March 11, 1998

Aging and Cholesterol Research to be Disclosed at Health Science Center

FORT WORTH, Texas -- Results from the landmark cholesterol-lowering study conducted at the University of North Texas Health Science Center will be presented by the keynote speaker at the sixth annual Research Appreciation Day on March 25.

Dr. Michael Clearfield, chief of internal medicine at the UNT Health Science Center, will present the keynote address at noon in the Main Auditorium of the health science center on how the cholesterol-lowering study will impact cholesterol-level management by physicians. Dr. Clearfield was primary investigator of the research that ran for almost five years and involved 6,605 participants in Texas.

The Air Force/Texas Coronary Atherosclerosis Prevention Study (AFCAPS/TexCAPS), sponsored by Merck & Co., was brought to an early close because of overwhelmingly positive results in the prevention of first-time coronary incidents such as heart attacks and the onset of severe chest pain, or angina. The title of Dr. ClearfieldÕs presentation is:

Extending the Benefit: Primary Prevention of Acute Major Coronary Events, Results of AFCAPS/TexCAPS

Research Appreciation Day is an opportunity for students, faculty and staff to share research results, encourage potential joint research projects, and enhance the public's knowledge of the type of research conducted at the health science center. Other investigative efforts relate to:

• Discovering specific proteins involved in the loss of memory in Alzheimer's patients
• Improving the delivery of anti-cancer drugs decreasing drug toxicity on healthy tissues
• Identifying genes that may increase the risk for atherosclerosis
• Determining the effect of sleep restriction on blood flow and heart function
• Decreasing the annual death rate of influenza in the elderly
• Increasing the recovery rate of heart attack survivors
• Preventing heart disease by removing cholesterol from tissues using new methods
  
  

Poster and oral presentation competitions for students are also part of the day. The posters will be on display from 8:30 a.m. - 5 p.m. in the Interdisciplinary Lab at the health science center. A panel of judges will select the top three presentations in each student category and one presentation for the fellows. First place in the oral presentation category receives free travel to any national scientific meeting.

Research Appreciation Day is free and open to the public. The health science center is located at 3500 Camp Bowie Boulevard in Fort Worth's Cultural District, and free parking is available in the health science center's Lot A on Clifton Road, off Camp Bowie Blvd. For more information, contact the health science center at (817) 735-2560.