the gazette

111010

our 41ST year

Covering Homewood, East Baltimore, Peabody,

SAIS, APL and other campuses throughout the

Baltimore-Washington area and abroad, since 1971.

august 29, 2011 The newspaper of The Johns Hopkins university Volume 41 No. 1

Job Opportunities

Notices

Classifieds

GoING DIGITaL

JHU libraries to make ‘orphan’

scholarly works accessible to

university community, page 3

SCHoLarSHIP

Stephen Pitcairn birthday

marked by challenge grant to

memorial fund, page 2

I N B r I e f

No-longer-needed SAT, AP test prep books

head to Baltimore schools; ‘Gazette’ schedule

C a L e N D a r

HIV Counseling, Testing Program/Health

Leads info session; Blackboard 9.12 12

Here comes the Class of 2015 H O M E W O O D

Can we build better sciencecourses?B y G r e G r i e n z i

The Gazette

The Johns Hopkins University is, figuratively speaking, going back into the learning laboratory to

augment, enhance, rejigger and, in some cases, reinvent its foundation science courses.

Lloyd B. Minor, pro-vost and senior vice president for academic affairs, has launched a yearlong universitywide effort called the Gate-way Sciences Initiative to promote wider adop-tion of successful teach-ing techniques already in use and to encourage

the development of innovative new approaches to learning. The major initiative is believed to be the first of its kind at Johns Hopkins. Earlier this summer, Minor formed a 21-member faculty steering commit-tee—co-chaired by Steven David, vice dean for undergraduate education and a professor of political science in the Krieger School of Arts and Sciences, and Marie Diener-West, director of the Master of Public Health program and professor of biostatistics in the Bloom-berg School of Public Health—to guide and lead the initiative. The committee, which has already met several times, has been charged to work throughout the year to identify and promote best prac-tices and to develop recommendations for a strategic approach to continuous improvement in gateway science courses in all divisions. Scott Zeger, the university’s vice pro-vost for research and a professor of biosta-tistics in the Bloomberg School, said that the purpose of this initiative is to enhance the quality of teaching and learning at JHU in the courses that serve as entry points, or provide critical introductory material, in the natural, behavioral, engi-neering and medical sciences, and in other fields where some basic scientific knowledge is a necessary component. “I remember vividly being inspired

Continued on page 4

I N I T I A T I V E

yearlong

effort to

rethink

‘gateway’

learning

A string of spirited orientation events caps off two days of move-in

B y G r e G r i e n z i

The Gazette

In a synchronized swirl of activ-ity, members of the Class of 2015 checked into the Homewood campus last week to begin their college adventure.

Cars, trucks and vans, all stuffed with cargo, lined up in caravan fashion on Wednesday and Thursday as the fresh-men moved into Johns Hopkins resi-dence halls. It was a tale of two days: one sunny, one decidedly damp. Just days before Hurricane Irene was expected to knock on the mid-Atlantic’s door, heavy rains hit the area on Thursday, causing move-in volunteers to don clear blue ponchos and wield large sheets of plastic to protect the precious cargo from the elements. Nearly 360 upperclassman volunteers, among them representatives of 25 stu-dent groups, helped parents unload the vehicles as students checked into their housing and took in their new surround-ings. In a nod to the 1990s dance tune popularized by the Madagascar movies, the volunteers all wore versions of “I Like to Move It, Move It” blue T-shirts, some sporting the initials of the student groups. President Ron Daniels, who also

Continued on page 7

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When were you born? In a pairing exercise, students raise their hands to signal their birth month and to try to find others who share it.

$30 mill creates center for personalized cancer care G I F T

Continued on page 5

B y A m y m o n e

Johns Hopkins Medicine

A $30 million gift from the Com-monwealth Foundation for Cancer Research has enabled the Johns

Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center to establish a Center for Personalized Cancer Medicine. The gift from the Richmond, Va.–based foundation will be used to support research and the development of new technologies that pinpoint the novel genetic characteris-tics of each patient’s cancer. Johns Hopkins

scientists and officials say that this will speed the development of therapies based on an individual cancer patient’s genetic “finger-print.” “Treatment fine-tuned to a patient’s genetic makeup is the future of cancer medi-cine,” said Ronald J. Daniels, president of The Johns Hopkins University. “This gift is welcome recognition that Johns Hopkins is bringing together experts from many disci-plines—doctors, scientists and engineers—to make that future happen more quickly. I am deeply grateful to the Commonwealth Foundation for that recognition. Its support

is a vitally important investment on behalf of cancer patients.” With this important information, clini-cians will be able to help cancer patients by tailoring drug treatment to their disease, track its progress and avoid unnecessary treatments. Some cancers may be prevented altogether, which would slash costs of new drug discoveries by limiting “hit and miss” approaches, according to William G. Nel-son, director of the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center.

rock, paper, scissors: one of the quick icebreakers designed to allow the new stu-dents to get acquainted and revved up for their first weekend at Johns Hopkins.

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I N B R I E F

Stephen Pitcairn, the Johns Hop-kins research technologist who was robbed and killed in July 2010 as he

walked home from Penn Station, would have turned 25 on July 27, 2011, and in recognition of this milestone, a $10,000 challenge grant has been offered to the Ste-phen Pitcairn Memorial Scholarship Fund at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. The Challenge Fund will match gifts of $100 or more, made from now until Labor Day. All contributions will help reach the $100,000 required to endow the scholarship, allowing the school to carry on Pitcairn’s legacy in perpetuity. To donate to the fund, go to www.giving

Applied Physics Laboratory Michael Buckley, Paulette CampbellBloomberg School of Public Health Tim Parsons, Natalie Wood-WrightCarey Business School Andrew Blumberg, Patrick ErcolanoHomewoodLisa De Nike, Amy Lunday, Dennis O’Shea,Tracey A. Reeves, Phil SneidermanJohns Hopkins MedicineChristen Brownlee, Stephanie Desmon, Neil A. Grauer, Audrey Huang, John Lazarou, David March, Vanessa McMains, Ekaterina Pesheva, Vanessa Wasta,Maryalice YakutchikPeabody Institute Richard SeldenSAIS Felisa Neuringer KlubesSchool of Education James Campbell, Theresa NortonSchool of Nursing Kelly Brooks-StaubUniversity Libraries and Museums Brian Shields, Heather Egan Stalfort

e d i t o r Lois Perschetz

W r i t e r Greg Rienzi

Pr o d u c t i o n Lynna Bright

co P y ed i t o r Ann Stiller

Ph o t o G r A P h y Homewood Photography

Ad v e rt i s i n G The Gazelle Group

Bu s i n e s s Dianne MacLeod

ci r c u l At i o n Lynette Floyd

We B m A s t e r Lauren Custer

c o n t r i B u t i n G W r i t e r s

The Gazette is published weekly Sept-ember through May and biweekly June through August for the Johns Hopkins University community by the Office of Communications and Public Affairs, Suite 540, 901 S. Bond St., Baltimore, MD 21231, in cooperation with all university divisions. Subscriptions are $26 per year. Deadline for calendar items, notices and classifieds (free to JHU faculty, staff and students) is noon Monday, one week prior to publica-tion date.

Phone: 443-287-9900Fax: 443-287-9920General e-mail: [email protected] e-mail: [email protected] the Web: gazette.jhu.edu

Paid advertising, which does not repre-sent any endorsement by the university, is handled by the Gazelle Group at 410-343-3362 or [email protected].

.jhu.edu/online and specify Stephen Pitcairn Scholarship in the “Other” section. Pitcairn, a graduate of Kalamazoo College, joined the laboratory of Gregg Semenza in June 2009 as a lab technician and was pro-moted to research technologist a year later. He was in the process of applying to medical school at the time of his death. A memorial plaque installed outside the Ross Research Building on the East Balti-more campus says, “His endless enthusiasm and kindness will not be forgotten by those whose lives he touched.” On Aug. 17, John Wagner was found guilty of first-degree murder and armed rob-bery in the stabbing of Pitcairn. His sentenc-ing is set for Oct. 21.

Stephen Pitcairn and colleague Medha Darshan

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‘The Gazette’ returns to weekly publishing schedule

With this issue, the first of the 2011–2012 academic year, The Gazette returns to its weekly

publishing schedule. The next edition will appear on Tuesday, Sept. 6, because of the Monday holiday. Calendar and classified submissions are due at noon on Monday a week before the publication date.

Freshmen’s used test prep books heading to city high schools

Along with their computers, clothes and toiletries, many of the freshmen arriving at Homewood last week

brought along with them something they

Challenge grant issued for Pitcairn Scholarship Fund

Read The Gazette online gazette.jhu.edu

didn’t need: the SAT and AP test prep books they’d used as high schoolers. Thanks to a call put out by junior Alexan-dra Larsen, those books will soon be going to students at Baltimore City public high schools who don’t have adequate study resources. Larsen worked with the Orientation team to promote her idea and set up donation boxes in the AMR 1 Reading Room, where students picked up their Orientation schedule. “Students and parents all said they loved that we were helping out the community,” Larsen said. At last count, she had received about 165 books.

August 29, 2011 • THE GAZETTE 3

B y B r i A n s h i e l d s

JHU Libraries and Museums

Leaders at Cornell, Duke, Emory and Johns Hopkins universities jointly announced last week that they would

begin making the full text of thousands of “orphan works” in their library collections digitally accessible to students, faculty and researchers at their own institutions. Orphan works are out-of-print books that are still subject to copyright but whose copy-right holders cannot be identified or located. With the announcement, the four institu-tions formally join the universities of Michi-gan, Wisconsin and Florida in a collaborative Orphan Works Project, which aims to identify

orphan works that have been scanned and archived in the HathiTrust Digital Library. HathiTrust is a partnership of more than 60 major research institutions working to share, archive and preserve their combined collec-tions of digitized books and journals. Currently, more than 9.5 million digitized volumes are held by the HathiTrust. No one knows exactly how many of those are orphans, but HathiTrust Executive Director John Wilkin has estimated that it could be as many as half. Of those, most are unlikely to have any surviving person or entity that can claim them. “We look forward to working with our colleagues on this initiative, which will not only benefit our respective users and our individual institutions but also demonstrate

Universities band together to join Orphan Works Projectthe importance of working collaboratively through HathiTrust to increase access to knowledge,” said Winston Tabb, Sheridan Dean of University Libraries and Museums at Johns Hopkins. Anne R. Kenney, the Carl A. Kroch University Librarian at Cornell, said, “We strongly believe in supporting the fair use of orphan works material. It continues our tra-dition of pushing hard to open up scholarly resources and helping to provide the broad-est access possible to them.” Only books that are identified as orphans through a careful process and are also held in print format by the individual institutions will be accessible through the HathiTrust website, and they will be accessible only to members of their respective communities. Just as most academic libraries allow only authorized patrons to check out books from their print collections, so will online access be restricted to users who can authenti-cate with their university ID and password. However, if a university library is open to the public, visitors will have access through library computers. Even with these access restrictions, the Orphan Works Project will greatly improve access to a large amount of scholarly mate-rial that has been digitally unavailable due to copyright concerns. According to Kevin Smith, director of scholarly communications at Duke, “I think we can expect access to tens of thousands of orphan works within the first year. The speed with which that number could rise will depend on the ability of the community to do the work of identify-ing orphans.” “Participating in this collaborative project

helps our libraries bridge the divide between print collections, which are physically located in library buildings and storage facilities, and online discovery, browsing and access, which have become essential to the research process,” said Rick Luce, vice provost and director of Libraries at Emory. “Many of these works have tremendous historical and cul-tural value, and they are an important part of the record of 20th-century scholarship.” Orphan works have been a major factor in recent legal disputes over the ambitious Google Books project. In March 2011, a fed-eral judge rejected the company’s $125 mil-lion class action settlement with authors and publishers, stating that the deal went too far in granting Google the right to make such works accessible online without permission from copyright owners. Because the Orphan Works Project limits access to members of individual institutions, it adheres to the Copyright Act’s “fair use” provision, which allows limited reproduc-tion of works for scholarly purposes. “Because they are out of print, many of these materials can be hard to come by,” said Duke’s Deborah Jakubs, the Rita DiGial-lonardo Holloway University Librarian and vice provost for library affairs. “This effort presents an opportunity to leverage the sub-stantial investment Duke and our partner institutions have already made in our library collections. It will also improve the experi-ence of library users, who can perform full-text searches of these works from their own computers, without having to come to the library in person or wait for off-site materials to be retrieved. It’s a win-win for access and usability.”

Sept. 13 event to unveil new approaches to tracking infections

B y e k A t e r i n A P e s h e v A


Doctors can peer inside the human body to look for tumors, detect a blockage in an artery or see a crack

in a bone, but common afflictions like bacterial and viral infections are far more difficult to track, and even the most sophis-ticated imaging devices can offer only a less than definitive answer. “Although CT scans and MRIs can spot disease, they can’t always reliably tell a physician if that suspicious shade they see on the screen is a tumor or a hotbed of bacteria,” said imaging innovator Sanjay Jain, an associate professor in the Division of Pediatric Infectious Diseases in the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine. But what if doctors could look inside the body and spot hidden pockets of infection or simmering epicenters of inflammation and promptly tell them apart from other diseases? What if they could monitor, in real time, how bacteria respond to medication and adjust treatment accordingly? Novel techniques—now in development and being tested in animals—are already making some of these scenes possible, paving the way to a new era in diagnosing and monitoring infec-tious disease. Physicians and scientists will gather on Tuesday, Sept. 13, at the David H. Koch Cancer Research Building on the Johns Hopkins East Baltimore campus to unveil the latest approaches to imaging infection and inflammation. The symposium will take

place from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. in the Albert Owens Auditorium. Conceived by Jain and colleagues at Johns Hopkins, and organized by the Department of Medicine’s Center for Infection and Inflam-mation Imaging Research, the symposium will feature about a dozen speakers, from Johns Hopkins and elsewhere, with cross-dis-ciplinary areas of expertise, including infec-tious diseases, radiology, oncology, mathemat-ics, clinical imaging sciences and others. Even though the standard blood draw and bacterial count will remain a doctor’s best way to track infection, the new imaging approaches will add a powerful tool to the doctor’s arsenal, experts predict. “These new techniques will be particularly invaluable in situations when we cannot draw a patient’s blood or do a surgical biopsy,” said neurora-diologist Dima Hammoud, of the National Institutes of Health. Although the new imaging techniques will undeniably help clinicians on the front-lines, they may play an even greater role in the lab. “We are already combining some of the new techniques with mathematical analysis and computer programs to solve medical research puzzles,” said mathemati-cian and imaging scientist Bruno Jedynak, of the Johns Hopkins Center for Imaging Science. Topics of discussion will include “Seeing HIV Beyond the T-cell Count,” “Tracking Bacteria” and “Inflammation,” and a show-and-tell session will explain how infectious disease imaging can help solve research puzzles. Jain’s research has been funded by the NIH Director’s New Innovator Award and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. For more information on the symposium, go to www.hopkinschildrens.org/Hopkins-to-Host-Symposium-on-Infection-Imaging.aspx.

Bug busters: JHU to host daylong symposium on infection imaging

Need extra copies of ‘The Gazette’?A limited number of extra copies of The Gazette are available each week in the Office of Government, Community and Public Affairs, Suite 540, 901 South Bond St., in Fells Point. Order them at least a week in advance of publication by calling 443-287-9900.

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Continued from page 1

Science

by a gateway molecular biology course as a university freshman. Discovering how the natural world works, and one’s own poten-tial to learn more, is enlivening,” Zeger said. “Johns Hopkins is in the process of transforming the way students discover in gateway sciences at the undergraduate and graduate levels.” The initiative defines gateway science courses as those that establish the necessary fundamental knowledge base for subsequent or more specialized subject area study and research. Gateway courses are also intended to generate excitement about the individual disciplines and help students develop the skills necessary to facilitate the self-discovery and independent learning techniques neces-sary for a future career in scholarly research. These courses include introductory classes in biology, chemistry, physics, psychology, statistics, bioinformatics and others with a basic natural science or quantitative focus in fields such as medicine, nursing and public health. Many gateway courses are offered in large lecture-theater formats or massive laboratory sessions. However, smaller courses can be considered gateway courses if they present information on which a further curriculum depends. The committee, working closely with Zeger, has laid out a series of efforts to meet the initiative’s lofty goals. Of note, the Provost’s Office has com-mitted funds for a competitive grant process that kicks off today [see sidebar]. The goal is to identify and fund a set of pilot projects that will both improve current gateway courses and point the way to potentially larger changes in pedagogy, course and pro-gram design, and instructional methodolo-gies that will position JHU to provide the best possible training for its students in all fields of study impacted by such courses.

Proposals will be reviewed by the Gate-way Sciences Initiative steering committee, which will try to identify potential for trans-formative impact on student learning. The basic question the committee will ask is: How will the proposed project advance the cause of gateway science teaching at JHU? All grant recipients will be required to provide an interim report on progress toward the project’s goals halfway through their funding period. Upon completion of the grant period, recipients will be expected to submit final reports detailing outcomes, suc-cesses and failures. This report should include discussion of future opportunities that can build on the outcomes of the funded work. Grant recipients will make poster presen-tations on their projects at an annual Gate-way Sciences Initiative symposium. The first symposium is scheduled for Jan. 20, 2012, and will include outside experts on teaching and peer instruction. The Gateway Sciences faculty steering committee will host two open meetings to allow faculty and staff the opportunity to discuss the RFP and the broader initiative. For the East Baltimore campus, a meeting will be held from 4 to 5 p.m. on Wednes-day, Sept. 14, in W1030 at the Bloomberg School of Public Health. A Homewood campus open meeting is scheduled for 3 to 4 p.m. on Monday, Sept. 26, in the Mason Hall auditorium. David said that while many students report a positive experience from JHU’s gateway courses, some are left unsatisfied. “These are very important steppingstone courses. We need to do a better job in how we offer them. In some cases, the techniques and approaches haven’t changed in many years,” David said. “This is a bold new initia-tive that potentially impacts thousands of students. It’s hard for me to conceive of a way to affect more students quicker than helping improve the teaching of gateway science sources. Even the good classes can get bet-ter. There is new technology out there, new teaching techniques that we can learn from.” David said that changes could come in the form of better utilization of teaching assis-

tants, new course structures, smaller class sizes and a reimagining of how a class con-nects with other courses in the discipline. He said that the use of technology will also be thoroughly examined. Some students are well-served by traditional lecture-style presentations, he said, while others could benefit from a more active, varied form of engagement with the material. “Some technology can definitely help,” he said. “Just look at the current use of clickers in some of our classes. A professor could pose a question like, Do you understand how RNA is transmitted, and then students respond yes or no with the clicker. The use of technol-ogy in this way can make the class more

interactive. It’s just one example of how we can make these courses more engaging and enjoyable.” Diener-West said that this initiative emphasizes the importance of teaching and learning in large foundational courses. “It shows the backing and commitment of the university in promoting and supporting this mission,” she said. “It is a very exciting opportunity for creative thinking, sharing of best practices and advancing Johns Hopkins’ collective experience in innovation in edu-cation.” David said that any concrete changes to courses would not likely take effect until fall 2012.

The Provost’s Office wants your ideas for how to improve the gate-way science courses. The purpose

of the RFP process is to garner bold, cre-ative, culture-changing ideas for trans-forming these courses based on sound precedents and accompanied by rigorous assessment plans. Projects may focus on existing courses, develop new courses or programs, enhance or advance pedagogy, or develop new learning resources and strategies that function either inside or outside the classroom. Projects should build on and reinforce best practices in education, including active learning and the encour-agement of student-faculty interactions and cooperation among students. The projects should promote student engagement and discovery. They could include improvements to laboratory components of these courses, classroom technology, enhancements in the train-ing and effectiveness of graduate teach-ing assistants or multimedia use. Propos-als might also call for the creation of new interdisciplinary courses or programs that

Gateway Sciences grant applications wantedadopt integrated approaches to the learn-ing of gateway science material. Respondents are encouraged to con-sult with divisional teaching and learn-ing center staff, or outside instructional design and pedagogical experts, for assis-tance with concept development, bud-geting and assessment strategies. Proposals may be submitted by indi-vidual faculty, groups of faculty, single departments or multiple departments in any of the JHU divisions. The total project period may not exceed two years, and the funds requested may not exceed $200,000 over the award period. Matching funds or other in-kind contributions from participating depart-ments or divisions are encouraged. The deadline for proposals is Nov. 18. Earliest anticipated start dates for awards is Jan. 3, 2012. Proposals should be submitted in PDF format as email attachments to Gateway.Sciences@jhu .edu. For the complete RFP and more infor-mation about the initiative, go to www .jhu.edu/provost/gsi.

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“Personalized cancer medicine addresses the reality that no two people are exactly alike, and that no two cancers are exactly alike,” Nelson said. “I believe that the revolution occurring in personalized cancer medicine, driven by genome technologies, will have its greatest effect on the discovery and development of new cancer treatments, a process that right now is far too slow and too expensive for the more than 1.5 mil-lion Americans diagnosed with cancer each year.” “This is a watershed moment,” said Edward D. Miller, the Frances Watt Baker, M.D., and Lenox D. Baker Jr., M.D., Dean of the Medical Faculty and chief executive officer of Johns Hopkins Medicine. “With this gift from the Commonwealth Foundation, we’re poised to change and vastly improve cancer medicine.” Johns Hopkins scientists have pioneered numerous ways to decipher the genetic landscape of various cancers, uncovering key genetic mutations and pathways in breast, colon, brain and pancreatic cancer. Some of their discoveries have already altered patient care, Nelson noted. A blood test called PARE (for personalized analysis of rearranged ends), for example, not only detects cancer genes but also can tell if a ther-apy is working by measuring, in real time, the amount of a particular cancer’s DNA in the bloodstream. The test also can verify a cure or document the need for further treatment, freeing patients who are proved cancer-free from unneeded treatments. Funds for the new center will initially support over four years three pilot projects focused on changes in cancer-related DNA mutations inside cells, as well as genetic changes outside of cells’ nuclear DNA, known as epigenetic alterations. Specifically, investigators will examine which genomic and epigenomic factors


Personalized affect responses to treatment in patients with leukemia and lung cancer, and develop tests for early detection of various kinds of cancers, including breast, colon and lung. Based on genetic and epigenetic “markers,” scientists are already creating individual-ized immunotherapies—such as cancer vac-cines—that use the specific genetic makeup of each patient’s tumor. The new center, which officially began operations in July, brings together experts from many disciplines at Johns Hopkins, including oncology, biomedical engineering, public health and surgery. “The convergence of brilliant scientific minds made possible with this gift will bring us to a point where we can alter the course of cancer therapy in ways we could only imagine just a decade ago,” said Nel-son, who calls collaboration across special-ties “a hallmark of Hopkins science.” Johns Hopkins faculty have already seen the establishment of an individualized health initiative created with part of a recent gift to the university’s Whiting School of Engineer-ing from alumnus John Malone, a leading businessman in the telecommunications and media industries and chairman of Colorado-based Liberty Media. That gift supports a variety of interdisciplinary research. The new Kimmel-based center, Nelson said, will benefit from this initiative as well. The Commonwealth Foundation for Cancer Research, under the direction of William and Alice Goodwin, has been a leading supporter of translational research at the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center. Before this gift, the foundation had donated approximately $40 million to support research, including an innovative clinical trial using bacteria to treat colon cancer, development of targeted thera-pies using a vaccine to treat pancreatic and breast cancers, and cancer stem cell research. The foundation also supports research at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Can-cer Center, M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, the University of Virginia Cancer Center and Virginia Commonwealth University’s Massey Cancer Center.

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B y e k A t e r i n A P e s h e v A


A Johns Hopkins Children’s Center study of Baltimore City children who have asthma and live with

smokers shows that indoor air cleaners can greatly reduce household air pollution and lower the rates of daytime asthma symptoms to those achieved with certain anti-inflam-matory asthma drugs. Although the air cleaners improved the overall air quality in homes, they did not reduce air nicotine levels and did not coun-ter all ill effects of secondhand smoke, the researchers warn. Parents should be counseled to implement a total ban on indoor smoking and use air cleaners only as a temporary tool on the way to achieving a smoke-free household, the Johns Hopkins team concludes in the Aug. 1 issue of the Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine. “Air cleaners appear to be an excellent partial solution to improving air quality in homes of children living with a smoker but should not be viewed as a substitute for a smoke-free environment,” said lead inves-tigator Arlene Butz, a professor of pediatrics at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and an asthma specialist at Johns Hopkins Children’s. For the study, researchers followed for six months 115 children, ages 6 to 12 years, who lived in homes where one or more caregivers smoked. Each of 41 households received two free-standing air cleaners plugged into the

bedroom and living room. Another one-third of the homes got air cleaners plus at-home health education from a nurse on the dangers of secondhand smoke, and the other third got neither but were given air cleaners at the end of the study. The researchers measured air nicotine levels and air particulate mat-ter—microscopic bits of smoke, soil, pollen, dust and spores usually floating around in the air—before air cleaner installation and six months later. They also compared asthma symptoms and cotinine (the biological marker of nicotine found in the urine) of children liv-ing in homes with and without air cleaners. The overall air quality in homes with air cleaners showed a nearly 50 percent drop in the levels of particulate matter, although the air never reached the quality of smoke-free homes’, the researchers note. Homes that received both air cleaners and visits by health coaches did not achieve better air quality than homes that got air cleaners alone. The levels of air nicotine and urine cotinine remained similar in all children, regardless of air cleaner use in the home. The study also found that children living in homes with air cleaners had considerably more days without coughing, wheezing or difficulty breathing compared with children living in homes without air cleaners. Given the rate of symptom reduction observed in this study, the researchers estimate that a child with asthma living in a home with indoor air filtration would, on average, have 33 more symptom-free days per year than a child living in a smoking household without indoor filtration. The number of symptom-free days made possible by the air cleaners was nearly the same as the number achieved with the use of a type of anti-inflammatory asthma drug in another study, the investiga-tors note. “Our findings show a clear link between improved asthma symptoms and the use of air cleaners, providing further evidence that

Air cleaners ease asthma in kids living with smokersair cleaners could play an important role in the treatment of children with asthma,” said co-investigator Patrick Breysse, a professor at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and director of the Johns Hopkins Center for Childhood Asthma in the Urban Environment. Because smoking is a main driver of indoor air pollution, the researchers recom-mend the use of air cleaners even in smoke-free homes if they are part of multifamily dwellings in which secondhand smoke can easily seep in from surrounding units. Asthma is the most common pediatric chronic illness, affecting 6.5 million chil-dren in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. More than 30 percent of children in the United States share a home with a smoker, and up to two-thirds of children in urban neighborhoods live with at least one smoker, the researchers say. The study was funded by the National Institute of Environmental Health Science, the National Institutes of Health and the Environmental Protection Agency. In addition to Butz and Breysse, investiga-tors in the study were Elizabeth Matsui, Jean Curtin-Brosnan, Peyton Eggleston, Gregory Diette, D’Ann Williams, Jie Yuan, John Bernert and Cynthia Rand, all of Johns Hopkins.

Related websites arlene Butz: www.hopkinschildrens.org/ Arlene-Butz-ScD-RN-MSN- CPNP.aspx

‘archives of Pediatrics & adolescent Medicine’: archpedi.ama-assn.org

GIVe BLooDcontact your local office ofThe american red Cross


Sunny Wednesday brings the first wave of freshmen to the Homewood campus.

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among the welcoming crew are President ron Daniels and members of 25 student groups.Nearly 360 upperclassmen are on hand to greet families

and choreograph unloading of cars.

Drivers in a snaking line of bumper-to-bumper cars get directions on rainy Thursday.

Jackie Starett unpacks in her room in aMr II with some help from her mother.Boxes on wheels consolidate student belongings as

they’re whisked from cars to residence halls.


2015

wore a “Move It, Move It” T-shirt, wel-comed students and families on Wednes-day morning. He darted from vehicle to vehicle, meeting as many new faces as he could. The big move-in kicked off a whirlwind four-day period for the 1,245 new students,

who begin classes today. After settling in, they took part in a string of orientation events, including campus tours, a movie night (Madagascar, of course), an ice cream social, open houses, and the frenzied and interactive Playfair, an orientation tradition now in its second decade at Johns Hopkins. For Playfair, the entire freshman class filed shoeless into the O’Connor Recreation Center gymnasium to first make a human tunnel. With music pumping, RA’s scream-ing and the Johns Hopkins Blue Jay dancing, the tunnel got increasingly larger until the

master of ceremonies, Newton Kaneshiro, asked the freshmen to turn the tunnel inside out, forming a sort of human millipede that snaked around the gym floor. What followed was a series of quick icebreakers and activi-ties—including a massive game of rock, paper, scissors—that allowed the incoming class to get better acquainted and feel some school spirit. A Deans Assembly for the entire class was held on Friday, a busy day for the new class that ended with a semiformal Blue Jay Ball on Levering Plaza.

The freshman class was selected from a record-setting 19,388 applicants. The group hails from 46 states plus Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico and numerous foreign countries. The new class is Homewood’s most diverse ever, with 18 percent coming from underrepresented minority groups, including 136 Hispanic/Latino students and 94 African-American students. Among those enrolled are 14 Baltimore Scholars, students from Baltimore City high schools who receive free tuition from the univer-sity. G

B y e l l e n B e t h l e v i t t


Results of a study published in the Aug. 19 issue of The Lancet have important implications for deciding

whether cholesterol-lowering statin medica-tion should be prescribed for people who have heart disease risk factors but normal levels of LDL, the so-called “bad” cholester-ol. An estimated 6 million American adults fall into that gray-zone category. According to the study, led by a Johns Hopkins heart specialist, the presence of calcium in coronary arteries is a much bet-ter predictor of heart attack and stroke than C-reactive protein among people with nor-mal levels of LDL cholesterol. The goal of the new study, which followed 2,083 people for six years, was to further refine who was at higher risk and therefore might benefit from taking statin medica-tions. Conversely, the study also looked to define which groups may be at low risk and not in need of the drugs. The participants in the study were volunteers in the ongo-ing Multi-Ethnic Study on Atherosclerosis, known as MESA, which is an NIH-funded, Johns Hopkins–affiliated study. “This was a direct comparison to see which patients with a normal LDL level of less than 130 mg/dL would have the greater risk of having a heart attack or stroke: those with evidence of calcium in coronary arter-ies, as determined on a cardiac CT test, or those with high levels of C-reactive protein, which is measured in blood and is an indica-tor of inflammation somewhere in the body,” said Michael J. Blaha, the study’s lead author

and a cardiology fellow at the Johns Hop-kins University School of Medicine and the Johns Hopkins Heart and Vascular Institute. Blaha and colleagues found that 95 percent of the heart attacks, strokes or heart-related deaths in the study population occurred in people with some measurable calcium in their heart arteries. Meanwhile, 13.4 percent of those with the highest levels of coronary calcium (with scores greater than 100 on a calcium scoring test) had a heart attack or stroke during the study, whereas only 2 per-cent of those with high C-reactive protein in their blood, but no calcium buildup, had a heart attack or stroke. In their study, the researchers determined that high levels of C-reactive protein in the blood (a score at or above 2 milligrams per liter) offered little predictive value after accounting for such risk factors as age, gen-der, ethnicity, hypertension, obesity, diabetes, smoking and a family history of heart disease. “A calcium test directly looks for the dis-ease we propose to treat with statins. Without measurable amounts of calcium, which indi-cates atherosclerosis, you are likely to be at very low risk in the short term,” Blaha said. This new study was designed to address some unanswered questions from a 2008 study called Jupiter, short for the Justifi-cation for the Use of Statins in Primary Prevention: An Interventional Tool Evalu-ating Rosuvastatin. That study found a 46 percent reduction in heart attacks among people with normal LDL cholesterol and a high level of C-reactive protein who took the statin medication rosuvastatin, which is marketed as Crestor. Jupiter included only people with high C-reactive protein, and none of those par-

Coronary calcium better for predicting risk of heart attack, stroketicipants were tested to see whether they had evidence of calcium in their coronary arteries. So, Blaha said, it could not be deter-mined from Jupiter whether people with low levels of C-reactive protein would benefit in the same way from statin therapy, or how the presence of coronary calcium may have affected the results. All of the participants in the MESA trial had undergone coronary CT scanning, known as a calcium scoring test. Blaha and colleagues identified a group of participants in MESA that had high C-reactive protein levels and fit the criteria for Jupiter, and another that had low levels of C-reactive protein. Then they were able to directly compare the prognostic importance of coro-nary artery calcium to C-reactive protein. A statistical comparison of the results showed that among those with no measur-able coronary calcium, 549 patients would need to be treated with statin medication in order to prevent one heart attack. However, for those with high levels of coronary cal-cium buildup (with a calcium score greater than 100), the predicted number of those who needed to be treated to prevent one heart attack was only 24. “Statin medications, which are a lifelong therapy, should not be considered the same as other preventive measures, such as diet and exercise, to reduce the risk of cardio-vascular disease,” said co-investigator Roger Blumenthal, a cardiologist, professor of medi-cine and director of the Ciccarone Center for the Prevention of Heart Disease at Johns Hopkins. “All drugs have the potential to cause side effects in some people, although with statins, the side effects are rare,” he said. According to Blumenthal, “Many patients

fall into the gray zone of being healthy with normal LDL cholesterol but also have some risk factors, including being overweight, having elevated blood sugar levels or [hav-ing] a family history of heart disease. Our study provides clear evidence that high levels of calcium in coronary arteries will increase the risk of a heart attack or a stroke. And the risk increases with the amount of calcium, whether or not patients have high levels of C-reactive protein.” “While not everyone needs a calcium scoring test,” Blaha said, “we believe looking for calcification in coronary vessels in cer-tain patients makes sense in order to predict who may benefit from statin therapy because the test gets right to the heart of the disease we want to treat.” Added Blumenthal, “Our data support recent American Heart Association guide-lines, which say it is reasonable to order a coronary calcium scan for adults who are considered to be at intermediate risk of a heart attack over the next 10 years. A high coronary calcium score would indicate that statin therapy would likely be a useful strategy to lower that person’s cardiovascular risk.” In addition to Blaha and Blumenthal, Hop-kins investigators involved in this research were study senior investigator Khurram Nasir, who is now at the Yale University School of Medicine, Andrew DeFilippis and Joao Lima. Other researchers were Matthew Budoff, of the Los Angeles Biomedical Research Insti-tute at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center in Torrance, Calif.; Juan Rivera and Arthur Agatston, both of the University of Miami; Ron Blankstein, of Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston; and Dan O’Leary, of Car-ney Hospital in Dorchester, Mass.


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B y e l l e n B e t h l e v i t t


Johns Hopkins scientists have launched a pioneering research program to cre-ate, for the first time, human platelet

cells from stem cells in order to study inherited blood-clotting abnormalities ranging from clots that cause heart attacks and stroke to bleeding disorders. The study is funded by a $9 million grant from the National Institutes of Health as part of a nationwide initiative to examine how genetic variations cause heart, lung and blood diseases. One goal of the Johns Hopkins research is to increase understanding of how genes regulate the function of platelets, which are the sticky cells in blood that are impor-tant in stopping excessive bleeding. The

researchers also will investigate how genetic variations can affect a person’s responsive-ness to aspirin and other medications that are designed to prevent clotting, in order to find new ways to prevent and treat abnormal clotting. Current anticoagulants, or “blood thinner” medications that are essential to prevent life-threatening complications from some heart or vascular diseases, are not always effective for individuals with certain genetic variations. The other key aspect of the research will be to develop the technical capacity to produce large numbers of blood platelets from an individual’s blood sample. That way, patients who need platelet transfusions, such as those whose platelets were wiped out following chemotherapy, would be able to be transfused with their own platelets without the risk of rejection that comes with receiv-ing donated platelets.

JHU begins research to create blood platelets from stem cells “We will work to develop a completely new approach to generating blood cells for people who are desperately in need of chronic infusions,” said cardiologist Lewis Becker, a professor of medicine at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, who is the co-principal investigator of the study. To begin the research, small blood sam-ples will be taken from 400 adult volun-teers. White blood cells from those donated samples will be transformed into immortal induced pluripotent stem cells, or iPS cells, which can be reprogrammed into any type of human tissue. In this case, they will be converted into megakaryocytes, which are few in number, reside in bone marrow and produce platelets. The researchers will use technology developed just four years ago by Japanese scientists to reprogram human cells. Previously, iPS cells could be obtained only from biopsies of skin or other organs, so having the ability to create them from blood samples is a big advance. “We are essentially turning back the clock, transforming these adult cells back to their origins in an embryonic-like state,” said Linzhao Cheng, a professor of medicine and associate director for basic research in the Division of Hematology. He is also a member of the Johns Hopkins Institute for Cell Engineering and a co-principal investi-gator of the study. “The techniques we will use for this study will also be applied to increase understand-ing of other human diseases. For the first time, we will have a laboratory system to study how human gene variants affect the function of cells,” Cheng said. The blood samples will come from a large group of people who previously participated in the Johns Hopkins GeneSTAR study, a genetic research initiative with a database of 4,000 people who have family members with early heart disease. That study, which was the largest platelet function study in the world, uncovered an important genetic

region related to platelet function and the effect of aspirin on blood clotting. “From GeneSTAR, we already know that these individuals have inherited genetic variants that affect their platelet function. We will ask some of them to come back to give a small blood sample to help us with this new study,” said Diane Becker, a professor of medicine and director of the GeneSTAR genetic research program in the Division of General Internal Medicine, who is also an investigator on the study. The five-year study is one of nine new stem cell projects funded by the NIH to examine how gene variants cause disease. Susan B. Shurin, acting director of the NIH’s National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, said, “These studies will illumi-nate how specific genes behave in different tissues and should clarify the mechanisms by which a gene associated with a dis-ease affects the biology of different tissues. Understanding the cellular and tissue biol-ogy will allow us to develop and test new therapies and prevention methods,” she said. “These approaches, using iPS cells on a large scale, could improve the predictive value of preclinical testing, benefit regen-erative medicine and reduce the need for animal models of disease.”

Related websitesNIH grants: www.nhlbi.nih.gov/new/iPScoops .htm

GeneSTar: www.genestarjhu.com

Heart and Vascular Institute at Johns Hopkins: www.hopkinsmedicine.org/ heart_vascular_institute


B y n A t A l i e W o o d - W r i G h t

Bloomberg School of Public Health

Sure they’re fun and kids love them, but could cartoon characters used in marketing contribute to the obesity

epidemic as well as create nagging children? Today, some parents find themselves hav-ing a battle in the cereal aisle. Recogniz-able characters and logos prompt children to make repeated requests for a range of products, including low-nutrition foods and beverages. To better understand the media’s impact on children’s health, a team of researchers from the Johns Hopkins Bloom-berg School of Public Health examined the “nag factor.” The nag factor is the tendency of chil-dren, who are bombarded with marketers’ messages, to unrelentingly request adver-tised items. Researchers explored whether and how mothers of young children have experienced this phenomenon and their

strategies for coping. The results are featured in the August issue of the Journal of Children and Media. “As researchers continue to investigate factors influencing the childhood obesity epi-demic, attention often turns toward the mar-keting and consumption of junk food,” said Dina Borzekowski, senior author of the study and an associate professor in the Bloomberg School’s Department of Health, Behavior and Society. “Clearly, children are not the primary shoppers in the households, so how do child-oriented, low-nutrition foods and beverages enter the homes and diets of young children? Our study indicates that while overall media use was not associated with nagging, one’s familiarity with commercial television characters was significantly associ-ated with overall and specific types of nag-ging. In addition, mothers cited packaging, characters and commercials as the three main forces compelling their children to nag.” Using quantitative and qualitative meth-odologies, researchers interviewed 64 moth-

Nag factor: How do kids convince parents to buy junk foods?ers of children ages 3 to 5 between October 2006 and July 2007. Mothers answered questions about the household environ-ment, themselves, their child’s demograph-ics, media use, eating and shopping pat-terns, and requests for advertised items. Participants also were asked to describe their experiences and strategies for dealing with the nag factor. Researchers selected mothers as interview subjects because they are most likely to act as “nutritional gatekeepers” for their household and control the food pur-chasing and preparation for small children. Borzekowski and colleagues found that nagging seemed to fall into three categories: juvenile, boundary testing and manipula-tive. Mothers consistently cited 10 strate-gies for dealing with the nagging: giving in, yelling, ignoring, distracting, staying calm and consistent, avoiding the commercial environment, negotiating and setting rules, allowing alternative items, explaining the reasoning behind choices and limiting com-mercial exposure.

“Our study indicates that manipulative nagging and overall nagging increased with age,” said Holly Henry, lead author of the study and a doctoral candidate in the Bloomberg School’s Department of Health, Behavior and Society. “When it comes to the most commonly cited strategies for deal-ing with nagging, 36 percent of mothers suggested limiting commercial exposure, and 35 percent of mothers suggested simply explaining to children the reasons behind making or not making certain purchases. Giving in was consistently cited as one of the least-effective strategies,” Henry said. “This unique study offers a platform from which to propose future research and poli-cies to lessen children’s repeated requests for advertised items.” Borzekowski added, “To address child-hood obesity, it may be necessary to limit the amount of food and beverage advertising shown on commercial television and other media, as this may lessen children’s nagging for unhealthy items.”

B y s t e P h A n i e d e s m o n


A national transplant policy change designed to give African-American patients greater access to donor kid-

neys has sliced in half the racial disparities that have long characterized the allocation of lifesaving organs, new Johns Hopkins research suggests. Before 2003, the researchers note, an Afri-can-American patient who joined the kidney transplant list on the same day as a white patient would have a 37 percent smaller chance than a white counterpart of getting a transplant. In recent years, the researchers say, that percentage has dropped to 19. The Johns Hopkins researchers attribute the drop to a 2003 decision by the United Network for Organ Sharing to a change in

the relative priority given to tissue match-ing. “This is probably the biggest step that the transplant community has taken in recent years to reduce disparities in access to kidney transplants for African-Americans, and the good news is it worked extremely well,” said transplant surgeon Dorry L. Segev, an associ-ate professor of surgery at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and leader of the study published online in the American Journal of Kidney Diseases. “The bad news is, we still have a ways to go.” From the very beginning of widespread kidney transplants in the United States there has been a racial disparity in who received organs and who died before one became available. A higher proportion of organ donors are white, and a higher proportion of those needing kidneys are African-American.

Policy change reduces racial disparity in kidney transplantsMatches across race are traditionally more difficult, as physicians have given priority to different types of immunologic compat-ibility, including whether the organ and the donor share the same human leukocyte antigens, or HLA, proteins on the surface of white blood cells and other tissues in the body that can create organ rejection and other complications. African-Americans and whites typically aren’t HLA matches, particularly one subtype known as HLA-B. “HLA matching was prioritized under the premise that it would improve outcomes,” Segev said. “But with advancements in immunosuppressants, HLA matching isn’t as important as it once was. If you match by HLA, you might get only slightly better out-comes now. A minimal sacrifice in outcomes has meant a big gain in equity.” Although the new research from Segev and his colleagues found that the UNOS

policy change had a profound effect on racial disparities in kidney transplant, the gap remains. Previous research has shown that African-Americans have been at a disadvan-tage at every step of the kidney transplant process including the incidence and preva-lence of kidney failure, referral for transplant evaluation, placement on the waiting list and obtaining a transplant once on the list. Segev says that research is needed into why there is still a disparity, and how to ensure even more equitable access to lifesav-ing organs. The study was funded in part by the Health Resources and Services Administra-tion. Others from Johns Hopkins involved in the research are Erin C. Hall, Allan B. Massie, Nathan T. James, Jacqueline M. Garonzik Wang, Robert A. Montgomery and Jonathan C. Berger.

Potential uses include facial reconstruction for soldiers’ blast injuries

B y v A n e s s A m c m A i n s


Biomedical engineers at Johns Hopkins have developed a new liquid material that in early experiments in rats and

humans shows promise in restoring damaged soft tissue relatively safely and durably. The material, a composite of biological and syn-thetic molecules, is injected under the skin, then “set” using light to form a more solid structure, like using cold to set gelatin in a mold. The researchers say that the product one day could be used to reconstruct soldiers’ faces marred by blast injuries. The Johns Hopkins researchers caution that the material, described in a report in the July 27 issue of Science Translational Medicine, is “promising” but not yet ready for widespread clinical use. “Implanted biological materials can mimic the texture of soft tissue but are usually broken down by the body too fast, while syn-thetic materials tend to be more permanent but can be rejected by the immune system and typically don’t meld well with surround-ing natural tissue,” said Jennifer Elisseeff, the Jules Stein Professor of Ophthalmology and director of the Translational Tissue Engineer-ing Center at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. “Our composite mate-

rial has the best of both worlds, with the bio-logical component enhancing compatibility with the body, and the synthetic component contributing to durability.” The researchers created their composite material from hyaluronic acid, a natural component in skin of young people that confers elasticity, and polyethylene glycol, a synthetic molecule used successfully as surgical glue in operations and known not to cause severe immune reactions. The polyethylene glycol, or PEG, can be “cross-linked”—or made to form sturdy chemi-cal bonds between many individual mol-ecules—using energy from light, which traps the hyaluronic acid, or HA, molecules with it. Such crosslinking makes the implant hold its shape and not ooze away from the injec-tion site, Elisseeff says. To develop the best PEG-HA composite with the highest long-term stability, the researchers injected different concentrations of PEG and HA under the skin and into the back muscle of rats, shone a green LED light on them to “gel” the material and used magnetic resonance imaging to monitor the persistence of the implant over time. The implants were examined with MRIs at 47 days and 110 days and removed. Direct measurements and MRIs of the implants showed that the ones created from HA and the highest-tested concentration of PEG with HA stayed put and were the same size over time compared to injections of only HA, which shrank over time. The researchers evaluated the safety and persistence of the PEG-HA implants with a 12-week experiment in three volunteers

New composite material may restore damaged soft tissuealready undergoing abdominoplasty, or “tummy tucks.” Technicians injected about five drops of PEG-HA or HA alone under the belly skin. None of the participants expe-rienced hospitalization, disability or death directly related to the implant, which was about 8 mm long, about as wide as a pinky fingernail. However, the participants said that they sensed heat and pain during the gel-setting process. Twelve weeks after implanta-tion, MRI revealed no loss of implant size in patients. Removal of the implants and inspection of the surrounding tissue revealed mild to moderate inflammation due to the presence of certain types of white blood cells. The researchers said that the same inflam-matory response was seen in rats, although the types of white blood cells responding to implant differed between the rodents and humans, a difference the researchers attribute to the back muscles—the target tissue in the rats—being different from human belly fat. “We still have to evaluate the persistence and safety of our material in other types of human tissues, like muscle or less-fatty regions under the skin of the face, so we can optimize it for specific procedures,” Elisseeff said. Elisseeff said that the team has especially high hopes for the composite’s use in people with facial deformities, who endure social and psychological trauma. When rebuilding soft tissue, re-creating natural shape often requires multiple surgeries and can result in scarring. “Many of the skin fillers available on the market consisting of HA-like materi-als used for face lifts are only temporarily effective and are limited in their ability to

re-sculpt entire areas of the face. Our hope is to develop a more-effective product for people, like our war veterans, who need extensive facial reconstruction. ” Other researchers involved in the study are Alexander Hillel, Shimon Unterman, Bran-den Reid, Jeannine Coburn, Joyce Axelman, Jemin Chae, Qiongyu Guo, Zhipeng Hou, Susumu Mori and Janis Taube, all of Johns Hopkins; Zayna Nahas, of Stanford Uni-versity; Robert Trow and Andrew Thomas, both of Energist North America; and Serge Lichtsteiner, Damon Sutton, Christine Matheson, Patricia Walker and Nathaniel David, all of Kythera Biopharmaceuticals. The research was supported by a grant from Kythera Biopharmaceuticals, which develops cosmetic pharmaceutical products.

Related websitesJennifer elisseeff’s lab: web1.johnshopkins.edu/JLAB

Biomedical engineering at Johns Hopkins: www.bme.jhu.edu/index.php

Translational Tissue engineering Center: web1.johnshopkins.edu/ttec/index.php

‘Science Translational Medicine’: stm.sciencemag.org


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Chinese zither (GuZheng) lessons offered at a low price; instrument provided. 573-529-4358 or [email protected].

Child care, pet care, personal assistant, responsible, caring, competent. 917-456-7973 or [email protected].

Clarinet/piano lessons taught by Peabody master’s student, years of teaching experi-ence, lessons summer and year-round. 240-994-6489 or [email protected].

Certified nursing assistant seeking elderly

care position, can assist w/personal care, cooking, lt housekeeping, refs avail. 410-790-9997 or [email protected].

Blanka will clean houses, apts, do laundry and more; free estimates, reasonable prices, great refs, text or leave message (English OK, Spanish better). 443-621-1890 or crabdean@ gmail.com.

Affordable and professional landscaper/cer-tified horticulturist available to maintain existing gardens, also designing, planting or masonry; free consultations. David, 410-683-7373 or [email protected].

Licensed landscaper avail for spring/sum-mer lawn maintenance, yd cleanup; other services incl trash hauling, fall/winter snow removal. Taylor Landscaping LLC. 410-812-6090 or [email protected].

Masterpiece Landscaping: knowledgeable, experienced individual, on-site consulta-tion, transplanting, bed preparation, instal-lation, sm tree and shrub shaping; licensed. Terry, 410-652-3446.

Friday Night Swing Dance Club, open to the public, great bands, no partners necessary. 410-663-0010 or www.fridaynightswing.com.

Mobile auto detailing and power wash ser-vice. Jason, 443-421-3659.

Horses for lease or half-lease for trail riding, showing or eventing, must stay on farm in Glyndon (Baltimore Co). $150-$275/mo incl farrier. 410-812-6716.

Seeking seamstress who can make Indian-style dresses (saris, lehengas, etc). Lagom335@ hotmail.com.

Patient Chinese language teacher available. [email protected].

A1 movers, have 30-ft box truck, available for small or large move, all Hopkins 15% discount. 410-419-3902.

Need wknd help w/yard work in Reisters-town, MD, transplanting shrubs, spreading mulch, weeding, etc; I can provide transpor-tation. $50/day. [email protected].

Piano/music appreciation lessons by gradu-ate student in Mt Vernon. 425-890-1327.

The audition is open to all Johns Hop-kins students, faculty, staff and alumni and to community members. Learn more about HSO at www.jhu.edu/jhso. For more audition information, and to sign up for a time, go to www.jhu.edu/jhso/about/audition_info.html.

B y r i c h A r d s e l d e n

Peabody Institute

Peabody’s 2011–2012 season will open on Tuesday, Sept. 20, with An Evening with Joe Burgstaller and

Friends, the first of eight concerts in the Sylvia Adalman Chamber Series. Burg-staller, a former full-time member of the Canadian Brass who teaches trumpet at the Peabody Conservatory, will be joined by pianists Julian Lawrence Cargiulo and Hector Martignon, and other guests, to perform crossover arrangements of works by Bach, Ravel, Piazolla and other com-posers. The bicentennial of pianist and com-poser Franz Liszt, born Oct. 22, 1811, will be celebrated this fall with a series of faculty and student performances. At the first Peabody Symphony Orchestra con-cert of the season, on Tuesday, Sept. 27,

faculty artist Alexander Shtarkman will perform Liszt’s Piano Concerto No. 1 in E-flat major. On the following Tuesday, Oct. 4, Shtarkman, four other members of the Piano Department and faculty artist Ah Young Hong, soprano, will be featured in a Liszt Extravaganza. (For the complete schedule, go to www.peabody .jhu.edu/liszt). The 10-concert Peabody Jazz Series will begin on Friday, Oct. 28, with a con-cert by the Peabody Jazz Orchestra, led by bassist Michael Formanek. The pro-gram features the music of Thad Jones (1923–86), a trumpeter and arranger with the Count Basie Orchestra, who co-founded the Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Orchestra in 1965. Jones’ arrangements and compositions made this ensemble one of the most innovative and admired big bands of the 1960s and 1970s. For detailed concert information, go to www.peabody.jhu.edu.

Peabody season opens withmusic by Joe, Franz and Thad


ClassifiedsaParTMeNTS/HouSeS for reNT

Bayview, 2BR, 2BA house, den, clean con-crete backyd w/storage, walk to Bayview campus, grocery stores or sm shopping cen-ter, nr 95/895. 301-661-5627.

Butcher’s Hill, 2BR or 1BR + den apt, 1 full BA, recently renov’d, open kitchen, microwave/stove/oven, dw, W/D in unit, sec sys, storage, on-street prkng, 4 blks south of JHMI; call for pics or viewing. $1,100/mo + utils. 410-336-6118.

Butcher’s Hill/Patterson Park, fully furn’d, bright and sunny RH, 1BR + office, all appls, hdwd flrs, enclos’d patio. $975/mo + utils. [email protected] or http://jhmirental.vflyer.com/home/flyer/home/3259137.

Charles Village very spacious 3- or 4BR apt nr Homewood campus, 3rd flr. $1,500/mo. 443-253-2113 or [email protected].

Deep Creek Lake/Wisp, cozy 2BR cabin w/full kitchen, call for wkly/wknd rentals, pics avail at [email protected]. 410-638-9417.

Federal Hill, 2BR, 1BA RH, 2 blks to park, bamboo hdwd on 1st flr, crpt on 2nd flr, 3 window air conditioners, bsmt storage, W/D in laundry rm, fenced backyd w/garden area, credit check req’d, no pets, no section 8. $1,300/mo + utils + sec dep. 410-357-1762 or [email protected].

Homeland, 1BR, 1BA duplex on 26-acre estate, living rm, dining rm, kitchen, dw, hdwd flrs, W/D, prkng, avail for mature prof’l. $1,175/mo incl all utils. [email protected].

Locust Point (1325 Cooksie St), 2BR, 2BA house. $1,300/mo + utils. 410-409-5136, 410-409-5137 or [email protected].

Owings Mills, spacious 2BR, 2BA apt, 1,200 sq ft, W/D, dw, CAC, balcony, prkng. $1,300/mo. [email protected].

Patterson Park, lovely 2BR (or optional 3BR), 1.5BA TH, W/D, CAC, fin’d bsmt, on JHH shuttle stop, pets OK case by case, back patio, jacuzzi tub, no smoking. $2,000/mo + utils. [email protected].

Remington, 3BR, 1BA house, lg kitchen, laundry, garden, 15-min walk to Homewood campus. $1,200/mo. 410-935-3642.

Remington, 2BR, 1.5BA RH on quiet street, 3 blks to Homewood campus, W/D, hdwd flrs, backyd. $1,250/mo. 410-617-8273 or [email protected].

Remington/Hampden, immaculate 3BR, 1BA EOG RH, updated, 1,600 sq ft, hdwd flrs, W/D, patio. $1,200/mo. 410-375-6464.

M A R K E T P L A C E

Tuscany/Canterbury, beautiful 1BR apt in great bldg, right across from Homewood campus, avail September 1 (or earlier). $985/mo. 443-854-1896 or anna.rogers.burns@ gmail.com.

Upper Fells Point/Jefferson Court, 2BR, 2.5BA TH, steps to medical campus, W/D, CAC, hdwd flrs, rear yd, off-street prkng incl’d. $1,200/mo + utils. [email protected].

Upper Waverly, charming 2BR, 1BA apt nr the 33rd Street Y. $750/mo. Andrea, 410-905-4036.

White Marsh, cozy 2BR, 1.5BA TH w/easy access to the mall and major highways. [email protected].

1718 Linden Ave, 2BR Victorian brown-stone on quiet, brick-cobbled street w/gaze-bo, 1 full BA, 1 half-BA, renov’d BAs/kitch-ens, upgraded appls, W/D (incl’d in rent), 2nd flr deck off master BR, hdwd flrs, backyd, prkng in rear, email for pics/viewing. $1,236/mo. 571-933-3341 or [email protected].

Newly renov’d 1BR bsmt apt in Victorian mansion, AC, W/D in bldg, nr JHH/JHU/Bayview. $675/mo + utils + sec dep. 410-426-8045 or [email protected].

Studio apt w/BA, kitchenette, laundry rm, pref car owners. $650/mo incl utils, gym/pool. 443-799-7530 or pathology_chi@ hotmail.com.

New TH conveniently nr JHH/SPH/SoN, 2,400 sq ft, 3 lg BRs w/adjoining BAs, per-fect for 3 roommates. $2,000/mo + utils. 410-592-4854 or [email protected].

HouSeS for SaLe

Gardenville, 3BR, 1.5BA RH in quiet neighborhood, new kitchen and BA, CAC, hdwd flrs, club bsmt w/cedar closet, fenced maintenance-free yd and carport, 15 mins to JHH. $139,500. 443-610-0236 or [email protected].

Homewood, beautiful 4BR, 2.5BA Victorian house, 15-min bike ride to campus. Becki, 443-603-3687.

Inner Harbor East, 2BR, 2.5BA waterfront condo. $1.25 million. 443-846-2950.

Mt Washington, lovely 3BR, 2.5BA condo TH, fp, dw, W/D, new gas range, hdwd flrs, patio, updated windows, nr reputable public school, community has lg pool and priv prkng. $154,900. Michelle, 443-248-0602.

Old Homeland, 3BR, 2BA house on quiet street nr JHU, big fenced yd, Roland Park schools. 443-286-1233 or [email protected].

3402 Mt Pleasant Ave, beautiful, completely rehabbed house, perfect for prof’ls. $159,900. Pitina, 410-900-7436.

Luxury 1BR condo in high-rise bldg w/prkng, secure bldg nr Guilford/JHU, door-man, W/D, CAC/heat, swimming pool, gym. $165,000. 757-773-7830 or [email protected].

rooMMaTeS WaNTeD

F nonsmoker wanted for furn’d, bright and spacious BR in 3BR Cedonia house owned

by young F prof’l, amenities incl’d modern kitchen w/convection oven, lg deck, land-scaped yd, free prkng, public transportation, wireless Internet. $550/mo + utils. 410-493-2435 or [email protected].

BR in furn’d 2BR condo nr JHU/Hop-kins/Tuscany, 1,000 sq ft, description and pics at http://baltimore.craigslist.org/roo/2536354791.html. $800/mo. 617-460-3125.

F wanted to share 2BR, 1.5BA apt nr Patter-son Park, 8-min walk to JHH, short lease (2 mos). 951-941-0384 or arcroshani@hotmail .com.

F wanted for furn’d rm in 3BR, 1.5BA Rem-ington house, 3-min walk to Homewood campus. $550/mo incl all utils. [email protected].

F wanted to share apt in Chesapeake Com-mons (Mt Vernon) w/grad student, beauti-ful bldg, prkng, Internet, pets OK. $647.50/mo. [email protected].

Rm w/priv BA avail, new, completely renov’d, less than 2-min walk to JHH/SPH/SoN, high-speed Internet. $650/mo + utils. 443-562-3930 or [email protected].

2BRs and shared full BA in newly construct-ed Upper Fells Point TH, rms on same flr, security alarm, W/D, rooftop deck, garage. $700/mo (each rm) + utils. [email protected].

924 N Broadway, share new, refurbished TH w/medical students, 4BRs, 2 full BAs, CAC, W/D, dw, w/w crpt, 1-min walk to JHMI. [email protected].

Sublet: Rm avail in apt in the Charles, across street from the library, share w/2 easygoing F grad students. $510/mo incl hot water, heat, gas; share electricity and Inter-net. [email protected].

F nonsmoker wanted to share spacious 2BR, 2BA apt in Pikesville area (the Estates), .2 mi to Old Court metro. $605/mo + utils. 443-801-5363 or [email protected].

CarS for SaLe

’00 Toyota Camry CE, automatic, blue, 130K mi. $4,300. [email protected].

’02 Nissan Altima 2.5 S, manual, 91K mi. $5,800. 443-858-1323 or [email protected].

’06 Toyota Scion xA, 4-dr hatchback, auto-matic, red, 27mpg (city) and 34mpg (high-way), in outstanding cond, 70K mi. $8,500. [email protected].

ITeMS for SaLe

German shepherd puppies, champion bloodline, 8 wks old, males and females. [email protected]. 410-245-1067.

Samick 6'1" grand piano, profession-ally maintained. 410-444-1273 or http:// baltimore.craigslist.org/msg/2544736267 .html (for photos and complete appraisal).

Conn alto sax, in excel cond; tabletop record player, excel cond, $30. 410-488-1886.

Raw tupelo honey from Florida, known as the “queen of the honey world,” it never

Classified listings are a free ser-vice for current, full-time Hop-kins faculty, staff and students only. Ads should adhere to these general guidelines:

• Oneadperpersonperweek.A new request must be submitted for each issue. • Adsarelimitedto20words, including phone, fax and e-mail.

• WecannotuseJohnsHopkins business phone numbers or e-mail addresses.• Submissionswillbecondensedat the editor’s discretion. • DeadlineisatnoonMonday, one week prior to the edition in which the ad is to be run.• Realestatelistingsmaybeoffered only by a Hopkins-affiliated seller not by Realtors or Agents.

(Boxed ads in this section are paid advertisements.)Classified ads may be faxed to 443-287-9920;e-mailedinthebody of a message (no attach-ments)[email protected];ormailed to Gazette Classifieds, Suite540,901S.BondSt.,Bal-timore, MD 21231. To purchase a boxed display ad, contact the GazelleGroupat410-343-3362.

PLaCING aDS

crystallizes, 1 lb jars. $15. [email protected].

Window air conditioners (3): Haier, 7,800 BTUs, $110 (if other 2 units purchased); Haier, 5,200 BTUs, $25; Goldstar, 5,000 BTUs, $40; avail in Silver Spring, buyer picks up. Also GE 700W microwave, $50; white shag crpt w/padding, $25; flat choco-late crpt w/padding, $50. 410-207-8846.

Music cassette tapes (lot of 276), fitness chair, 21" TV, 35mm cameras, projection screen w/tripod, office file units, decorative items, dining rm set, full-length silver fox coat, new exterior French doors, more; pics avail. 443-824-2198 or [email protected].

Hooper Gems by Tiffany and Event Plan-ning Services; also fashion statement jew-elry, $35 or less. www.hoopergemsbytiffany .com.

Ikea Beddinge futon, like new, w/Beddinge frame, Resmo mattress, storage box, sofa cover, 4 matching pillowcases. $250/best offer. 917-470-7670 or [email protected].

Pool table, $1,000; deep freezer, $200; best offers accepted. Krista, 410-458-7831.

Moving sale: Tables, chairs, shelves, lamps, power tools, kitchen items, more. [email protected].

Nail dryer, pink, new in box, perfect for all your nail drying needs, gel, acrylic, more, 4 bulbs incl’d. $50/best offer. [email protected].

Otto Benjamin violin, 4/4, like new, com-plete w/certificate and serial number. $900/best offer. 410-991-5046 or jessicaswitzman@ verizon.net.

Sand beach chairs (2), inkjet printer, oil-filled heaters (3) and baseboard heaters (2), portable canvas chair, keyboard case, 100W amplifier. 410-455-5858 or iricse.its@ verizon.net.

Used queen boxspring and queen mattress, not fancy but serviceable, nr Homewood campus. $100/both (less if buyer picks up). [email protected].

Complete queen bed from Value City Fur-niture, headboard, footboard, frame, mat-tress, boxspring. $500. 443-604-2797 or [email protected].

Ikea Ektorp sofa, lt brown, in great cond. $200/best offer. [email protected].

Longaberger canisters, set of 3, baskets, lids, protectors, tie-ons, $150; dining rm set, $1,300. [email protected].

SerVICeS/ITeMS offereD or WaNTeD

Looking for studio or 1BR apt nr Mont-gomery County Campus, can also share apt w/fellow F student. 609-275-1591 or [email protected].

Reserved prkng space at Canterbury and University. $40/mo. 520-245-2853.

Italian tutor wanted, intermediate level, pref native spkr, start October 1. tarminl@ aol.com.

Continuedonpage10

WYMAN COURT Just Renovated!

HICKORY HEIGHTS A lovely hilltop setting on

Hickory Avenue in Hampden!

2 BD units from $750 w/Balcony - $785!

Shown by appointment - 410-764-7776

www.BrooksManagementCompany.com

Beech Ave. adj. to JHU! Studios - $595 - $630 1 BD Apts. - $710-740

2 BD from $795

Spacious Apt. ‐ Mt. Vernon, Cathedral near Madison, use as 1 or 2 BD, ideal for

roommate, CAC, on‐site laundry, $1250 per mo., includes heat/water, secure bldg.,

close to public transportation/JHU shuttle. 410‐837‐1337, [email protected]

Homeland Victorian 4BD, 2.5BA, w/arches, wood floors, nooks & crannies, deep porch w/swing, built‐in china cab., updtd kitch., all windows replaced, CAC (flrs 2 & 3)furnace 8 yrs old, full 3rd flr = Master Suite & BR lvl laundry.

$399,900 ‐ 15 min bike ride to Homewood!

Becki Gershman, GRI, SRESLong & Foster Real Estate, Inc. O 410-730-3456, C 410-913-8345 [email protected]


Calendar C o L L o Q u I a

Thurs., Sept. 1, 4 p.m. “Well-Being in a World of Want: Some Reflections on Recent Fieldwork in Sierra Leone,” an Anthropolo-gy colloquium with Michael Jack-son, Harvard Divinity School. 400 Macaulay. HW

I N f o r M a T I o N S e S S I o N S

Mon., Sept. 1, 12:15 p.m. Joint HIV Counseling and Test-ing Program/Health Leads infor-mation session for faculty, staff and students. Sponsored by SOURCE; for more information email [email protected]. W2015 SPH. eB

L e C T u r e S

Tues., Sept. 6, 8 p.m. “The His-tory of Light: How Stars Formed in Galaxies,” an STSci public lecture by Kai Noeske, STSci.

Lands, Community Context, and Severity and Progression of Type 2 Diabetes in Pennsylvania,” an Environmental Health Sciences thesis defense seminar with Ann Liu. W7023 SPH. eB

Thurs., Sept. 1, 1:30 p.m. “Met -alloregulatory Proteins: Linking Metal Ion Binding to DNA/RNA Recognition,” a Biophysics and Biophysical Chemistry seminar with Sarah Michel, University of Maryland School of Pharmacy. 701 WBSB. eB

fri., Sept. 2, noon. “Applica-tions of Weighted Finite State Transducers in a Speech Recogni-tion Toolkit,” a Center for Lan-guage and Speech Processing semi-nar with Daniel Povey, Microsoft Research. B17 Hackerman. HW

S P e C I a L e V e N T S

Mon., aug. 29, 5 p.m. Welcom-ing reception with Bonnie Wilson, associate dean for student affairs at SAIS. Event is open to the SAIS community only. For information, call 202-663-5705 or email lisa [email protected]. Kenney Audito-rium, Nitze Bldg. SaIS

W o r K S H o P S

The Center for educational

A U G . 2 9 – S E P T . 6

(Events are free and open to the public except where indicated.)

aPL Applied Physics LaboratoryeB East BaltimoreHW HomewoodKSaS Krieger School of Arts and SciencesPCTB Preclinical Teaching BuildingSaIS School of Advanced International StudiesSoM School of MedicineSoN School of NursingSPH School of Public HealthWBSB Wood Basic Science BuildingWSe Whiting School of Engineering

CalendarKey

Bahcall Auditorium, Muller Bldg. HW

S e M I N a r S

Mon., aug. 29, 1:30 p.m. “Learn-ing Intermediate-Level Represen-tations of Form and Motion From Natural Movies,” Part 1, a Bio-medical Engineering seminar with Bruno Olshausen, Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute and School of Optometry, University of Cali-fornia, Berkeley. 709 Traylor. eB (Videoconferenced to 110 Clark. HW)

Mon., aug. 29, 4 p.m. The David Bodian Seminar—“Learning Intermediate-Level Representa-tions of Form and Motion From Natural Movies,” Part 2, with Bruno Olshausen, Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute and School of Optometry, University of Cali-fornia, Berkeley. Sponsored by the Krieger Mind/Brain Institute. 338 Krieger. HW

Mon., aug. 29, 4 p.m. “Lifespan

of Quasilinear Wave Equations in Exterior Domains,” an Analysis/PDE seminar with John Helms, University of North Carolina. Sponsored by Mathematics. 300 Krieger. HW

Wed., aug. 31, 12:15 p.m. Mental Health Wednesday Noon Seminar—“The Brave New World of Bipolar Disor-der Genetics” with Peter Zandi, SPH. B14B Hampton House. eB

Wed., aug. 31, 12:15 p.m. “Role of Substance P in the Pathogenesis of Neurocysticer-cosis,” an International Health seminar with Prema Robinson, Baylor College of Medicine. W2030 SPH. eB

Wed., aug. 31, 1 p.m. “Cou-lomb Interactions Between Inter-nal Residues and Surface Charges in Proteins,” a Biophysics the-sis defense seminar with Victor Khangulov. 107 Jenkins. HW

Thurs., Sept. 1, 1 p.m. “The Burden of Coal Abandoned Mine

resources sponsors a series of workshops on the Blackboard 9.1 interface. The training is open to all faculty, staff and students in full-time KSAS or WSE programs who have administrative responsi-bilities in a Blackboard course. To register, go to www.bb.cer.jhu.edu. Garrett Room, MSE Library. HW

• Tues., aug. 30, 10 a.m. to noon. “Getting Started With Blackboard.”

• Wed., aug. 31, 10 a.m. to noon. “Communication and Collaboration in Black-board.”

• Thurs., Sept. 1, 10 a.m. to noon. “Assessing Student Knowledge and Managing Grades in Blackboard.”

B y B r e t t h A l l

School of Nursing

The Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing is adding a couple of branches to its virtual

family tree this fall as it welcomes Sim-NewB and Sim Man 3G to its simulation manikin family. “The use of simulation in nursing education is increasing, and Johns Hop-kins is at the forefront of utilizing it,” said Joyce Vazzano, an instructor in the Department of Acute and Chronic Care. “We are increasing the amount of simu-lation being used in our nursing curricu-lum, both baccalaureate and graduate, so the need for more manikins is evident.” SimNewB is an interactive simula-tor “born” by Laerdal and the American Academy of Pediatrics. She is a 7-pound, 21-inch female baby with realistic new-born traits. Students will be able to simu-late a wide variety of patient conditions with her, including life-threatening ones.

The department’s current Sim baby is the size of a 6-month-old and is not as condu-cive to delivery room procedures. Both manikins are interactive, but unlike SimNewB, Sim Man 3G is wireless. It is equipped with breath sounds both anteriorly and posteriorly, and has pupil reactions and skin temperature changes. SimNewB’s addition is partially sup-ported by a $27,000 grant from the Women’s Board of The Johns Hopkins Hospital to the School of Nursing Mater-nal Child Health Program. Sim Man 3G is coming via a Needs Based Grad Educa-tion II grant. “We are excited about both our new additions,” Vazzano said. “Through simulation, we feel that team dynamics improve as students learn to commu-nicate with the patient, family mem-bers and health care team; they refine their critical thinking skills; and they increase their confidence levels. It facili-tates practice in a risk-free environment, and hopefully will help improve patient outcomes.”

School of Nursing announces two new ‘arrivals’

B y k A r e n t o n G

Bayview Medical Center

An estimated $25 billion is spent annually on treating chronic wounds on patients in the United

States. These chronic wounds deeply affect the quality of life of more than 6 million people who have them. The most common types of chronic skin wounds and skin ulcers are related to venous disease (conditions related to or caused by veins that become diseased or abnormal). Many treatment options are available, but the quality of

evidence showing which treatments work better than others is often lacking. It is hard to prove which treatments are effective and should be the standards of care. The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality has now awarded the Johns Hopkins Evidence-based Practice Center a $475,000 project to carry out an extensive research review and create a scientific report to inform health care providers about effective state-of-the-art wound care. Through this project, the Johns Hopkins Wound Center and the Johns Hopkins Evidence-based Practice Center are conducting an evidence-based review of wound care to determine what is known and

JHU to review chronic wound treatment, identify best practicesunknown about it, and to establish strategies of care that are proved to work. Gerald Lazarus, founder of the Johns Hopkins Wound Center and professor of dermatology and medicine at Johns Hop-kins Bayview Medical Center, and Jonathan Zenilman, newly named director of the Wound Center and professor of medicine and chief of the Division of Infectious Diseases at Johns Hopkins Bayview, are co–principal investigators of this study. Work-ing with Eric Bass, director of the Johns Hopkins Evidence-based Practice Center, a team of recognized experts is trying to find important clinical answers to help treat patients with chronic wounds. “This research is a unique and important study that underscores the scientific credi-bility and intellectual honesty of the Wound Center,” Lazarus said. “It’s a great example of how translational research affects every-day lives. The information we gather and present will help countless clinicians and patients to make better, more educated deci-sions about the best course of treatment to heal wounds.” This type of study, known as comparative effectiveness research, is done to inform health care decision-makers by providing evidence on the effectiveness, benefits and risks of various treatment options. Johns Hopkins researchers will compile and ana-lyze all the evidence available from existing clinical trials, clinical studies, literature and research about chronic wound care. This research will determine the value of thera-peutic interventions—such as medications, antibiotics, dressings and surgery—for heal-ing chronic wounds. A report will show health care provid-ers, patients and others which treatments work best under certain conditions. The report will be designed as an important tool for understanding the facts about different wound treatments. Its goal is to provide the best possible information about wound treat-ment choices that is easily usable so that health care providers can work with patients to make informed decisions about the right treatment plan for each wound. Chronic wounds are a worldwide prob-lem. Their prevalence and cost are increas-

ing because of the aging population and more cases of obesity and diabetes. Chronic wounds often are associated with underlying conditions such as diabetes, clogging of the arteries, diseases of the veins, neurological problems, consequences of rheumatological illnesses, inflammation of vessels and other medical difficulties. Those that will not heal are frequently signs of larger and more complicated health problems. Nonhealing wounds can take a toll on patients far beyond the pain and discomfort of the wound. They can cause patients to lose their mobility, which may lead to a decline in general health and emotional well-being. Patients can become disabled, unable to work and dependent on care from others. Christine Chang, medical officer of the Center for Outcomes and Evidence at the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, said that the topic of chronic venous ulcer treatments was nominated to AHRQ’s Effec-tive Health Care Program by a consumer. “The Johns Hopkins Evidence-based Practice Center is one of 14 centers in AHRQ’s Evidence-based Practice Center Program,” she said, “and has a core team with both clinical and systematic review expertise. It has assembled an excellent research team for this topic, and included individuals with extensive experience in the treatment and management of patients with chronic venous ulcers, as well as those skilled in systematic review methodology.” Chang added, “While we do not formulate clinical practice guidelines, our hope is that this evidence report will provide patients and providers with the best information available to make well-informed decisions about care. The evidence report may also indicate areas of ongoing uncertainty, which will also be important as they consider vari-ous treatment options. We expect that clini-cian and consumer guides, as well as other translational materials, will be developed by our program, based upon the findings of the evidence report.” The Johns Hopkins Wound Center is located at Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center and specializes in diagnosing and treating chronic wounds, preventing wound recurrence and preserving limbs.

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