2020 research HIGHLIGHTS

 

A broccoli a day could keep the cancer away 

Dr. Kaitlin Curran, an assistant professor of oncology, is working on the development of a natural broccoli seed supplement that may help control the spread of tumor cells in canines with lymphoma in partnership with colleagues in the College of Pharmacy and the College of Public Health. They found that the broccoli seed supplement has an epigenetic impact on cell division by reducing the availability of DNA, which helps slow down the replication process and delay tumor growth. Dr. Curran hopes that one day the supplement can assist in the treatment of actively diseased patients and that it may even translate to human medicine. Learn more about other clinical trials. 

Herbs, spices and health surprises

Aeromonas salmonicida is a pathogenic bacterium that severely impacts salmon populations and similar species. Such bacterial infectious diseases are also fatal to farmed sablefish. Although antibiotic supplement feeds exist, they could cause the creation of antibiotic-resistant pathogens, so treatment options are not fully developed. Dr. Carla Schubiger, an assistant professor specializing in infectious diseases, and her team are looking for more effective and sustainable treatment options. They came up with a project to explore how herbal supplements and marine probiotics can strengthen the sablefish’s innate immune response to improve their survival during infection and/or disease outbreaks. Their research focused on developing an eco-friendly treatment for sustainable sablefish production. They chose purple coneflower and turmeric for this project.

Purple coneflower is said to boost the immune system, and turmeric, commonly used in cooking, has the potential to prevent heart disease and cancer. It is also a potent anti-inflammatory and antioxidant. Dr. Schubiger and her colleagues worked on developing custom feed formulas with these ingredients. One formula included 33% turmeric and another included 6% purple coneflower. After feeding, they began an infection trial and infected one fish from each feeding group with Aeromonas salmonicida. They found that fish fed with the purple coneflower formula showed significant improved survival rates. The fish fed with turmeric did not rank as high within the other groups. The results could be due to the low percentage of turmeric in the formula as compared to the percentage of purple coneflower in the other formula. The project is still ongoing and they are excited to try new diets in the future to find a more ecofriendly treatment for farmed sablefish.