajim.rochester.edu/bme/research/facilities.html

In a collaborative effort, the Wilmot Cancer Institute and the School of Nursing support nurse-initiated research programs through the development of the Oncology Nurse Scientist Partnership. Led by Ph.D.-level nurses with advanced training in research principles and methodology, the partnership is aimed at advancing oncology research.  The scientists also act as mentors for direct care nurse-led research.

“Despite the increasing numbers of publications, science often fails to translate the research findings into improved patient care,” says KC Clevenger, Wilmot’s chief nursing officer. “Nurses are in a unique position to bridge this translational gap by combining the profession’s approach of holistic care and research activities.”

Being able to bridge that gap means helping nurses recognize that they are involved in research nearly every day and equipping them to contribute questions and ideas to scientific discussion.

Seeing this need, nurse scientist Jamie Oliva has developed a research education and training series through the partnership to help Wilmot nurses understand how to use and manage research and to lead their own projects. Read more here.

To help students prepare for the AS&E Graduate Research Symposium, three workshops will be offered during March, all at Havens Lounge in Wilson Commons.

• Effective Poster Design, 3-4 p.m. March 4.
• Presenting Your Research, 12:30-1:30 p.m. March 19.
• Networking at Conferences, 12:30-1:30 p.m. March 24.

Register online to attend. For more information, including workshop descriptions, visit the research symposium website.

Maiken Nedergaard, co-director of the Center for Translational Neuromedicine and professor in the Departments of Neurology, Neuroscience and Neurosurgery, who has received the Thomas Willis Lecture Award from the American Stroke Association. The award honors Nedergaard’s career of significant contributions to the basic science of stroke research. The Nedergaard lab is dedicated to deciphering the role of neuroglia, cell types that constitute half of the entire cell population of the brain and spinal cord. Last month, the lab published research showing that during a stroke the glymphatic system goes awry, triggers edema, and drowns brain cells. In 2012, Nedergaard and her colleagues first described the glymphatic system, a network that piggybacks on the brain’s blood circulation system and is comprised of layers of plumbing, with the inner blood vessel encased by a ‘tube’ that transports cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). The system pumps CSF through brain tissue, primarily while we sleep, washing away toxic proteins and other waste. Read more here.

Rohma Khan, history, “Cab Fair! Taxi Driver Activism and South Asian Immigrant Identities, 1979-1999.” 11 a.m. March 2, 2020. Humanities Center, Conference Room D. Advisor: Joan Rubin.

Ching-Ho Chang, biology, “Meiotic Drive and Rapid Genome Evolution in Drosophila.” 2 p.m. March 2, 2020. 1400 Wegmans Hall. Advisor: Amanda Larracuente

Rachel R. Warren, microbiology and immunology, “Ataxia-telangiectasia mutated is required for response to influenza A virus infection.” 2 p.m. March 3, 2020. Lower Auditorium (Adolph) 1-7619, Medical Center. Advisor: Michael O’Reilly.

Langchen Fan, biomedical engineering, “Physiological Studies of Binaural Tone-in-Noise Detection in the Inferior Colliculus.” 11:05 a.m., March 5, 2020. 108 Goergen Hall. Advisor: Laurel Carney.

COMPETITION

March 9-13: Registration available for the Three Minute Thesis competition, open to current PhD and professional doctorate (research) candidates who have passed their qualifying exam or are in their third year of study or greater.  For more information, contact: Daniel Curran, PhD student in chemistry, or Olivia Marola, PhD student in pathology.

April 8: Final Three Minute Thesis competition that challenges doctoral students to describe their research within three minutes to a general audience. 4 p.m. Medical Center’s Class of ’62 Auditorium (G-9425), with a reception to follow.

TRAINING SEMINARS

March 2: “Demystifying deep learning:  A practical approach in MATLAB” for students and researchers at all levels of knowledge who are interested in understanding more about “deep learning” and how they can use Matlab to apply deep learning to a range of fields from the social sciences through engineering. Conducted by Loren Shure, who has worked at MathWorks for over 30 years. 2-4 p.m. Room 601, Computer Studies Building. RSVP now. Questions? Contact Alyssa Silverman, Senior Account Manager, alyssa.silverman@mathworks.com, 508-647-4343.

March 4: Effective Poster Design. To help students prepare for the AS&E Graduate Research Symposium. 3-4 p.m., Havens Lounge, Wilson Commons. Register online to attend. For more information, including workshop descriptions, visit the research symposium website.

March 19: Presenting Your Research. To help students prepare for the AS&E Graduate Research Symposium. 12:30-1:30 p.m., Havens Lounge, Wilson Commons. Register online to attend. For more information, including workshop descriptions, visit the research symposium website.

March 24: Networking at Conferences. To help students prepare for the AS&E Graduate Research Symposium. 12:30-1:30 p.m., Havens Lounge, Wilson Commons. Register online to attend. For more information, including workshop descriptions, visit the research symposium website.

CONFERENCES & SYMPOSIUMS

LECTURES AND TALKS

March 4: Rosenberger Work-in-Progress seminar. Eduardo Herrera (Musicology, Rutgers) (external fellow). 12:30 to around 1:45 p.m. in Conference Room D of the Humanities Center. River Campus.  All are welcome to attend, exchange ideas, and have lunch.

March 18: Rosenberger Work-in-Progress seminar. Elena Bellina (ESM Humanities). 12:30 to around 1:45 p.m. in Conference Room D of the Humanities Center. River Campus.  All are welcome to attend, exchange ideas, and have lunch.

March 26: Phelps Colloquium. “Harnessing Immunity to Fight Cancer: Clues from the Tumor Microenvironment,” by David Linehan, professor and chair, Department of Surgery. “Preparing for the Worst: Portrayal of Downside Risk in Professional Investment Advice,” by Joanna Wu, professor of business administration,  Simon Business School. 4–5:30 p.m. Eisenberg Rotunda, Schlegel Hall, River Campus. Register here.

April 2: Rosenberger Work-in-Progress seminar. Alexandra Lindgren-Gibson (History, Univ. of Mississippi) external fellow). 12:30 to around 1:45 p.m. in Conference Room D of the Humanities Center. River Campus.  All are welcome to attend, exchange ideas, and have lunch.

April 16: Rosenberger Work-in-Progress seminar. Ash Arder (Studio Art) (visiting artist). 12:30 to around 1:45 p.m. in Conference Room D of the Humanities Center. River Campus.  All are welcome to attend, exchange ideas, and have lunch.

April 22: Phelps Colloquium. “Making Fuel and Fertilizer from Sun, Air, and Water,” by Kara Bren, professor in the Department of Chemistry. “A Black Musician in the Court of Henry VIII. You’re Kidding, Right?” by Lee Koonce, president and artistic director of the Gateways Music Festival in association with Eastman School of Music, and senior advisor to the dean, Eastman School of Music. 4–5:30 p.m. Max of Eastman Place, 25 Gibbs Street, Rochester.  Register here.

April 30:  Rosenberger Work-in-Progress seminar. Khan and Sullivan (Public Humanities fellows). 12:30 to around 1:45 p.m. in Conference Room D of the Humanities Center. River Campus.  All are welcome to attend, exchange ideas, and have lunch.

GRANT DEADLINES

Today: Deadline for new investigators to submit proposals for pilot project funding ($25,000 maximum for one year) from the Resource-Based Center for Musculoskeletal Biology and Medicine for research relevant to musculoskeletal diseases. Proposals must be submitted by email to Kristin Smith (585-275-1397). Learn more.

March 16: Deadline to apply for pilot project funding from five programs, through the Del Monte Institute for Neuroscience. For more information on the awards, download the RFA.

April 15: Deadline to apply for pilot funding from the Rochester Roybal Center for Social Ties & Aging Research (The STAR Center) to promote the social well-being and healthy aging of those caring for a family member with Alzheimer’s disease or related dementia. There are two pilot award opportunities—the STAR Constellation Pilot Award and the ProtoSTAR Pilot Award. Learn more.

May 3: Deadline to apply for pilot project funding from the Center for Research on Flavored Tobacco (CRoFT) for research to inform FDA regulation of tobacco products. The application should be submitted through the REDCap portal at http://j.mp/39bC1WF. Questions?  Application contact: Jacqueline Attia, WNY_CRoFT@urmc.rochester.edu Scientific/research contacts:  Scott Steele, scott_steele@urmc.rochester.edu or Deborah Ossip, deborah_ossip@urmc.rochester.edu