(L-R): Distinguished Guests, Dr. Mike Bamshad, Dr. Helen H. Hobbs, and Department of Medicine Chairman, Dr. Robert A. Clark.
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The department of medicine’s 8th Annual Research Day was held May 10, highlighting several accomplishments of the Health Science Center community.

“This was an occasion to celebrate the excellent research being done by our faculty and trainees,” said Robert A. Clark, M.D., professor and Dan F. Parman Distinguished Chairman of Medicine. “We all learned a great deal as we gained further understanding of the many contributions of department of medicine investigators over a wide range of basic and clinical research. I am impressed not only by the quality of science, but by the broad scope of our research. From the bench to patient studies, our investigators cover it all.”

The successful event brought together investigators from all divisions of the department of medicine, as well as individuals from other Health Science Center departments. The faculty and research trainees participated in oral and poster presentations, a panel discussion called “The Impact of Ethnicity in Human Disease,” and a dinner and awards ceremony.

Helen H. Hobbs, M.D., investigator for the Howard Hughes Medical Institute and professor of internal medicine and molecular genetics at The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas, was a distinguished guest at the event. She participated in the panel discussion and presented a featured scientific lecture called “Genetic Protection Against Cholesterol Accumulation and Atherosclerosis.”

Research Day was supported in part by the generosity of Pfizer, Inc., Ortho-McNeil and Invitrogen.

Medicine Research Day award winners (L-R): Camille Ratliff (accepting for Germán Gornalusse), Daniel Katselnik, Hernan G. Martinez, Yves Gorin, Ph.D., and Sunil Dwivedi, M.D.

Ninety-nine abstracts were submitted into several challenging competitions. Awards were presented for the following categories: Student/Resident, Junior Faculty, Postdoctoral Fellow, Clinical Fellow, and a special award for Health Services Research.

Student/Resident Category

Daniel Katselnik
Title: “Effects of Alendronate on Bone Mineral Density in Men with Prostate Cancer Treated with Androgen Deprivation Therapy.” Katselnik D and Bruder JM.

Jacqueline Losi, M.D.
Title: “Molecular Evidence of Epidermolysis Bullosa Simplex with Mottled Pigmentation.” Losi-Sasaki JM, Shurman DL, Grimwood RE, Tichy EH, Uitto J, and Richard G.

Clinical Fellow Category

Sunil Dwivedi, M.D.
Title: “Pioglitazone (PIO) Improves Metabolic and Histologic Parameters in Patients with Non-alcoholic Steatohepatitis (NASH).” Dwivedi S, Belfort R, Harrison S, Brown K, Darland C, Finch J, Tio F, Hardies J, Berria R, Havranek R, Fincke C, DeFronzo RA, Schenker S, and Cusi K.

Carlos Taboada, M.D.
Title: “Antibiotoc Cycling to Decrease Bacterial Antibiotic Resistance: A 7-year Experience on a Bone Marrow Transplant Unit.” Taboada CA, Patterson J, Cadenas J, Burgess DS, and Freytes CO.

Post-Doctoral Category

Germán Gornalusse
Title: “DNA Methylation of the CCR5 Locus: Epigenetic Variation Adds Another Tier of Complexity to CCR5 Gene Regulation” Gornalusse G, Chopra N, Rodriguez M, Ratliff C, Mummidi S, and Ahuja SK.

Lenin Mahimainathan, Ph.D.
Title: “High Glucose-induced Mesangial Cell Hypertrophy is Mediated by the Tumor Supressor PTEN: Involvement of TGFβ.” Mahimainathan L, Venkatesan B, and Ghosh Choudhury G.

Hernan G. Martinez
Title: “CCR5 Plays a Major Role in Atherosclerosis and its Complications by Influencing Endothelial Progenitor Numbers and Systemic Inflammation.” Martinez HG, Quinones MP, Jimenez F, Dudley M, Willmon O, Estrada C, Reddick RL, Ahuja SK, and Ahuja SS.

Junior Faculty Category

Muralidhar Beeram, M.D.
Title: “Akt-induced Endocrine Therapy Resistance is Reversed by Inhibition of mTOR Signaling.” Beeram M, Tan QN, Russell D, Tekmal RR, and deGraffenried LA.

Yves Gorin, Ph.D.
Title: “NOX4 NAD(P)H Oxidase Mediates Hypertrophy and Fibronectin Expression in the Diabetetic Kidney.” Gorin Y, Block K, Hernandez J, Bhandari B, Wagner B, Barnes J, and Abboud HE.

Health Services Research Award

Mary Jo Pugh, Ph.D.
Title: “Potentially Inappropriate Prescribing for the Elderly: Who’s at Risk?” Pugh MJ, Fincke BG, Bierman A, Rosen AK, and Berlowitz DR.