Annual Chanukah celebration to take place Dec. 14
Joining the list of La Jolla holiday events is an annual Chanukah lighting hosted by Chabad Jewish Center of La Jolla.
The event, “Light Up La Jolla,” features a giant menorah lighting, latkes and doughnuts, music, dancing, crafts and dreidels and will take place at the La Valencia Hotel at 5:30 p.m. on Sunday, Dec. 14. For more information, contact chabadoflajolla@gmail.com or call (484) 455-5433.
Application filed to demolish Dunaway Drive house
An application has been filed with the city of San Diego to demolish a one-story, approximately 2,000-square-foot house with detached garage and construct a two-story, 3,942-square-foot house and attached 528-square-foot, two-car garage at 8718 Dunaway Drive in the La Jolla Shores neighborhood.
The project is undergoing environmental review, and the decision to approve or deny this application will be made at a public hearing that has yet to be scheduled.
UCSD researchers identify new approach to treated triple-negative breast cancer
Researchers at the La Jolla-based UC San Diego School of Medicine have identified a new therapy for triple-negative breast cancer, which is among the most aggressive and difficult-to-treat forms of the disease.
In 2025, an estimated 316,950 women and 2,800 men will be diagnosed with invasive breast cancer. Triple-negative breast cancer accounts for about 10-15% of all breast cancer cases, and it is widely considered the most difficult breast cancer subtype to treat because it tends to grow and spread more quickly than other forms of breast cancer. It typically fails to respond to therapies that work in other subtypes, such as hormonal therapies.
As a result, survival rates for triple-negative breast cancer tend to be lower than for other breast cancers. Additionally, triple-negative breast cancer disproportionately affects younger women, Black women and those with certain genetic mutations.
The new approach employs a delivery system that uses an antibody to identify cancer cells and deliver a highly potent chemotherapy directly into those cells without harming surrounding healthy tissue. This approach makes it possible to use chemotherapy drugs that are too toxic to deliver on their own, offering a promising avenue for treating the most difficult cancers.
While it will take further research to advance the treatment into the clinic, their findings suggest that this method could offer a new path forward for patients with aggressive breast cancers that do not respond to existing therapies. The research team believes this strategy may pave the way for more precise, effective treatments, and the approach could also one day be leveraged against other cancers with similar biology.
Bird Rock Elementary among America’s Healthiest Schools
Bird Rock Elementary is the only La Jolla cluster school to make the recently released Kaiser Permanente and Alliance for a Healthier Generation’s list of America’s Healthiest Schools, and one of 36 schools across San Diego Unified School District to be recognized.
Placement on the list recognizes schools “that are leading the way in supporting the physical, mental, and social-emotional well-being of students, staff, and families,” according to a press release. These factors and a handful of others are evaluated in making the list.
SDUSD superintendent Fabi Bagula said receiving the award is a testament to their collective efforts “to support healthy, vibrant school communities.”
See the full list at healthiergeneration.org/campaigns/americas-healthiest-schools.
LJI researchers find new target to express T cells that fight disease
In the body, a type of cell known as T(rm) are specialized immune cells considered among the body’s first responders to disease. Rather than coursing through the bloodstream — as many T cells do — T(rm) cells specialize in defending specific organs. They battle viruses, breast cancer, liver cancer, melanomas, and many other health threats.
Recently, La Jolla Institute for Immunology professor Pandurangan Vijayanand, M.D., Ph.D., and his colleagues discovered the cellular driver that leads to T(rm) cell development, offering a potential way to boost T(rm) cell numbers to better fight disease.
In their new study, the LJI scientists found that T(rm) cells are studded with a membrane receptor molecule called GPR25. The study was the first to show that GPR25 production is induced by a particular signaling molecule. During this process, a regular memory T cell transforms into a T(rm) cell.
As a result of this study, future therapeutics might target GPR25 to enhance T(rm) cell populations in infectious diseases and cancers.
DNA New Work series back at La Jolla Playhouse
La Jolla Playhouse’s annual DNA New Work Series is set to return this month, with productions across San Diego between Thursday, Dec. 4 and Sunday, Dec. 14.
Created by Playhouse Artistic Director Christopher Ashley in 2013 and curated by director of artistic development Gabriel Greene, the DNA series offers playwrights and directors the opportunity to develop a script by providing rehearsal time, space and resources, as well as play readings before live audiences. As a result, audiences get a closer look at how plays develop, and both veteran and up-and-coming playwrights have an opportunity to further their work.
Actors take part in a play-reading at a previous DNA New Works Series at La Jolla Playhouse. The 2025 festival kicks off Dec. 4 and runs through Dec. 14. (La Jolla Playhouse)
Thus, all DNA New Work Series projects take place with no scenic, costume or staging elements, and actors will have scripts in hand. The play readings will take place in the Playhouse’s Rao and Padma Makineni Play Development Center.
This year’s plays are:• “Well Well Well” by Brant Russell — 7 p.m. Dec. 4 and 6• “Red Taxi” by Banna Desta — 7 p.m. Dec. 5 and 2 p.m. Dec. 7• “Night Game” by Octavio Solis — 7 p.m. Dec. 11 and 13• “In the Black” by Quaz Degraft — 7 p.m. Dec. 12 and 2 p.m. Dec. 14
Tickets are free, but must be reserved in advance. Visit lajollaplayhouse.org/dna-2025.
— The San Diego Union-Tribune editor Pam Kragen contributed to this report.
Scripps names two new members to board of directors
A pair of leaders in finance and biomedical science are joining Scripps Research’s board of directors.
Douglas W. Phillips hails from the University of Rochester, where he recently retired as senior vice president and chief investment officer. During his 25 years at the university, he also founded and chaired the medical insurance company’s investment committee.
Fellow new board member Steven M. Paul comes from a finance and institutional management background. Throughout his career, he served as a neuroscientist, psychiatrist and biopharmaceutical executive. He is a current chairman of the board of the Foundation for the National Institutes of Health and The Administrators of the Tulane Educational Fund.
La Jolla Art Association to host winter-themed exhibition
Featuring the work of over a dozen local painters and photographers that are a part of the La Jolla Art Association, a new winter-themed exhibition will soon be on view at the La Jolla Community Center.
Titled the “Winter Celebration,” the exhibition opens with an artist reception at 3 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 6 at the Community Center, 6811 La Jolla Blvd. The exhibition runs through January.
A percentage of sales of works will go to the Community Center for its programming. The featured artists are: Beverly Brock, Nicole Caulfield, Ann Chaitin, Chris Conroe, Albert Dean, Irma Gigli, Julia Hiebaum, Gloria Moeller, Gwen Nobil, David Pruitt, Mark Sherman, Dottie Stanley, Jay Wegter, and Ed Whitmore.
Founded in 1919, the mission of the La Jolla Art Association is to advance notable and emerging artists in San Diego through exhibitions and art educational opportunities held at the La Jolla Community Center. Learn more: lajollaartassociation.org
UCSD to develop new roadway safety courses to reach underserved communities
The Herbert Wertheim School of Public Health and Human Longevity Science at UC San Diego is expanding its roadway safety education efforts to reach more Californians, with a focus on Native American youth, pedestrian safety and Spanish-speaking communities.
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, an estimated 39,345 people died in motor vehicle crashes in the United States in 2024, marking one of the highest fatality totals in nearly two decades.
Thus, with support from two grants from the California Office of Traffic Safety through the NHTSA, the Herbert Wertheim School of Public Health’s Transportation Research and Education for Driving Safety Center — or TREDS — will develop and deliver innovative educational programs to promote safe driving for all roadway users, including drivers, passengers and pedestrians.
Through the support of a $350,000 grant from California Office of Traffic Safety, TREDS will create two self-paced and culturally sensitive online roadway safety courses: a new course and a Spanish-language version of an existing program. These free resources address topics such as pedestrian safety, distracted driving prevention, refresher education for older drivers and impaired driving due to alcohol, cannabis and prescription medications.