PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

SfN establishes James L. Roberts Endowed Fund

2024-07-15
(Press-News.org) Washington, D.C. – The Society for Neuroscience (SfN) has received $128,000 from the estate of James L. Roberts, PhD. With the funds, SfN Council voted to create a new long-term endowed fund, The James L. Roberts Fund, and will use the income from its investments to create and perpetually fund James L. Roberts Trainee Professional Development Awards (TPDAs) beginning at Neuroscience 2024.  

“I knew Jimmy Roberts very well. We basically launched neurobiology at Sinai when we co-directed the Fishberg Research Center for Neurobiology at Mount Sinai from 1989–2002,” said incoming SfN President John Morrison. “Jimmy was an outstanding researcher and student mentor, taking great joy in watching his students mature as scientists and people. I cannot think of a better way to honor Jimmy than through support of SfN’s TPDAs. His generosity will ensure future trainees can benefit from his spirit of mentorship in perpetuity.” 

The annual contribution by the James L. Roberts Fund will support 5–6 TPDAs every year. As with other funds that become restricted for TPDA in an endowment vehicle, the annual James L. Roberts Fund contribution will be matched by SfN Council, providing an additional 5–6 awards annually.  As TPDAs currently represent the Society’s highest fundraising priority, Council is committed to supporting as many early career scientists as possible through this matching initiative. 

TPDAs recognize undergraduate and graduate students and postdoctoral scholars who demonstrate scientific merit and excellence in research. The awards are highly competitive as recipients receive a travel stipend to offset the costs of attending Neuroscience 2024, as well as complimentary meeting registration and access to a variety of SfN professional development resources.  

James L. Roberts was a 37-year member of SfN. He earned an undergraduate degree from Colorado State University, doctorate from University of Oregon, and fellowship from UC San Francisco. Roberts served on the faculty of Columbia University, Mt. Sinai School of Medicine, University of Texas, and Trinity University, where he retired as Cowles Distinguished Professor of Biology in 2018. He passed away in 2023 at age 72.  

The Roberts bequest is the second large bequest to the Society in less than a year. It joins the John I. Simpson Fund and Nancy Rutledge Zahniser Fund as endowments set up in memory of longtime SfN members that support TPDA. SfN welcomes philanthropy from its membership and beyond to support a range of activities and initiatives to advance the neuroscience field. Those interested in advancing neuroscience through estate planning, bequests, or other charitable donations are encouraged to contact SfN’s development team at development@sfn.org or visit the SfN philanthropy webpage.  

### 

The Society for Neuroscience (SfN) is an organization of nearly 35,000 basic scientists and clinicians who study the brain and the nervous system. 

END



ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Unlocking the mystery of preexisting drug resistance: New study sheds light on cancer evolution

Unlocking the mystery of preexisting drug resistance: New study sheds light on cancer evolution
2024-07-15
CLEVELAND—The evolution of resistance to diseases, from infectious illnesses to cancers, poses a formidable challenge. Despite the expectation that resistance-conferring mutations would dwindle in the absence of treatment due to a reduced growth rate, preexisting resistance is pervasive across diseases that evolve—like cancer and pathogens—defying conventional wisdom. In cancer, it is well known that small numbers of drug-resistant cells likely exist in tumors even before they’re treated. In something of a paradox, before treatment, these mutants have been repeatedly shown to have lower fitness than the surrounding ancestor cells from which they arose. It leads ...

New study reveals critical role of C1q protein in neuronal function and aging

New study reveals critical role of C1q protein in neuronal function and aging
2024-07-15
BOSTON, Mass. (July 15, 2024)—A groundbreaking study conducted at the lab of Beth Stevens, PhD, at Boston Children’s Hospital has revealed that an immune protein impacts neuronal protein synthesis in the aging brain. Previous work from the Stevens lab had uncovered that immune cells in the central nervous system, microglia, help prune synapses in the developing brain by tagging synapses with the immune protein C1q. New research led by Nicole Scott-Hewitt, published in Cell, shows that neurons can also internalize C1q. C1q seems to influence protein production inside neurons by interacting with ribosomal proteins, RNA-binding proteins, and ...

New research demonstrates potential for increasing effectiveness of popular diabetes, weight-loss drugs

2024-07-15
A network of proteins found in the central nervous system could be harnessed to increase the effectiveness and reduce the side effects of popular diabetes and weight-loss drugs, according to new research from the University of Michigan.    The study, appearing today in the Journal of Clinical Investigation, focused on two proteins called melanocortin 3 and melanocortin 4 found primarily on the surface of neurons in the brain that play a central role in regulating feeding behavior and maintaining the body's energy balance.   Melanocortin ...

Understanding the 3D ice-printing process to create micro-scale structures

Understanding the 3D ice-printing process to create micro-scale structures
2024-07-15
Advances in 3D printing have enabled many applications across a variety of disciplines, including medicine, manufacturing, and energy. A range of different materials can be used to print both simple foundations and fine details, allowing for the creation of structures with tailored geometries. However, creating structures with micro-scale, precise internal voids and channels still poses challenges. Scaffolds used in tissue engineering, for example, must contain a three-dimensional complex network of conduits that mimic the human vasculature. With traditional additive manufacturing, where the material is deposited layer ...

Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia researchers develop antioxidant strategy to address mitochondrial dysfunction caused by SARS-CoV-2 virus

2024-07-15
Philadelphia, July 15, 2024 – Building upon groundbreaking research demonstrating how the SARS-CoV-2 virus disrupts mitochondrial function in multiple organs, researchers from Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) demonstrated that mitochondrially-targeted antioxidants could reduce the effects of the virus while avoiding viral gene mutation resistance, a strategy that may be useful for treating other viruses. The preclinical findings were recently published in the journal Proceedings ...

How climate change is altering the Earth’s rotation

2024-07-15
Climate change is causing the ice masses in Greenland and Antarctica to melt. Water from the polar regions is flowing into the world’s oceans –and especially into the equatorial region. “This means that a shift in mass is taking place, and this is affecting the Earth’s rotation,” explains Benedikt Soja, Professor of Space Geodesy at the Department of Civil, Environmental and Geomatic Engineering at ETH Zurich. “It’s like when a figure skater does a pirouette, first holding her arms close to her body and then stretching ...

Comparison of FDG-PET/CT and CT for treatment evaluation of patients with unresectable malignant pleural mesothelioma

Comparison of FDG-PET/CT and CT for treatment evaluation of patients with unresectable malignant pleural mesothelioma
2024-07-15
“FDG-PET is generally considered as a useful metabolic evaluation tool, while it is also thought to have an emerging role for assessment of systemic therapy response.” BUFFALO, NY- July 15, 2024 – A new research paper was published in Oncotarget's Volume 15 on June 20, 2024, entitled, “Comparison of FDG-PET/CT and CT for evaluation of tumor response to nivolumab plus ipilimumab combination therapy and prognosis prediction in patients with unresectable malignant pleural mesothelioma.” Malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) is an aggressive neoplasm and affected ...

New concept explains how tiny particles navigate water layers – with implications for marine conservation

2024-07-15
A new UBC study published recently in Proceedings of the National Academy of Science (PNAS) has unveiled insights into how microscopic organisms such as marine plankton move through water with different density layers.  Researchers Gwynn Elfring and Vaseem Shaik found that density layers, created by variations in temperature or salinity,  influence the swimming direction and speed of tiny particles navigating a liquid. Pushers and pullers “There are two different types of microscopic swimmers – ...

New research shows a frictionless state can be achieved at macroscale

New research shows a frictionless state can be achieved at macroscale
2024-07-15
UTICA, NY – The president of SUNY Polytechnic Institute (SUNY Poly), Dr. Winston “Wole” Soboyejo, and postdoctoral researcher, Dr. Tabiri Kwayie Asumadu, have published a revolutionary new paper titled, "Robust Macroscale Superlubricity on Carbon-Coated Metallic Surfaces." This paper explores an innovative approach to reducing friction on metallic surfaces – a significant advancement that could have major real-world impacts. The study shows that superlubricity – a state with virtually no friction that was once believed to only be achievable at nanoscale – can now be maintained at macroscale for extended time ...

A novel and unique neural signature for depression revealed

2024-07-15
HOUSTON - (July 15, 2024) -  As parents, teachers and pet owners can attest, rewards play a huge role in shaping behaviors in humans and animals. Rewards – whether as edible treats, gifts, words of appreciation or praise, fame or monetary benefits – act as positive reinforcement for the associated behavior. While this correlation between reward and future choice has been used as a well-established paradigm in neuroscience research for well over a century, not much is known about the neural process underlying it, namely how the brain encodes, ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

UMass Amherst Nursing Professor Emerita honored as ‘Living Legend’

New guidelines aim to improve cystic fibrosis screening

Picky eaters by day, buffet by night: Butterfly, moth diets sync to plant aromas

Pennington Biomedical’s Dr. Leanne Redman honored with the E. V. McCollum Award from the American Society for Nutrition

CCNY physicists uncover electronic interactions mediated via spin waves

Researchers’ 3D-printing formula may transform future of foam

Nurture more important than nature for robotic hand

Drug-delivering aptamers target leukemia stem cells for one-two knockout punch

New study finds that over 95% of sponsored influencer posts on Twitter were not disclosed

New sea grant report helps great lakes fish farmers navigate aquaculture regulations

Strain “trick” improves perovskite solar cells’ efficiency

How GPS helps older drivers stay on the roads

Estrogen and progesterone stimulate the body to make opioids

Dancing with the cells – how acoustically levitating a diamond led to a breakthrough in biotech automation

Machine learning helps construct an evolutionary timeline of bacteria

Cellular regulator of mRNA vaccine revealed... offering new therapeutic options

Animal behavioral diversity at risk in the face of declining biodiversity

Finding their way: GPS ignites independence in older adult drivers

Antibiotic resistance among key bacterial species plateaus over time

‘Some insects are declining but what’s happening to the other 99%?’

Powerful new software platform could reshape biomedical research by making data analysis more accessible

Revealing capillaries and cells in living organs with ultrasound

American College of Physicians awards $260,000 in grants to address equity challenges in obesity care

Researchers from MARE ULisboa discover that the European catfish, an invasive species in Portugal, has a prolonged breeding season, enhancing its invasive potential

Rakesh K. Jain, PhD, FAACR, honored with the 2025 AACR Award for Lifetime Achievement in Cancer Research

Solar cells made of moon dust could power future space exploration

Deporting immigrants may further shrink the health care workforce

Border region emergency medical services in migrant emergency care

Resident physician intentions regarding unionization

Healthy nutrition and physical lifestyle choices lower cancer mortality risk for survivors, new ACS study finds

[Press-News.org] SfN establishes James L. Roberts Endowed Fund