Publications:

"An Unusual Cause of Anisocoria - The Antipodes of Ocular Autonomic Dysfunction," by Frederick Lepore, MD, professor, Neurology and Ophthalmology, was in the Journal of Neuro-Ophthalmology, Vol. 21, 1999. Dr. Lepore also authored "Divergence Paresis: A Non-localizing Cause of Diplopia," in the Journal of Neuro-Ophthalmology, Vol. 19, 1999.

"Progesterone, Inhibin and hCG Multiple Marker Strategy to Differentiate Viable From Nonviable Pregnancies," co-authored by David Seifer, MD, associate professor and director, Division of Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility, was in Obstetrics and Gynecology, Vol. 95, 2000.

"Turning of Nerve Growth Cones Induced by Localized Increases in Intracellular Calcium Ions," by James Zheng, PhD, assistant professor, Neuroscience and Cell Biology, was in Nature, Vol. 403, January 2000.

Honors:

Robert Hendren, DO, director, Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and director, Institute of Quality, Research and Training, was voted president-elect of the National Society of Professors of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at their annual meeting.

Marian Lake, MPH, RNC, CCRC, assistant professor, Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences, was awarded the New Jersey Section Nurse of the Year - Peg Bergen Award 1999 by the Association of Women's Health, Obstetric and Neonatal Nurses. She was also awarded the Stan Graven Award at the National Perinatal Association 1999 Conference.

Sandra Leiblum, PhD, professor, Psychiatry, and Obstetrics and Gynecology, was selected as one of this year's Women of Excellence by the Middlesex County Commission on the Status of Women, Department of Human Services.

George Poiani, MD, associate professor, and Lawrence Davanzo, DO, clinical assistant professor, both in the Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care, Medicine, received the Golden Oak Leaf Award from the VA New Jersey Health Care System.

Grants:

Cristine Delnevo, PhD, MPH, assistant professor, Environmental and Community Medicine, received a three-year, $466,882 grant from the Association of Teachers of Preventive Medicine and the CDC for "A National Study of 28 Medical Schools to Determine Future Physicians' Prostate Cancer Screening Counseling Attitudes and Practices."

Ramsey Foty, PhD, assistant professor, Surgery, Division of Surgical Sciences, received a three-year, $75,000 grant from the Department of Defense Prostate Cancer Research Program for "Tissue Surface Tensiometry: A Novel Method for Assessing the Invasive Potential of Prostate Tumors."

Lawrence Golbe, MD, professor, Neurology, received a one-year, $90,940 grant from Schwarz Pharmaceutical, Inc. to study "Transdermal SPM 962 in Early Stage Parkinson's Disease."

Grants (continued):

Alice Gottlieb, MD, PhD, director, Clinical Research Center, received a one-year, $428,250 grant from Genentech, Inc., for "Protocol ACD2058g: A Phase III, Randomized, Double-Blind, Parallel-Group, Placebo-Controlled, Multicenter, Multidose Study to Evaluate the Efficacy and Safety of Subcutaneously Administered Anti-CD1a in Adults with Moderate to Severe Plaque Psoriasis." Gottlieb also received a one-year, $146,500 grant from Genentech, Inc., for "Protocol ACD2062g: An Open-Label, Multidose, Multicenter Study to Evaluate the Safety and Tolerability of Subcutaneously Administered Anti-CD11a in Adults with Plaque Psoriasis Previously Treated with Anti-CD11a or Placebo."

Robert Hamer, MD, associate professor, Psychiatry, and Matthew Menza, MD, associate professor, Neurology, received a one-year, $70,872 grant from SmithKline Beecham for "A Double-blind, Placebo Controlled, 3-arm Fixed Dose Study of Paroxetine CR Continuous Treatment (12.5mg and 25mg/day) for Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder."

Michael Hampsey, PhD, associate professor, Biochemistry, received a four-year, $1,254,000 grant from the NIH for "Genetics of Transcription Initiation in Yeast."

Robert Hendren, DO, professor, Psychiatry and Pediatrics, director, Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and director, The Institute for Quality, Research and Training, received a two-year, $251,788 grant from Lilly Research Laboratories for "A Phase III Open-label Safety and Efficacy Study of Tomoxetine Hydrochloride in Outpatients with ADHD, ages 6 to 18 years."

Masayori Inouye, PhD, professor and chair, Biochemistry, received a four-year, $2 million grant from the NIH for a project on "Stress Response and Adaptation in Escherichia Coli."

Alexey Ryazanov, PhD, assistant professor, Pharmacology and member, The Cancer Institute of New Jersey, received a four-year, $931,544 grant from the NIH to study the "Mechanism of Drug Resistance."

Parvin Saidi, MD, professor, Medicine and chief, Division of Hematology, received three one-year grants for the New Jersey Regional Hemophilia Program: a $251,008 grant from the New Jersey State Department of Health; a $163,316 grant from the Maternal and Child Health Bureau, Department of Health and Human Services; and a $166,331 grant from the Department of Health and Human Services/CDC.

John Smulian, MD, MPH, assistant professor, Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences, received a three-year, $536,000 grant from CDC through the New Jersey Department of Health and Senior Services for a National Birth Defects Prevention Study for the Fetal Abnormalities Registry of the State of New Jersey.

Yanan Tian, PhD, assistant professor, Environmental and Community Medicine, received a three-year, $605,185 grant from the NIH for "Interaction Between AH Receptor and NfkB Pathways."

Professional Activities:

Robert Knuppel, MD, MPH, professor and chair, Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences, presented grand rounds on "Health Economics for the Practicing OB/GYN" at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Lenox Hill Hospital, NY.

John Kostis, MD, John G. Detwiler Professor of Cardiology, professor, Medicine and Pharmacology and chair, Medicine, presented "Plasma Atrial Natriuretic Peptide, Cyclic Guanosine Monophosphate, and Endothelin Response to Omapatrilat in Heart Failure" and "Beneficial Effects of Vasopeptidase Inhibition on Mortality and Morbidity in Heart Failure: Evidence from the Omapatrilat Heart Failure Program."

Michael Lewis, PhD, University Distinguished Professor, and director, Institute for the Study of Child Development, Pediatrics, presented "Cognitive Emotion Connection in Development" at the 13th Toyota Conference on Affective Minds, Mikkabi, Shizuoka, Japan. He also presented "Developmental Models of Psychopathology" at the University of the Sacred Heart, Tokyo, Japan.

Kiron Das, MD, professor, Medicine, Molecular Genetics and Microbiology, presented "Development of Gastroesophageal Pre-Cancerous Conditions" and "New Frontiers on the Management of Inflammatory Bowel Disease" at the multi-disciplinary international symposium he chaired called "Medicine in the Millennium," held at Science City, Calcutta, India.

Ikechukwu Ukeje, EdD, assistant professor, Institute for the Study of Child Development, Pediatrics, presented "The Importance of Early Childhood Education for the World's Children" at a news conference for release of UNICEF's 2000 State of the World's Children Report.

Faculty members of the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences had abstracts accepted and presented at the 20th Annual Meeting of the Society of Maternal-Fetal Medicine in Miami Beach: Allan Fisher, MD, assistant professor, Neural Tube Defects and the Timing of Death Through One Year of Age in the United States and Down Syndrome and the Timing of Death Through One Year of Age in the United States; Edwin Guzman, MD, associate professor, A Comparison of Sonographic Cervical Parameters in Predicting Spontaneous Preterm Birth in Twin Gestations and A Comparison of Sonographic Cervical Parameters in Predicting Spontaneous Preterm Birth in Triplet Gestations; Wendy Kinzler, MD, fellow, Parental Age Difference and Pregnancy Outcomes in the United States and Prenatally Diagnosed Unilateral Ventriculomegaly; Natalie Meirowitz, MD, fellow, Evaluation of Preterm Premature Rupture of Membranes in the United States and Success of Induction of Labor Among Women With Eclampsia in the United States; Angela Ranzini, MD, associate professor, Pregnancy Complications in Women of Advanced Maternal Age: A Population-based Study in the United States and Sudden Infant Death Syndrome: Is It Related to Intrauterine Infection?; John Smulian, MD, assistant professor, Timing of Infant Death by Gestational Age at Delivery in Pregnancies Complicated by Intrauterine Growth Restriction: A Population-based Study and Timing of Infant Death by Gestational Age at Delivery After an Uncomplicated Pregnancy: A Population-based Study in the United States; Anthony Vintzileos, MD, professor, Do Maternal-fetal Medicine Practice Characteristics Influence High-risk Referral Decisions by General Obstetrician-gynecologists?; Lami Yeo, MD, assistant professor, The Relationship Between Perinatal Outcomes and Degree of Elevated Maternal Serum Alpha-fetoprotein; Cande Ananth, PhD, MPH, assistant professor, Timing of Infant Death by Gestational Age at Delivery in Pregnancies Complicated by Abruption: A Population-based Study and Risk Factors for Placental Abruption in Singleton and Twin Gestations in the United States, and Christine Walters, RDMS, Inter-and Intra-observer Variations in the Measurement of Sonographic Cervical Parameters Before and After Cerclage Placement.

Research News

ARTIFICIAL SKIN USED IN BURN RESEARCH

    Scientists at UMDNJ-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School in Camden are using artificial skin to do research on burn injuries.

    Charles Hewitt, PhD, (left), associate professor of surgery and director of surgical research, and Edward Doolin, MD, associate professor of surgery and director of pediatric surgical research, are examining laboratory-grown, three-dimensional skin for its reaction to various degrees of burn trauma and the mechanisms responsible for the resulting tissue damage. They are also looking at the reaction of the skin to burns, at the cellular and molecular level.

    The pair will soon study how inflammation from burns influences the processes of necrosis, or cell death, and apoptosis, programmed cell death, that occurs when healthy cells complete their life cycle. There is also the potential for studying the effects of topical anti-inflammatory and immunosuppressive drugs on the artificial skin.

    The study is being funded by the Alternatives Research and Development Foundation.

Research News

NEW DRUGS BEING TESTED FOR MILD HYPERTENSION

    Researchers in the Division of Cardiovascular Disease and Hypertension at UMDNJ-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School are conducting an international clinical trial for men and women age 65 and older. The five-year program will determine whether treating patients who have mild systolic hypertension (ISH), a commonly occurring form of high blood pressure, may significantly decrease their risk of experiencing a heart attack, heart failure or stroke. Worldwide, about 15 to 20 percent of people over the age of 60 have ISH.

    The trial, known as OPERA (Omapatrilat in Persons with Enhanced Risk of Atherosclerotic Events), is designed to study the long-term therapeutic benefits of omapatrilat, a new cardiovascular drug being developed by Bristol-Myers Squibb in Princeton.

    The study, which involves 12,600 patients at 900 sites, is led by John B. Kostis, MD, the chair of the Department of Medicine and John G. Detwiler Professor of Cardiology, and professor, Medicine and Pharmacology, at the medical school.

    In explaining how the study works, Kostis says that eligible participants will be given either omapatrilat or a placebo and will be followed for up to five years. Patient safety will be evaluated by medical history, physical examinations, laboratory analyses, ECGs and periodic checkups.The systolic pressure is the top number of a blood pressure reading and occurs when the heart contracts. Diastolic pressure is the lower number of the reading and occurs when the heart is at rest. For this study, ISH is defined as systolic blood pressure of 140 to 159 mm Hg and diastolic pressure less than 90 mm Hg.

    "Historically, physicians have focused on reducing the diastolic pressure of patients with hypertension," says Kostis. "We now have mounting evidence that suggests systolic blood pressure is at least as important in predicting the risks of cardiovascular disease."

Book Reviews

MENOPAUSE: ENDOCRINOLOGY AND MANAGEMENT
edited by David B. Seifer, MD, and Elizabeth Kennard, MD
Humana Press, 1999

    Approximately 4,000 women in the U.S. enter menopause every day. As these female baby- boomers reach middle age, there has been an increased awareness, both by the lay public and the medical profession, about menopausal issues. The book offers a clear, concise review of different aspects of menopause, including the physiological and cellular changes that occur and their associated clinical presentations.

    The editors have chosen excellent contributors - many who have done original research in their respective areas. The book contains chapters often not found in other books on the topic, including sections on predicting the onset of menopause, premature ovarian failure, surgical menopause and the general care of postmenopausal women. It also describes the changes in the endocrine, cardiovascular, urinary tract and skeletal systems, and mood/cognition around the time of menopause. Therapeutic options are discussed in more detail, including the risks and benefits of hormone replacement, phyto- estrogens, as well as other non-estrogen medical alternatives.

    Seifer is the director of the Division of Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility in the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences at UMDNJ-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School. Kennard is an associate clinical professor at Ohio State University Medical School.