Category Archives: Physiology

Physiology

In Remembrance of Dr. Peter Bennett | Duke Department of Anesthesiology – Duke University

It is with profound sadness that we inform you about the passing of a beloved member of our Duke Anesthesiology family, Peter Bennett, PhD, DSc, emeritus professor of anesthesiology. He passed away on August 9 at the age of 91. Dr. Bennett will be remembered as a highly respected researcher and entrepreneur who dedicated his life's work to the advancement of diving. A champion of dive safety, he notably founded the Divers Alert Network (DAN) in 1980 - a non-profit organization, which he led for 23 years. DAN is the worlds most recognized and respected dive safety organization that helps divers in need of medical emergency assistance and promotes dive safety through research, education, products, and services.

Dr. Bennett was born in England, where he earned his doctorate and doctor of sciences in physiology and biochemistry at the University of Southampton. He began his career as a scientist investigating the physiology of deep diving, particularly the mechanisms of high-pressure nervous syndrome. In 1972, Dr. Bennett moved to the United States and joined Duke Anesthesiology where he was appointed director of research in the department and co-director of Dukes FG Hall Environmental Laboratory. Dr. Bennett went on to become director of the lab in which he led a team of investigators during performance of a series of human deep dives in the Hall Labs hyperbaric chambers to a world record depth of 2,250 feet of sea water. After retiring as president of DAN in 2003, Dr. Bennett became the executive director for the Underwater Hyperbaric Medical Society until 2014. As a leading authority on the effects of high pressure on human physiology, he published more than 100 scientific papers and nine books, including the signature textbook, Physiology and Medicine of Diving, known as a definitive work in his field. He was also a mentor to many junior scientists around the world.

Dr. Bennett leaves behind his wife, Margaret, and son, Chris. Please join us in extending our sincerest condolences to Dr. Bennett's family, friends and colleagues. Duke flags will be lowered in honor of his life and legacy.

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In Remembrance of Dr. Peter Bennett | Duke Department of Anesthesiology - Duke University

Physiology

How much protein should I eat to gain muscle? – Fit and Well

If youve been hitting the gym more recently, you may be wondering: how much protein should I eat to gain muscle? Weve broken down common myths around protein, including the recommended daily amount vs. how much protein you should be consuming if you put your muscles under frequent stress (like when weight lifting).

While most of us know that protein is important for growth and repair, you may not be aware that it is one of the most important components of muscle building, and your results may be dependent on the amount of protein you consume on a daily basis. While we get some protein from our diet, for those with higher protein requirements, a good protein powder may help boost your intake.

If youre looking for an easy way to increase your protein intake, our guide to the best protein powders for weight loss lists the top protein powders to support your efforts to sustainably gain muscle.

Dr. Elena Maria Liaka leads the National Medical Weight Loss Programme available at Vie Aesthetics through her role as an Aesthetic Doctor in both the Essex and Harley Street clinics. Alongside this, Dr. Elena works part-time in the NHS as a Psychiatrist.

Dr. Brian Carson graduated with a first-class honors BSc. in Sports Science and Health from the School of Health and Human Performance at Dublin City University in 2005. Brian subsequently undertook a PhD funded by a scholarship from the Irish Research Council for Science, Engineering and Technology (IRCSET) entitled The regulation of metabolic gene expression in human skeletal muscle by exercise: the influence of exercise intensity and contraction frequency which was awarded in 2010. He then was appointed as a postdoctoral researcher funded by Diabetes UK at the Department of Cellular and Molecular Physiology at the University of Liverpool where he spent 18 months investigating the intracellular trafficking and release of the adipokine adipokines. From there, Brian joined the team in the Physical Education and Sport Sciences department at the University of Limerick as a lecturer in Exercise Physiology in January 2011 where he is pursuing research into the role of exercise and nutrition in the regulation of metabolism for performance and health.

The International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism (opens in new tab) found we must have a positive protein balance in order to successfully increase muscle mass. In short, if you are looking to gain muscle, you need to ensure that you are consuming enough protein to support muscle protein synthesis.

We spoke to Dr. Elena Maria Liaka, an NHS psychiatrist and aesthetic doctor at Vie Aesthetics (opens in new tab), a doctor-run Harley Street cosmetic clinic. The amount of protein you should take to gain muscle varies between individuals. Increasing protein intake has been repeatedly and consistently shown to improve muscle mass and retention, she explains. For several years, the bodybuilding conventional wisdom has recommended around 2g of protein per kg of body weight in order to build muscle. The recommended daily allowance of protein, however, is much lower than this, cited as 0.8g per kg of Bodyweight. In reality, the answer is more complicated than a simple, one-size-fits-all number. Those who are active and challenging their muscles on a regular basis will require higher amounts in order to build or maintain their frame; whereas those who are inactive will require fewer calories and less protein to maintain their body weight. Bear in mind, without adequate stimulus to the muscles, in the form of progressive resistance training, the protein we consume will not translate into increased, or even maintained muscle mass.

While consuming enough dietary protein is vital, you can also use protein powder to lose weight and gain muscle mass. If you dont like the taste, you can always add it to a smoothie or oatmeal rather than eating it as a plain shake.

(Image credit: Getty)

Dr. Liaka gave Fit&Well her best advice for accurate protein intake calculation. In order to estimate protein intake, you need to track what youre eating; this can be done in several ways, and to varying degrees of accuracy, she says. For example, for bodybuilders who are in competition season, every gram of food is weighed for months on end. For the average fitness enthusiast looking to up their protein intake, however, estimating meals and foods on an app, or even just adding a serving of protein throughout the day, may be adequate. My main message would be the more specific the goal, the more specific the method of achieving it needs to be.

We spoke to Dr. Brian Carson, Head of Science and Innovation at Whole Supp (opens in new tab), who explained that weighing your food can be helpful if you want a more accurate idea of how much protein you are consuming. The most effective way to calculate your protein intake is to weigh all your foods and establish the amount of protein per gram (or per 100 grams) as per the nutritional information, he says. With lots of ingredients and the inconvenience of weighing at each meal, this can obviously be quite challenging. One potential solution is to use an app like MyFitnessPal which has the nutritional and protein content for many common food products to track an estimate of your intake.

(Image credit: Getty)

While a lot of us are often worried does protein powder make you gain weight, you should remember that weight gain isnt an inherently bad thing, and that muscle is a denser substance than fat. So while the scales might be trending upwards, this could be as a result of muscle gain, not an increase in body fat, as many of us might suspect when we see a higher number.

Dr. Liaka explains that protein, like all macronutrients, contains calories, and those calories need to be used. What is often forgotten is that protein contains calories; one gram of protein contains four calories. This means that overeating protein (I.e., many grams over the amounts mentioned above) produces diminishing returns in terms of performance and physique, whilst providing more energy in the form of calories, she says. Remember: eating too many calories, whether they come from fat, carbohydrates, or protein, will lead to weight (and likely fat) gain. There are also other individual variances to take into account, for example, health conditions that require limitation of protein, such as renal problems, or vegan diets which may require aiming for higher protein, in order to ensure intake of a complete amino acid profile.

A study in Obesity (opens in new tab) journal found that there is a correlation between protein consumption and the over/underconsumption of other macronutrients, called protein leverage. This is of particular concern in populations with less access to high-quality protein, who will often over consume fat or carbohydrates to make up the calories. The reverse is also true; those who eat high amounts of protein often skimp on other macronutrients.

Dr. Carson tells us that the RDA for protein is increasingly thought to be too low. The current RDA for protein is 0.8 grams of protein for every kilogram of body mass. However, there is a consensus building that this target is too low and a move towards a recommendation of 1.2 grams of protein for every kilogram of body mass is required, he says. The current research suggests there is likely to be no additional benefit for building muscle beyond 2.0 gram of protein per kilogram of your body mass.

An article by Harvard Health (opens in new tab) also indicates that high protein consumption can lead to health problems such as kidney stones. Additionally, if your main source of protein is red or processed meat, you are risking colon cancer, heart disease, and obesity. With this in mind, it is worth swapping out red meat for leaner meats or plant-based protein sources. With various brands of protein powder available, you may be wondering: plant protein vs whey protein: which is better for building muscle?

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How much protein should I eat to gain muscle? - Fit and Well

Physiology

Study shows an improved way to model Type 2 diabetes in mice – University of Alabama at Birmingham

Carbohydrates are directly linked to the development of Type 2 diabetes, but a higher-carb diet is underused in research models.

Robert Sorge, Ph.D.Type 2 diabetes affects the lives of millions of Americans and is estimated to cost $327 billion in health care and productivity lost annually. It is also associated with pain, lower urinary tract or bladder dysfunction, depression and systemic inflammation, affecting quality of life for patients. To investigate that, scientists most commonly utilize animal models mice specifically to explore potential treatments, which may not reflect the complexity of the condition, a study has found.

The University of Alabama at Birminghams Robert Sorge, Ph.D., associate professor in the College of Arts and Sciences Department of Psychology, along with Asia Wiggins, his doctoral student in the Behavioral Neuroscience Graduate Program, Timothy Kraft, Ph.D., professor in the School of Optometrys Department of Opthalmology and Vision Science, and Anas Alsulami, lab manager, have published a study in the journal Elsevier Physiology and Behavior that shows an improved way to model Type 2 diabetes in mice.

Generally, despite the evidence that carbohydrates are an underlying cause for Type 2 diabetes and the first-line treatments are aimed at reducing carbohydrates, preclinical studies utilize high-fat diets almost exclusively. Sorges study examined whether the common symptoms of Type 2 diabetes were better modeled with the standard high-fat diet or a higher-carbohydrate diet that he developed, called the Standard American Diet.

The researchers fed several diets to mice over the course of 35 weeks and found that the common symptoms of glucose intolerance, slower wound recovery, changes in retinal responses to light and retinal thickness were modeled by their SAD, but not the HFD. Interestingly, the HFD resulted in obesity, but that was not related to the other symptoms.

The goals of the study were to determine whether we could develop and validate an improved model of Type 2 diabetes in mice that replicated more of the constellation of problematic symptoms seen in clinical populations, Sorge said. We were able to demonstrate that our diets resulted in a Type 2 diabetes-related phenotype and that obesity was not necessary for symptom development.

Sorge believes preclinical models of Type 2 diabetes should focus on human-relevant diets that aid in the development of a host of disorder-specific conditions. Better models may produce better data and allow for early detection strategies to be developed and tested, he said.

Building on the findings of this study, Sorge will continue to examine more symptoms related to Type 2 diabetes and investigate the time course of symptom development. That could determine whether specific biological changes can signal the future development of Type 2 diabetes, to aid in detection and prevention.

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Study shows an improved way to model Type 2 diabetes in mice - University of Alabama at Birmingham

Physiology

New institute will probe biology in the absence of water – University of Wisconsin-Madison

The microscopic, hardy tardigrade. Image courtesy of National Park Service

Theyre microscopic, they have eight legs and they basically resemble tiny, wrinkly bears. Theyre tardigrades, and theyre one of several species that can survive extremely dry conditions for long periods of time.

Theyre also one of the organisms at the heart of a new interdisciplinary virtual research institute called WALII, which stands for the Water and Life Interface Institute and plans to explore how life survives in the absence of water. Led by Carnegie Science, the institute includes researchers from eight other institutions, including the University of WisconsinMadison.

Marisa Otegui

What the WALII team discovers could inform strategies for surviving climate change with minimal impact to the food supply and help identify conditions that could support life on other planets. Some plants, for instance, can reproduce from dried-out pollen grains or seeds.

There are some desert plants and micro-animals, like tardigrades, which can lose up to 90 percent of their water and resume normal biological function within hours of being rehydrated. We want to know how they do it, said Carnegie scientist Sue Rhee in a news release announcing the $12.5 million National Science Foundation grant that will help create the institute.

Marisa Otegui, UWMadison botany professor and member of the Center for Quantitative Cell Imaging, is co-principal investigator on the project. Her research focuses on how cells manage the flow of proteins and other specialized substances called metabolites between different cellular compartments.

WALII pronounced Wally will explore the evolutionary history that permitted some organisms from animals, plants and fungi to survive sustained low-water periods, the genetic and physical factors that allow an organism to survive in extremely dry conditions, and how different organisms respond to water during the process of rehydration. Researchers are also interested in features of proteins involved in the ability of organisms to tolerate desiccation.

Otegui and other WALII scientists represent a wide range of fields, from molecular biophysics, computer science, genomics, and cellular and evolutionary biology. They also include plant biologists with expertise in seed physiology, and scientists at all stages of their careers, including graduate and undergraduate students.

Having such diverse backgrounds on our team will allow us to be creative in our approaches, Otegui explains.

Researchers want to understand the molecular, cellular and physiological mechanisms that allow tardigrades and other organisms to accomplish their hardiness.

It will be fascinating to elucidate how molecular complexes and cellular compartments are protected under conditions of extreme dehydration, as well as rapid rehydration, Otegui says.

All raw data and bioinformatics pipelines that WALII researchers produce will be stored in publicly accessible repositories. The initiative will also spearhead outreach and educational activities to raise awareness of drought, water quality impairments and climate change.

Read more about WALII and follow the project on Twitter.

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New institute will probe biology in the absence of water - University of Wisconsin-Madison

Physiology

Letters to the editor: School start times and constraints on housing growth – The Almanac Online

School start times are only one factor in sleep deprivation

Pushing back school start times seems to be a solution to a symptom sleep deprivation rather than a solution to a problem, not going to sleep early enough the night before.

Researchers have found the hours of sleep we get before midnight make up the most powerful phase of sleep. During this first phase of sleep the body is replenished and rejuvenated, information we take in during the day gets reorganized, and adrenaline levels and stress are reduced. It is the qualities of our sleep during this early phase that is most important and not necessarily the quantity of sleep.

Why is this an issue now? The physiology of kids hasn't changed, has it? Sure, there are the occasional night owls, but a whole generation of night owls? No, that doesn't seem right. The root cause given in the Almanac article (the Aug. 12 issue story on school start times) is a phenomenon called circadian phase delay. The Mayo clinic defines circadian phase delay as a sleep disorder. Are we concluding that a whole generation has a sleep disorder? No, that doesn't seem right either. By definition, disorders are not common.

If a whole generation is finding it hard to fall asleep at a decent hour, there must be a ubiquitous cause. Are parents too permissive and not enforcing "bedtime?" Are kids on screens well into the night? Are today's kids not tired because they are generally less active than previous generations? Are kids being given too much homework to do at night? Any or all these causes could lead to sleep deprivation.

Increasing the length of kids' sleep by a few minutes in the morning may provide incremental benefits, but they are no substitute for all the benefits that would come from increasing the quality of their sleep by making lifestyle changes allowing kids to go to bed earlier.

Geoff Brosseau

Encina Avenue, Menlo Park

How much housing is too much?

Getting away from Bob Dickinson principal arguments about the Menlo Balance initiative (in his Aug. 12 guest opinion of The Almanac), which seem to be compelling on their face, I have questions: when is appropriate to seriously limit growth? When we need to drastically ration water? When we cannot move about our neighborhoods because of all the added traffic and congestion? When police and fire responders cannot arrive in a timely fashion? When the very reasons why we moved here cease to exist?

I was born in Glendale 81 years ago. To get to the beaches in Southern California then, you drove on roads that wound through orange grooves as there were no freeways. We have lost the reasons why my parents and others moved here, why I remain here, to massive development, to sprawling planned communities which have eliminated farmlands, to commute times which now are measured in hours; more of the same is not the answer.

We should be encouraging businesses to migrate to more remote rural areas, we should remove the tax incentives for homeownership and subsidize other forms of housing, and we must create criteria to be met before we allow more well-intentioned but thoughtless plans for new housing. For every new resident, two must be asked nicely to leave.

Jeff Colflesh

North Fair Oaks

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Letters to the editor: School start times and constraints on housing growth - The Almanac Online

Physiology

Medscape Interview Highlights MediPines AGM100s 99% Accuracy for Emergency Room Oxygen Therapy Decisions in COVID-19 Patients – BioSpace

YORBA LINDA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- In a video interview on Hot Topics in Emergency Medicine posted by Medscape, a group of emergency medicine experts and respiratory physiology thought leaders discussed a new non-invasive measurement; Oxygen Deficit, obtained from the MediPines AGM100, which demonstrated 99% clinical accuracy for supplemental oxygen therapy decisions.

The interview was moderated by Robert D. Glatter, MD (emergency medicine physician), and featured John B. West, MD, PhD (emeritus professor of medicine and physiology at UCSD School of Medicine) and W. Cameron McGuire, MD, MPH (pulmonary critical care physician and instructor at UCSD School of Medicine), as they discussed data from their recent study presented at the American Thoracic Society (ATS) International Conference 2022. The study demonstrated that Oxygen Deficit, which is a measurement of respiratory impairment, had very high predictability in two areas: 1) determining a patients need for supplemental oxygen and 2) guidance of hospital admission decisions.

Dr. McGuire stated that the predictive power of the Oxygen Deficit (OD) measurement was very high, sharing that an oxygen deficit of 40 (mmHg) or above predicted a need for supplemental oxygen at some point during that hospital course with, essentially, 99% accuracy. This discovery comes at a time when appropriate and accurate administration of oxygen therapy is crucial with the COVID-infected population.

Dr. Glatter described what he viewed as one of the biggest challenges: Obviously, silent hypoxemia or occult hypoxemia is a real issue, especially in patients with COVID-19. This is applicable with that patient population but also in other patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), asthma, people with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), and other types of lung pathology.

I personally think (the technology) has a tremendous future because it is very simple to use, said Dr. West. It is very simple for the patient. Theres no arterial puncture. I can remember vividly our problems with arterial puncture during my (time) as a physician. It has the advantage of looking both at the blood side and the gas side.

The MediPines AGM100 is the worlds first and only medical device which delivers Oxygen Deficit and as a result has been growing in usage for COVID-19 and other cardiopulmonary patients. Healthcare providers are seeking a reliable, discriminative tool during times of surging respiratory patients and medical staff shortages.

We are delighted to see our innovation providing useful clinical measurements in emergency medicine in times of great need said MediPines CEO, Steve Lee. Furthermore, our proprietary technology continues to prove its powerful effectiveness and practical value in helping clinicians manage patients to better outcomes in emergency departments and throughout the continuum of patient care.

The video and transcript of the discussion can be viewed in full here: https://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/976325?src=soc_tw_share#vp_1

About MediPines

MediPines is a market leader in non-invasive pulmonary gas exchange technology. The company mission is to advance respiratory medicine by providing physiology-based respiratory devices that enhance clinical effectiveness and achieve better patient outcomes. The MediPines AGM100 is an FDA-cleared, advanced pulmonary gas exchange technology that exclusively provides Oxygen Deficit, a surrogate for the alveolar to arterial oxygen difference (AaDO2), as well as blood oxygen level (gPaO2), PETCO2, and other sensitive measurements of pulmonary gas exchange. Designated by the World Health Organization (WHO) as an innovative and commercially available health technology for global priority diseases in its 2021 edition of the WHO Compendium of Innovative Health Technologies. Learn more at medipines.com.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20220830005851/en/

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Medscape Interview Highlights MediPines AGM100s 99% Accuracy for Emergency Room Oxygen Therapy Decisions in COVID-19 Patients - BioSpace

Physiology

What Shower Temperature Is Best For Post-Workout Recovery? – Health Digest

If you prefer hopping into a cold showerpost-workout, you may have better luck withrecovery. One 2019 study reported that cold showers can help recovery afterworking out in hot environments. During the study, researchers examined nine healthy males who performed high-intensity cycling for 45 minutes in the heat. What the researchers found was that cold showers had the ability to quickly reduce cardiac stress and lower heart rates after working out. This is because exercise in hot environments causes your blood to be shared simultaneously among your heart, skin, and muscle, points out Runner's World. And, cold water cools each of these down the fastest. But why?

Exposure to cold water is not only refreshing, but it has the opposite impact of heat. Instead, cold temperatures slow blood flow to the body because blood vessels are constricted (via Shape). This process is called vasoconstriction. According to Aaron Drogoszewski, a NASM-certified personal trainer, "This increased demand strengthens the heart and blood vessels, translating to improved circulation longer term" (via Runner's World). This reduction in blood flow from cold water immersion may also help ease soreness and limit muscle swelling and inflammation caused by working out, shares Journal of Physiology. Still, more research is needed to confirm the impact of cold showers on muscle recovery.

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What Shower Temperature Is Best For Post-Workout Recovery? - Health Digest

Physiology

Dr. Harold Reetz, updated with service information | Obituaries | journal-republican.com – Piatt County Journal-Republican

Services have been set to honor Dr. Harold Reetz, Jr., 74, of Monticello, who passed away Monday, Aug. 15. Visitation will be Monday, Sept. 12, from 10 a.m. to noon, at the Monticello United Methodist Church. Funeral will follow at noon.

Harold was born in Watseka, on March 10, 1948, and grew up on his family farm in Milford. He earned his first degree in 1970, a B.S. in Ag Science/Agronomy, from the University of Illinois, where he was a proud member of the Nabor House fraternity. He then pursued graduate studies at Purdue University, earning his masters degree in Crop Physiology and Ecology in 1972, then ultimately earned a Ph. D in Crop Physiology and Ecology in 1976.

Harold met Chris Kaiser at the U of I, which was the starting point for the family that was his pride and joy. Harold and Chris married August 25, 1973, and began their life together in West Lafayette, Ind., while he finished his doctorate work. In 1982 they moved to Monticello, Ill., which became home base for his legendary career and the community where they finished raising their three kids.

His career sent him on travels around the world, and no matter how far from home he always crossed paths with people he knew. His career began at Purdue, where he was associate professor in the agronomy department. He then spent 28 years with the International Plant Nutrition Institute (formerly Potash and Phosphate Institute) where he served as Midwest Director, then became President of the Foundation for Agronomic Research and Director of External Support until his retirement in 2010. Even in retirement, he continued to advise on agronomic practices with his consulting company, Reetz Agronomics LLC.

Harold was a highly regarded member of the community, planting deep roots in Monticello through his childrens activities, serving many years as Boy Scout Troop leader and 4-H Club leader. He was the ultimate fan at any sporting event, band competition or dance performance that involved his children or grandchildren. He was passionate about education and served as a Monticello School Board Member in the 1990s and was on the State FFA Advisory Board. He was a Sunday school teacher and held leadership roles at Monticello United Methodist Church, serving as Lay Liturgist and on multiple committees, where he was an instrumental part of the visionary team that led the building project for their new church.

Harold is survived by Christine Reetz, his wife of nearly 49 years; his daughter Carrie (Doug) Walsh of Kansas City, Mo.; his sons Wes (Alisa) of Washington, Ill., and Tony (Katie) of Tolono; his sister Cheryl (Jim) Hasting of Hoopeston; his sister-in-law Vicky Reetz; and his nine grandchildren, Adrien, Zack, Isaac, Anna, Seth, Hannah, Cobie, Carli and Kaiser. He is preceded in death by his parents, Harold and Evelyn Reetz, and brother, Michael Reetz.

Services will be held on Monday, Sept. 12, to celebrate Harold and the lives he touched and the minds he influenced. Visitation will be from 10a.m. to noon, at the Monticello United Methodist Church. Funeral will follow at noon. Interment will be private.

Memorials may be made to the Monticello United Methodist Church Building Fund.

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Dr. Harold Reetz, updated with service information | Obituaries | journal-republican.com - Piatt County Journal-Republican

Physiology

Christine Kasper named the new dean of the University of Pittsburgh School of Nursing – University of Pittsburgh

Christine E. Kasper, who served the past four years as dean of the University of New Mexicos College of Nursing, has been named the new dean of the University of Pittsburgh School of Nursing after a highly competitive national search.

On Jan. 1, 2023, Kasper will replace Jacqueline Dunbar-Jacob, dean and Distinguished Service Professor of Nursing, whose leadership and dedication over the last 21 years have positioned Pitt Nursing as one of the top nursing schools nationwide.

Dr. Kasper has been chosen from a pool of exceptionally qualified leaders identified through a national search, said Anantha Shekhar, senior vice chancellor for the health sciences and the John and Gertrude Petersen Dean of the School of Medicine. I believe Dr. Kasper is superbly qualified to lead Pitts School of Nursing on a continued path of success, and I look forward to working with her closely.

In her role at UNM, Kasper leads a nursing college with more than 1,100 students. In the previous three years, enrollment in UNMs College of Nursing increased by 35%.

Before joining UNM, Dean Kasper served as a senior nurse executive in the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Office of Nursing Services. In that post, she advised the chief nursing officer on academics, research and policy and was a professor in the Daniel K. Inouye Graduate School of Nursing at Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences in Bethesda, Maryland.

[Pitt School of Nursing tops 2022 U.S. News & World Report online masters ranking with a perfect score]

I am mindful of the unique and essential role that a highly ranked and world-class major research university such as the University of Pittsburgh plays in its mission as a model public university serving the state, the nation and international communities, said Kasper said. The University of Pittsburgh School of Nursing has long served as one of the preeminent elite nursing schools in the country. Over its long and distinguished history, it has been a leader and innovator in the profession's education, scholarship and research.

Kasper is the current editor of the Annual Review of Nursing Research and was the founding editor of Biological Research for Nursing. She was elected as a fellow of the American Academy of Nurses in 1994, elected as a fellow of the American College of Sports Medicine in 1995 and elected to the International Nurse Researcher Hall of Fame, Sigma Theta Tau International in 2015.

She has more than 200 national and international peer-reviewed and invited publications, books and presentations to her credit.

Kasper received her undergraduate degree in nursing from the University of Evansville, a masters in nursing from Rush University and a PhD from the University of Michigan, where she studied nursing and exercise physiology. Following a postdoctoral fellowship at Rush University in physiology and biophysics, she served as a professor at University of Wisconsin-Madison and the University of California, Los Angeles . She also held the M. Adelaide Nutting Research Chair at Johns Hopkins University.

Jared Stonesifer

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Christine Kasper named the new dean of the University of Pittsburgh School of Nursing - University of Pittsburgh

Physiology

UTHSC-Led Team Receives $3.16 Million from National Cancer Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy Drug Development – UTHSC News – UTHSC News

A UTHSC-led team has received $3.16 million from the National Cancer Institute to develop a drug that boosts the immune system response in cancer patients to destroy tumor cells. Gabor Tigyi, MD, PhD, Harriet Van Vleet Endowment Professor in the Department of Physiology, is the lead investigator. Sue Chin Lee, PhD, associate professor in the same department, is a principal investigator.

Cancer immunotherapy is one of the hottest areas of personalized medicine that unfortunately fails in many patients because of the ways cancerous cells are able to sidestep and inhibit the bodys anti-tumor response. Dr. Lee and Dr. Tigyi have identified a key inhibitor of cytotoxic T cell activation, the killer cells that eliminate cancerous cells. Working with Corinne Augelli-Szafran, PhD, vice president of Scientific Platforms at Southern Research in Birmingham Alabama, they have designed drug candidates that Raul Torres, PhD, professor of Immunology and Microbiology at the University of Colorado, has shown overcome the blockade of tumor-killing immune cells.

We are very astonished that our grant application received a perfect 1 percentile score from the National Cancer Institute review panel. That reflects the excitement of our peers recognizing the significance of our proposal, said Dr. Tigyi, who is also the associate vice chancellor for Research, Global Cooperation, and Industry Relations. The key to our success was embedded in the complementary expertise and distinguished research track record of our team members.

Dr. Lee provided crucial preliminary data for the grant application, identifying the lead candidate compound now being used to develop the new therapeutic. Her preliminary data gathering was made possible by a 2018 CORNET award, a competitive intramural grant program funded by the UTHSC Office of Research that promotes new lines of interdisciplinary team study. In this case, the $50,000 CORNET award bolstered an academic-industry partnership between UTHSC and Southern Research, and now, four years later, has yielded a multiple principal investigator award that is worth millions.

The development of a relationship between UTHSC and Southern Research, exemplified by our joint CORNET awards, has been an exceptionally important step in developing the drug discovery and development pipeline at UTHSC, said Steve Goodman, PhD, UTHSC vice chancellor for Research. I want to congratulate Dr. Lee, Dr. Tigyi, Dr. Augelli-Szafran, and Dr. Torres on their outstanding work and the resultant multi-PI NCI grant award.

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UTHSC-Led Team Receives $3.16 Million from National Cancer Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy Drug Development - UTHSC News - UTHSC News