UMDNJ matters

NJDS
NEW JERSEY DENTAL SCHOOL
Publications:
“Morbidity Associated with Closed Reduction of Mandible Fractures,” by Vincent Ziccardi, DDS, MD, associate professor and chair, and Talib Najjar, DMD, PhD, professor, Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, was in the Journal of Dental Research, Vol. 2 (Special Issue A), 2003.

“Psychosocial Factors in Patients With and Without Periodontal Disease,” by Hillary Broder, PhD, professor and acting chair, Community Health, and Malvin Janal, PhD, senior research associate, Office of Research, was in the Journal of Dental Research, Vol. 2 (Special Issue A), 2003. Dr. Broder also is the primary author of “Item-Impact Evaluation in the Development of the Child Oral Health Impact Profile,” published in the same issue.

“Small Group Discussions and Original Articles to Connect and Capture the Interplay Between Principles of Oral Biology and Clinical Dentistry,” co-authored by Julie Chapman-Greene, MPH, research coordinator, Helen Schreiner, PhD, assistant professor, David Furgand, MS, research teaching specialist, Jeffrey Kaplan, PhD, assistant professor, Dental Research Center, and Daniel Fine, DMD, professor and acting chair, Oral Biology, was in the Journal of Dental Research, Vol. 2 (Special Issue A), 2003.

Grants:
Grant Gallagher, PhD, professor, Oral Biology, received a one-year, $123,088 grant from the U.S. Army for “Use of DNA Microarrays to Identify Diagnostic Signature Transcriptional.”

Honors:
Claudine Drew, EdD, RDH, associate professor, Community Health, was named president-elect of the Supreme Chapter of Sigma Phi Alpha, the National Dental Hygiene Honor Society, for one year.

Ival McDermott, DDS, professor, Restorative Dentistry, was elected chair of the Clinic Administration Section of the American Dental Education Association.

Professional Activities:
Hillary Broder, EdD, PhD, professor and acting chair, Community Health, presented “Oral Health-Related Quality of Life: Inclusion of Positive Constructs” at the annual meeting of the American Association of Dental Research in San Antonio.

Gill Diamond, PhD, associate professor, Oral Biology, presented “Factors Affecting B-defensin Gene Expression in Mucosal Epithelia” to the Oral Microbiology and Immunology Research Group in Longboat Key, Florida. He also presented “Beta-defensin and the Innate Immune Response of Mucosal Epithelia” at Louisiana State University Dental School in New Orleans.

NJMS
NEW JERSEY MEDICAL SCHOOL
Publications:
“A New Assistive Device for Intermittent Self-Catheterization in Men with Tetraplegia,” by Uri Adler, MD, resident, and Steven Kirshblum, MD, associate professor, Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, was in the Journal of Spinal Cord Medicine, Vol. 26, 2003.

“Complications From Therapeutic Modalities: Results of a National Survey of Athletic Trainers,” by Scott Nadler, DO, associate professor, and Gerard Malanga, MD, associate professor, Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, was in the Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Vol. 84, June 2003.

“Differentiating Simple Versus Complex Processing Speed: Influence on New Learning and Memory Performance,” by Nancy Chiaravalloti, PhD, assistant professor, and John DeLuca, PhD, professor, Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, was in the Journal of Clinical and Experimental Neuropsychology, Vol. 23, No. 4, 2003.

“Principles and Practice of Neck Pain Rehabilitation,” by Gerard Malanga, MD, associate professor, Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, was in SpineLine, May/June 2003.

“The 34th Walter J. Zeiter Lecture: Creating the Future of PM&R: Building on Our Past,” by Bruce Gans, MD, professor, Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, was in the Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Vol. 84, July 2003.

“Natriuretic Peptides: Biochemistry, Physiology, and Therapeutic Role in Heart Failure,” co-authored by George Stoupakis, MD, fellow, Cardiology, was in Heart Disease, Vol. 5, No 3, May/June 2003.

“The Activated Clotting Time Can Be Used To Monitor the Low Molecular Weight Heparin Dalteparin After Intravenous Administration,” co-authored by Merwin Richard, MD, assistant professor, Cardiology, and director, Cardiac Catheterization Lab, was in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, Vol. 41, No. 3. February 2003.

Research Grant NJMS Researcher Granted Funding for Addiction Study Richard D. Howells, PhD, associate professor in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, and the Department of Neurosciences, at NJMS, has been awarded a five-year, $971,875 grant from the National Institute on Drug Abuse to study “Purification and Mass Spectrometry of Opioid Receptors.” Howells studies the neurobiology of addiction and how opioid drugs alter brain function. Opioid drugs initiate their effects by engaging opioid receptors on the surface of brain cells. His research focuses on the purification of opioid receptors and analysis of post-translational modification with mass spectrometry, a technique used to identify unknown compounds, to quantify known compounds, and to elucidate the structure and chemical properties of molecules. “Drug addiction is a major problem in the United States,” said Howells. “Opioid addiction is associated with a variety of detrimental behaviors. While much has been learned about opioid pharmacology and signal transduction over the last three decades, the molecular mechanisms that are responsible for opioid tolerance and dependence due to chronic opioid drug use are complex and need to be studied further.”

Professional Activities:
Michael Mathews, PhD, professor and chair, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, presented “Control of Gene Expression by Structured RNAs” at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia.

Nicholas Ponzio, PhD, professor, Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, presented “Therapeutic Use of Human Umbilical Cord Blood Cells” at Drexel University Medical School in Philadelphia. He also presented “Adoptively Transferred Tim-3+ T-bet+ Tumor Specific TH1 Cell Clones Co-localize With and Inhibit Development and Growth of B Cell Lymphomas” at the annual meeting of the American Association of Immunologists in Denver.

Research Grant $4 Million Grant for Biodefense A $4,059,000, four and one-half year grant from the National Institutes of Health/NIAID (National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases) to study “Multiplex Detection of Select Agents in Single-Well Assays” was awarded to principal investigators David Alland, MD, MSc, associate professor of medicine, and chief of the Division of Infectious Diseases at NJMS, Nancy Connell, PhD, NJMS associate professor and vice chair for research in the Department of Medicine, and director of the UMDNJ Center for BioDefense, and Fred Kramer, PhD, chair of the Department of Molecular Genetics at the Public Health Research Institute (PHRI). They will develop novel real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) techniques to create a “molecular blood culture with the aim of being able to detect both the agents of bioterrorism and common medical pathogens in a rapid and sensitive assay.”

Honors:
Walter Durán, PhD, professor, Pharmacology and Physiology, received a 2003 lecture/research Fulbright scholarship. It sponsors a course on vascular biology that he will give at the Pontifical Catholic University in Santiago, Chile.

Norman Ende, MD, professor, Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, was selected as a member by the Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) chapter of the National Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi because of his outstanding record as a student at VCU, and success as a clinician, educator and researcher.

Dorothy Moore, MD, associate professor, Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, was selected as the chief medical officer for the Sickle Cell Disease Association of America.

SN
SCHOOL OF NURSING
Honors:
Nina Colabelli, MSN, CPNP, pediatric nurse practitioner, Francois-Xavier Bagnoud Center at UMDNJ and manager for the Child Health Program, a collaborative program with DYFS, was the first nursing recipient of the 2003 Special Recognition Award from the New Jersey Pediatric Society/Quality Physicians Network of America and The Children’s Emergency Fund of New Jersey.

UBHC
UNIVERSITY BEHAVIORAL HEALTHCARE
Grants:
The Violence Institute of NJ received a one year, $480,000 renewable grant to assist the New Jersey Department of Education in administering, implementing and evaluating a research-based approach to school safety for the Positive Student Discipline Reform Project. The goal of the project is to create safety and order in three New Jersey school districts. Bruce Stout, PhD, executive director, is the principal investigator.

Professional Activities:
Douglas J. Boyle, JD, PhD, research administrator at the Violence Institute of New Jersey, presented “Socio-Structural Predictors of Women’s Partner-Violence Victimization: Racial and Ethnic Differences” at the 8th International Family Violence Research Conference at the University of New Hampshire.

SPH
SCHOOL OF PUBLIC HEALTH
Publications:
“Controlling Type I Error Rate for Fast Track Drug Development Programmes,” by Weichung Shih, PhD, professor and director, and Yong Lin, PhD, assistant professor, Biometrics, et al., was in Statistics in Medicine, Vol. 22, 2003.

“Estimates, Power and Sample Size Calculations for Two-Sample Ordinal Outcomes Under Before–After Study Designs,” by Pamela Ohman-Strickland, PhD, and Shou-En Lu, PhD, both assistant professors, Biometrics, was in Statistics in Medicine, Vol. 22, 2003.

“Nasal Effects of VOCs and Ozone,” by Junfeng Zhang, PhD, MS, associate professor, Environmental and Occupational Health, et al., was in the American Journal of Critical Care Medicine, Vol. 167, Issue 7, April 2003.

“Impact of Home Carpets on Childhood Lead Intervention Study,” by Lih-Ming Yiin, PhD, assistant professor, Environmental and Occupational Health, and George Rhoads, MD, MPH, professor and director, Epidemiology, et al., was in Environmental Research, Vol. 92, Issue 2, 2003.

“Relationship Between Cigarette Smoking and Weight Control in Young Women,” by Cristine Delnevo, PhD, MPH, Diane Abatemarco, PhD, MSW, and Jane Lewis, DrPH, all assistant professors, and Mary Hrywna, MPH, instructor, Health Education and Behavioral Science, was in Family & Community Health, Vol. 26, 2003.

“Willingness to Participate in Clinical Treatment Research Among Older African Americans and Whites,” by Diane Brown, PhD, professor, Health Education and Behavioral Science, and director, Institute for the Elimination of Health Disparities, et al., was in The Gerontologist, Vol. 43, 2003.

BOOK REVIEW ANAC’s Core Curriculum for HIV/AIDS Nursing, Second Edition edited by Carl Kirton, MA, RN, APRN, BC Sage Publications Faculty from the François-Xavier Bagnoud Center and UMDNJ–School of Nursing contributed to ANAC’s Core Curriculum for HIV/AIDS Nursing, an official publication of the Association of Nurses in AIDS Care (ANAC). The 488-page paperback, underwritten by Ortho Biotech, includes contributions on HIV pathophysiology, nursing care, management and research. The book also serves as a foundation for the ANAC certification process for HIV/AIDS specialty nursing. It is essential for those new to HIV/AIDS care and a notable refresher for those with years of experience. The UMDNJ contributors are Elaine Gross, RN, MS, CNS-C, Catherine R. Bataille, MSW, LCSW, Lynn Czarniecki, RNC, MSN, CNS-C, Dawn D’Orlando, MSN, MPH, Heidi J. Haiken, MSW, MPH, Carolyn Keith Burr, EdD, RN, Lisa Perry, MSW, LCSW, and the New Jersey Medical School National Tuberculosis Center at UMDNJ.

Grants:
Patrick Clifford, PhD, professor, Health Education and Behavioral Science, received a one-year, $333,016 grant from the NIH/National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism for “Research Protocols and Alcohol Treatment Outcomes.”

Mitchel Rosen, MS, director, Office of Public Health Practice, received a one-year, $375,000 grant from the New Jersey Department of Health and Senior Services for “Bioterrorism Training for Public Health Officials.”

Research Grant SPH Researchers Garner $1.6 Million for Tobacco Programs Jonathan Foulds, PhD, associate professor and director of the Tobacco Dependence Program, and Cristine Delnevo, PhD, MPH, assistant professor, both from the Health Education and Behavioral Science Division at SPH, have been awarded grants and contracts totaling more than $1.6 million from the New Jersey Department of Health and Senior Services, as part of New Jersey’s Comprehensive Tobacco Control Program. These funds will enable continuation of the School of Public Health’s statewide tobacco control work, albeit at a reduced level following a 67 percent cut to the state’s budget for comprehensive tobacco control. The funds earmarked for the Tobacco Dependence Program will be used to provide smoking cessation training and treatment services statewide, with a particular emphasis on providing support for decreasing the acceptance of tobacco use among all people, decreasing the number of young people who start smoking, and making nicotine addiction treatment more widely available. Funding for the Tobacco Surveillance, Evaluation and Research Program, directed by Delnevo, will also evaluate New Jersey’s Comprehensive Tobacco Control Program, and monitor statewide tobacco use trends over time. Project investigators will conduct research on tobacco use behavior and provide feedback related to program implementation and effectiveness.

Professional Activities:
Shou-En Lu, PhD, assistant professor, Biometrics, presented “Case-Cohort Designs and Analysis for Clustered Failure Time Data” at the Yale University School of Medicine.

Omowunmi Osinubi, MD, MSc, assistant professor, Environmental and Occupational Health, presented testimony before the State of New Jersey Senate Health Committee in support of the “Clean Indoor Air Act” Bill #2375 in Trenton.

Glenn Paulson, PhD, professor, Environmental and Occupational Health, presented “Local Needs and Preparedness for WMD Incidents: A Case Study from Kentucky” at the Special Session on Counter-Terrorism of the 20th Technical Seminar on Chemical Spills in Victoria, British Columbia.

Weichung Joe Shih, PhD, professor and director, Biometrics, presented “ICH E5 Bridging Studies” and chaired the session entitled Recent Issues of Clinical Trials: II at the 39th Annual Drug Information Association Meeting in San Antonio, Texas.

Honors:
Weili He, PhD, SPH, alumna in Biometrics, received the American Statistical Association 2003 Biopharmaceutical Section Student Paper Competition Award for “An Enhanced Estimate of Treatment Effect Based on Joint Models,” co-authored with thesis advisor, Weichung Joe Shih, PhD, professor, Biometrics.

SOM
SCHOOL OF OSTEOPATHIC MEDICINE
Publications:
“Acute Pancreatitis in Children from Valproic Acid: Case Series and Literature Review,” co-authored by Lori Feldman-Winter, MD, associate professor, and Gary McAbee, DO, chair, Pediatrics, was in Pediatric Neurology, Vol. 28, 2003. Also, “Informed Consent and Confidentiality for Adolescents, New Jersey,” was in the Journal of Medicine and Health Policy, Vol. 100, No. 6, June 2003.

Professional Activities:
Carman Ciervo, DO, associate professor, Family Medicine, presented “Community Acquired Bacterial Resistance”at the Ohio Osteopathic Association annual meeting. He also presented “Treatment of Outpatient Acquired Resistance Infection” at the Maryland Osteopathic Association annual meeting.

Alumni News SOM Alumnus Creates “Pay It Forward” Scholarship Eric S. Seiger, DO, a 1986 SOM graduate, is fulfilling his dream of giving back to the school that gave him so much. Through a $25,000 gift, he created the “Pay It Forward” Endowed Scholarship that will be distributed in perpetuity to second-year SOM students in need. This is the first alumni-sponsored endowed scholarship for students at the school. A graduate in dermatology, Seiger now has a private practice in Michigan. He decided to name his fund “Pay It Forward” after a popular movie of the same name. In the film, a young boy believes that if one person benefits from someone’s act of good will, he or she must “pay it forward” to three more people, who in turn must do a good deed for three additional people so that they too may succeed. “I’m constantly in touch with the gratitude I feel for SOM and the opportunities it has afforded me,” says Seiger. “It is my pleasure and honor to give back to my school, for what I got was truly priceless. I’m confident that whoever receives this award will somehow ‘pay it forward’ in their own way.”

Grants:
Carman Ciervo, DO, associate professor, Claudia Switala, MEd, program development specialist I, and Cynthia Marconi-Hickman, EdD, program development specialist II, received two three-year grants from Health Resources and Services Administration: $512,998 for “Academic Administrative Units in Primary Care,” and $431,332 for “Primary Care Core Competency Training Program.”

Honors:
Robert Binder, DO, clinical assistant professor, Family Medicine, was named Physician of the Year by the New Jersey Association of Osteopathic Physicians and Surgeons.

Gary McAbee, DO, chair, Pediatrics, was one of 30 neurologists representing the American Academy of Neurology in a meeting with New Jersey congressional leaders on Capitol Hill.

RWJMS
ROBERT WOOD JOHNSON MEDICAL SCHOOL
Professional Activities:
Dennis Carmody, PhD, professor, Institute for the Study of Child Development, and Michael Lewis, PhD, University Distinguished Professor of Pediatrics and Psychiatry, et al., co-presented “Functional MRI Activity During Auditory Recognition of Own and Other Names” at the 9th International Conference on Functional Mapping of the Human Brain in New York.

Henry Hsai, MD, assistant professor, Surgery, Division of Plastic Surgery, presented “Cell Behavior Within a Synthetic Provisional Matrix After Adenoviral-Mediated Expression of Recombinant Tanascin-C” at the 48th Annual Meeting of the Plastic Surgery Research Council.

Michael Lewis, PhD, University Distinguished Professor of Pediatrics and Psychiatry, presented “The Role of Consciousness in Human Development” at a symposium on Life Events and Emotional Regulation at the 8th International Congress on Constructivism and Psychotherapy: Constructivism, Phenomenology and Brain Imaging, Monopoli-Bari, Italy. He also presented “Behavioral and Cortisol Responses to Stress in Infants: Individual Differences and Consequences” at the University Degli Studi di Roma, Bologna, Italy.

Jim Warfield, JD, PhD, assistant professor, Pediatrics, presented “Attachment Bonds and Behavior in Free-Ranging Male Infant Rhesus Monkeys” at the New York Consortium for Evolutionary Primatology in New York.

Research Award Lowry Recipient of Flance–Karl Award Stephen Lowry, MD, professor and chair in the Department of Surgery at RWJMS, is the 2003 recipient of the Flance–Karl Award, presented by the Council of the American Surgical Association at its annual meeting in Washington, D.C., on April 25. The award, considered the most prestigious one for surgical research in the nation, is given annually to a surgeon who has made significant contributions to the advancement of clinical surgery. The Council recognized Lowry, the youngest surgeon to receive this honor, for his “immeasurable” contribution to basic, translational and clinical research into the mechanisms of severe inflammation and infectious responses in injured and critically ill patients.

Grants:
Michael Lewis, PhD, University Distinguished Professor of Pediatrics and Psychiatry, received two one-year grants from the National Institute of Mental Health: $289,701 for “Maltreated Children’s Emotions and Self-Cognitions,” and $370,253 for “Emotions and Behavioral Outcomes in Neglected Children.”

Research Awards Scientists Receive MERIT Awards Two RWJMS faculty members received the Method to Extend Research in Time (MERIT) Award, established by the NIH to provide long-term support to investigators of proven research competence and productivity. Ann Stock, PhD, professor of biochemistry, and resident member of the Center for Advanced Biotechnology and Medicine (CABM), a joint program of RWJMS and Rutgers University, and an investigator at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, received a five-year, $1,642,788 grant from the National Institute of General Medical Sciences. She is studying response regulators, proteins that function as molecular switches to control different regulatory responses in bacteria, including many involved in pathogenesis. Peter D. Yurchenco, MD, PhD, professor of pathology and laboratory medicine, received a five-year, $1,498,243 grant from the National Diabetes and Digestive Kidney Diseases Advisory Council. He is studying basement membranes, which form thin coats on cells, providing adhesive substrates that aid the embryonic development and maintenance of tissues. The elucidation of basement membrane structure-function relationships is expected to aid in the development of new treatments.

Appointments:
Gregory Borah, MD, professor and chief, Division of Plastic Surgery, was appointed to serve on the Advisory Committee for the American Society of Plastic Surgery. Dr. Borah was also appointed historian of the New Jersey Society of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeons at their annual meeting.

Publications:
“Clinical Research Helps Elucidate the Role of Tumor Necrosis Factor-a in the Pathogenesis of T1-Mediated Immune Disorders: Use of Targeted Immuno-therapeutics as Pathogenic Probes,” by Alice Gottlieb, MD, MPH, professor, Medicine, was in Lupus, Vol. 12, 2003.

“Diagnostic and Therapeutic Injection of the Shoulder Region,” by Alfred Tallia, MD, associate professor, and Dennis Cardone, DO, associate professor, Family Medicine, was in the American Family Physician, Vol. 67, 2003.

“Placenta Previa in Singleton and Twin Births in the United States, 1989 Through 1998: A Comparison of Risk Factor Profiles and Associated Conditions,” by Cande Ananth, PhD, MPH, associate professor, Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences, Kitaw Demissie, MD, PhD, assistant professor, School of Public Health, John Smulian, MD, associate professor, and Anthony Vintzileos, MD, professor, Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Science, was in the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Vol. 188, 2003.

“Transcript Profiling of Human Platelets Using Microarray and Serial Analysis of Gene Expression,” co-authored by David Weissmann, MD, assistant professor, Pathology, RWJMS, was in Blood 101, March 2003.

SHRP
SCHOOL OF HEALTH RELATED PROFESSIONS
Professional Activities:
Carol Pratt, PhD, professor and director of the PhD in Psychiatric Rehabilitation Program in the Department of Psychiatric Rehabilitation and Behavioral Health Care, presented “Evidence Based Practices in Psychiatric Rehabilitation” at the Case Management Association meeting
in Eatontown.

G. Woodard Gross, MA, associate professor and program director, Respiratory Care, Stratford, presented a talk on asthma for the American Lung Association. He also moderated a panel discussion on respiratory therapy for the New Jersey Society for Respiratory Care spring lecture series in Princeton.

Honors:
Sheryl Geisler, MS, PA-C, assistant professor, Physician Assistant Program, presented “Teaching the Art of Observation to Physician Assistant Students” at the American Academy of Physician Assistants’ 31st annual conference held in New Orleans.

Ruth Fixelle, MEd, PA-C, professor, Physician Assistant Program in Piscataway, was honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award at the New Jersey State Society for Physician Assistants.

Matthew McQuillan, MD, PA-C, assistant professor, Physician Assistant Program in Piscataway, received the Physician Assistant of the Year Award at the New Jersey State Society for Physician Assistants.

Publications:
“Position of the American Dietetic Association: Oral Health and Nutrition,” by Riva Touger-Decker, PhD, RD, director, Master of Science in Clinical Nutrition and Doctorate in Clinical Nutrition programs, was in the Journal of The American Dietetic Association, Vol. 103, No. 5.

Lori Palfreyman, MS, PA-C, assistant professor, Physician Assistant Program in Piscataway, was named the Physician Assistant Educator of the Year at the New Jersey State Society for Physician Assistants.

Cover Story SHRP Research Highlighted Alma Merians, PT, PhD, professor and chair of the Department of Development and Rehabilitative Sciences at SHRP, is shown above on the cover of a recent issue of PT Magazine. She and researcher Judith Deutsch, PT, PhD, associate professor in the doctoral program for Physical Therapy at SHRP, and director of the RIVERS lab (Research in Virtual Environments and Rehabilitation Sciences), were featured in an article about technology’s impact on physical therapy. Merians’ research involves developing innovative exercises for stroke patients. On the cover, she is shown demonstrating a device used in virtual reality (VR) applications under development at UMDNJ and Rutgers University. The specialized equipment is attached to a computer monitor, and people who have had a stroke use both a haptic device and a data glove to interact with computerized VR games that help them to improve their ability to use their hemiplegic hand. “The process helps patients who have some ability to move their wrists, hands or ankles,” she explains. “The device can be set to work on various factors, including range of motion, flexibility and strength.” Deutsch's research involves using VR technology to improve walking ability. The VR device uses haptics, which relates to the sense of touch. She works with post-stroke patients, who, as part of their therapy, use their feet to fly virtual airplanes using haptics. “They fly the plane through targets, trying to avoid them,” she explains. “If they hit one, there is noise on the screen and they feel a small jolt, which is a physical consequence of their actions. This makes the virtual world more realistic.” She says the goal of the therapy is to increase the strength, flexibility, endurance and coordination of the foot, which in turn may improve walking. Both researchers say that patients benefit from the exercises, which offer immediate feedback and encourage them to use their weaker limbs.