DAILY LOBO new mexico
The Independent Student Voice of UNM since 1895
THURSDAY October 16, 2014 | Volume 119 | Issue 42
UNM pitches in to develop Ebola vaccine By Sayyed Shah A UNM scientist is attempting to modify experimental Ebola vaccines to make them more effective. Dr. Steven Bradfute, research assistant professor in the UNM Department of Internal Medicine and Center for Global Health, is working in collaboration with other scientists on vaccine development for the Ebola virus, Marburg virus (Ebola’s
closest relative) and a group of other hemorrhagic fever viruses classified as New World Arenaviruses. “We take existing experimental vaccines and try to improve them,” Bradfute said. “There are several Ebola vaccines that are effective in
monkey studies.” Bradfute and his colleagues are testing those vaccines in mice to determine their effectiveness, because mice have similar immune systems to humans, he said.
“We can do this by testing blood from vaccinated animals to measure their immune response,” he said. “From that point we can move to other animals and, if successful, hopefully eventual human trials. But right now my
work is at the early stage of vaccine development.” Bradfute said he began researching Ebola and related viruses in 2005 at the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases. “Ebola is a type of hemorrhagic fever virus that can cause internal and external bleeding, multiple organ failure and symptoms
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Ebola
Spain
United States
page
1 case, 0 deaths
3
2 cases, 1 death (infection originated in Liberia)
Guinea
1472 cases, 843 deaths
Liberia
4249 cases, 2458 deaths
2014 Ebola outbreak
Sierra Leone
3252 cases, 1183 deaths
Senegal
Suspected cases of Ebola as of October 15, 2014.
1 case, 0 deaths (infection originated in Guinea)
Nigeria
20 cases, 8 deaths
~ Source: CDC ~ Graphic by Jonathan Gamboa
LOBO-MADE, PUEBLO-APPROVED — PAGES 8 & 9
Colorado activists seek fetal rights By Daniel Montaño
William Aranda / Daily Lobo / @_WilliamAranda
Victoria Bryers works on a piece of pueblo pottery in the UNM Art Building.
Grant gives DataONE wings By Tomas Lujan
The National Science Foundation has awarded a $15 million grant to researchers at the College of University Libraries and Learning Sciences to continue developing its Data Observation Network for Earth, or DataONE, project. DataONE is a multinational cyber-infrastructure with the aim of consolidating environmental data
from around the world. Researchers said the long-term benefits of creating such a resource are potentially limitless. Professor William Michener, DataONE principal investigator, said the project currently has three components composed of coordinating nodes, member nodes and the investigator tool kit. “Coordinating nodes are essentially the ‘yellow pages’ for
environmental research,” Michener said. “Member nodes are data repositories from around the world, and the investigator tool kit is a suite of tools scientists can use for doing their research.” The collective resource has already proven invaluable for environmental scientists worldwide, he said. One of the earliest test cases for the project was mapping the distribution of bird
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Grant page 3
The battle over abortion is raging again in the southwest. Just a year after Albuquerque struck down a late-term abortion ban, Colorado voters are facing a proposed amendment to the state constitution that has the potential to ban all abortions, according to election documents. The proposed Amendment 67, titled “Protection of Pregnant Mothers and Unborn Children,” seeks to change the definition of “person” and “child” to include “unborn human beings,” according to the amendment. However, this definition change has serious ramifications beyond simply the language itself, according to Kendall Lovely, president of the Feminist Majority Leadership Alliance at UNM. “They are framing it as a step to protecting pregnant women,” Lovely said. “It is a restriction on reproductive rights.” The language in the proposed amendment is vague and leaves too much up to interpretation, she said. Because the fetus would have the same rights as a fully grown human being — beginning at the moment of conception — an abortion could be considered murder or manslaughter, even in cases of incest or rape. Even a miscarriage could leave the expecting mother in the hands of the law, she said. Health care professionals might also be in danger of legal action if one assists in an abortion or even if one
delivers a stillborn baby, she said. “Even if the abortion is not conscious, someone could get punished for that,” Lovely said. “There is no exception in this bill.” The amendment is being propelled by Personhood USA, a national religious organization that seeks to “glorify Jesus Christ” by ending abortion through changing laws nationwide to define any fetus as a full person, therefore granting the fetus full legal rights, according to the group’s website. The website states the organization plans to continue changing the definitions in the country and to eventually add an amendment to the U.S. Constitution. Lovely said that although the group may achieve a few victories in individual states or counties, Personhood USA might fail at its overall mission because of the breadth of its intentions. “To eliminate abortion is their overall goal,” Lovely said, “but its jurisdiction is so comprehensive and extensive.” The battles are not just in Colorado, however. According to court documents, on Oct. 2 the U.S. Court of Appeals, fifth circuit, upheld Texas’ 2013 House Bill Two, which effectively closed 75 percent of the abortion clinics in the state, leaving only eight to serve the state’s population of more than 26 million people. The bill includes regulations on the structure of abortion clinics,
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Abortion page 3