Study shows genetics factor in progess of HIV in children
Guardian
Researchers at UCSD School of Medicine have completed the largest-ever study of HIV-infected children, studying 1,049 patients under the age of 13.
The results demonstrated that a child’s individual genetic factors are an important determinant of disease progression and cognitive impairment associated with HIV.
The findings, published in the Nov. 15 issue of the Journal of Infectious Diseases, showed that slight genetic alternations can affect how the immune system responds to the virus and how the virus enters a cell, making some children more susceptible than others to the worsening of HIV symptoms.
The study identified individual polymorphisms that helped or worsened the childrens’ conditions.
It also showed that personal genetic differences do not affect children and adults in the same way, with some polymorphisms affecting one individual but not the other.
The UCSD team plans to continue research, hoping to identify those individuals who are at the highest risk for having difficulties with their HIV infection.
The U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that 9,300 children under the age of 13 in the United States have A.I.D.S.
There are about 3.2 million children under the age of 15 in the world that are HIV-positive, according to the United Nations.
IBM technologist to lecture on Dec. 3
Bernard Meyerson, a renowned researcher in telecommunications technology, will give a public lecture titled””Imagine Future: An Odyssey from Realization to Reality.””
A vice president and chief technologist at IBM’s Technology Group, Meyerson has researched areas such as pervasive wireless enablement and high-end data transport.
Meyerson was recognized as””Inventor of the Year”” by the New York State Legislature in 1997 and as””United States Distinguished Inventor of the Year”” by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.
The lecture will be at 10 a.m. on Dec. 3 at the Center for Magnetic and Recording Research Auditorium.
For more infomration, call Michell Parks at (858) 534-6221.
Crafts Center to hold Winter Holiday Sale
The Crafts Center will be holding its annual Winter Holiday Crafts Sale on Dec. 2 to Dec. 4 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
The sale will feature ceramics, blown glass, jewelry and other craft items created by UCSD faculty members, students and independent artists.
Items on sale include bottles, vases, plates and bowls made from ceramic and glass. The sale will also features various sculptures. Jewelry items on sale were constructed from precious metals and decorated with beads and semi-precious stones.
A preview show and sale of the items will be held on Dec. 1 from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m.
The Craft Center offers a variety of classes in jewelry, photography, graphics and metal work taught by artists and craftspersons from the San Diego community.
Chinese brush painting exhibited at Grove Gallery
An exhibition of chinese brush painting called””Friends of the Brush”” can be viewed at the Grove Gallery until Nov. 29. The exhibit is free and open to the public.
The paintings include nature subject matters including insects, flowers, landscapes and other similar themes. Artist and curator Lucy Wang selected works by 14 artists. The show will include works by artists Jerry Vande Berg, Sophie Coon, Bernie Dalton, Rita Flynn and Jennifer Leung.
Author to discuss Thomas Jefferson and slavery
Pulitzer prize-winning author Garry Wills will discuss his new book,””Negro President: Jefferson and the Slave Power”” at 7 p.m. on Dec. 2 in the Weaver Room in the Institute of the Americas.
In his book, Wills, an adjunct professor of history at Northwestern University, looks at the importance of Thomas Jefferson’s support for slavery to achieve his political and economic goals and the role of slavery in the presidential election of 1800. Wills argues that Jefferson played a major role in maintaining the racial divide in the United States under his presidency.
He received the 1993 Pulitzer Prize in Literature for his book””Lincoln at Gettysburg,”” a textual analysis of the Gettysburg address.a
