University of Arizona Health Sciences

A recent study led by researchers at the University of Arizona Cancer Center and Northern Arizona University found that Native American women were disproportionately affected by vaginal dysbiosis, a disruption in the balance of bacterial that increases the risk of human papillomavirus infection, which can cause cervical cancer. “Despite vaccination, we still have high rates of cervical cancer within Latina and Native American populations,” said the paper’s senior author Melissa Herbst-Kralovetz, PhD, a professor and director of the Women’s Health Research Program at the University of Arizona College of Medicine - Phoenix and a member of the U of A Cancer Center and University of Arizona BIO5 Institute. “Rates in Native American populations are the highest, and that’s why we focused our efforts on better understanding this disparity.” More: https://bit.ly/423zZXt

Have a happy and healthy new year!

The U of A Health Sciences Design for Health Innovation Graduate Certificate is helping Jaclyn Larson turn frustration into innovation. Larson is designing a more accessible communication device for her son, Aidan, who relies on a switch-activated communication device to express himself. “Health Sciences Design really spoke to me,” said Larson, who has been a staff member at the U of A Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental and Related Disabilities program since 2016. “Learning about the design thinking process kind of takes you to a problem and provides you with a framework of coming up with more innovative solutions. It allows you to address the underlying problems, not just the perceived problems.” More: https://bit.ly/3BIe7pF

The U of A Health Sciences and the University of Arizona - College of Agriculture, Life & Environmental Sciences are collaborating to grow spirulia, a blue-green algae-like microorganism superfood that may be able to provide nutrition to people facing food insecurity while agricultural challenges due to climate change. https://bit.ly/4ee1Bvh

Nearly 4.6 million children in the U.S. have asthma and many lack access to emergency inhalers at school. Thanks to a $3.4 million grant from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, a division of the National Institutes of Health, researchers at the The University of Arizona College of Nursing and the Asthma and Airway Disease Research Center are working to expand and improve the Stock Inhaler for Schools program, providing better access to life-saving medication for students in need. “Our goal with the Stock Inhaler for Schools program is to bridge the gap in access to life-saving medications and safeguard the well-being of our youth.” said Ashley Lowe, PhD, an assistant professor at the U of A College of Nursing and member of the U of A Health Sciences Asthma and Airway Disease Research Center. More: https://bit.ly/3ZOAjWX

Kenna Stephenson, MD, an associate clinical professor of family, community and preventive medicine at the University of Arizona College of Medicine - Phoenix, has always followed her dreams. They inspired her to embark on a deeply personal journey to find her birth mother and to become a doctor. Her interest in the power of dreams also influences her research. Stephenson is examining how dreaming and sharing of dreams in postmenopausal women 55 and older may impact the aging trajectory. Read more: https://bit.ly/4f3RSIi

The University of Arizona Health Sciences faculty members are adding their own flair to the holiday season, celebrating unique and heartwarming traditions from a super-sized steel saguaro to Hanukkah churros and an authentic Puerto Rican nochebuena feast in the desert. https://bit.ly/4gg0lcZ

Nochebuena is a Puerto Rican tradition celebrated on Christmas Eve and Alejandro Vazquez, PharmD, keeps the tradition going in the desert. From pernil (roast pork) to gandules and rice, his Christmas Eve feast brings friends and family together for food, Christmas movies and the opening of presents. “Food is my closest connection to my culture,” said Vazquez, an assistant clinical professor in the Pharmacy Practice and Science Department at the R. Ken Coit College of Pharmacy. More: https://bit.ly/4gg0lcZ

Nicole Yuan, Ph.D., MPH, who is Chinese-American, didn’t grow up lighting a menorah. Hanukkah is about creating new traditions with her family like crispy, golden latkes and air-fried churros. Another important part of their celebration is the lighting of the menorah. Yuan’s favorite is the one her children made in daycare — a simple wooden board with hot-glued hex nuts serving as candle holders. Over the years, melted wax has built up so much that the wood is no longer visible. “We’ve been finding the things we could do as a family that everybody could enjoy,” said Yuan, an associate professor and program director of health behavior and health promotion in the Department of Health Promotion Sciences at the Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health. She and her husband, Jerel Slaughter, Ph.D., a professor of management and organizations at the University of Arizona, Eller College of Management, have been celebrating Hanukkah together for 21 years. More: https://bit.ly/4gg0lcZ

U of A Health Sciences 2024: Research on cannabis terpenes for pain relief, the effects of pesticide exposure on stillbirth risks, sleep disruption and migraine, and cancer are among the year’s top news stories. Here are the best news releases of 2024: https://bit.ly/3ZKFUxM