Next year, Medicare plans to begin reimbursing doctors for end-of-life discussions. This development highlights the vital role doctors play in these discussions and the importance of determining patients’ wishes before illness prevents them from speaking for themselves. This change in billing is important not because of the money itself, but because it puts end-of-life discussions(...)
Neuroscience Graduate Student Awarded Axol Science Scholarship
Posted by Shannen Cravens | A Day in the LifeJonathan Grima, a third-year neuroscience graduate student and National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellow working in the labs of Jeffrey Rothstein and Solomon Snyder, was recently named the winner of an international scholarship competition hosted by the human cell culture company Axol. The scholarship application was a test of effective science communication skills. Applicants were(...)
Sep 10, 2015
Johns Hopkins Scientists Discover a Promising Treatment for Acute Kidney Injury
Posted by Soroosh Solhjoo | Recently PublishedAcute kidney injury, or AKI, is a major global health care problem. Each year, AKI causes 1.7 million deaths worldwide. The International Society of Nephrology has launched the 0by25 initiative to eliminate the preventable death from AKI by the year 2025. Now, in a recent study published ahead of print in the Journal of the(...)
Sep 8, 2015
Clinical Trial Shines Light on Sleep Disorders in Blind Patients
Posted by Arielle Medford | Perspectives in ResearchLast month, The Lancet published an article describing a recent phase III clinical trial in totally blind patients. The study evaluated the efficacy of a new medical intervention called tasimelteon for non-24-hour sleep-wake disorders.1 The science behind these conditions is simple. Circadian rhythm sleep-wake disorders result from discordance between an individual’s environment and the sleep-wake(...)
Sep 3, 2015
Recent CRISPR/Cas9 Research Ignites Ethical Concerns
Posted by Xuan Pham | Perspectives in ResearchThe CRISPR/Cas9 wave that’s recently swept through the scientific community is now churning up a storm of controversy in its wake. Due to its relatively low cost and high efficiency, CRISPR/Cas9 has facilitated many breakthroughs in the areas of genome engineering, many of which are oriented at improving human health. Proof of this technology’s power(...)
Aug 27, 2015
Cracking the Code: How to Create Intuitive Tools for Visualizing Data
Posted by Bree Yanagisawa | Perspectives in ResearchThese days, science is ripe with “big data” challenges. From next-generation sequencing to complex structural analysis, experiments that were once considered niche are becoming more commonplace in many laboratory environments. A single sequencing run alone can produce up to terabytes of data, and with this massive increase in information comes an inherent need to also(...)
Aug 25, 2015
Johns Hopkins Scientists Examine the Neural Mechanisms of Timing
Posted by Kevin Monk | Recently PublishedIt is truly awe-inspiring to go to Orioles Park at Camden Yards and watch the O’s play. What is most thrilling to watch is when a player hits a home run. There is nothing as exhilarating as watching an athlete fulfill his or her potential, especially because of the immense amount of precision required in(...)
Aug 20, 2015
Johns Hopkins Postdocs Receive Crash Course in Leadership
Posted by Paul Sirajuddin | Events and HappeningsWhat makes someone a leader? Is it an individual who makes the important decisions in a group setting? Or is it someone who is able to dream and carry out his or her vision? For many new postdocs beginning their careers around the country, being put in leadership positions for the first time can be(...)
Aug 18, 2015
Graduate Student Finds a Harmonious Work-Life Balance with Music
Posted by Shannen Cravens | A Day in the LifeEstablishing a healthy work-life balance is hard, and ironically, finding ways to squeeze in de-stressing hobbies can be extremely stressful. Over the years, John Froehlig, a graduate student in the Program in Molecular Biophysics, has perfected the art of making progress on his thesis without sacrificing his other passion: music. Froehlig joined Johns Hopkins in(...)
Aug 14, 2015
Johns Hopkins Scientists Study How Neurons Create Connections During Development
Posted by Alisa Mo | Recently PublishedPretend for a moment that you’re a developing neuron in the mammalian cerebral cortex. Your cell body, which houses the command center of the neuron, sits in one out of the six cortical layers. Your job is to establish the proper connections with up to thousands of other neurons. How do you establish these connections?(...)
Aug 12, 2015