Daily Lobo new mexico
The Independent Student Voice of UNM since 1895
2 UNM regents named
monday April 6, 2015 | Volume 119 | Issue 133
Koch reappointed after resignation; Marron Lee also selected to board By Jonathan Baca
Gov. Susana Martinez has made appointments to fill the two vacant seats on the University’s Board of Regents, one of them being veteran Regent Jamie Koch. The second appointment is former federal prosecutor Marron Lee, whose family has strong ties to UNM and the Board of Regents. Martinez announced the new appointees on April 3. Koch had already been appointed by Martinez and was unanimously confirmed by the state Senate in March. However, he resigned shortly after because Koch said he disagreed with the Senate’s decision to reject fellow appointee Matt Chandler for what he said were political reasons. Martinez accepted Koch’s letter of resignation at the time, but apparently changed her mind and convinced him to return to the position. “Regent Koch is an experienced and talented leader, and I firmly believe that he will be a strong servant on the University’s governing board as they seek to increase our graduation rate and prepare a stronger workforce in New Mexico,” Martinez said. “He’s the right person for this position, and that’s why I’ve chosen to reappoint him.” Koch told the Albuquerque Journal that his decision to return was not easy. In a UNM press release, he cited the University’s impending budget troubles as a major reason for his return. Koch was previously a member of the board’s Finance and Facilities Committee, and has already scheduled an F&F committee meeting for April 7. “This is probably the toughest budget I’ve seen in my days as a regent,” Koch said in a press release. “We have some difficult decisions to make in the next few weeks, and I am pleased to be able to return and utilize my experience
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Regents page 3
Diana Cervantes / Daily Lobo / @dee_sea_
Elani Wiest, a fourth-year pre-doctoral student, pulls out various blood samples that are kept in the freezer at the HSC lab at the Research Incubator Building on March 27. Wiest is attempting to identify biomarkers that can be detected in blood drawn from smokers to assess risks of heart and vessel disease while also identifying means to prevent disease progression.
Fish oil could help smoking injuries Researchers examining ways predict, prevent blood vessel diseases in smokers By Sayyed Shah
A team of UNM researchers is focusing on identifying a new method that can predict cigarette smoke-induced injuries to blood vessels and potential therapeutic interventions to reduce them. Young, healthy smokers have an increased risk of developing heart and blood vessel disease, which can be prevented or even reversed when it is diagnosed early, the researchers said. Early diagnosis can prevent progression to more severe diseases like atherosclerosis, stroke, and heart attacks, the scientists said. “We are studying omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids, also known as omega-3 fish oils.
NIC chairman talks security at symposium By Fin Martinez
Jamie Koch
Omega-3 fish oil fatty acids can protect blood vessels from injury and the levels of these beneficial fatty acids commonly are reduced in cigarette smokers,” said Mary K. Walker, professor of pharmaceutical sciences at the College of Pharmacy. The researchers are assessing the risk of having a heart attack or stroke in both smokers and nonsmokers by measuring known predictors of the risk and the determining whether the levels of omega-3 fish oil fatty acids are also predictive of their risks, she said. “We conducted a study with young, healthy, never and current smokers where we measured omega-3 fatty acids and blood vessel health,” said Elani Wiest, a
The world isn’t getting any safer, the U.S. National Intelligence Council chairman told a symposium at UNM on Thursday. NIC Chairman Gregory Treverton, the keynote speaker at UNM’s “Security Trends in the Next Two Decades” symposium, addressed topics related to future security trends such as the global population increase, water scarcity and “six game-changers” in global security. The major talking points in his speech were adapted from a NIC security trends document titled
“Global Trends 2030: Alternate Worlds.” “I sometimes think that when you talk about international order in the future, you’re looking at what seems to be international disorder,” Treverton said. “We remember international order in the past, that it looked good and we got through it. Now we face a future that may be much more disorderly.” The symposium, which ran Wednesday through Friday, covered topics ranging from Guantanamo Bay to the Ukrainian crisis, and other security issues.
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Security page 3
fourth-year pre-doctoral student in Mary Walker’s laboratory. The researchers found that omega-3 fatty acids are significantly reduced in young, healthy smokers and that those with the most impaired blood vessels had the lowest levels of omega-3 fatty acids, Wiest said. The results suggest the acids may serve as a more costeffective biomarker to identify young, healthy smokers with early onset heart and blood vessel disease, so doctors can treat them before more severe diseases develop, Wiest said. “In the short term, individuals enrolling in the study will learn their risk of having a heart attack or stroke in the next 10 years and
will gain an understanding of what factors contribute to their risk,” Walker said. Wiest said the long term goal of this project is to develop a more cost-effective and easyto-test evaluation to identify those smokers at greatest risk of developing heart and blood vessel disease, such as atherosclerosis, peripheral artery disease, stroke, and heart attack, prior to the appearance of clinical symptoms. “In the long term we hope to be able to identify those individuals who would benefit the most from more aggressive therapy to reduce their risk of having heart attack or stroke and to identify novel
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Smoking page 3
lobo football - Pg 12
Hannah Glasgow / Daily Lobo / @glasgow_hannah
Quarterback Austin Apodaca takes a snap during spring football practice at the Tow Diehm Complex on March 27. Apodaca turned down an invitation to visit UNM for a recruiting trip out because of a commitment to Washington State. He later transferred to a junior college and now has joined the Lobos. For more, see Page 16.