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• Grant funds lab program at UNO

  May 12, 2013 2:32 PM

  NEW ORLEANS - The National Science Foundation has awarded a $315,000 grant to the University of New Orleans to help support the school's summer undergraduate research program for three years. The program is heavily focused on exposing minority students to scientific research. The program is operated by UNO's department of... more »

• PAR annual conference planned in Baton Rouge

  February 18, 2013 9:06 AM

  BATON ROUGE- The annual conference of the Public Affairs Research Council will be April 19 at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Baton Rouge. The watchdog group says a morning panel will include discussion of tax reform and other current issues. Keynote speaker for a luncheon that follows will be television... more »

• App may help track impact of coastal losses

  January 21, 2013 8:15 AM

  HOUMA - An Internet-based app under development may help a Web app may help document the disappearing culture of south Louisiana communities are they are displaced by coastal erosion. Called "Vanishing Points," the app is being developed by Florida International University student Sandra Maina, the National Center for Atmospheric... more »

• Will Obama's order lead to surge in gun research?

  January 17, 2013 3:46 PM

  MILWAUKEE - Researchers say that President Barack Obama's order to encourage use of federal money to study gun violence may help lead to more knowledge about how to prevent firearm injuries and deaths. About 30,000 Americans die from gun violence each year, nearly the same number as from car crashes.... more »

• Obama calls for research on media in gun violence

  January 16, 2013 4:21 PM

  NEW YORK - The sweeping proposals from President Barack Obama today for curbing gun violence put little of the focus on movies, TV and video games. The White House pressed most forcefully for Congress to pass universal background checks and bans on military-style assault weapons like the ones used in... more »

• Obama taking 23 actions aimed at gun violence

  January 16, 2013 11:18 AM

  WASHINGTON - President Barack Obama is taking 23 executive actions aimed at curbing gun violence that don't require congressional action, including measures to encourage schools to hire police officers, increase research on gun violence and improve efforts to prosecute gun crime. The executive actions are part of an overarching... more »

• Tulane professor recipient of award

  November 26, 2012 10:19 AM

  NEW ORLEANS - Tulane mathematics professor Ricardo Cortez has been awarded the 2012 Blackwell-TapiaPrize, which recognizes a mathematical scientist who has contributed significantly to research in his or her field and who has served as a role model for students from under-represented minority groups. Cortez, who is the Pendergraft William... more »

• Nobel prize to Briton, Japanese for stem cell work

  October 8, 2012 10:56 AM

  STOCKHOLM - Two scientists from different generations won the Nobel Prize in medicine Monday for the groundbreaking discovery that cells in the body can be reprogrammed to become completely different kinds, potentially opening the door to growing customized tissues for treatments. The work of British researcher John Gurdon and Japanese... more »

• $20M grant goes to study obesity, diabetes in La. Play Video

  September 6, 2012 5:07 PM

  BATON ROUGE - A $20 million grant is coming to Louisiana to help research obesity, diabetes and other chronic diseases in the state. More than half of Louisiana's residents are overweight, and more than 30 percent are considered obese according to health experts. "In the surrounding areas of... more »

• La. awarded $20M grant to study obesity, illnesses

  September 6, 2012 10:29 AM

  BATON ROUGE - Health officials announced today that Louisiana received a major grant to study health issues affecting the state. Officials at Pennington Biomedical Research Center in Baton Rouge announced this morning the National Institute of Health awarded them a $20 million, 5-year research grant. They said the... more »

• Olympic spoilers boost ratings for NBC

  August 2, 2012 7:43 PM

  NBC says knowing the outcome of Olympic events actually makes more people watch the tape delay telecast in prime time. Its research undercuts an assumption people won't tune in. NBC says two-thirds of people who said they knew the results ahead of the tape delayed telecast said they would watch... more »

• US to begin new phase of hypersonic flight program

  July 6, 2012 6:04 PM

  LOS ANGELES - The Defense Department's research arm will seek proposals next month for solutions to technology hurdles in super high-speed flight with a goal of testing a full-scale hypersonic X-plane in four years. The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency said Friday it will host a so-called Proposers' Day on... more »

• Kidney stone cases on the rise

  May 30, 2012 10:30 AM

  BATON ROUGE - Cases of kidney stones are on the rise and new research links it to weight. Find out if you're at risk, and what doctors say you can do about it. News 2's Sarah Rosario gets answers tonight at 5 p.m. more »

• Termite terminator packed into Trojan horse

  May 23, 2012 5:03 PM

  BATON ROUGE- Researchers at LSU are breaking ground on a new weapon to combat invading termites. The research shows a new way to kill termites from within the colony, using a Trojan horse technique. "Our Trojan horses are micro-organisms that either live in the termite gut or the... more »

• Professor awarded grant for cancer research

  February 13, 2012 9:13 AM

  MONROE - A pharmacy professor at the University of Louisiana at Monroe has received around $50,000 in grant funding for his efforts in breast cancer research. The university says a news release that Yong-Yu Liu, M.D., Ph.D., submitted a grant proposal to the Mizutani Foundation for Glycoscience and was one... more »

• Professor awarded grant for cancer research

  February 13, 2012 8:11 AM

  MONROE - A pharmacy professor at the University of Louisiana at Monroe has received around $50,000 in grant funding for his efforts in breast cancer research. The university says that Yong-Yu Liu, M.D., Ph.D., submitted a grant proposal to the Mizutani Foundation for Glycoscience and was one of 16 funded... more »

• Report card: Louisiana & its kids still fat

  November 15, 2011 3:36 PM

  NEW ORLEANS - The percentage of obese people in Louisiana has nearly doubled since 1999, and two-thirds of the state's schoolchildren get less than 20 minutes of vigorous activity a day. State health secretary Bruce Greenstein says the obesity rate was 17.7 percent in 1999 and is now nearly... more »

• LSU fans put their hearts on the line

  September 23, 2011 5:55 PM

  BATON ROUGE- Researchers at LSU are watching Tiger football games in a new way. The Media Effects Lab on LSU's campus is monitoring fans as they watch big games on TV. Recently they hooked up tiger faithful to heart monitors as they watched the Tigers take on Mississippi State... more »

• LSU professor gets $11M research grant

  September 17, 2011 10:12 AM

  BATON ROUGE- An LSU chemistry professor has been awarded an $11 million federal grant to further the LSU Superfund Research Center's studies on tiny particles left after toxic waste is burned. Barry Dellinger says these "environmentally persistent free radicals" are essentially incomplete molecules that remain in the environment for... more »

• Whale research team focuses on oil spill

  July 21, 2011 6:15 PM

  BATON ROUGE- One of the world's most sophisticated whale research vessels is making a pit stop in Baton Rouge this week. The Ocean Alliance's Odyssey ship is stocked with high tech lab equipment made for studying whales. The group is on a five year research expedition to study the... more »

• LSU, two other universities studying new bio-dispersant

  June 24, 2011 10:42 PM

  BATON ROUGE- Bait fish and worms are at the center of a study at LSU that may lead to a better weapon against oil spills. Three universities are teamed to create a bio-dispersant that breaks-up oil and is environmentally friendly. It's been going for year now at Iowa State... more »

• Scientists fret over BP funds for Gulf research

  April 24, 2011 1:05 PM

  NEW ORLEANS- Scientists say it is taking too long to dole out millions of dollars in BP funds for badly needed Gulf oil spill research, and it could be too late to assess the crude's impact by the time studies begin. The spring nesting and spawning season is a... more »

• LSU closing 3 AgCenter research stations

  April 2, 2011 12:47 PM

  BATON ROUGE- Louisiana State University is closing three of its Agricultural Center research stations in the face of state budget cuts. The AgCenter is permanently shutting down its Calhoun Research Center near Monroe, the Rosepine Research Center in Vernon Parish and the Coastal Area Research Station in Plaquemines Parish,... more »

• Gene Therapy offers Hope in Cure for AIDS

  February 28, 2011 7:17 PM

  Scientists say they used genetic engineering in six patients to develop blood cells that are resistant to HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. They report encouraging results in an experiment that deletes a gene that allows the virus to infect blood cells. The concept is based on a... more »

• Pew Center will review La. criminal justice system

  January 20, 2011 5:43 PM

  BATON ROUGE - Governor Bobby Jindal announced today that the Pew Center on the States will begin researching the Louisiana prison system and suggest reforms for its sentencing policies. Pew officials said they chose to work with Louisiana because the state has problems and has shown a commitment to... more »

• Pew Center to research, reform Louisiana prison system

  January 20, 2011 11:34 AM

  BATON ROUGE – Louisiana’s criminal justice system is going to get a thorough examination by the Pew Center to help make it work more efficiently, and keep prisoners from re-offending. Governor Bobby Jindal announced today that the Pew Center will research the state’s prisons and sentencing policies, and then help... more »

• Pennington study published in medical journal

  November 24, 2010 3:07 PM

  BATON ROUGE – A study about the benefits of exercise for diabetics from the Pennington Biomedical Research Center was published in the Journal of the American Medical Association today. The study found that a combination of aerobic exercise and resistance training improved blood sugar levels among people with type 2... more »

• Research centers defend break from budget cuts

  November 11, 2010 10:29 PM

  Baton Rouge- The LSU AgCenter and the Pennington Biomedical Research Center say it's fair they caught a break from mid-year budget cuts. The state ordered schools to cut another $35 million before the end of the school year. The main LSU campus was ready to shell-out $2.2 million, without... more »

• LSU budget cuts not as deep at research centers

  November 7, 2010 4:08 PM

  BATON ROUGE, La.- The Louisiana State University Board of Supervisors has voted to approve a $21 million midyear budget cut despite complaints from some students that their tuition dollars are being used to subsidize two research centers. System President John Lombardi said the final decision Saturday was the result... more »

• Jindal continues travels, questions sabbatical policies

  October 25, 2010 5:38 PM

  Governor Bobby Jindal continues his travels in and out of the state while questioning public universities’ sabbatical policies. Jindal said sabbaticals, paid time for research given to professors, need to be analyzed while higher education is dealing with another round of budget cuts. LSU officials said only 19... more »

• Appeals court considers ban on stem cell research

  September 27, 2010 11:34 AM

  The Obama administration has told an appeals court that a judge's order halting federal funding of stem cell research would result in destruction of valuable biological materials and set back taxpayer-funded work. A three-judge panel of the Court of Appeals in Washington is considering whether to throw out a... more »

• Economic panel says recession ended in June 2009

  September 20, 2010 10:15 AM

  The longest recession the country has endured since World War II ended in June 2009, according to a group that dates the beginning and end of recessions. The National Bureau of Economic Research, a panel of academic economists based in Cambridge, Mass., says the recession lasted 18 months. It... more »

• Scientists find drugs that may fight bat disease

  September 12, 2010 2:50 PM

  Scientists at a meeting in Massachusetts say they may have found some ways to help the nation's bats, which are being wiped out by a novel fungal disease. Lab tests show several drugs can fight the germ and some antiseptics might help decontaminate areas where bats live or the shoes... more »

• Obama administration to appeal stem cell ruling

  August 24, 2010 5:12 PM

  The Obama administration will appeal a court ruling that undercut its efforts to expand stem cell research, the Justice Department said Tuesday. The appeal is expected this week, said spokesman Matthew Miller. On Monday, a federal judge ruled that the stem cell research violated the will of Congress in prohibiting... more »

• Alzheimer's topic for forums around La.

  August 18, 2010 5:37 AM

  The Institute for Dementia Research and Prevention is bringing experts to Alexandria, Baton Rouge and Shreveport to answer questions from the public about Alzheimer's disease research. The free forums will feature 2½-hour evening sessions at which experts will give brief presentations, then spend most of the time answering questions. The... more »

• Louisiana scientist sees future in shrimp crawfish

  July 19, 2010 5:32 AM

  A Louisiana State University biologist hopes his work will bring crawfish boils to football tailgate parties within a few years. Aquaculture specialist Greg Lutz is studying whether shrimp crawfish could be raised profitably, like the currently farmed red swamp and white river crawfish. Those species are a staple of spring... more »

• LSU reveals proposal to cut jobs, research, scholarships

  July 13, 2010 10:30 PM

  LSU laid out its worst case scenario in anticipation of more budget cuts. The plan calls for canning more than 250 jobs on the Baton Rouge campus, and that doesn't include faculty positions yet. The proposal is for the 2011 school year. The LSU system expects to lose more... more »

• Two-day hearing to decide fate of diabetes pill

  July 13, 2010 7:18 AM

  Hearings begin today on whether the drug Avandia should stay on the market. FDA scientists have blasted a study by drug maker GlaxoSmithKline used to defend the safety of the once high-riding diabetes drug, which fell out of favor because of potential ties to heart attacks. In fact, one FDA... more »

• Alzheimer's advances show need for better drugs

  July 12, 2010 5:48 AM

  Scientists are reporting advances in detecting and predicting Alzheimer's disease at a conference in Honolulu this week. There are better brain scans to spot signs of the illness, and more genes that affect risk. Studies show that getting enough exercise and vitamin D may lower your chances of developing Alzheimer's.... more »

• BP Announces $25M in university research grants

  June 16, 2010 5:22 AM

  BP PLC announces $25 million in research grants to study the effects of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill and response. It says the first studies will get baseline data about the distribution, composition and ecological interactions of oil and dispersant. The grants are the first in a $500 million... more »

• Report says doctors helped refine harsh methods

  June 7, 2010 7:08 AM

  The government is denying a medical group accusation that human research was done on terrorism detainees to refine waterboarding and other harsh interrogation techniques. The allegation was made by a group known as Physicians for Human Rights, which charged that the research was done under the guise of safeguarding detainees'... more »

• Researchers use high-tech gizmos to study oil spill

  May 29, 2010 12:34 PM

  The research being conducted by scientists out on the Gulf of Mexico as they study the oil spill could take weeks - and it requires a great deal of caution. The researchers aboard the Gordon Gunter are looking for any sign of oil from the well, using high-tech gizmos... more »

• New oil flow estimate: Gulf leak far bigger than Exxon Valdez

  May 27, 2010 9:40 AM

  Scientists studying the blown-out well in the Gulf of Mexico now say it's leaking at least twice as much oil and possibly five times as much as original estimates. U.S. Geological Survey Director Dr. Marcia McNutt is the leader of a team put together to try to figure out how... more »

• Easing bone marrow transplants to widen their use

  May 11, 2010 6:57 AM

  Scientists are seeking a new approach in the use of bone marrow transplants as the procedure undergoes a quiet revolution. Research is under way to ease the risks so they can target more people with diseases from sickle cell to deadly metabolic disorders. Scientists also want to learn if such... more »

• Study: US cancer costs nearly doubled in 20 years

  May 10, 2010 5:30 AM

  A new study says the cost of treating cancer in the United States nearly doubled over the past two decades, but expensive cancer drugs may not be the main reason. The study found that rising costs may have been driven more by the growing number of cancer patients than by... more »

• Deep sea coral research trip now oil spill data

  May 7, 2010 5:45 AM

  A federally sponsored mission to search for deep sea corals turns to collecting data from the sea floor and water near the wild well in the Gulf of Mexico. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration says that for years, scientists have been studying the sea floor about nine miles... more »

• Church Point producer appointed to beef board

  May 6, 2010 5:44 AM

  U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack has appointed Genevieve Lyons of Church Point to the Cattlemen's Beef Promotion and Research Board. The board oversees the national Beef Checkoff Program, which pays for research, education and promotion. Members are volunteers who serve three year terms. The checkoff assesses $1 per head... more »

• Dementia study seeking N. La. participants

  May 4, 2010 5:31 AM

  Researchers are looking for north Louisiana residents to participate in a long-term study of how dementia changes aging brains. People from Shreveport and Alexandria already are participating in the study, but must go to the Pennington Biomedical Research Center in Baton Rouge for yearly checkups. Researchers say having more participants... more »

• New Iberia airport gets $85,000 grant

  March 12, 2010 12:28 PM

  The Acadiana Regional Airport in New Iberia is getting an $85,000 grant to conduct a study on how to reduce hazards from birds and other wildlife to aircraft. The money is coming from the Federal Aviation Administration. The airport already has constructed a perimeter fence to keep out... more »

• BRAC hopes for higher ed changes

  January 18, 2010 3:11 PM

  The head of the Baton Rouge Area Chamber of Commerce says we need to rethink some functions of higher education. President Adam Knapp says Louisiana needs to develop more partnerships between private business and universities. That includes the use of research parks. Knapp says it's not a traditional role... more »

• LSU scientists to study life under Antarctica

  November 25, 2009 11:34 AM

  LSU scientists will play a key roll in an expedition that is gearing up to drill through ice sheets in Antarctica to study what lives underneath. The scientists are part of a team using a $10 million grant from the National Science Foundation to drill through the West Antarctic... more »

• Statewide dementia research program

  October 29, 2009 6:46 AM

  The Institute for Dementia Research and Prevention is inviting the general public for an evening discussion by a panel of experts on the "Latest Advances in Dementia Research" and the "Latest in Clinical Trials for Alzheimer’s Disease." The public will also learn about the IDRP’s long-term longitudinal study of brain... more »

• Chemical manufacturing company moves headquarters

  October 23, 2009 4:40 PM

  Bercen, Inc. has moved its headquarters from Rhode Island to Denham Springs. The move creates 20 jobs, 18 of which are filled, and 92 indirect jobs. more »

• Light exercise can improve physical, mental health

  September 17, 2009 3:34 PM

  Pennington Biomedical Research Center in Baton Rouge found exercising just 10 minutes a day can significantly improve physical and mental health. A group of women who weren't regular exercisers took part in the six month research study in which they completed ten minutes of stride-walking each day. The... more »