UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA AT BIRMINGHAM

Grants from the Breast Cancer Research Foundation of Alabama will support 10 groundbreaking projects led by researchers at UAB, totaling $1,125,000 in 2024.

ACCC Annual Meeting & Cancer Center Business Summit covered health care worker retention, EHR integration in precision medicine, and quality improvement in cancer care. Highlights included Krista Nelson's focus on holistic patient care, discussions on AI/BI technology, quality improvement strategies, EHR challenges in precision medicine, and Katherine Meese's insights on retaining health care workers.

RHOBTB2, a Rho GTPase subfamily member and tumor suppressor, is linked to cancer and rare neurodevelopmental disorders like RHOBTB2-related developmental and epileptic encephalopathy (DEE). Symptoms include early-onset epilepsy, severe intellectual disability, microcephaly, and movement disorders. Variants near or in the BTB domain cause decreased RHOBTB2 degradation and DEE, while GTPase domain variants lead to variable neurodevelopmental symptoms without affecting degradation. Treatment focuses on antiseizure meds, but no therapies address underlying mechanisms. RHOBTB2's role in disease remains understudied.

Heart failure causes 13% of global deaths, with half of patients dying within 5 years. Despite 20 years of clinical trials, no cell-based therapies have been approved, though some show safety and benefits. The development of current therapies took nearly four decades, suggesting hope for future cell therapies. Ongoing trials explore new cell types, delivery methods, and products to improve heart failure treatment.

Clemson University researchers identified CD2 as a key immune receptor in hidradenitis suppurativa (HS) using a multiomics approach, suggesting CD2 blockade as a potential therapy.

The Association for Prescription Psychedelics (APP) launched to integrate safe, effective prescription psychedelic medicines into healthcare, guided by prominent researchers and supported by organizations like B.More Inc., Compass Pathways, Lykos Therapeutics, and MindMed.

MRIMath, LLC's AI-powered tool, MRIMath i2Contour, co-developed by Rowan University and the University of Alabama at Birmingham, received FDA clearance for mapping and measuring glioblastoma tumors, aiming to improve efficiency, accuracy, and patient outcomes.

Researchers release flagship dataset from AI-READI study on type 2 diabetes, revealing heterogeneity among patients and associations with environmental factors. The dataset, including environmental sensor data and health metrics, aims to be mined by AI for novel insights. Initial findings highlight the need for diverse, granular data to explore disease and health pathways.