ISB News

the case for masks

Molecular Biologist Dr. Sui Huang: We Should All Be Wearing Masks

ISB’s Dr. Sui Huang has been a powerful voice in a growing chorus contending that masks are an effective tool to stop the spread of COVID-19. Huang calls guidelines from the CDC and other public health agencies “unfortunate,” as they sweep aside a potentially powerful measure that could help “flatten the curve.”

ISB’s Dr. Nathan Price Inducted into AIMBE’s College of Fellows 

Dr. Nathan Price has been inducted into the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering’s (AIMBE) College of Fellows. Price was nominated, reviewed, and elected by peers and members of the College of Fellows for his contributions deriving medical and biological insights from large-scale data analysis and network modeling, and translating those insights to society.

Illustration of a person using a katana to slash a coronavirus in half

Merck, ISB, Swedish Collaborate In Trial to Understand, Treat COVID-19

ISB and Swedish Medical Center launched a study to follow hundreds of patients who contract COVID-19 to learn why those infected have drastically different outcomes. “Each of the COVID-19 patients has a unique lesson to teach us about how the medical and scientific community can respond most effectively to this pandemic,” said ISB President Dr. Jim Heath, who co-leads the study.

Education resources

During Coronavirus Outbreak, Free Online Resources for Stuck-At-Home K-12 Students

ISB Education is continually working to identify effective resources to support student learning. In response to the coronavirus outbreak and the closure of K-12 schools across the nation, we recognize that many schools and families are looking for resources to meet the needs of students.

CDC Coronavirus Image

ISB Statement Concerning the Ongoing Coronavirus Outbreak

ISB is committed to the health and safety of our research and administrative staff. Some of our scientists are conducting important COVID-19 research. Otherwise, ISB is adhering to Governor Jay Inslee’s stay-at-home orders. For the latest coronavirus information, please monitor the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) webpage linked from this news item.

Sean Gibbons

Metabolomics Reveals Connection Between Gut Microbiome and Blood

Alpha diversity in the gut microbiome holds many clues to understanding human health. This blog post by Metabolon details how those clues are more accessible because ISB researchers can predict the diversity of an individual’s gut microbiome by examining metabolites in the blood. These findings were recently published in the journal Nature Biotechnology.

soldier

ISB Researchers Seek a Better Way to Identify Chronic Mild Traumatic Brain Injury

Mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) has been a frequent injury among U.S. combatants, and blast-related mTBI has been called the “signature injury” from military conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan. ISB researchers are working to develop new methods to identify molecular changes in the blood of war veterans diagnosed with chronic mTBI.

Dr. Christian Diener, postdoc in ISB's Gibbons Lab.

New Modeling Tool Allows Microbiome Researchers to Map Community Ecology to Ecosystem Function

A promising new open-source metabolic modeling tool provides microbiome researchers a path forward in predicting ecosystem function from community structure. News of the software package, called MICOM, was developed in part by researchers in ISB’s Gibbons Lab, and its uses were published in the journal mSystems.

Dr. Jim Heath

ISB Marking 20th Anniversary with Year-Long Celebration

Letter from the president: Dr. Jim Heath announces the kickoff of a 2020 celebration marking ISB’s 20th anniversary. The year-long celebration will include an ISB-Town Hall Seattle speaker series focusing on some of the most important topics in science and health care.

A Scientist-Approved Science-Themed Holiday Gift Guide

When putting together a science-themed gift guide, you have to go to the source. So we asked ISB’s researchers for their ideas and to share what’s on their lists. Whether you’re buying for a scientist or wanting to give the gift of science, this gift guide is for you.

How Old Are You? Your Body Might Disagree With That Answer

Researchers at ISB harnessed deep molecular and physiological information to determine an individual’s biological age, which they found was reflective of overall health compared to chronological age. The findings were published in the Journals of Gerontology: Series A.

Valerie Logan Luncheon emcee Heather Logan

‘Innovation to Impact:’ 8th Annual Valerie Logan Luncheon Shines Light on ISB Education

The 8th Annual Valerie Logan Luncheon celebrated ISB Education’s mission of engaging entire school systems — from principals and administrators to teachers and students — to ensure all students are STEM literate. Nearly 100 people attended the event at ISB, and generously gave more than $100,000 for ISB Education.

Malaria Researchers’ Findings May Have Implications for Preventing Spread of Deadly Disease

ISB researchers and their collaborators are using systems biology approaches to learn how the malaria parasite is able to transfer to humans via the bite of an infected mosquito. The information they have uncovered may help identify new ways to prevent people from contracting the deadly disease.

ISB Unveils New Brand Ahead of 20th Anniversary

We created a new brand identity — including logo and tag line — to reflect ISB’s evolution since our inception in 2000, and ahead of our 20th anniversary. ISB is proud to be a part of the vibrant research community in Seattle, and is committed to translational and collaborative science.

New Method to Detect, Analyze Rare T Cells Another Step Toward Personalized Cancer Vaccines

Members of ISB’s Heath Lab and their collaborators have developed a way to sensitively detect and analyze neoantigen-specific T-cell populations from tumors and blood. This promising development may have implications for creating targeted, individual-specific cancer vaccines.

Using Blood to Predict Gut Microbiome Diversity

Predicting the alpha diversity of an individual’s gut microbiome is possible by examining metabolites in the blood. The robust relationship between host metabolome and gut microbiome diversity opens the door for a fast, cheap and reliable blood test to identify individuals with low gut diversity.

New Diagnostic Method Predicts Therapy Response in Lung Cancer Patients

By using single-cell analysis to measure metabolic activities in rare disseminated tumor cells taken from non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients, ISB researchers and their collaborators can accurately predict how patients will respond to various cancer therapies, and how treatments will impact a patient’s physiological performance and survival.

Dr. Mary Kay Ross

ISB, BHRI Collaborate to Better Understand Significant Brain Impairment

ISB has entered into a scientific partnership with the Brain Health & Research Institute (BHRI), which opens its doors on September 3 in Seattle. BHRI was created by brain health expert Dr. Mary Kay Ross, and is dedicated to the evaluation, prevention, and treatment of neurodegenerative diseases, including Alzheimer’s Disease and dementia.