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DAILY WILDCAT
Tuesday, september ,
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Researcher finds old cells can learn new tricks Department head studies the body’s response to diseases By Jazmine Woodberry DAILY WILDCAT
A few rare young cells help us fight new diseases better as we age. A recent study led by Dr. Janko Nikolich-Žugich, head of the UA Department of Immunobiology, found that rare white blood cells,
which age more slowly than their counterparts, respond the best to infections as we grow older. Nikolich-Žugich has been tackling questions of aging for 15 years as co-director of the Arizona Center on Aging. He divides infection-fighting white blood cells, or T cells, into two categories: naïve and memory. Naïve cells fight brand-new infections. They then increase from 100,000-fold up to a million-fold and turn into memory cells. Those are
the cells that kick in when your body encounters a strain of flu it already has antibodies against. Memory cells also keep you from getting chicken pox more than once. Researchers wondered if our aging bodies still called up the same number of naïve cells to respond to new diseases. After several studies, the answer was no. “The responses of naïve cells, both in terms of quality and quantity, are never reaching the levels
of children and younger adults,” Nikolich-Žugich said. The decline in naïve cells—which shrink to a third of their former levels past age 50 — makes us more susceptible to disease. The fighting power of kids’ naïve cells against disease is around 90 percent. As we age, it dwindles to between 20 and 50 percent, he said. But that surviving one-third is the most powerful weapon against fighting disease — and that is what Nikolich-Žugich hopes to capitalize
on with the findings of this study. Funded by the National Institutes of Health, it was published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Nikolich-Žugich said he hopes human trials can start in three to five years on a “kick start” vaccination that would activate and multiply naïve cells. “If we can devise a good vaccination or stimulation protocol, we should be able to selectively expand them even when we grow older,” he said.
Lending more helping hands Grant gives trainees opportunity to work with disabled children By Michelle A. Weiss DAILY WILDCAT
The Steele Children’s Research Center received a five-year grant that will be used to train professionals wanting to work with children who have autism, cerebral palsy and other neurodevelopmental disabilities. The $3.6 million grant, which the Health Resources and Services Administration funded, is going toward the Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental and Other Related Disabilities, or LEND, program. Funds will be used to pay for faculty salaries, stipends for the 14 trainees and travel funds. The oneyear intensive program involves Dr. Sydney Rice, an associate professor in the Department of Pediatrics. She is directing the one-year intensive program while Eileen McGrath, an assistant professor in the department, is the training director. “When they finish the program they’ll have credentials and they’ll know a lot more than they used to,” Rice said. This experience will help trainees become leaders in dealing with neurodevelopmental disabilities, Rice said. Examples of neurodevelopmental disabilities include autism, cerebral palsy, spina bifida, osteodystrophy, cleft lip and palate and seizure disorders, Rice said. When trainees finish with the program, they’ll know more about these disabilities and how to
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Sydney Rice, an associate professor from the Developmental Pediatrics Department at the University of Arizona Medical Center — University Campus, works on classroom-like activities with two brothers, 4 and 7, who both have autism.
work with one another. There are weekly training sessions on different topics including neurodevelopmental disabilities, life course and leadership training, she said. The program began on Aug. 16 with a three-day intensive leadership workshop at Hacienda del Sol Guest Ranch Resort and a one-day conflict
management workshop. Trainees will also spend time in health clinics and interdisciplinary clinics for children with complex health needs. “The discussions will revolve around our clinical experiences, which will be observing children,” said Jody Pirtle, a trainee and a graduate student studying special education. Pirtle was also
selected as the virtual trainee for the Association of University Centers on Disabilities, which is the parent organization of the LEND program. Part of her job is to increase networking across the country. Pirtle said the trainees will also be doing a leadership project and a hands-on family mentorship project.
Sarah Hamill Skoch, another trainee, is a clinical psychologist, and said she went to a clinic for spina bifida, a neurodevelopmental disability. The clinic had children who were between five and six years of age. “I was really blown away by
LEND, 3
Bike Valet still free for patrons a year after inception By Luke Money DAILY WILDCAT
More than 11,000 bikes vie for parking on campus every day. Despite this, the Bike Valet alternative bike-parking program continues to work to gain traction with students. First implemented in August 2010, the Bike Valet service was meant to offer UA students, faculty and staff a secure place to park their bikes, at a cost of 50 cents per use. Usage fees would help offset the cost of the project, $3,000 in initial startup and around $15,000 in annual payroll to hire people to oversee the bike corral. However, the Bike Valet became a free service shortly after it opened, in part to attract wider use by the campus community. And it will be free for the foreseeable future, according to Bill Davidson, the marketing specialist for Parking and Transportation Services. Davidson said the service was used around 6,500 times in its first year, an average of about 75 times per day. Though he said this level of usage was expected, PTS has been working to ad-
vertise the service around campus. He also said the Bike Valet has seen an increase in usage so far this year. “We had a lot of established customers last year,” Davidson said. “I think that some of the customers who were using it last year helped recruit new people to it this year.” Caleb Mendoza, a criminal justice sophomore, and Christopher Shirley, an anthropology major, have worked morning shifts at the Bike Valet since the beginning of this semester. Both estimated that they see about 50 people during their shift, which lasts for six to seven hours. Though neither of them bike to campus regularly, both said they would use the service if they did and would recommend it to others. “It’s just way more convenient,” Shirley said. “U-locks can be a pain.” Shirley should know, someone tried to cut through his once. But he said there have never been issues with bikes in the valet compound. Mendoza said that plenty of people who use the service do so often. “We have a lot of regulars,” he said.
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Davidson said most Bike Valet users are repeat customers. “We found that once people tried it they absolutely loved it,” Davidson said. “They keep coming back when we get them in the door.” Despite this loyal base, Davidson said there are no plans to reinstitute fees for the service. “Whenever we’ve started new programs we’ve always tried to give it a good two years before we decide to do something drastically with it,” Davidson said. Rachel Pergamit, a junior studying environmental and water resource economics who bikes to and from campus every day, said Monday was her first time using the Bike Valet, and that she was only using it after her bike lock broke. Pergamit said she remembered seeing the Bike Valet when it first debuted, but that she never would have used the service before it was free. “A bike lock is easier and gets you about the same thing,” she said. Pergamit also said she thinks the lo-
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Alex Caswell, left, and TJ Dalton, right, work the Bike Valet across from the Student Union Memorial Center on Monday. The valet service is open from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
cation of the Bike Valet is inconvenient, and that she likes to park her bike closer to her classes. Angie Brown, a creative writing student going to school part-time, said it was her second time using the service, but that she found it more convenient
than her bike locker. PTS rents out a total of 194 bike lockers at 15 locations around campus for $90 a year, according to the PTS website.
BIKES, 3
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