Tuesday, February 10, 1998
Community Briefs
COMMBRIEFS
KLA is now on your radio dial
Thanks to a new one-watt transmitter, UCLA’s campus radio
station is now coming you as 99.9 FM.
The reception is thus far limited to a small area, "as far as
Strathmore and Gayley," according to General Manager Mark Liu, but
hopes to be expanding and improving their reception soon.
If a station broadcasts with a one-watt transmitter or under, it
does not have to go through Federal Communications Commission.
MRI may help diagnose Alzheimer’s early
New research suggests that by using non-invasive magnetic
resonance imaging (MRI), doctors can examine two alterations in the
brain’s hippocampus, the center of memory and cognitive thinking,
and use the results to increase the likelihood of an early
diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease.
Previous research using other methods to examine the size of the
hippocampus to diagnose the disease had been useful only in the
latter stages of the disease, when tissue atrophy is severe and
mental debilitation is already advanced.
Dr. Michael W. Weiner, director of the magnetic resonance unit
at the San Francisco Veterans Affairs Medical Center and a
professor of medicine, radiology and psychiatry at the University
of California, San Francisco, headed the research team.
The researchers used MRI to track the presence of amino acid
N-acetyl asparate (NAA), which is contained in neurons in the
brain’s hippocampus and whose function is unknown, and to measure
the volume of hippocampal tissue. They found that NAA and volume
were significantly lower for Alzheimer’s patients compared to those
without the disease.
Using the two methods of evaluation together, Weiner and his
colleagues were able to correctly classify 90 percent of patients
suspected of having Alzheimer’s and 94 percent who did not have the
disease. When used separately, neither hippocampal NAA tracking nor
volume measurements could correctly classify more than 80 percent
of Alzheimer’s patients or 75 percent of patients in the
unafflicted group.
The research team cautions against using the study conclusions
in clinical applications at this time because of the small
population sample of 29 patients used in their study, and because
many unknowns still exist about the disease. According to Weiner, a
study using a larger sample is under way.
Camp counselors in demand in Russia
Camp Counselors USA (CCUSA) is looking for "open, caring,
enthusiastic and responsible" people between the ages of 18 and 29
years old who are interested in spending this upcoming summer
volunteering in a Russian summer camp. Applicants should have at
least four to eight weeks of time to teach and organize activities
for children between the ages of six to16 years old.
The CCUSA’s Russia outbound program offers a hands-on learning
experience of Russian culture and language skills outside a
classroom setting, and provides an opportunity to develop new
friendships while travelling outside of major metropolitan areas
that tourists may never see.
Camp counselors will stay at camp with room and board provided.
CCUSA also coordinates round-trip travel from New York to the camp
site, helps arrange the Russian visa, which will allow entrance
into Russia and employment at camp, provides orientations in New
York and Moscow, and offers travel insurance and a sight-seeing
tour in Moscow.
In addition, each camp will pay a small stipend which will be
the equivalent to what Russian counselors receive.
Compiled from Daily Bruin staff reports.