national institutes of health

• Opinion

Md. can set health care example

Baltimore's plan to reduce health care disparities could provide a model for nation

• Opinion

Rodricks finds the wrong villain in Ebola research debate

Dan Rodricks finds the wrong villain in Ebola research debate.

• Medical Research

Vigilance for viruses requires money, bipartisan support

As the Ebola virus kills seven out of 10 who contract the disease in West Africa (says the World Health Organization), and as officials in the U.S. work to contain it and develop a vaccine, warnings from Gallo and Sommer bear repeating, especially in a country that considers itself medically and scientifically exceptional.

By Dan Rodricks

Oct 18, 2014

• Opinion

The risk Ebola exposed [Editorial]

The CDC's bumbling response to the first cases of Ebola in this country hardly inspires confidence

• Maryland

Carroll officials prepared for Ebola despite low risk

The Hospital and Health Department are prepared for Ebola, however unlikely it might be

• Features

Phelps' arrest can open door to conversations with teens

It was a decade ago that Michael Phelps visited several local high schools to warn students against underage drinking in the wake of his first drunk-driving guilty plea. Now the most decorated Olympian ever faces drunk-driving charges again, is entering a treatment program and won't participate in the next world championship.

• Opinion

Little known disorder underscores education needs [Commentary]

The mother's story was one that I have heard many times over the past few months, with some variation in detail. Her child, an A and B student with many friends and outside interests, suddenly changed, developing paralyzing fears and frequent rages.

• Commuting

Good Morning, Baltimore: Need to know for Monday

• Maryland

Studies highlight benefits of nicotine [Letter]

• Maryland

Nicotine patch, gum users won't be hired at hospital

Carroll Hospital Center sees no distinction between nicotine gum and smoking, despite little supporting evidence.

• Opinion

Fund cancer research to keep breakthroughs coming [Commentary]

• American Federation of Government Employees

Plunge in federal hiring takes toll on state

Hiring by Maryland's largest employer — the federal government — has fallen by more than 40 percent nationally over four years, and the state's jobs market is feeling the pain.

• Obituaries

Philip Filner, molecular biologist

Philip Filner, a retired molecular biologist and community activist, died of pancreatic cancer Sept. 6 at his Lutherville home. He was 75.

• Health

NIH to launch Ebola vaccine trials in humans

The National Institutes of Health has announced the first clinical trial of a vaccine to protect healthy people from infection by the Ebola virus, which is responsible for an estimated 1,550 deaths throughout West Africa.

• Drugs and Medicines

Experimental Ebola drugs raising ethics questions

As the Ebola virus was ravaging West Africa, two American health workers who contracted the disease in Liberia were airlifted back to the United States to be treated with an experimental drug. They are now in Atlanta, recovering.

• Obituaries

Dr. Peter O. Kwiterovich Jr., expert on lipid disorders

Dr. Peter O. Kwiterovich Jr., an internationally known expert on lipid disorders who was the founder and director of the Johns Hopkins Lipid Clinic and was an early advocate for routine cholesterol screening in children, died Friday of prostate cancer at his Roland Park home. He was 74.

• Opinion

Smallpox vaccine poses no danger to the public [Letter]

Smallpox vaccine poses no danger to the public

• Health

New genetic test helps identify some mystery illnesses

The test, called whole exome sequencing, stems from the decades-long push to map all the genes in the human body and translate it into diagnostic tools and therapies

• Health

Five questions for Sharon Hrynkow, president of the Global Virus Network

Sharon Hrynkow and the Baltimore-based Global Virus Network aim to address challenges in treatment and prepare for pandemics of Ebola, influenza, chikungunya and other viruses.

• Opinion

Smallpox virus stocks are dangerous [Commentary]

A smallpox outbreak anywhere in the world is a major global threat what with travel and a highly susceptible world population. However, not more than 10 to 15 countries have sufficient vaccine to counter an epidemic. At this time, it would seem most prudent to be prepared in every way possible. Destroying the known existing stocks of the virus and augmenting the world's supply of a well-tested smallpox vaccine should have the highest priority.

• Media Industry

'Sharknado 2: The Second One' scores with outrageous Twitter reactions

Syfy's 'Sharknado 2' was all the talk on Twitter.

• Opinion

Are tax dollars paying for anti-alcohol advocacy? [Commentary]

This month, Maryland banned high-proof liquors like Everclear and other inexpensive tipples. Self-proclaimed public health activists claimed such "high octane" liquors increased the likelihood of binge-drinking and sexual assaults on college campuses. While the merits of the ban are debatable, one aspect of it is not: the use of taxpayer money to support a political agenda.

• Maryland

Feds considering 2 sites in Md. for FBI headquarters

The General Services Administration released a long anticipated list of sites on Tuesday it said could accommodate the FBI's requirements for a new home to replace the 39-year-old J. Edgar Hoover Building in Washington. Two of the properties are in Maryland — one in Greenbelt, the other in Landover — and a third is in Springfield, Va.

• Politics

GSA announces three potential sites for FBI headquarters

WASHINGTON ¿ The General Services Administration is considering three sites ¿ including two in Maryland ¿ as viable options for a new headquarters building for the Federal Bureau of Investigation, according to a long awaited short list of potential properties released Tuesday.

• Politics

Lawmakers push OPM to release retirement rules

The Office of Personnel Management has been working on rules for a phased retirement plan for federal employees for more than two years, and lawmakers are getting anxious.

• Opinion

Destroying smallpox stocks would leave U.S. vulnerable to infection [Commentary]

In light of the recovery of smallpox from samples whose existence was unknown for such a long period of time, it would be irresponsible to even continue the discussion of viral stock destruction.

• Baltimore County

CCBC students spend summer learning about nanotechnology

• Opinion

My freedom march [Commentary]

This July 4th was my first as a U.S. citizen. It was a special treat glancing over at Vice President Joe Biden in the 2014 Philadelphia Independence Day Parade, while playing alongside my fellow Falun Gong practitioners in our waist drum troupe, despite the memories it stirred. If I had done anything like this in China, I would have been imprisoned – again -- and routinely tortured.

• Baltimore County

Lansdowne family struggles with diagnosis of rare disorder

Connor diagnosed with Robinow Syndrome, that affects fewer than 200 people worldwide and affects skeletal development.

• Chemical Industry

Steven Hsiao, Johns Hopkins scientist

Dr. Steven S. Hsiao, a Johns Hopkins scientist who studied how the brain perceives the shape, size and texture of three-dimensional objects, died of lung cancer June 16 at Hopkins Hospital.

• Sun Investigates

Lead-paint study sparks debate over experiments with children

How do public health experts handle research when they know they cannot offer subjects the best medical treatment possible — only "less than the best" solutions?

• Baltimore City Paper

Why is Hopkins skinning rat penises? They won't say

• Health

Patterson High students participate in White House science fair

A group of Patterson High School students were invited to the White House Science Fair to share solar-powered hovercrafts they built through the school's Project Lead the Way program.

• Baltimore County

Catonsville 11-year-old battles rare brain disorder

Emily Kolenda, an 11-year-old Catonsville resident, battles the rare autoimmune disorder acute disseminated encephalomyelitis (ADEM).

• Harford

Harford enlists two drug programs in battle against heroin abuse

Harford County officials have been trying to battle opiate abuse, labeled the county's top drug problem, with two new programs focused on giving out anti-opioid drugs.

• Britain

Pfizer's interest in AstraZeneca worries Maryland

Research labs closed by pharmaceutical giant Pfizer dot the country. Maryland officials don't want the state to join that list, so Pfizer's proposal to buy AstraZeneca — which employs 3,100 in the state — has prompted local angst.

• Howard County

Participants needed for U. of Md. hearing study [Senior Circles]

I received an email from a graduate research assistant at the University of Maryland Hearing Research Laboratory in College Park. They are conducting a study to evaluate how well a new computerized listening training program works in helping hearing aid users better understand speech in noisy listening conditions.

• Health

Parasite treatment may help people with brain cancer

Researchers find new uses for old drugs, sometimes by accident

• Laws and Legislation

U.S. agencies learning clarity

The Center for Plain Language is part of a movement aimed at purging gobbledygook from government and private-sector communications and replacing it with simple, clear English. Each year it issues a report card on federal government agencies and awards prizes in various categories of communication.

• Fort Detrick (military base)

Fort Detrick fire department named best in Army

The Fort Detrick fire department has been named the best medium-sized department in the Army. The installation in Frederick hosts the National Biodefense Analysis and Countermeasures Center, the Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases and other sensitive activities.

• Opinion

Help wanted: lab workers [Commentary]

A health care crisis is quietly unfolding in our nation's laboratories. This crisis has developed largely off the public's radar screen. If not resolved, it can adversely impact the lives of every American. The crisis in question: alarming shortages within the laboratory workforce.

• Science

Federal agencies use pay flexibility to attract scientists, professionals

Thousands of scientists and researchers federal agencies have been hired in recent years under special hiring authority intended to help the government compete with the private sector for senior leadership positions. Government watchdogs warn, however, that officials must use the powers judiciously.

• Health

Disadvantaged urban youth may be more likely to be problem gamblers

Betting on dice on the streets of Baltimore or wagering on favorite sports teams may seem innocuous behavior for city teenagers, but it can serve as a gateway to heavier gambling and other risky behavior, impairing lives for years to come.

• Howard County

Columbia Election Candidate: Jeanne Ketley

The Columbia Association will hold elections on Saturday, April 26. During the elections, Columbia residents who pay the Columbia Association assessed fee can vote in their respective village for their village's representative to the 10-member Columbia Council, which becomes the 10-member Board of Directors.

• Opinion

Alzheimer's again gets the short shrift [Commentary]

This is getting old. Every time our nation has an opportunity to do something positive in the fight against Alzheimer's disease, we come up short.

• Obituaries

Barbara Santamaria, nurse practitioner

Barbara M. Santamaria, a retired Veterans Administration nurse practitioner and a past president of the Maryland Nurses Association, died of congestive heart failure Wednesday at Franklin Square Medical Center. The Oak Crest Village Retirement Community resident was 83.

• Howard County

Inspiring Women: Andrea Gielen

• Baltimore County

Sister of 11-year-old with diabetes raises $110K for research

Lily Cavallaro, 13, leading charge on fundraising for diabetes research after younger sister, Bella, 11, was diagnosed with the disease in 2009. Bella's Battalion will walk in upcoming Maryland 2014 Walk to Cure Diabetes in Baltimore on April 5.

• Personal Income

Federal cuts pinch Marylanders' income

Maryland's personal income growth was among the smallest nationwide last year as federal budget cuts rippled through the wider region, affecting Virginia and the District of Columbia as well, the U.S. Department of Commerce estimated.

• Opinion

A new era of testing [Commentary]

The passage of the Humane Cosmetics Act and the insertion of a similar "last resort" clause into the House and Senate TSCA reform bills could save countless lives — both human and animal. We can do better than rely on animals to predict human results. It's time to let go of the methods of the past and embrace 21st-century science.