Researchers from the Masonic Cancer Center, University of Minnesota, and the University’s Brain Tumor Program, have developed a new mouse model of malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumors (MPNST) that allow them to discover new genes and gene pathways driving this type of cancer.

MPNST is a genetically diverse, aggressive form of sarcoma impacting connective tissue surrounding nerves that occurs sporadically or in association with Neurofibromatosis Type 1 (NF1) syndrome. The exact cause of MPNST is not known, but symptoms include swelling in the arms and legs, soreness and stiffness at the site of the tumor.  MPNSTs are the most common malignancy in adults with NF1 syndrome and leading cause of NF1-related mortality.

For some couples, arriving at the miracle of birth is more complex than sperm + egg = embryo = pregnant. The human body is incredibly complex, and few processes are as complicated as human reproduction.

For example, consider the first five days in the reproduction process:

Day 0 – Egg meets sperm in the fallopian tube. Sperm penetrates egg.
Day 1 – Fertilization occurs and a zygote forms, which includes DNA from both the male and female.
Day 2 – The zygote has evolved into an embryo. Cell count is now four.
Days 3 to 5 – Even more growing as the cells split. There are now eight cells. The embryo leaves the fallopian tube and enters the uterus.
Day 5– Embryo hatches, blastocyst embryo erupts and implants into the uterine wall, and a woman is deemed pregnant.

As we close out National Women’s Health Week, Health Talk thought it fitting to provide women seven things they should know about their health.

Why seven? Why not? There are seven oceans, seven colors in the rainbow, seven wonders in the world, and most importantly – seven days in National Women’s Health Week.

To compile the list, Health Talk spoke to University of Minnesota Physicians women’s health expert Carrie Ann Terrell, M.D., director of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Women’s Health at the University of Minnesota Medical School and director of the Women’s Health Specialists Clinic.

Here they are, in no particular order:

Cari Clark, Sc.D., M.P.H., never sought out to be a crusader for women’s health. However, her work has positioned her as a true champion for women’s health as she’s advanced an understanding around the public health impact that violence against women has on our society in the U.S. and abroad.

In early April, Clark, an assistant professor at the University of Minnesota Medical School and adjunct assistant professor in the School of Public Health, presented the public health impact of violence against women at a press conference convened by U.S. Senator Al Franken and Minneapolis Police Chief Janee Harteau to support the renewal of the Violence Against Women Act.

The bill provides funding for victim services, law enforcement, and violence prevention. Importantly the bill also supports research on the health effects of violence against women, the impact of violence on the health sector, and improvements in the health sector’s response to violence victimization.

A recent study led by researchers from the Masonic Cancer Center, University of Minnesota, found a process for mass-producing human natural killer (NK) cells, white blood cells that are known for attacking malignant tumors, to make them available for clinical-scale use.

Hundreds of clinicians and researchers gathered for a variety of discussions around the latest in schizophrenia research at the 2013 International Congress on Schizophrenia Research (ICOSR).

Over the course of four days in April in Orlando, Fl., experts from across the world shared the latest information on brain imaging, genetics and clinical trials designed to advance the treatment of schizophrenia.