The Doris Duke Charitable Foundation (DDCF) awarded three renewal grants, totaling $1.45 million, to continue support for projects investigating sickle cell disease. Each award, funded through the Innovations in Clinical Research Award (ICRA), is worth $486,000 over three years. Including these recent awards, the ICRA has provided funding for 20 sickle cell disease projects totaling $9.7 million since 2009.
The 2012 ICRA awardees, as announced by the DDCF, are:
Targeted Derepression of Fetal Hemoglobin in Sickle Cell Disease
James E. Bradner, MD
Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
Genomic and Functional Analyses of Erythrocyte Hydration Pathways as Modifiers in Sickle Cell Disease
Patrick G. Gallagher, MD, and Vincent P. Schulz, PhD
Yale University
Translating Genetic Discoveries to Improve Sickle Cell Disease Prognosis and Treatment
Joel N. Hirschhorn, MD, PhD, and Guillaume Lettre, PhD
Broad Institute and Université de Montréal, Montreal Heart Institute
Columbia University Receives $200 Million Gift to Endow Mind Brain Behavior Institute
Columbia University received a $200 million gift from Mortimer B. Zuckerman to endow a Mind Brain Behavior Institute. The Mortimer B. Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute will be led by founding co-directors, Thomas Jessell, PhD, and Nobel laureates Richard Axel, MD, and Eric Kandel, MD. The Institute will bring together the neuroscience research efforts of the school’s campuses.
The interdisciplinary Institute will facilitate translational programs aimed at discovering new therapies and cures for numerous disorders, including Alzheimer’s disease, neurodevelopmental disorders, mood disorders, Parkinson’s disease and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Researchers will also focus on investigating human mental functions in wellness as well as disease. Much of the leadership for the Institute will be based at the University’s Manhattanville campus in the Jerome L. Greene Science Center, which will serve as the hub for cross-campus research on brain science. Researchers from Columbia University Medical Center, the Faculty of Arts and Sciences, the Fu Foundation School of Engineering and Applied Science, and other schools will collaborate on a variety of investigations in the neural sciences and areas of academic interest pertaining to human behavior.
Thomas Hunt Morgan Medal for Lifetime Achievement in Genetics Awarded
Thomas D. Petes, PhD, was awarded the 2013 Thomas Hunt Morgan Medal for lifetime achievement in the field of genetics from the Genetics Society of America. Established in 1981, the Award recognizes lifetime contribution to the science of genetics and is named in honor of Thomas Hunt Morgan, 1993 Nobel Laureate.
Dr. Petes is the Minnie Geller Professor of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology at Duke University School of Medicine. His work has used the study of cell division in yeast as a model to understand the genetic instability present in cancers and has shed new light on how normal cells become cancerous. In particular, his work has directly impacted the understanding of non-polyposis colon cancer as well as ataxia telangiectasia.
Dr. Petes earned his PhD in Genetics at the University of Washington in Seattle. He completed postdoctoral fellowships at the National Institute for Medical Research in London and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge. He is a past president of the Genetics Society of America and has been a member of the National Academy of Sciences since 1999. He is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and a fellow in the American Academy of Microbiology. From 2004–2009, he was chair of the Department of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology at Duke.
USC Keck School of Medicine Receives Gift Aimed at Business Education in Medicine
The Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California (USC) received a $125,000 gift from Jerrilyn and Steven Nagelberg, MD, to establish the Nagelberg Business of Medicine Fund. The Fund will support the development of a core business of medicine curriculum. Dr. Nagelberg, an orthopedic surgeon, earned his Executive MBA degree from USC in 2009. The new curriculum will expose students to the business of medicine, including health policy and the health care system, and is aimed at preparing students to enter the practice of medicine armed with the business savvy to guide their success.
Marshall University Receives $2.5 Million BrickStreet Foundation Gift
Marshall University received a $2.5 million gift from the BrickStreet Insurance Foundation Inc. to establish a research endowment to support the Joan C. Edwards School of Medicine. In particular, funds will support projects aimed at addressing occupational and environmental health issues faced in the region. The funds are expected to be matched through the West Virginia Research Trust Fund, “Bucks for Brains,” bringing the total contribution to $5 million.
SUNY Upstate Receives $1 Million Gift for Endowed Professorship in Nephrology
The State University of New York (SUNY) Upstate Medical University received a $1 million gift from the Dialysis Clinic Inc. (DCI) of Nashville to establish the Edward T. Schroeder/DCI Inc. Endowed Professorship in Nephrology. The gift is the largest to date for the Upstate Department of Medicine, and the University will work to raise an additional $500,000 to cover the entire cost of the endowment. The professorship, named in honor of an Upstate emeritus faculty member, scientist, administrator and clinician, will support a full-time academic researcher whose focus is dialysis and end stage renal disease.
Edward T. Schroeder, MD, for whom the endowment is named, served at SUNY Upstate from 1965 until his retirement in 2003. He served as chief of the Division of Nephrology and interim acting chair of the Department of Medicine during his tenure and was a leader in the development of dialysis and dialysis programs in the region. Dr. Schroeder continues to volunteer with the National Kidney Foundation.
Established in 1971, DCI is a non-profit dialysis provider. It is the fourth largest dialysis provider in the United States and has contributed over $188 million to support research and education for its programs and affiliated institutions.
NASPGHAN 2012 Young Faculty Investigator Award Announced
Razan Alkhouri, MBBS, assistant professor of pediatric gastroenterology at the State University of New York University at Buffalo, was awarded the 2012 Young Faculty Investigator Award from the North American Society for Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition (NASPGHAN). The award is given to one laboratory scientist annually for submitting an exceptional scientific abstract. Dr. Alkhouri is recognized for her research on paraoxonase (PON) gene expression in pediatric patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Her abstract was entitled, “Paraoxonase Gene expression in Patients with Inflammatory Bowel Disease” and examined the effects of steroids on PON gene expression. Her work may have potential for future strategies to treat IBD.
Wisconsin Partnership Program Awards Community Grants of $2.7 Million
The Wisconsin Partnership Program has awarded $2.7 million to 22 projects aimed at making communities in the state healthier. Projects focused on health issues such as childhood nutrition, reproductive health, and workplace mental health are among those awarded. Since the program was launched in 2004, nearly $40 million has been awarded through its Oversight and Advisory Committee (OAC). The recent awards include 16 development grants of up to $50,000 and six implementation grants of up to $400,000.
The following is a listing of the 2012 grantees as announced by the Wisconsin Partnership Program OAC. (http://www.med.wisc.edu/wisconsin-partnership-program/community-academic-partnership-2012-grants-awarded/39682).
Implementation Grants (up to $400,000 over three years)
Adams County Community Wellness Program
Through a balance of community and individual chronic disease prevention and intervention strategies as well as community health worker and navigation services, this community wellness program targets chronic disease disparities in Adams County.
Community Partner: Sarah Grosshuesch, Adams County Health and Human Services Department of Public Health
Academic Partner: Alexandra Adams, MD, PhD, Family Medicine, SMPH and Nutritional Sciences, UW-Madison
Growing Farm to School: Cultivating Childhood Wellness through Gardening
The project aims to improve the health and wellness of Wisconsin children by increasing the number of sustainable gardens and the consumption of fresh fruits and vegetables at schools and childcare centers throughout the state, as well as increasing the opportunities for outdoor physical activity.
Community Partner: Jill Jacklitz, Community Groundworks
Academic Partner: Dale Schoeller, PhD, Nutritional Sciences, UW-Madison
Latino Youth Health Leadership Teams: Implementing the Healthy Activities Partnership Program for Youth (HAPPY II)
Through a comprehensive program targeting individual, social-environmental, physical-environmental and societal influences, this project seeks to improve healthy eating and physical activity habits among Latino middle school students in Milwaukee.
Community Partner: Rene Farias, United Community Center
Academic Partner: Samuel Dennis, Jr., PhD, MLA, Family Medicine, SMPH
Richland FIT: Academic Partnership to Build a Healthy Environment in Rural Richland County
This partnership creates a community-wide campaign to improve the eating habits of Richland Country residents through environmental changes to provide nutrition information and increase access to healthy nutritious food.
Community Partner: Marianne Stanek, Richland County HHS Public Health
Academic Partners: Peggy Olive, MSW, UW-Extension; Neil Bard, MD, Richland Medical Center
Small Implementation Grants (up to $150,000 over three years)
Building the Mentally Healthy Workplace
The project evaluates whether mental health interventions in the workplace can positively impact employee health and productivity, leading to reductions in absenteeism, presenteeism (being at work but not being productive) and employee health and disability costs.
Community Partner: Shel Gross, Mental Health America of Wisconsin
Academic Partner: Jeffrey Halverson, MD, Psychiatry, SMPH
Public Will Building to Reduce Obesity in the Latino Community of Milwaukee
Trained Latina community health promoters and a Latina community action board will facilitate a “public will building” process to engage the Milwaukee Latino community to take action and implement their own solutions to the obesity epidemic.
Community Partner: Ana Paula Soares Lynch, CORE/El Centro
Academic Partner: Amy Harley, Health Sciences, PhD, UW-Milwaukee
Development Grants (up to $50,000 over two years)
Adopting an Easy-to-Read Medication Label in Wisconsin
After conducting interviews of key stakeholders in the pharmacy industry, the project team will evaluate the social, attitudinal and environmental factors affecting the adoption of new standards for patient-centered medication labeling.
Community Partner: Michele Erickson, Health Literacy Wisconsin, a division of Wisconsin Literacy, Inc.
Academic Partners: David Mott, PhD, Pharmacy, UW-Madison; Henry Young, PhD, Pharmacy, UW-Madison
CESA #9 Active & Healthy Schools
To test the effectiveness of this program at the elementary school level, this project will increase students’ level of activity during the school day through active recess, energy breaks in the classroom and increased physical education minutes.
Community Partner: Lynn Verage, Cooperative Educational Service Agency #9
Academic Partner: Aaron Carrel, MD, Pediatrics, SMPH
Community Action and Community Capacity Building for Type 2 Diabetes Prevention
This pilot project explores the feasibility of using community lay health advisors to translate and adapt a diabetes prevention program and to reduce risks for Type 2 diabetes among overweight or obese African American women.
Community Partner: Patricia McManus, Black Health Coalition of Wisconsin, Inc.
Academic Partner: Alice Yan, MD, PhD, Public Health, UW-Milwaukee
Community-Based EMS Pilot Project
An emergency medical services model to improve the quality of life for aging adults in rural areas includes training EMS providers to work with elderly patients and to understand key risk factors and make referrals to health care or social service agencies.
Community Partner: Karen Smits, Northeast Wisconsin Technical College
Academic Partner: Robert Jecklin, Health Education and Health Promotion, UW-La Crosse
Development of a Curriculum to Support Healthy Bites, A Wisconsin Guide for Improving Childhood Nutrition
The Healthy Bites curriculum project addresses issues of obesity and promotes optimal nutrition, growth and development among children, birth to age 5, in early care and education centers.
Community Partner: James Leonhart, Celebrate Children Foundation
Academic Partner: Tara LaRowe, PhD, Family Medicine, UW-Madison
The Great Dane Exchange: Exploring the Reasons for the Success of the Wisconsin State Employee Health Plan Insurance Exchange for Clues to Successfully Establish Exchanges Required by the Affordable Care Act
This partnership will analyze Dane County’s health insurance model to determine how Affordable Care Act-required exchanges can enhance the state’s capacity to reduce health care costs and promote greater health care quality.
Community Partner: David Riemer, Community Advocates, Inc.
Academic Partner: John Mullahy, PhD, Population Health Sciences, UW-Madison
Junior Pink Shawls: Training Intergenerational Health & Wellness Messengers to Address American Indian Breast Cancer Disparities
Through youth health messengers and peer educators, this intergenerational training program aims to increase breast health knowledge, improve rates of breast cancer screening and positively affect cancer health outcomes in Wisconsin’s American Indian communities.
Community Partner: Lisa Tiger, Wisconsin Pink Shawl Initiative
Academic Partner: Shannon Sparks, Human Ecology, UW-Madison
Madison-Dane County Healthy Birth Outcomes
A maternal home interview tool will be developed and integrated with the Dane County Fetal and Infant Mortality Review, a national evidence-based model to improve birth outcomes and prevent infant deaths.
Community Partner: Daniel Stattelman-Scanlan, Public Health for Madison and Dane County
Academic Partner: Whitney Witt, PhD, MPH, Population Health Sciences, SMPH
The Menominee Community Journey to Wellness
Building on the work of a multi-sector coalition to address childhood obesity, this project develops a comprehensive data management and sustainable long-term evaluation plan for youth obesity prevention and health monitoring.
Community Partner: Wendell Waukau, Menominee Indian School District
Academic Partner: Alexandra Adams, MD, PhD, Family Medicine and Nutritional Sciences, SMPH; Candace Peterson, Family Medicine, SMPH
No Condom? No Way! E-Z Access to Health Project
The Milwaukee-based project aims to increase access to and knowledge about reproductive and sexual health among African American youth age 14 to 25 and to test youth-led, culturally-specific sexual health education in a community setting.
Community Partner: Sharlen Moore, Urban Underground
Academic Partner: Paul Florsheim, PhD, UW-Milwaukee
Prenatal Virtual Home Visitation Program
This feasibility study explores the benefits of virtual home-visitation services to low-income pregnant women and teens in Taylor County, using technology and the Parents-as-Teachers model, an early childhood parent education and family support program.
Community Partner: Nancy Kraft, Indianhead Community Action Agency
Academic Partner: Patricia Caro, PhD, Education, UW-Stevens Point
Safe & Healthy Food for the Hungry
This partnership will develop a self-assessment toolkit to evaluate food inventory, procurement and distribution with the goal of improving access to adequate, safe and nutritious food for low-income people who use food pantries.
Community Partner: Robert Jones, Wisconsin Community Action Program Association
Academic Partners: Amber Canto, MPH, RD, CD, UW-Extension; Barbara Ingham, PhD, Food Science, UW-Madison
Understanding the Role of Childhood Adversity in Adult Health Outcomes in Wisconsin
The project aims to reduce and prevent adverse childhood experiences through enhanced public health surveillance systems, and to conduct data analysis to better understand the impact of childhood poverty and neglect on adult health outcomes.
Community Partner: Therese Scherrer, Wisconsin Children’s Trust Fund
Academic Partner: Barbara Knox, MD, Pediatrics, SMPH; Kristen Shook Slack, PhD, Social Work, UW-Madison
Winnebago County STI Task Force: Comprehensive Sexual Health Education Pilot Program
The project develops and pilots a middle school-level sexual health curriculum based on National Sexuality Health Standards, and measures its impact on student knowledge and risky sexual behavior in comparison with current sex education curriculum.
Community Partner: Doug Gieryn, Winnebago County Health Department
Academic Partner: Juyeon Son, PhD, Sociology, UW-Madison
The Wisconsin Health Equity Alliance (WHEA): Driving Policy Change to Improve Health in Wisconsin
The initiative creates the foundation for a Wisconsin Health Equity Alliance, an innovative partnership of community organizers and public health professionals and academics dedicated to improving public health outcomes across the state.
Community Partner: David Liners, WISDOM
Academic Partner: Brian Christens, PhD, Human Ecology, UW-Madison
YMCA/UW Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology Partnership Promoting Healthy Weight in Pregnancy
This partnership will assess current needs of underserved women in South Madison, evaluate community readiness and then design pilot programs aimed at promoting healthy weight for low-income women before, during and after pregnancy.
Community Partner: Sharon Covey, YMCA of Dane County, Inc.
Academic Partner: Cynthie Anderson, MD, MPH, Obstetrics and Gynecology, SMPH