Ohio State University News Tips

Ohio State’s LASER chosen as White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for Hispanics' Bright Spot. The university’s Latino and Latin American Space for Enrichment and Research (LASER) has been selected as a 2015 Bright Spot in Hispanic Education. Bright Spots, part of the White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for Hispanics, highlight programs, models, organizations or initiatives that target, address and invest in educational priorities for Hispanics and help to close the achievement gap. The announcement was made by Alejandra Ceja, executive director of the Initiative on Sept. 15 at the launch of Hispanic Heritage Month and in honor of the Initiative’s 25th anniversary in Washington, D.C. SEE: http://odi.osu.edu/laser/laser-odi/laser-news-archive/laser-bright-spot.html. CONTACT: Kim Kovarik at 614-292-8441 or kovarik.9@osu.edu.

Ohio State researchers take novel approach to studying variations in tuberculosis responses. A program at Ohio State has been awarded a nearly $600,000 grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to study variations in immune response to being infected with bacteria that cause tuberculosis. The study may lead to diagnostic tools to alert healthy individuals of their susceptibility to tuberculosis as well as to the development of personalized interventions.

Larry Schlesinger and Wolfgang Sadee, both professors in the College of Medicine, will lead the Ohio State team during the two-year pilot grant that focuses in the area of lung macrophage biology related to tuberculosis, which is one of the three most deadly diseases in the world for humans, along with HIV and malaria.

Schlesinger, chair of microbial infection and immunity, says the best way to handle tuberculosis is to eradicate it with vaccines, but a large-scale vaccine trial that did not have promising results highlighted the major issue with tuberculosis prevention today. CONTACT: Ben Lewis, 614-247-7100, lewis.485@osu.edu. SEE: http://discovery.osu.edu/focus-areas/infectious-diseases/news/tuberculosis-gates-grant.html.

Introducing BRUTx, the TEDx of science – Sept. 29. The Ohio State Center for Clinical and Translational Science presents BRUTx – “Innovation, Implementation, and Impact in Translational Science,” from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Sept. 29 at The Ohio Union US Bank Conference Theater, 1739 N. High St. BRUTx is a thought-provoking and interactive event featuring Ohio State speakers showcasing their ideas and experiences in a TEDx format, giving unique perspectives of the journey to innovation and implementation within a complex system. Attendees of BRUTx will experience personal stories of translational science through a new lens. SEE: https://ccts.osu.edu/news-and-events/events/2015-ccts-annual-meeting?occurrence=360