La Jolla Playhouse announces details, cast and crew for new play
About a month ahead of its debut, La Jolla Playhouse has announced details about its latest production.
“A Black-billed Cuckoo” runs at the Mandell Weiss Forum from Tuesday, Sept. 15 to Sunday, Oct. 11 at the Mandell Weiss Forum and marks the 13th play to go from a piece in the Playhouse’s DNA New Work Series to the Playhouse stage.
Written by UC San Diego MFA playwriting graduate Mat Smart and directed by Shelley Butler, “A Black-billed Cuckoo” follows a close-knit birding group in Brooklyn’s Prospect Park as some members see a rare bird but others cannot.
“A Black-billed Cuckoo is a small and mighty play about grief, family and friendship,” said La Jolla Playhouse Artistic Director Jessica Stone in a press release. “Smart possesses a bottomless well of curiosity as a writer and a human, and it carries his work to unexpected places. He has written a funny, touching tale about a bird watching group in Brooklyn’s Prospect Park and their search for the elusive black-billed cuckoo. Of course what they’re actually seeking is something deeper than a mere bird sighting. It’s about a universal yearning for purpose, connection and community. Developed through our DNA series, we are particularly proud and connected to this piece.”
Learn more about the new production at lajollaplayhouse.com.
UC San Diego to serve as primary lab in $101M competition
A UC San Diego institute will be the main laboratory and biorepository for a competition in which research teams compete for $101 million in research funding.
The XPRIZE Healthspan Competition invites teams to explore interventions in humans that restore their muscle, cognitive and immune functions and extend their lifespans.
It originally started in 2023 with a pool of 600 applicants. Now, UCSD’s Stein Institute for Research on Aging will support 10 awardees to conduct coordinated clinical trials around the world with their treatment approaches. Winners will be announced in 2030.
“The central laboratory is the scientific backbone of this competition,” said UC San Diego School of Medicine associate professor Michael Corley in a press release. “By providing a single, gold‑standard platform for sample collection, multi‑omics analysis and data integration, UC San Diego will set the benchmark for how we measure biological aging and will accelerate the translation of breakthrough therapies into clinical practice.”
Previous XPRIZE competitions include an AI-driven drug discovery competition in 2022. The result of that competition was a platform that was since licensed to pharmaceutical companies.
La Jolla chefs to show at San Diego Food + Wine Festival
Chefs from several La Jolla restaurants will participate in the 22nd annual San Diego Food + Wine Festival, which returns Nov. 1-8 at venues across San Diego.
The event is intended to celebrate Southern California and Baja with participating chefs, winemakers, spirits producers, and culinary experts from across the country.
La Jolla will be represented by Brian Reimer (from the upcoming Ikaria restaurant), Kaitlyn Smith (Marisi restaurant), Paulo Mendoza (Lucrezia restaurant) and Raul Casillas (Puesto La Jolla).
Kaitlyn Smith has been appointed as the new executive chef at Marisi restaurant in La Jolla. (Mandie Geller)
UCSD researchers discover ‘switches’ in brains with dementia
Researchers at UC San Diego and their colleagues have identified a key cellular pathway that drives brain degeneration in both a rare childhood disorder and the far more common Alzheimer’s disease.
The study, published in Immunity, reveals how the brain’s immune cells respond to waste buildup and provides a novel roadmap for understanding and treating neurodegenerative conditions.
Children with Sanfilippo syndrome type A experience seizures and dementia among other symptoms, leading to early death.
The condition is caused by a single gene variant that blocks the production of the enzyme sulfamidase. Normally, tiny structures within cells called lysosomes use sulfamidase to break down nutrients into usable energy, destroy harmful invaders like bacteria, and recycle old cell parts for reuse. In the absence of the enzyme, debris accumulates.
The researchers studied a mouse model for this condition, finding that while this waste builds up in many cell types, the brain’s dedicated immune cells are impacted the most. These cells expand as they become clogged with fats and proteins, losing their ability to protect neurons.
The researchers identified a family of proteins, known as MITF/TFE, that act as master genetic switches. When cells become overburdened and stressed, these switches are flipped from the “off” to the “on” position, triggering a massive change in the brain.
The researchers found that the same MITF/TFE switches are turned on in response to waste accumulation in the cells of human Alzheimer’s patients as well.
By identifying the MITF/TFE protein family as the primary drivers of this process, the research points to a new target for drug development. By modulating these genetic switches, scientists may one day be able to maintain microglia in a protective state and prevent them from further damaging the brain.
UC San Diego Health, West Health initiative look to accelerate, coordinate healthcare with new program
Rising demand, strained hospital capacities and increasing quantities of patients needing care have placed significant pressure on America’s healthcare system. A new $40 million initiative from UC San Diego and West Health aims to step in and offer much-needed structural support.
The West Health Accelerator at UC San Diego Health, also referred to as Accelator, is a six-year initiative with the mission of building a model of coordinated, reliable care that increases health system standards across the U.S. Work on the Accelerator will be based in San Diego across UCSD Health’s three hospitals and their clinics.
“By 2030, one in five Americans will be aged 65 or older and this demographic shift will dramatically increase the need for easily accessible personalized health care,” said UC San Diego Chancellor Pradeep Khosla in a press release from UC San Diego Health. “The Accelerator will help UC San Diego Health meet local and national demand as it opens new locations across the San Diego region.”
According to UCSD health, the Accelerator is considered a continuation of work West Health and UCSD did on the Gary and Mary West Emergency Department at Jacobs Medical Center at UCSD Health in La Jolla, the first accredited senior emergency care unit in California. San Diego County later became the first region in the U.S. to have all of its hospitals receive Geriatric Emergency Department accreditation, the press release went on to say.
Practically speaking, the Accelerator will aid the Joan & Irwin Jacobs Center for Health Innovation at UCSD Health — a center focused on ethical use of technology to boost healthcare — with its mission control and coordination hub using advanced technology to track patient care. Its aim is to make sure patients are seen at the right time and in the right setting.
La Jolla native joins touring yacht rock band
Metaphorically speaking, La Jolla native Ian Ward Brininstool (who goes by Ian Ward), is taking his musical career to the high seas.
After a stint on Broadway, auditioning in front of the judges on American Idol and releasing solo albums, Ward is now the lead singer of Yachtley Crew.
La Jolla native Ian Ward holding the so-called ‘golden ticket’ to Hollywood following his American Idol audition. (Provided by Ian Ward)
Touted as a yacht rock band built around hits of the late ’70s and early ’80s, Yachtley Crew performs music from artists like Toto, Christopher Cross, Hall & Oates, Steely Dan, the Doobie Brothers, and more. The band recently performed at The Sound in Del Mar.
“We’ve been playing sold-out shows around the country, including several here in San Diego,” he told the La Jolla Light. “Our live show is high-energy, fun, and very audience-driven, with the musicianship of a concert but the atmosphere of a party. It’s been an incredible year.”
Ward went to Bird Rock Elementary and Muirlands Middle schools in La Jolla and graduated from La Jolla High in 2014.
Coast Walk Trail’s Legacy Wall gets a makeover
The Legacy Wall on Coast Walk Trail is now open for 200 more plaque orders following renovations.
Located next to the Cave Store at 1325 Coast Blvd., the Legacy Wall allows people to honor themselves, their family or their business with a commemorative plaque. Proceeds from the wall go towards nonprofit organization La Jolla Coastal Conservancy’s work on trail repairs, restoration and coastal upkeep.
A 12-by-8 plaque costs $1,500 and a 12-by-4 plaque costs $1,000. For an additional $185, a logo or QR code can be added to a plaque.
Learn more: lajollacoastalconservancy.org/plaques
SBP scientists make new discovery in what conceals cancer cells from our immune system
Like spies evading detection through being masters of disguise, many cancer cells are adorned with a copious coat of sugar-derived molecules that throws the proverbial hounds of our immune systems off the scent.
But recently, scientists at the La Jolla-based Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute and collaborators across North America published findings in Science Advances showing that cancer cells’ cloaking costumes can be a result of changes in the nearby neighborhood of immune cells, connective tissue, blood vessels, proteins and carbohydrates called the tumor microenvironment. The researchers also found a way to thin this sugary shroud, enabling cancer cells to be recognized and eliminated by the immune system.
“Now that we know this, this creates an enormous drug discovery opportunity to take away the surface coating that protects them from immune surveillance,” said lead author and assistant professor in the Cancer Metabolism and Microenvironment Program at the Sanford Burnham Prebys Kevin Tharp. “And we think this will be a really effective strategy to attack metastatic disease and improve immunotherapy responses.”
Entries open for The Menehune junior surf competition
The Windansea Surf Club’s annual junior surf contest is on the horizon — and looking for entrants.
The Menehune Surf Contest will take place this year on Saturday, Oct. 3 at La Jolla Shores.
A young surfer rides a wave during last year’s Menehune Junior Surf Contest in La Jolla. (M. Perreault)
The competition is open to all surfers 16 years old and under, who will then be split into longboard and shortboard divisions for boys and girls. A Super Menehune division will also be available for children 7 and under.
This year, $250 in educational scholarships will be awarded to the top eight finishers in their respective age groups for boys and girls. Learn more or register at windanseasurfclub.org.