{"62517":{"#nid":"62517","#data":{"type":"news","title":"Georgia Tech Hosts Sickle Cell Disease Symposium","body":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EGeorgia Tech will host the Sickle Cell Disease Symposium\nbringing together researchers, policy experts and community advocates to\ndiscuss the latest research and strategies for future success in combating this\ncomplex and debilitating blood disorder. The symposium begins at Georgia Tech\u2019s\nInstitute for Bioengineering and Bioscience on November 4 and concludes the\nevening of November 5. \u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\n\n\u003Cp\u003E\u201cThere\u2019s a misconception that sickle cell disease solely affects\nAfrican Americans and that it does not represent a health disparity. \u0026nbsp;All\nraces can be affected and the disease is most prevalent in those with ancestry\nfrom sub-Saharan Africa, Saudi Arabia, India, the Mediterranean and Latin and\nSouth America,\u201d said conference organizer Gilda Barabino, professor and\nassociate chair for graduate studies in the Wallace H. Coulter\nDepartment of Biomedical Engineering at Georgia Tech and Emory University. \u201cSickle cell\ndisease is prevalent in populations that face social, economic, cultural,\nstructural, geographical and other barriers to comprehensive and quality care\nand, as such is among the\u0026nbsp;diseases that\u0026nbsp;involve\u0026nbsp;health\ndisparities.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\n\n\u003Cp\u003ESickle cell disease is a blood disorder that\nresults in patients having mostly hemoglobin S in their blood streams. Patients\nwith this disorder often have red blood cells that take on a sickle shape,\nrather than the typical disc shape. The sickle-shaped blood cells are less\npliable than normal red blood cells, making it difficult for blood to pass\nthrough small blood vessels. When sickle cells clog up small blood vessels,\nless fresh blood can flow to that tissue, causing damage and the eventual\ncomplications that accompany sickle cell disease. \u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\n\n\u003Cp\u003E\u201cThere is no cure for sickle cell\ndisease, and existing therapies are limited in their benefit to patients.\u0026nbsp;\nThis blood disorder involves virtually every organ system, and each must be\naddressed in the context of the other systems,\u201d said Barabino. \u201cWhile\nunderstandably, since Sickle cell disease is a blood disorder, hematological\nperspectives have dominated, there is much to learn from other areas to include\nperspectives on public health, nutrition, health outcomes and surveillance.\nFuture translational advances in the next century will only occur through integrated\napproaches that view the patient in total and draw on the tools and\ntechnologies of a variety of disciplines.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003Cp\u003EThe symposium will gather experts from the U.S.\nCenters for Disease Control and Prevention, Children\u2019s Healthcare of Atlanta,\nthe University of Southern California, the University of California \u2013 San\nFrancisco, the University of Minnesota, the University of Virginia, the\nUniversity of the West Indies and Medical College of Georgia as well as the\nGeorgia Institute of Technology and Emory University.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EBy bringing together scientists, policy experts\nand consumers, the organizers hope to build a true community amongst\nresearchers aiming to develop treatments and possible cures for this disease.\nThey also aim to strengthen existing partnerships and develop a blueprint for\nresearch that establishes the state of Georgia as an unrivaled leader in this\nfield. \u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003E\u201cSickle cell disease is a very complicated and\ndebilitating genetic blood disorder for which a cure and effective treatment\nstrategies remain elusive, even 100 years after the initial discovery of the\ndisease. By bringing together these groups, we seek to work across boundaries\nand deliver a blueprint for an integrated sickle cell research strategy,\u201d said\nBarabino.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E","summary":null,"format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":"","field_summary":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EGeorgia Tech will host the Sickle Cell Disease Symposium bringing\ntogether researchers, policy experts and community advocates to discuss the\nlatest research and strategies for future success in combating this complex and\ndebilitating blood disorder.\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"Conference runs at the Institute for Bioengineering and Bioscience November 4-5."}],"uid":"27310","created_gmt":"2010-11-03 11:04:10","changed_gmt":"2016-10-08 03:07:42","author":"David Terraso","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","dateline":{"date":"2010-11-03T00:00:00-04:00","iso_date":"2010-11-03T00:00:00-04:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"hg_media":{"62520":{"id":"62520","type":"image","title":"Gilda Barabino","body":null,"created":"1449176369","gmt_created":"2015-12-03 20:59:29","changed":"1475894541","gmt_changed":"2016-10-08 02:42:21","alt":"Gilda Barabino","file":{"fid":"191487","name":"08C3041-P1-089.jpg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/08C3041-P1-089_0.jpg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/www.tlwarc.hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/08C3041-P1-089_0.jpg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":1898140,"path_740":"http:\/\/www.tlwarc.hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/images\/08C3041-P1-089_0.jpg?itok=_dCOzUP0"}},"62516":{"id":"62516","type":"image","title":"Sickle Cell","body":null,"created":"1449176369","gmt_created":"2015-12-03 20:59:29","changed":"1475894541","gmt_changed":"2016-10-08 02:42:21","alt":"Sickle Cell","file":{"fid":"191632","name":"sicklecell2.jpg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/sicklecell2.jpg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/www.tlwarc.hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/sicklecell2.jpg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":2858389,"path_740":"http:\/\/www.tlwarc.hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/images\/sicklecell2.jpg?itok=Vb0tLono"}}},"media_ids":["62520","62516"],"related_links":[{"url":"http:\/\/www.sicklecellsymposium.gatech.edu\/","title":"Sickle Cell Disease Symposium"}],"groups":[{"id":"1183","name":"Home"}],"categories":[{"id":"146","name":"Life Sciences and Biology"}],"keywords":[{"id":"11155","name":"barabino"},{"id":"1613","name":"Biomedical Engieering"},{"id":"169317","name":"Sickle Cell"}],"core_research_areas":[],"news_room_topics":[],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EGeorgia Tech Media Relations\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003ELaura Diamond\u003Cbr \/\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:laura.diamond@comm.gatech.edu\u0022\u003Elaura.diamond@comm.gatech.edu\u003C\/a\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E404-894-6016\u003Cbr \/\u003EJason Maderer\u003Cbr \/\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:maderer@gatech.edu\u0022\u003Emaderer@gatech.edu\u003C\/a\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E404-660-2926\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"email":["david.terraso@comm.gatech.edu"],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}