Sarah Y. Kim

Southeast D.C. residents had long anticipated the opening of Cedar Hill Regional Medical Center, currently the only full-service hospital in Ward 8. But its reputation has suffered in its first year due to safety and staffing challenges.

Leilani Scott-Clark says some people may have misconceptions about D.C. youth. “We're very dumb. We are dooming the future generation,” she says. “We are very dangerous, unpredictable.”

Tumor cells respond and adapt to environmental stresses that facilitate growth in hostile environments, including cytokine-mediated inflammation elicited by antitumor immunity and enhanced by immune checkpoint blockade (ICB). However, cytokine responses also induce transcriptional and cell-state changes that may predispose tumor cells to new vulnerabilities, which remain poorly explored. Here we performed in vitro genome-scale CRISPR loss-of-function screens in eight cancer models exposed to interferon-γ (IFNγ), interferon-β or tumor necrosis factor to map inflammation-induced genetic vulnerabilities. We identified members of the glycosylphosphatidylinositol (GPI) transamidase complex and the lipid phosphatase FITM2 as interferon-specific cancer dependencies. Tumor-specific deletion of GPI transamidase subunits or FITM2 markedly enhanced response to ICB in vivo. By integrating functional genomics, metabolomics and pharmacologic perturbation of downstream stress pathways, we found that loss of FITM2 predisposed cancer cells to IFNγ-driven endoplasmic reticulum and oxidative stress, culminating in paraptosis-like cell death. Collectively, these findings identify tumor-intrinsic dependencies governing responses to inflammatory cytokines.

This spring, I was enjoying a picnic with friends at Fort Reno Park. It was early April, an idyllic afternoon with blue skies, and the redbuds were in full bloom.

It's a hot Friday afternoon, and outside a little brick house in Ward 8 is a small Pride cookout.

As America's 250th anniversary fast approaches, there's no shortage of events scheduled to note the historic date.

America is marking its 250th birthday on Saturday. And there are plenty of events, festivals, and celebrations of the country's semiquincentennial across the region this weekend.

Code purple means the air is “very unhealthy” for all individuals, not just sensitive groups. Local officials have canceled outdoor activities and closed pools.

D.C. councilmembers are considering a bill that would bring commercial autonomous vehicles to the District. Some residents with disabilities, particularly those who are blind, are strongly supportive. But others in the disability community are wary.

President Trump claimed he was addressing a “crime emergency” in D.C. when he deployed the National Guard a year ago. But residents in Southeast, where violent crime is most frequent, say they have seen little improvement. And in a community that’s historically suffered heavy policing and racial profiling, the rise of National Guard and federal agents doesn’t feel entirely new.