Scott & White-Baylor Health Care Merger Takes Next Step

Bryan Police Arrests One Driver For Evading Following A Crash, Another Driver For Reckless Driving In A Semi, And Someone In Municipal Court For Drug Possession

Bryan police report the driver of a car that struck a power pole on the city’s west side was admitted to a hospital where he was charged with evading arrest. The BPD arrest report says Monday (January 6) around 4 a.m., officers found a “significant amount of blood” inside the car and a wallet containing a drivers license outside the car. Six miles away from the crash, officers found the man near his home. The evading charge accuses 25 year old Senovio Gonzales of Bryan of trying to walk away from officers five times. Gonzales was admitted to the hospital with a ruptured spleen and broken ribs. His jail booking was done in the hospital where he was given a personal recognizance bond. The crash, on West Villa Maria near Jones Road, damaged a BTU pole that resulted in a power outage. Bryan police respond to a report of a semi with no license plates running multiple red lights on Wellborn Road Sunday night (January 5). Then an officer sees a SUV taking evasive action to avoid hitting the semi. That leads to the arrest of a man who told the officer according to the arrest report he bought the semi in Longview and was on his way to his home in Mexico. 34 year old Juan Avila-Barragan was taken to jail on charges of reckless driving, not having a license, and not having insurance. Barragan is out of jail after posting cash bonds totaling $3,600 dollars. A Bryan woman’s fifth trip to the Brazos County jail in the last six months came after walking through the metal detector at Bryan municipal court. The arrest report written by a deputy city marshal says last Friday (January 3) he believed the woman was under the influence. A search of her purse led to finding a piece of crack cocaine and a crack pipe. The arrest report does not say why 24 year old Robby White was in court. Online jail records say White was arrested in December 2024 and September 2024 for possession of a controlled substance. She was arrested in August 2024 for misdemeanor theft and in July 2024 on warrants for drug possession and misdemeanor theft. White is out of jail after posting a $5,000 dollar bond on the newest drug possession charge and personal recognizance bonds on charges of public intoxication and possessing two items of drug paraphernalia.

New Year’s Resolution From A Member Of A College Station Advisory Board

A member of the College Station’s bicycle, pedestrian, and greenways advisory board delivered a resolution for 2025 during the last city council meeting of 2024. Neo Jang, who described himself as College Station’s “bicycle ambassador”, said “This year, I will be committed to help connect more places by greenways, trails, and recreational paths, so that our children will have safe and fun ways to move around this city, to and from schools, visiting friends and families and relatives, and just enjoying the great outdoors, and generally speaking, to relieve all the parents from having to be the taxi and shuttle drivers.” Because Jang spoke during the public comment portion of the meeting, by state law council members could not respond. Click below to hear Neo Jang’s comments from the December 12, 2024 College Station city council meeting:  

Researchers Led By Texas A&M’s Vet College Get More Federal Money To Study A Drug’s Ability To Extend The Life Of Larger Companion Dogs

If you have a large dog over seven years old who is in good health, they could qualify to be in an expanded study that is led by researchers from Texas A&M’s veterinary college. This is due to a $7 million dollar federal grant to continue studying a drug’s ability to extend the lives of companion dogs. An A&M news release says the drug Rapamycin, in small doses, improves cardiac function in dogs. The study that is part of The Dog Aging Project (DAP) currently involves 170 dogs from around the country. The additional funding expands the total number of dogs to 580. The minimum weight for dogs to be considered for the study is 44 pounds. Click HERE to be directed to The Dog Aging Project website for more information. News release from the Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences: Researchers led by the Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences (VMBS) have received $7 million from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to expand a clinical trial studying rapamycin’s ability to extend the lives of companion dogs as part of The Dog Aging Project (DAP). The DAP is a collaborative, community scientist-driven, data-gathering research project that launched in 2019 as a joint effort between the University of Washington School of Medicine and Texas A&M, with other collaborating institutions. It enrolls companion dogs from all backgrounds to study the effects of aging and gain a better understanding of what contributes to a long and healthy canine life, which also helps to expand medical knowledge surrounding human aging. To date, more than 50,000 dogs have been enrolled in the study. Test of Rapamycin In Aging Dogs (TRIAD) is the third DAP clinical trial involving rapamycin, a generic drug that has long been used as an immunosuppressant during organ transplants in people. Previous DAP studies have shown that in small doses, the drug appears to improve cardiac function in dogs. “As both people and animals age, the heart begins to stiffen, making it beat less effectively because it cannot fully relax between beats,” said Dr. Kate Creevy, DAP chief veterinary officer and a professor in the VMBS’ Department of Small Animal Clinical Sciences. “Evidence from laboratory studies suggests that rapamycin can improve heart muscle function, cognitive function, and mobility, as well as extending lifespan.” “So far, we’ve enrolled 170 dogs in the trial and have 20 sites where owners can participate,” she said. “With this new funding, we’re hoping to expand the number of participating dogs to 580 and add new locations across the country.” While the trial’s immediate focus is supporting healthy aging in dogs, the results of TRIAD will also benefit human anti-aging medicine. “Dogs experience many of the age-related cognitive, sensory, neuropathologic and mobility changes that are common in older humans. The possibility that rapamycin might delay any of the alterations that contribute to cognitive impairment and functional decline is very exciting and has huge translational potential,” said Dr. May Reed, a geriatrician at the University of Washington School of Medicine and another primary investigator in the study, along with Dr. Rozalyn Anderson at the University of Wisconsin. “This similarity makes research into canine health mutually beneficial — we get to learn how to support both dog and human aging at the same time. Our research is also powered by owners’ commitments to the health of their dogs, and that’s what makes our work both possible and meaningful,” Creevy said. “We’re very grateful to them.” Rapamycin And Anti-Aging Rapamycin, also called sirolimus, has most often been used during kidney transplants to help the donation recipient’s body accept the new organ. However, the DAP’s research shows promising evidence that small doses of the drug also help to mitigate or delay the diseases of aging. “Rapamycin works by modifying the cells’ energy balance and energy handling,” Creevy said. “It seems to mimic the effects that happen in people or animals who do intermittent fasting. There is a lot of interest in intermittent fasting as a technique that can improve health, particularly healthy aging, and some of the pharmaceutical effects of rapamycin make the same changes at the cellular level.” While dogs don’t share all of the common diseases of aging in humans — like coronary artery disease, the main cause of heart attacks — there is hope that rapamycin might help human patients dealing with heart disease because of how it improves the heart’s muscle function. “Improving overall heart muscle health has the potential to delay the onset of heart disease or make it easier to manage,” Creevy said. “For example, a heart that is in good health is more likely to be able to compensate for the damage caused by a heart attack.” Participating In TRIAD TRIAD is currently seeking to expand the number of dogs enrolled in the trial. To be considered, a dog needs to be over 7 years old, be in good general health, and weigh at least 44 pounds (20 kg). Owners also need to bring their dog to one of TRIAD’s participating clinical sites every six months for three years, after an initial visit to record baseline health information. Current sites include neurology and cardiology centers around the country, with more sites expected to be added soon. The sites are in: • Lawndale, CA • San Francisco, CA • Fort Collins, CO • Wheat Ridge, CO • Middletown, CT • Naples, FL • Athens, GA • Ames, IA • Urbana, IL • Overland Park, KS • North Grafton, MA • Brooklyn, NY • College Station, TX • North Dallas, TX • Everett, WA • Pullman, WA • Madison, WI Dogs enrolled in TRIAD must first enroll in the DAP’s study of overall health and aging in dogs, which requires owners to complete a health and life experience survey for their pet and update that information on an annual basis. “We acknowledge that participating in a clinical trial like TRIAD represents a commitment on the part of the owners […]