The Communicator. Harvard Medical School. Scholars in Clinical Science Program. Newsletter of the. Spring

Transcription

1 Spring The Communicator Har vard Medical School Newsletter of the Harvard Medical School Inside this issue Graduation News Page 2 Where Are They Now? Page 2 Sixth and Final Round of CTSAs Page 3 Website Update Page 3 Alumni Spotlight Page 7 Above: Graduate Dr. Liana Billings (right) accepts her diploma from Program Director Dr. Paul Conlin Left: Dr. Anand Vaidya delivers his valedictory speech

2 This page, left: Graduate Dr. Al Hassanein with his wife, Kourtney This page, right: Graduate Dr. Geoffrey Walford and son Theo Next page, left: Graduate Dr. Rachael Grace (right) with her husband, Daniel Next page, right: Graduate Dr. Liana Billings (left) with her mother and husband 2 Graduation 2011 The following Scholars received the Master of Medical Sciences (MMSc) degree from Harvard Medical School (HMS) in 2011: Liana Billings Robert Colin Carter Cesar Castro Vahid Entezari Jonathan Gaffin Rachael Grace Aladdin Hassanein Allen Scott Nielsen Andrew Lim Natalie Shaw Anand Vaidya Geoffrey Walford As in past years, the 2011 Graduation Ceremony and Dinner was held at The Joseph B. Martin Conference Center at Harvard Medical School, 77 Avenue Louis Pasteur. The keynote speaker was Dr. Myles Wolf, Associate Professor of Medicine at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine. He is Director of Clinical Research in the Division of Nephrology and Hypertension, Director of the University of Miami Clinical Research Center, and Assistant Dean for Translational and Clinical Research at the Miller School of Medicine. Myles was a member of the first cohort of SCSP Scholars and graduated from the program in Valedictory speaker for the Class of 2011 was Dr. Anand Vaidya, an endocrinologist at Brigham and Women s Hospital whose thesis was entitled, Vitamin D and Hormonal Mechanisms of Cardiovascular Disease in Obesity. After the distribution of diplomas, mentors and program advisors in attendance were given copies of the book, Splendid Solution Jonas Salk and the Conquest of Polio by Jeffrey Kluger. Where Are They Now? Through March of 2012 the Scholars Program has graduated one hundred nineteen (119) students from the program. While most graduates find success in academic medicine, others pursue research opportunities in industry and government. Other graduates continue in fellowships or surgical residency programs (see below). Later this year we will complete a comprehensive survey analysis of our graduates as compared to a control group, the results of which we hope to publish in the next newsletter. Status of Graduates (n=119), Academic Faculty 68% Other 6% Industry/FDA 11% Of faculty, 57% have K23 or equivalent funding Fellows/Residents 15% Class of 2013 In the summer of 2011 we welcomed fifteen (15) new students to the program. Their names, affiliated institutions, and mentors are listed below: Natalie Davis (CHMC, Drs. Lawrence Rhein and John Zupancic)

3 Mateus Saito Ole-Petter Hamnvik (BWH, Dr. Christos Mantzoros) Oluwaseun Johnson-Akeju (MGH, Dr. Emery Brown) Sahir Kalim (MGH, Dr. Ravi Thadhani) Shervin Kamalian (MGH, Dr. Michael Lev) Inês Vaz Luís (DFCI, Dr. Eric Winer) Reid Maclellan (CHMC, Dr. Arin Greene) Ciarán McMullan (BWH, Dr. John Forman) Joseph Merola (BWH, Dr. Karen Costenbader) Sagori Mukhopadhyay (CHMC, Dr. Karen Puopolo) Sagar Nigwekar (MGH, Dr. Ananth Karumanchi) Le Qiu (BIDMC, Dr. Lev Perelman) Sadeq Quraishi (MGH, Dr. Carlos Camargo) Qaiser Shafiq (BWH, Dr. Jonathan Williams) Kendra Taylor (MGH, Dr. Shiv Pillai) Two of our new Scholars are mentored by graduates Dr. Arin Greene and Dr. Jonathan Williams. Dr. Inês Luís joined the program as the second recipient of the Senior Clinical Research and Career Development Award from the HMS-Portugal Program. Sixth and Final Round of Clinical and Translational Science Awards (CTSAs) In June 2011 the NIH awarded $200 million over five years to five institutions through the National Center for Research Resources (NCRR) as part of the CTSA program. This final group of awardees expands the total number of these awards to 60 and extends the geographic coverage of the CTSA initiative to 30 states plus the District of Columbia. The five final awardees are listed below in alphabetical order: Pennsylvania State University, Milton S. Hershey Medical Center, Hershey University of California, Los Angeles University of Kansas Medical Center, Kansas City University of Kentucky, Lexington University of Minnesota, Twin Cities In January 2012 the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS) was established. The NCATS mission is to catalyze the generation of innovative methods and technologies that will enhance the development, testing, and implementation of diagnostics and therapeutics across a wide range of human diseases and conditions. The creation of NCATS was made possible by Congress approval of a fiscal year 2012 spending bill and the President s signing of the bill (Public Law ). Working closely with partners in the regulatory, academic, nonprofit, and private sectors, NCATS will strive to identify and overcome hurdles that slow the development of effective treatments and cures. During this same time the NIH dissolved NCRR, transferring all of its programs, awards, and applications to other NIH Institutes and Centers; the CTSAs are now housed in NCATS. More information about NCATS can be found at Committee on Mentoring News Caren Solomon, MD MPH, Chair of the Committee on Mentoring (COM), has invited two new members to serve as Program Advisors to our Scholars. Mira Irons, MD, is Associate Professor of Pediatrics and a clinical geneticist at Children s Hospital. Frances Jensen, MD, is Professor of Neurology and a neuroscientist at Children s Hospital. Committee on Admissions News Gordon Williams, MD, Chair of the Committee on Admissions (COA), has invited three new members to the COA. Janet Hall, MD, is Professor of Medicine and a reproductive endocrinologist at MGH. Eric Rosenberg, MD, is Associate Professor of Medicine in the Infectious Disease Unit at MGH. Jenifer Lightdale, MD, is Assistant Professor of Pediatrics and a pediatric gastroenterologist at Children s Hospital. Website Update Our old website on the HMS server has been fully retired, and anyone using the old URL is redirected to our location on the Harvard Catalyst website The program application is accessible at this site, as are current and past newsletters. The Catalyst website is continually updated, and our program can be found in the Education & Training section of the site, along with other programs sponsored by the Postgraduate Education in Clinical/ Translational Science Program. Current Scholars and graduates of the program who are still at Harvard are eligible to apply to the KL2 MeRIT Program, which is directed by Dr. Tony Hollenberg. Information about the KL2 Program is also accessible at the Harvard Catalyst website at 3

4 Images of 2011 Graduation Dinner and Ceremony 4 This page, clockwise from top: Graduate Dr. Cesar Castro; Graduate Dr. Vahid Entezari (second from right) and family; Graduate Dr. Jonathan Gaffin (second from right) and family; Graduate Dr. Scott Nielsen accepts his diploma from Program Director Dr. Paul Conlin Next page clockwise from top left: Graduate Dr. Andrew Lim (middle) and family; Graduate and valedictorian Dr. Anand Vaidya with his mother; Keynote speaker Dr. Myles Wolf (right) with Program Director Dr. Paul Conlin; Invitation to 2011 Graduation Ceremony & Dinner; Dr. Myles Wolf delivers his keynote speech

5 Keynote Address June

6 This page, top to bottom: In cap and gown at the Harvard Yard ceremony (from left) Dr. Andrew Lim, Dr. Scott Nielsen, Dr. Cesar Castro, and Dr. Vahid Entezari; Group photograph of the 2011 Graduates of the Scholars in Clinical Science Program 6 Our Graduates June 2011

7 This page, right: At the 2011 Harvard Business School (HBS) Project Fair (from right) Scholars Dr. Subbu Trikudanathan, Dr. Nancy Wei, and Dr. Westyn Branch-Elliman Next page, left: Scholars at the 2011 HBS Project Fair (from right) Dr. Finnian McCausland, Dr. Alicia Demirjian, Dr. Ara Nazarian, and Dr. Sasha Opotowsky Next page, right: Staff Assistant Jake Jones 7 Alumni Spotlight Our program graduates achieve many accomplishments in their pursuit of careers in research. We are delighted to report on the success of some of our alumni/ae in their various endeavors: Dr. Nazem Atassi, Class of 2010, received a fellowship grant from the American Academy of Neurology and has been promoted to Assistant Professor of Neurology at MGH. Dr. Rhonda Bentley-Lewis, Class of 2007 valedictorian and Assistant Professor of Medicine at MGH, was elected as the Faculty Vice-Chairperson of the Joint Committee on the Status of Women at Harvard Medical School. She will move to the Faculty Chair position in Dr. Aoife Brennan, Class of 2008, formerly of Tolerx, is now Director of Medical Research at Biogen Idec. She is the R&D lead for the drug Avonex and is directing the process for approval of the drug in China. Dr. Robert Colin Carter, Class of 2011, Instructor in Pediatrics at CHMC, received a K23 award in 2011 for his research, The Role of Maternal Nutrition in the Teratogenesis of Alcohol in Humans. Dr. Jeffrey Ellenbogen, Class of 2007, Assistant Professor of Neurology at MGH, recently received the Wayne A. Hening Sleep Science Award from the American Academy of Neurology. Jeff also served on a panel of independent experts, convened by the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection and the Massachusetts Department of Public Health, to identify any documented or potential health impacts of risks associated with exposure to wind turbines. Dr. Arin Greene, Class of 2003, Assistant Professor of Surgery at CHMC, received the 2012 Young Mentor Award from HMS. Dr. Mary Lucia Gregory, Class of 2008, Instructor in Pediatrics, is now Director of Clinical Research in Neonatology at BIDMC. Dr. Shawn Gregory, Class of 2006, was promoted to Assistant Professor of Medicine and Associate Physician at MGH. He was also appointed as Quality and Safety Coordinator for the Cardiology Division. Dr. Orlando Gutiérrez, Class of 2008 valedictorian, is now Assistant Professor of Medicine at The University of Alabama at Birmingham. Dr. Beth Ami Leeman, Class of 2009, formerly in the Department of Neurology at MGH, is now Assistant Professor of Neurology at Emory University School of Medicine. Dr. Annette Mizuguchi, Class of 2010, was promoted to Assistant Professor of Anaesthesia at BWH in October Dr. Aditi R. Saxena, Class of 2009, Instructor in Medicine at Brigham & Women s Hospital, was accepted into the Harvard Building Interdisciplinary Research Careers in Women s Health (BIRCWH) Program, an NIH K12 supporting mentored research. Currently she is studying the mechanisms underlying salt sensitivity and sensitivity to angiotensin II in women with a history of preeclampsia predisposing them to future cardiovascular risk. Dr. Jonathan Williams, Class of 2004, Codirector of Introduction to Human Investigation and Longitudinal Clinical Research Seminar and Assistant Professor of Medicine at BWH, recently joined the Board of Directors of the Association for Patient-Oriented Research (APOR). He is also Associate Editor for the journal Metabolism. Course and Curriculum News Since the former director of the Fundamental Methods of Clinical Trials course, Dr. Donald Cutlip, stepped down from that role, we have been cross-registering our Scholars into the Principles of Clinical Trials course at Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH), which is directed by Dr. James Ware, Frederick Mosteller Professor of Biostatistics and Associate Dean for Clinical and Translational Science. The required Translational Pharmacology course, which is co-directed by Drs. David Golan and Donald Coen, is now offered every year; it had been delivered only in alternating years in the past. Students from both the Leder Human Biology & Translational Medicine (LHB) Program and continues page 8

8 continued from page 7 the Clinical Investigator Training Program (CITP) also participate in the course. The 2011 Harvard Business School (HBS) Project Fair, New Business from New Science Projects from Commercializing Science, was held on Wednesday, 7 December 2011, on the first floor of Batten Hall, which houses the new Harvard Innovation Lab (i-lab). The Scholars participate in the Biomedical and Life Science Focus track of the course, which is directed by Professor Vicki Sato. The titles of the team projects and the Scholars who participated on the teams are listed below: Novel Therapeutic Approach to Increase Neural Regeneration / Hong Mei Nanobeam Biosensor / Hui Xue Be Free! Developing a Vaginal Drug Delivery System / Westyn Branch-Elliman, Nancy Wei, Subbu Trikudanathan Permeon: Expanding the Druggable Genome / Fabio Nunes MBL Dipstick for Pathogen Detection in the Developing World / Alicia Demirjian, Finnian McCausland, Sasha Opotowsky, Ara Nazarian Ovascience / Helena Canhão, Alex Krug, Joao Paulo Portable Ultrasound Needle Guidance System / Barbara Goldstein, Kate Madden, Ajay Rao At the 2010 Project Fair, Scott Nielsen and Liana Billings, Class of 2011 graduates, participated on a project team, developed with Dr. Steven Schachter, entitled Hup A A Fast Track Drug Candidate Addressing Markets in Pain & Epilepsy. The project resulted in a spin-off company called Zinaura, which won the Life Science track award in the MIT $100K Business Plan competition. Clinical and Translational Research Organizations Merging In 2011 the Association for Clinical Research Training (ACRT) entered into talks with two other national organizations APOR and the Society for Clinical and Translational Science (SCTS) to discuss a potential merger. In early 2012 leadership from these organizations met in New Orleans to create a mission statement, design a governance structure, and draft bylaws for a new organization, the Association for Clinical and Translational Science (ACTS). With assistance from legal counsel, ACTS will be established as a new 501(c)(3) organization, and it is anticipated that by early 2013 ACTS will be fully inaugurated as a professional society for research, education, advocacy, and mentoring in the clinical and translational sciences. Scholars have been registered as trainee members of ACRT and will continue to be designated as trainee members in ACTS. For updates on the merger as information becomes available, please refer to the ACRT website at Program Office News Paul R. Conlin, MD, SCSP Program Director, Professor of Medicine at HMS, and Chair of the Department of Medicine at the Veterans Administration (VA) Boston Healthcare System, will be representing the program in an external review in April. The entire program and curriculum will be examined by an External Review Committee the first such full review since An internal assessment with key faculty took place this past February, allowing us to reflect on the strengths of the program and the challenges that lie ahead. Through the external review process we hope to obtain encouraging advice on the future direction of the program. Lauren Dewey Platt, PhD, Program Manager of the SCSP and the Harvard Catalyst KL2 MeRIT Program, is completing her third and final year on the board of the ACRT. In this capacity she has acted as Chair of the Communications Committee and Editor-in- Chief of its Clinical Research Perspective newsletter. In 2012 she was elected as an At- Large Steering Committee Member of the Joint Committee on the Status of Women (JCSW) at Harvard Medical School. Jacob Jones joined us in 2011 as the new Staff Assistant. Jake coordinates the SCSP admissions process and works closely with our Scholars while they navigate through the two-year master s program. He is also responsible for coordinating the KL2 admissions process, which the Program Office took on last year. In just a few short months Jake has endeared himself to our SCSP and KL2 Scholars. We are delighted to welcome him to the Program Office. Save the Date! The 2012 Graduation Ceremony and Reception will be held on Wednesday, 23 May 2012, 4 8pm, at The Four Seasons Hotel in Boston s Back Bay. This year all three Master of Medical Sciences programs at HMS will join together, distributing diplomas to their graduates in one ceremony. Dr. David Golan, Dean of Graduate Education, will preside, and the keynote speaker will be Dr. Garret FitzGerald, McNeil Professor in Translational Medicine and Therapeutics and Associate Dean for Translational Research at University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine. 8

9 This page, top to bottom: Dr. Gordon Williams, Dr. Paul Conlin, and Dr. Lauren Dewey Platt (left to right) confer before the graduation ceremony begins; Dr. Jose Florez, mentor to graduates Liana Billings and Geoffrey Walford; Dr. Wanda Phipatanakul, mentor to graduate Jonathan Gaffin; Dr. Rachael Grace reviews the program The Communicator 9 n e w s l e t t e r o f t h e Harvard Medical School Spring 2012 w r i t i n g Lauren Dewey Platt p h o t o g r a p h y Commencement photographs are by George Delianides. All other photographs by Lauren Dewey Platt unless separately credited. d e s i g n a n d t y p o g r a p h y Jim Hood, Hood Design Harvard Medical School 260 Longwood Avenue Suite 157 Boston, Massachusetts 02115