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Rochester is PGA central this week, but the impact of hosting the championship here may have a more lasting effect.
Here's more on how five foot tall golf balls are helping out almost 2 dozen charities.
With each stroke of a brush, 22 local charities are closer to getting some much needed cash.
"I'm doing a painting of Jack Nicholas at the time that he won the PGA Championship Tournament in 1980 on a golf ball," said Philip Burke, Featured Artist.
Philip Burke is world known for his caricatures. This time it's on five foot tall golf balls. This is one of 29 painted by several artists. The golf ball works of art scattered through out the city as part of Golf Balls on Parade.
"Golf Balls on Parade is a perfect example of taking some expertise locally and using the power of the PGA championship, the season's final major as a way to really positively impact the community," said Scott Kimec, Senior Director, PGA Foundation.
A portion of the sale of each golf ball was equally split equally among four charities: Hillside Work Scholarship Connection, Reach for the Green and Golisano Children?s Hospital. Plus a charity of each sponsor?s choice also got some cash.
"We're quite proud that these projects--community arts projects which have artists, businesses and the whole community taking part in helping our community to be stronger and help provide for the neediest," said Howie Jacobson, Golisano Children's Hospital Vice Chair.
Burke painted away Sunday as people stopped by the Championship Golf Shop at Oak Hill to take a look.
"Of course it's good to contribute to helping kids who are sick, but at the same time it's nice to inspire kids to help them see the process of an artist," said Burke.
So far, the giant golf balls has raised $50 thousand.
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama's top national security advisers met at the White House on Saturday to discuss the potential threat of terrorist attacks that caused Washington and its allies to issue travel warnings and close embassies throughout the Middle East.
The United States issued a worldwide travel alert on Friday warning Americans that al Qaeda may be planning attacks in August, particularly in the Middle East and North Africa.
Without giving an update on the nature of the threat, the White House said top officials including Secretary of State John Kerry, Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel, and national security adviser Susan Rice gathered on Saturday to discuss it.
"Early this week, the president instructed his National Security team to take all appropriate steps to protect the American people in light of a potential threat occurring in or emanating from the Arabian Peninsula," the White House said in a statement.
"This afternoon, National Security Advisor Rice chaired a meeting with the Principals Committee to further review the situation and follow-up actions," it said, referring to the group of advisers.
A senior U.S. official, asked if the United States had pre-positioned forces to deal with the latest threat, replied, "We've had U.S. forces prepared for some time to respond to potential contingencies in the Middle East and North Africa.
"We're postured to support timely and effective action if requested. This latest threat is serious, and the Pentagon is working closely with its partners, to include the State Department and the intelligence community, to confront it," the official said on condition of anonymity.
Obama is spending the weekend at the Camp David presidential retreat after playing golf earlier on Saturday. His birthday is Sunday.
The White House said Obama had received regular briefings about the potential threat and U.S. preparedness measures all week. Rice and counterterrorism adviser Lisa Monaco briefed him after the high-level meeting on Saturday, it said.
Other attendees at the White House meeting included Obama's chief of staff, Denis McDonough, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Martin Dempsey, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano, Director of National Intelligence James Clapper, and the heads of the FBI and CIA.
The U.S. State Department said on Thursday that American embassies that would normally be open this Sunday - including those in Abu Dhabi, Baghdad and Cairo - would be closed.
CBS News reported that intelligence officials had information about a major plot.
"Intelligence officers have reporting from a reliable source that a major plot is under way and that the team to carry it out has been selected and is in place," CBS reported. U.S. authorities did not know the date, the timing or the target of the planned attack, it said.
France said earlier on Saturday it would close its embassy in Yemen for several days from Sunday, following similar moves by Britain and Germany.
(Additional reporting by Arshad Mohammed; Editing by Peter Cooney)
ARME Realty.com announces their latest video marketing platform for real estate brokers in markets around the country.
Clearwater FL (PRWEB) August 03, 2013
Today's home shoppers are likely to conduct their home buying research both online and offline. There is what Google calls a "zero moment of truth" which is that exact time when a user is on the internet looking for something specific. A Clearwater FL based real estate marketing company ARME Realty.com is releases several new video marketing programs for real estate brokers in an effort to help these brokers reach these home buyers at the "zero moment of truth".
Research has shown that video satisfies multiple research needs for home hunters by simply the design of the video. Potential buyers can see the property, get a feel for the inside and outside of the home, and as a result become more informed buyers when they finally decide to call a company and schedule a time to see the home.
"Today's buyers purchase homes for many different reasons. From a desire to simply owning a home to a retirement investment vehicle, people have their own reasons for purchasing property. With the right real estate broker video marketing system in play, advertisers can address the buyers sentiment with interactive pictures and music. This creates a unique connection between the video and the person watching the video", states Simon Landers, spokesperson.
The company not only produces quality virtual tour style real estate marketing videos but they also distribute them to top video sharing sites such as Youtube, Dailymotion, and Metacafe. These sites rank favorably with Google and have be known to create immediate views on the first page of Google within hours of publication.
For more information on ARME Realty.com and their programs contact the firm at (727) 459-8841.
For the original version on PRWeb visit: http://www.prweb.com/releases/videomarketing/forrealestatebrokers/prweb10995548.htm
[unable to retrieve full-text content]Researchers have developed a new technique for creating devices out of a water-based hydrogel material that can be patterned, folded and used to manipulate objects. The technique holds promise for use in "soft robotics" and biomedical applications.
Rebekah Havrilla, out on patrol in Afghanistan. The former Army sergeant and Explosive Ordnance Disposal specialist enlisted in 2004, seeking out job training, education, "some patriotic element" after 9/11 and a way out of South Carolina. "I went in with the idea of making a career out of it," she says. "I thought, I can't be Special Forces, I can't do Rangers because I don't have a penis -- closest thing I can get to actually doing that type of job is EOD [Explosive Ordnance Disposal]."
Shot Hole
Havrilla crouches in the remnants of a "demolition shot" she and her team did of a "bunch of captured enemy munitions" outside of Forward Operating Base Gardez, in Afghanistan. "It's a very male dominated, hypermasculine environment, so you've got to be the tomboy, kind of, 'let's play cowboys and indians. And soldiers,'" she says. But to some, this also meant persistent sexual harassment and even assault.
Rebekah Havrilla
Havrilla says intense nightmares kept her from sleep, night after night, after she got back from Afghanistan -- until recently, when she moved to New York. Though Havrilla says that at first she suffered from the kind of hyper-vigilance described by fellow combat veterans in urban settings, she loves the city -- namely because it is so different than where she grew up, in a conservative Christian family in rural South Carolina. She is getting her Masters and working for the Service Women's Action Network (SWAN).
Tia Christopher
An early photo of Tia Christopher, who joined the Navy at age 18 in 2000 and was out just under a year later, honorably discharged with a "personality disorder."
Women Veterans
Tia Christopher and her friend Aston Tedford at a women veterans retreat in Arizona several years ago. Christopher now works as an advocate for veterans, in particular victims of MSA, and has written guidance on the subject.
Jungle
Tia Christopher in a favorite photo.
'I'm Beautiful Despite The Flames'
Tia Christopher sent this photo of her recently completed tattoo Friday, Sept. 28. Written in Arabic, she says "her motto" -- which covers scars from her assault -- more literally translates: "Despite the flames that devoured my flesh, I am still beautiful."
Tia Christopher
Balloons
Claire Russo in a childhood photo.
Claire & Coconut
Claire Russo pictured at 10 years old, in 1989 with "Coconut." Russo grew up near Washington, D.C., and worked on the Hill. "I was sort of -- well no, a really privileged middle-class kid," she says. "I was just fascinated with the debate, and the decisions the government was making ? And I remember a very strong desire to serve."
Claire Russo Salutes Her Cousin
Claire Russo in 2004 at Quantico, right after being commissioned, saluting her cousin Tom Winkle, a Navy lieutenant and pilot. Russo lived with Winkle in San Diego, and was with him the night of her assault, at the Marine Corps Ball. It was Winkle that reported Russo's assault; she did not want to report, being afraid for her career.
Basic School
Claire Russo (right) with her roommate at The Basic School in Quantico, Va., after finishing a field exercise. Russo says that one of the 30 females in the class of 180 was raped in the barracks while she was at The Basic School.
Fallujah Courtyard
Claire Russo in a courtyard in Fallujah, Iraq, in 2006, when she served as the targeting officer for the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force. She deployed two weeks after testifying at the discharge hearing of the serviceman who raped her, Douglas Alan Dowson -- he was already in prison.
'Citizen Of Courage'
Claire Russo (front) salutes the flag during the national anthem, before she was given the "Citizen of Courage" award from the San Diego District Attorney's office in 2006. Behind her is San Diego District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis and First Marine Expeditionary Force (IMEF) Commanding General John Sattler, who Russo says is the "only commander to ever apologize to me for what I experienced."
Russo And San Diego DAs
Deputy District Attorney Gretchen Means, Claire Russo and District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis, after Russo received the "Citizens of Courage" award from the San Diego District Attorney's office at Camp Pendleton in 2006.
Down The Aisle
Claire Russo at her wedding to Josh Russo. Lt. Josh Russo was stationed at Camp Pendleton, some 40 miles north, at the time of Russo's assault in 2004. He remains in the military.
Claire And Josh Russo
Claire and Josh Russo on their wedding day, with friends from the Marines.
Russo And Her Motorcycle
"Me on my Russian Minsk 120 cc dirt bike, in Laos. This was one day on an 8 month trip/honeymoon Josh and I took. We rode motorcylces through SE Asia, Australia and went to Africa," Russo describes in a recent email.
'Marawara'
Claire Russo in Afghanistan near the Pakistan border, on a mission with the 1st Battalion, 503rd Infantry Army Paratroopers. "I spoke with the district governor that day about how we could help to get a woman working for the Ministry of Womens Affairs working in his district," Russo writes.
Claire, Josh And Genevieve Russo In Paris
Claire Russo and her husband, Josh Russo, and their baby Genevieve, here four weeks old, in Paris. Josh serves in the U.S. Army.
St. Genevieve
"My 4 week old daughter Genevieve and I in front of a painting of Saint Genevieve, the patron saint of Paris, who saved the city from the Huns," Russo writes.
Marti Ribeiro In Front Of Village
Marti Ribeiro served with the Air Force, Army, Navy and Marines over eight years as a combat correspondent.
Interviewing
As a combat correspondent, Marti Ribeiro accompanied medical convoys to remote areas without local doctors. Such clinics were set up in specific locations, so the locals needed significant advance warning of their arrival. When one such convoy came under attack, Ribeiro returned fire, earning her a <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/05/14/women-at-war-unseen_n_1498291.html#slide=964342">Combat Action Badge</a>, though as a female, she officially should not have been in a position to take fire.
'Afghan Girls On Rooftop'
A photograph of Afghan girls, taken by Marti Ribeiro during her deployment.
Ribeiro In 2006
Marti Ribeiro and an Afghan boy in 2006.
'Soaked To The Bone And Miserable'
Marti Ribeiro titles this photo -- taken in Afghanistan in 2006 -- as "soaked to the bone and miserable."
Marti Ribeiro And Her Daughter Bela
Marti Ribeiro and her daughter, Bela, in San Antonio, Texas.
News / Cops
The City Scheduled a Contract Meeting with the Police Union Today; the Police Union Did Not Show Up
Posted
by Denis C. Theriault
on Thu, Aug 1, 2013 at 2:31 PM
Despite Friday's formal state complaint over the Mayor Charlie Hales' insistence on partially public contract talks with the Portland Police Association?presumably stalling those talks for the foreseeable future?the city remains hopeful the sides can continue bargaining all the same.
City negotiators let themselves into a Portland Building conference room around 8:30 this morning, for a bargaining meeting the two sides had apparently only emailed about scheduling.
They were joined bright and early by Dan Handelman of Portland Copwatch?whom I checked with this afternoon after hearing whispers of the meeting. Handelman usually knows when and where to show up. And he says he was welcomed into the room, despite the dustup over whether meetings on city property would be public.
But, then, that was it. The PPA?the city's guest of honor?never showed. Nor did its representatives call ahead to let anyone know. Handelman says they all waited for half an hour, until labor relations manager Jerrell Gaddis pulled the plug.
"That was it," Handelman says. "That was the entirety of it."
The union argues the city has no legal basis to open contract talks, even partially, without the PPA's consent. PPA President Daryl Turner wrote in the PPA's newsletter that he doesn't want any of the talks open, despite favoring a half-open/half-closed approach during negotiations nearly three years ago. As reported by the Mercury this week, the city even admitted in 2010 that union talks, when they're handled by negotiators and not elected officials, don't qualify as public.
Asked about this morning's would-be meeting, Turner declined to comment, citing the complaint process in front of the Oregon Employment Relations Board.
Today's meeting was mentioned alongside an August 15 meeting in emails attached to the union's complaint. It's not clear if the union ever actually agreed to show for either, given the impasse over letting the public in. I'm waiting for confirmation from the city on whether it's planning to show up for the meeting in two weeks, too, likely in vain. I'm also curious to know if the city was merely trying to make a point.
During the last round of talks in 2010, as I reported exclusively, the city approached the PPA with a deal in which talks would be declared public, but with the stickiest issues still discussed behind closed doors. The PPA is clearly concerned, as Turner wrote, about the "court of public opinion" if bargaining ideas are freely discussed. But being perceived as unwilling to be transparent also raises the prospect of a different kind of verdict from that court of opinion.
"This does not work well for their public relations," says Handelman.
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[unable to retrieve full-text content]Astronomers have discovered a graveyard of comets. The researchers describe how some of these objects, inactive for millions of years, have returned to life leading them to name the group the ?Lazarus comets?.
Oregon insurance regulators said Monday that they?ve taken the first steps toward decertifying a workers? compensation self-insurance trust and will shut it down next week if the employers can?t come up with $750,000.
The Oregon Department of Consumer and Business Services said Oregon Employers Trust Inc. must increase its security deposit to $3.95 million based on membership growth and estimated claims liability through June 2012. The group is Oregon?s largest private group of employers that self-insure for workers? compensation, state officials said.
Oregon Employers Trust Inc., which formed in 2009, is a group of about 200 companies that have agreed to assume ?joint and several? liability for their own and each other?s workers? compensation claims.
The trust is administered by Empire Pacific Risk Management Inc., of Lake Oswego. The trust?s president, Todd Hennelly of Empire Pacific, said Monday that several employers in the group have agreed to put up the money to remain compliant with the state.
?They feel it?s important that there be viable alternatives in the marketplace,? Hennelly said. The board of directors hopes to have everything finalized by the end of the week, he said.
In a letter to members posted on the Empire Pacific website, Hennelly wrote that administrators tried unsuccessfully to obtain a surety bond instead of paying cash.
The group includes a range of small- and medium-sized employers, including car dealerships, nonprofit organizations, construction companies and a handful of local governments.
If the state decertifies the group next week, its members would still be liable for workers? compensation claims, and they would be required to purchase new workers? compensation insurance immediately.
Almost all employers are required to purchase workers? compensation insurance, which covers costs for workers injured on the job. The costs can last long into the future if a worker is killed or permanently disabled.
Security deposits ensure there?s enough money available to pay claims and administrative costs if the group defaults or goes bankrupt, said John Shilts, administrator of the state?s Workers Compensation Division. The size of security deposits tend to be volatile in the group self-insured market, although the 23-percent increase for Oregon Employers Trust is higher than typical, Shilts said.
?I think that reflects the growth in this group, the growth in their risk, and it really reflects how their own incurred losses have gone up,? Shilts said.
The state has decertified two self-insurance groups since 2011 ? Oregon Contractors Workers Compensation Trust, which filed for bankruptcy in 2011, and the Oregon Nonprofit Employers Trust, which voluntarily dissolved last year.
Copyright 2013 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
The Rickmansworth & Northwood Women In Business group welcomes professional business women from all business sectors, full and part-time business owners or key decision makers.
If you would like to meet like-minded business women, build your professional network, share business ideas and advice and exchange contacts, we would be delighted to invite you to one of our monthly meetings. You will find the group warm and welcoming, with a meeting format which enables you to get the most from the experience.
TO BOOK: Please call Amanda McDermott on 07970513989 to book a place at our next meeting. We look forward to meeting you.
COST: ?24 which includes a one course lunch and refreshments
www.wibn.co.uk
Event Organised By
Women In Business Network
www.wibn.co.uk
The Women in Business Network (WIBN) is a networking organisation for employed and self-employed business women. WIBN welcomes professional business women from all business sectors, full and part-time business owners or key decision makers.
If you would like to meet like-minded business women to build your professional network, share business ideas and advice and exchange contacts, we would be delighted to invite you to one of our monthly meetings.
Attending this event or want to share it on Facebook? Comment below!
Vanderbilt studies outline new model for staph bone infectionsPublic release date: 1-Aug-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Craig Boerner craig.boerner@vanderbilt.edu 615-322-4747 Vanderbilt University Medical Center
Osteomyelitis, a debilitating bone infection most frequently caused by Staphylococcus aureus ("staph") bacteria, is particularly challenging to treat.
Now, Vanderbilt microbiologist Eric Skaar, Ph.D., MPH, and colleagues have identified a staph-killing compound that may be an effective treatment for osteomyelitis, and they have developed a new mouse model that will be useful for testing this compound and for generating additional therapeutic strategies.
James Cassat, M.D., Ph.D., a fellow in Pediatric Infectious Diseases who is interested in improving treatments for children with bone infections, led the mouse model studies. Working with colleagues in the Vanderbilt Center for Bone Biology and the Vanderbilt University Institute of Imaging Science, Cassat developed micro-computed tomography (micro-CT) imaging technologies to visualize a surgically introduced bone infection in progress.
"The micro-CT gives excellent resolution images of the damage that's being done to the bone," said Skaar, the Ernest W. Goodpasture Professor of Pathology. "We found that staph is not only destroying bone, but it's also promoting new bone growth. Staph is causing profound changes in bone remodeling."
Cassat also established methods for recovering -- and counting -- bacteria from the infected bone.
"We're not aware of any other bone infection models where you can pull the bacteria out of a bone and count them in a highly reproducible manner," Skaar said. "From a therapeutic development standpoint, we think this model is going to allow investigators to test new compounds for efficacy against bone infections caused by staph or any other bacteria that cause osteomyelitis."
Several pharmaceutical companies have already approached Skaar and his team about testing compounds in the new bone infection model, which the investigators describe in the June 12 issue of Cell Host & Microbe.
Using the model, the team demonstrated that a certain protein secreted by staph plays a critical role in the pathogenesis of osteomyelitis. Understanding the specific bacterial factors -- and the bone cell signals -- that promote bone destruction and formation during infection could lead to new strategies for restoring bone balance, Skaar said.
"Even if it's not possible to kill the bacteria, compounds that manipulate bone growth or destruction might have some therapeutic benefit."
Still, Skaar is interested in treatments that will eliminate the infection.
The staph bacteria involved in osteomyelitis and in other persistent infections (such as lung infections in cystic fibrosis) are often a sub-class of staph known as "small colony variants." These staph variants grow slowly and are resistant to entire classes of antibiotics commonly used to treat bone and lung infections, Skaar said.
One way that staph bacteria become antibiotic-resistant small colony variants is by changing the way they generate energy. Instead of using respiration, they switch to fermentation, which blocks antibiotic entry and slows bacterial growth.
In a high-throughput screen for compounds that activate a heme-sensing bacterial pathway, graduate student Laura Mike identified a compound that kills fermenting staph. The findings are reported in a recent issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
"This is a completely new molecular activity," Skaar said. "We don't know of other molecules that are toxic against fermenting bacteria."
The compound -- and derivatives synthesized by Gary Sulikowski, Ph.D., and his team -- might be useful in treating staph small colony variants, or in preventing their emergence.
The investigators demonstrated in culture that treating staph with the antibiotic gentamicin forced it to become a small colony variant and ferment, and that co-treatment with the new compound prevented resistance and killed all of the bacteria.
"We think a really interesting therapeutic strategy for this compound is that it might augment the antimicrobial activity of existing classes of antibiotics by preventing resistance to them -- it might extend the lifetime of these classes of antibiotics," Skaar said.
This would be similar to the drug Augmentin, which combines a traditional penicillin-type antibiotic and a compound that blocks bacterial resistance.
The investigators are excited to test the new compound in the mouse model of osteomyelitis. First, they will treat the mice with gentamicin and assess whether staph small colony variants form. If so, they will co-administer the new compound to test if it prevents resistance, and they will also assess it as a single treatment for the persistent infection.
Skaar stressed that Vanderbilt's collaborative environment made these studies possible. Daniel Perrien, Ph.D., and Florent Elefteriou, Ph.D., in the Vanderbilt Center for Bone Biology and colleagues in the Vanderbilt University Institute of Imaging Science were critical in facilitating development of the bone infection model. Sulikowski and other colleagues in the Vanderbilt Institute of Chemical Biology (VICB) enabled the compound development.
"This is exactly the kind of work the VICB is promoting getting biologists like me together with chemists, to make new therapeutics," Skaar said.
###
The research was supported by the Searle Scholars Program and grants from the National Institutes of Health (AI069233, AI073843, RR027631, AI091856, HD060554), including the Southeastern Regional Center of Excellence for Emerging Infections and Biodefense (AI057157).
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Vanderbilt studies outline new model for staph bone infectionsPublic release date: 1-Aug-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Craig Boerner craig.boerner@vanderbilt.edu 615-322-4747 Vanderbilt University Medical Center
Osteomyelitis, a debilitating bone infection most frequently caused by Staphylococcus aureus ("staph") bacteria, is particularly challenging to treat.
Now, Vanderbilt microbiologist Eric Skaar, Ph.D., MPH, and colleagues have identified a staph-killing compound that may be an effective treatment for osteomyelitis, and they have developed a new mouse model that will be useful for testing this compound and for generating additional therapeutic strategies.
James Cassat, M.D., Ph.D., a fellow in Pediatric Infectious Diseases who is interested in improving treatments for children with bone infections, led the mouse model studies. Working with colleagues in the Vanderbilt Center for Bone Biology and the Vanderbilt University Institute of Imaging Science, Cassat developed micro-computed tomography (micro-CT) imaging technologies to visualize a surgically introduced bone infection in progress.
"The micro-CT gives excellent resolution images of the damage that's being done to the bone," said Skaar, the Ernest W. Goodpasture Professor of Pathology. "We found that staph is not only destroying bone, but it's also promoting new bone growth. Staph is causing profound changes in bone remodeling."
Cassat also established methods for recovering -- and counting -- bacteria from the infected bone.
"We're not aware of any other bone infection models where you can pull the bacteria out of a bone and count them in a highly reproducible manner," Skaar said. "From a therapeutic development standpoint, we think this model is going to allow investigators to test new compounds for efficacy against bone infections caused by staph or any other bacteria that cause osteomyelitis."
Several pharmaceutical companies have already approached Skaar and his team about testing compounds in the new bone infection model, which the investigators describe in the June 12 issue of Cell Host & Microbe.
Using the model, the team demonstrated that a certain protein secreted by staph plays a critical role in the pathogenesis of osteomyelitis. Understanding the specific bacterial factors -- and the bone cell signals -- that promote bone destruction and formation during infection could lead to new strategies for restoring bone balance, Skaar said.
"Even if it's not possible to kill the bacteria, compounds that manipulate bone growth or destruction might have some therapeutic benefit."
Still, Skaar is interested in treatments that will eliminate the infection.
The staph bacteria involved in osteomyelitis and in other persistent infections (such as lung infections in cystic fibrosis) are often a sub-class of staph known as "small colony variants." These staph variants grow slowly and are resistant to entire classes of antibiotics commonly used to treat bone and lung infections, Skaar said.
One way that staph bacteria become antibiotic-resistant small colony variants is by changing the way they generate energy. Instead of using respiration, they switch to fermentation, which blocks antibiotic entry and slows bacterial growth.
In a high-throughput screen for compounds that activate a heme-sensing bacterial pathway, graduate student Laura Mike identified a compound that kills fermenting staph. The findings are reported in a recent issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
"This is a completely new molecular activity," Skaar said. "We don't know of other molecules that are toxic against fermenting bacteria."
The compound -- and derivatives synthesized by Gary Sulikowski, Ph.D., and his team -- might be useful in treating staph small colony variants, or in preventing their emergence.
The investigators demonstrated in culture that treating staph with the antibiotic gentamicin forced it to become a small colony variant and ferment, and that co-treatment with the new compound prevented resistance and killed all of the bacteria.
"We think a really interesting therapeutic strategy for this compound is that it might augment the antimicrobial activity of existing classes of antibiotics by preventing resistance to them -- it might extend the lifetime of these classes of antibiotics," Skaar said.
This would be similar to the drug Augmentin, which combines a traditional penicillin-type antibiotic and a compound that blocks bacterial resistance.
The investigators are excited to test the new compound in the mouse model of osteomyelitis. First, they will treat the mice with gentamicin and assess whether staph small colony variants form. If so, they will co-administer the new compound to test if it prevents resistance, and they will also assess it as a single treatment for the persistent infection.
Skaar stressed that Vanderbilt's collaborative environment made these studies possible. Daniel Perrien, Ph.D., and Florent Elefteriou, Ph.D., in the Vanderbilt Center for Bone Biology and colleagues in the Vanderbilt University Institute of Imaging Science were critical in facilitating development of the bone infection model. Sulikowski and other colleagues in the Vanderbilt Institute of Chemical Biology (VICB) enabled the compound development.
"This is exactly the kind of work the VICB is promoting getting biologists like me together with chemists, to make new therapeutics," Skaar said.
###
The research was supported by the Searle Scholars Program and grants from the National Institutes of Health (AI069233, AI073843, RR027631, AI091856, HD060554), including the Southeastern Regional Center of Excellence for Emerging Infections and Biodefense (AI057157).
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AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
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Public release date: 1-Aug-2013
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