METHODOLOGYJuly 2013

The Research and Education Newsletter of Houston Methodist

Table of Contents

Drugs that help millions of people cope with acid reflux may also cause cardiovascular disease, report scientists from Houston Methodist and two other institutions in Circulation.

In human tissue and murine models, the researchers found that proton pump inhibitors, or PPIs, caused the constriction of blood vessels. If taken regularly, PPIs could lead to a variety of cardiovascular problems over time, including hypertension and a weakened heart. In the paper, the scientists call for a broad, large-scale study to determine whether PPIs are dangerous.

“We found that PPIs interfere with the ability of blood vessels to relax,” said lead author Yohannes Ghebremariam, Ph.D., a Houston Methodist molecular biologist. “Nitric oxide generated by the lining of the vessel is known to relax, and to protect, arteries and veins.”

“Our work is consistent with previous reports that PPIs may increase the risk of a second heart attack in people that have been hospitalized with an acute coronary syndrome. Patients taking PPIs may wish to speak to their doctors about switching to

another drug to protect their stomachs, if they are at risk for a heart attack,” said John Cooke, M.D., Ph.D., the study’s principal investigator and chair of the Department of Cardiovascular Sciences and director of the Center for Cardiovascular Regeneration of Houston Methodist. Read more in the Houston Chronicle, The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, and online.

Acid reflux drug may cause heart disease

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Multi-million dollar gift establishes brain tumor center at Houston Methodist

Patients now have access to the Kenneth R. Peak Brain & Pituitary Tumor Treatment Center, a result of a $10 million dollar commitment from a Houston oil executive.

The Center will be housed in Houston Methodist‘s outpatient facility and will be integrated with the Houston Methodist Cancer Center. Investigational therapies will include immunotherapy, nanosyringes for drug delivery, selective mitochondrial chemotherapy, stem cells, gene therapy, genomic, proteomic and DNA profiling, and high throughput molecular screening of each patient’s tumor for matches to currently available treatments. Read the full news release on our website.

Dr. Robert Grossman

Cell Shape / Space

News in Brief

Awards

Inside the Institute

Funding

Education News

Welcome

by David Bricker

by Gale Smith

Lead author Yohannes Ghebremariam, Ph.D. and John Cooke, M.D., Ph.D.

HMRINEWS

Dr. Robert G. Grossman leads neurological research across the nationRobert G. Grossman, M.D., Professor of Neurosurgery at the Neurological Institute and full member of the Research Institute at Houston Methodist is the recipient of the 2013 Distinguished Service Award of The Society of University Neurosurgeons for his decades of service as a clinician, teacher and researcher.

Throughout his 50 years as a neurosurgeon, Grossman devoted himself not only to his patients, but to the medical education of physicians and for improving the treatment of head and spinal cord injuries, Parkinson’s disease, dystonia and epilepsy. He is the principal investigator for the North American Clinical Trials Network, a network of hospitals in the United States and Canada focused on bringing new treatments for spinal cord injury into clinical practice. He is also a key leader in a joint project with University of Houston to develop brain machine interface technology to help quadriplegics walk. Read more on our website.

North American Clinical Trials Network

The Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation recently announced that the United States Department of Defense (DOD) has awarded a two-year, peer-reviewed grant to the NACTN to support a Phase 2/3 efficacy trial of Riluzole, a neuroprotective drug that is the only FDA-approved drug used in the treatment of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.

“Our goal is to bring effective treatments from the lab to the servicemen and women on our frontlines,” said Grossman, NACTN’s principal investigator. “With the support of DOD and the Reeve Foundation, our network has a unique opportunity to move safe and potentially viable treatments from the research laboratory into the clinic – this is critically important because presently there are few treatment options for these patients other than standard medical care.”

The North American Clinical Trials Network is presently supported by the Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation and U.S. Army Medical Research and Material Command under contracts No. W81XWH-10-2-0042 and W81XWH-13-2-0040.Read more on our website.

Brain machine interface technology

The Cullen Foundation and The Institute for Rehabilitation and Research have pledged close to $700,000 to support a brain-machine interface project that University of Houston and Houston Methodist scientists hope will someday help quadriplegics walk.

UH Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering Jose Luis Contreras-Vidal, Ph.D., is working on perfecting a non-invasive brain-machine interface technology that patients can use to operate advanced robotics systems. Contreras-Vidal is collaborating with Grossman on initial testing and broader clinical trials that will be conducted at Houston Methodist, possibly as early as this summer.

A version of Rehab Rex was demonstrated recently at the 2013 International Workshop on Clinical Brain-Neural Machine Interface Systems, which was funded by UH and held at the Houston Methodist Research Institute. The workshop was supported in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, withadditional support from Texas Medical Center institutions and industry. Read more on our website.

by David Bricker & Gale Smith

Robert G. Grossman, M.D.

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Changes in cell shape may lead to metastasis, not the other way aroundA crucial step toward skin cancer may be changes in the genes that control cell shape, report a team of scientists from the Houston Methodist Research Institute, the Institute of Cancer Research, London, and Harvard Medical School in Nature Cell Biology.

Using automated high content screening and sophisticated computational modeling, the researchers’ screening and analysis of tens of millions of genetically manipulated cells helped them identify more than a dozen genes that influence cell shape, and which are altered in metastatic cells.

The scientists found that cells exist in one of five distinct shapes about 98 percent of the time. Other shapes and “intermediate” forms were rare, suggesting that the genes controlling cell shape behave more like light switches than tea kettles coming to a slow boil.

Next the group identified seven genes that cause mammalian melanoma cells to take on either a rounded or elongated form. One of these genes, PTEN, had a particularly strong impact. When turned off, virtually all cells became elongated or large and rounded, two shapes that can help cancerous cells escape confinement, travel blood vessels, and infiltrate healthy tissues.

“Increasing the frequency of rounded and elongated cells would provide metastatic cells with a survival advantage that is otherwise not gained by adopting only a single shape, or being highly plastic,” said Department of Systems Medicine and Bioengineering Chair Stephen T.C. Wong, Ph.D., P.E., who with Institute of Cancer Research, London, Fellow Chris Bakal, Ph.D., are the corresponding authors who oversaw the research. Zheng Yin, Ph.D. is the paper’s lead author and a postdoctoral fellow at the Department of Systems Medicine and Bioengineering of Houston Methodist Research Institute.

Also contributing to this work were Amine Sadok, Heba Sailem, Afshan McCarthy, Mar Arias Garcia, Louise Evans, Alexis Barr, and Christopher J. Marshall (Institute of Cancer Research, London), Xiaofeng Xia, Ph.D. and Fuhai Li, Ph.D. (Houston Methodist), and Norbert Perrimon (Harvard Medical School). It was funded by the National Cancer Institute, the Wellcome Trust, and Cancer Research U.K. Read more on our website.

In this reconstruction by Matthew Landry, nanoparticles (blue spheres) travel through a nanochannel (red) similar in dimensions to what will be used in the space-bound experiments

by David Bricker

More Houston Methodist microgravity experiments aspire to liftoffPrincipal investigator Alessandro Grattoni, Ph.D., and a team of scientists from Houston Methodist, BioServe Space Technologies at the University of Colorado at Boulder, and NASA Glenn Research Center in Cleveland, Ohio, will study the movement of drug-like particles through tiny channels in space. The scientists’ ultimate goal is improving implantable devices that release pharmaceutical drugs at a steady rate. If all goes well on Earth, the experiment will go to the International Space Station as early as 2014.

by David Bricker

Zheng Yin, Ph.D. and Stephen Wong, Ph.D., P.E.

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News in Brief

A novel circulating tumor cell assay receives TechConnect Innovation Award

Youli Zu, M.D., Ph.D. received the 2013 TechConnect National Innovation Award for technology that detects circulating tumor cells in the peripheral blood. Zu’s assay was exhibited this May in Washington, D.C. at the TechConnect National Innovation Showcase, the world’s largest showcase and accelerator for industry-vetted emerging-technologies ready for commercialization.

Pocket-sized drug test could quickly identify abusers

The National Institute on Drug Abuse has awarded $2.1 million to Drs. Lidong Qin and Ping Wang of the Department of Nanomedicine to develop a pocket-sized drug test for use in health care settings. A Nature video about the device can be viewed online. Read more in Nature Cell Biology and on our website.

NIH budget negotiation and sequestration continue

The NIH issued a notice last year that noncompeting grant awards would likely be funded at down to 90% of the award level. Another update this May announced continued reductions in funding for 2013, a result of the sequestration of 5% of the NIH operating budget. In practice, the Houston Methodist Research Institute has seen less of an effect of the sequestration that anticipated, with an average of about 6% reductions in some NCI funding awards, with others funded at full award levels.

The outlook for 2014 is still mired in uncertainty. In July, a Senate spending panel approved a bill to raise the 2014 NIH budget by 6%, effectively mitigating the 5% cut from sequestration in 2013 and adding a 1% increase over the 2012 budget. This is good news for research, though according to ScienceInsider, the House is expected to

allocate much less, and the final budget is not expected until well after the start of the next fiscal year.

CPRIT Texas cancer agency in midst of reforms

The Texas cancer research community has been watching the state legislature closely since the moratorium on allocation of funds last December by the Cancer Prevention Research Institute of Texas. CPRIT is the second largest source of cancer research funding in the US, managing a state-wide mission to advance cancer research and services funded by $3 billion in bonds.

Over the last two years, allegations of financial misconduct and conflicts of interest have shaken the agency, leading to waves of resignations, freezing of disbursement of funds, and reform legislation that completely reorganizes the structure and review processes of the agency. SB149 was passed in May in concert with an approval of $595 million in bonds to jump start the reformation of CPRIT. Operations are scheduled to resume by this fall. The full roadmap to resuming awards can be found on the CPRIT website.

Key dates:• Aug 2013: resumption of funding for 2012 grants• Oct-Dec 2013: new RFAs announced• Feb-July 2014: review cycles• Aug 2014: approval of new grants

Houston Methodist scientists awarded American Heart Association grants

Drs. Nazish Sayed and Jack Wong were awarded scientist development grants from the American Heart Association. Both early career investigators are working on the determinants of endothelial cell differentiation in the field of regenerative medicine. They joined the Research Institute Department of Cardiovascular Sciences and the Center for Cardiovascular Regeneration in the Houston Methodist DeBakey Heart and Vascular Center this July.

Nazish Sayed, M.D., Ph.D. Jack Wong, Ph.D.

Youli Zu, M.D., Ph.D.

by Rebecca Hall, Ph.D.

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Revascularization therapy revisted for myocardial thinning

Dipan Shah, M.D. and colleagues reported in JAMA that while coronary artery disease patients typically are not advised to undergo revascularization therapy, this type of intervention can reverse myocardial wall thinning. The three-center study (Houston Methodist, Duke and Northwestern) involved 1,055 coronary artery disease patients, and challenges a long-standing clinical dogma- that the thinning, and loss of tissue function, cannot be reversed.

Surgery training benefits from multi-simulation approach

By developing a new way to compare techniques for teaching robotic surgery at MITIE, Alvin Goh, M.D. and colleagues at Houston Methodist and the University of Southern California found that surgeons training in robotic surgery learned best when three different simulation teaching methods were used- virtual reality, inanimate tasks, and in vivo training. Read more on our website.

News in Brief, continued

Swansea builds high-tech ties with Texas

Houston Methodist Research Institute affiliate Swansea University, Wales, is working strategically with Houston Methodist, Texas A&M, Rice University and the University of Houston to increase opportunities for transatlantic collaboration and business development. Read more from the BBC News UK.

President’s Awards for Transformational Excellence

The award is designed to incentivize the faculty and staff who have demonstrated transformational academic achievements with new publications in high impact journals or transformational peer-reviewed grant awards with groundbreaking impact.

Awardees:

• Outstanding Peer Review Publications – Steve Wong, Ph.D. Willa Hsueh, M.D. Dipan Shah, M.D.

• Other Academic Achievements – Alessandro Grattoni, Ph.D.

Career Cornerstone Award

This award is for individuals who receive their first NIH grant in their career as a PI or multiple PIs. To be eligible for this award, the recipients must be employed by Houston Methodist and must be a member of the HMRI. Houston Methodist Research Institute will also need to be listed as the primary institution for direct receipt of the NIH award.

Awardee:

• Ennio Tasciotti, Ph.D.

For more information, contact Mariana Pope in the Office of Governance & Faculty Affairs, mpope@houstonmethodist.org.

Houston Methodist Research Institute Awards & Accolades

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Inside the InstituteInstitute for Academic Medicine strategic planning update

The academic strategic planning continued this quarter with the addition of a patient engagement committee and financial alignment of the strategic initiatives into a comprehensive five-year budget and resourcing plan. The preliminary budget is expected to be finalized by August 15. This will be followed by review meetings with the chairs of all initative planning committees, and final review by the integration committee, chaired by Dr. Antonio Gotto, on August 26. For more information, contact Dr. Rebecca Hall, rmhall@tmhs.org.

Cyclotron celebrates first full year of operations

The Research Institute cyclotron team celebrates their one-year anniversary of operations, which provided 1770 clinical doses for the Houston Methodist Hospital. The cyclotron and radiopharmaceutical lab are FDA certified in good manufacturing practices (cGMP) and available for clinical and translational research collaborations. For more information, contact Dr. Max Yu, myu2@tmhs.org.

The MORTI Clinical Trials Management System goes live in October

The go-live date for the updated Clinical Trials Management System is October 25, 2013. Mandatory training will be scheduled for both new and existing users to introduce new functionalities of the system. Register for training through myLearning or contact MORTITraining@houstonmethodist.org for more information.

NIH clinical research course certifies five Houston Methodist trainees

The Research Institute held satellite sessions for the National Institutes of Health Introduction to the Principles and Practice of Clinical Research course from October 2012 through March 2013. Six Houston Methodist trainees received certificates from the NIH:

• Daniel Arellano, MSN, RN, CCRN, CEN, CFRN, ACNP-BC, Nurse Practitioner, Medical ICU Intensivist Team

• Stephen Lloyd, Sr. Applications Analyst, MDHVC Dept of Cardiology and Vascular Imaging

• Lacey McClure, BS, Research Coordinator II, Department of Radiation Oncology

• Adriana Olar, M.D., Neuropathology Fellow • Guillermo Ulises Ruiz-Esparza, M.D., Ph.D. Fellow,

Department of Nanomedicine

Research Institute launches research administration fellowship program

The Houston Methodist Research Institute administration fellowship program will prepare fellows with a solid foundation in ethics and management of research administration, with training in: • Grants and Contracts Management• Intellectual Property, Technology Transfer, and

Commercialization• Compliance and Regulatory Environment• Strategic Planning and Management• Human Resource Management• Hospital and/or Ambulatory Care

For more information, contact Mariana Pope, Office of Governance & Faculty Affairs, mpope@tmhs.org.

continued on p. 8

NIH Competitiveness Initiative

Any HMRI faculty members with National Institutes of Health grant applications scored within the 15th percentile but not funded are invited to meet with Dr. Ferrari and Tong Sun to discuss how to improve the NIH grant application.

Contact Homer Quintana to schedule a meeting. hquintana@tmhs.org

Drs. Roberto Rosato and Santosh Helekar are the first two awardees to improve preliminary data & competitiveness.

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INSTITUTE QUICK FACTS

120Million in Research Expenditirues Worldwide

1400 Credentialed Researchers

270 Members Worldwide

500 Trainees

50 Million in Total Funding

Inside the Institute: New Funding Awards & ApplicationsDepartment of Nanomedicine Lidong Qin, $40,000, Golfers against CancerAlessandro Grattoni, $20,000, University of Texas School of Public Health

Applications: Biana Godin Vilentchouk, Alessandro Grattoni (5), Ye Hu,Xuewu Liu, Lidong Qin (2), Haifa Shen (2), Ennio Tasciotti (5), Yong Yang, Arturas Ziemys (2)

Department of Systems Medicine & BioengineeringApplications: Kelvin Wong, Steven Wong (8), Zhong Xue, Ming Zhan (2)

Department of Translational ImagingApplications: Paolo Decuzzi, Daniel Lee, Zheng Li, James Xia

Biostatistics CoreApplications: Leif Peterson

Cancer Research ProgramKapil Bhalla, $1,250,000; $1,250,000, NIH-National Cancer Institute

Applications: Barbara Bass (2), Jenny Chang (2), Patricia Chevez Barrios, Bhuvanesh Dave, Willa Hsueh, Min Kim, Yi Liu (2), Youli Zu

Cardiovascular Disease Research ProgramApplications: John Cooke, Zsolt Garami, Saverio La Francesca

Diabetes and Metabolic Disease Research Program Applications: Willa Hsueh, Anisha Gupte, Alvaro Munoz (3), Paul Webb (3), Xuefeng Xia

Genomic MedicineKevin Phillips, $50,000, American Thyroid Association

Applications: Anders Berkenstam (2)

Infectious Disease Research Program Adriana Rosato, $45,000, National Institute of Allergy & Infectious Disease

Applications: Todd Eagar, Edward Graviss (2), Scott Long (2), Roberto Rosato (2)

Inflammation & Epigenetics Research ProgramApplications: Xilai Ding, Wei Zhao

Neurosciences Research ProgramApplications: Stanley Appel (2), Robert Grossman, Santosh Helekar, Kenneth Podell

Preclinical ImagingApplications: Brian O’Neill, Zheng Zheng Shi

Transplantation Immunology Research Program Applications: Xian Li

540 Thousand Sq Ft Research Space

840 Clinical Protocols

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Upcoming Events

August 7Ayasdi Academic Presentation

August 13Nanobiotechnologies for the Medicine of the Future

August 16-18Cardiovascular Fellows’ Bootcamp

August 20Leadership Conversations Series - Stephen Wong, Ph.D., P.E.

August 21Investigational Devices - Everything You Wanted to Know...

August 30Invitation to submit posters for Advances in Oncology Conference

September 17Leadership Conversations Series - Scott Parazynski, M.D.

October 8-11MiMe-Materials in Medicine Conference

October 15Leadership Conversations Series - Mary Daffin

November 9-13Society of Neuroscience Annual Meeting

November 19Leadership Conversations Series - Mauro Ferrari, Ph.D.

December 9Pumps & Pipes

VIew all upcoming events at: houstonmethodist.com/tmhri_events

Methodist Rebranding

Beginning July 16, the Research Institute and Houston Methodist as a whole, will have new names and logos. Our new name will be the Houston Methodist Research Institute. We will use the Houston Methodist: Leading Medicine logo on all materials.

Translational Imaging Department Chair

The Department of Translational Imaging is actively recruiting a highly qualified individual to lead the department. Candidate qualifications and responsibilities can be found at houstonmethodist.com/chair-translational-imaging.

Office of Technology Transfer Researchers will no longer have to go through the HMRI MTA process for each order to be approved. OTT has just finalized a Master Material Transfer Agreement with Addgene that will allow for automatic approval of purchases when the orders are placed on the Addgene website. This master agreement should dramatically improve the Addgene ordering processes for our researchers.

Research Ethics Conference

Houston Methodist Research Institute and University of Texas Health Science Center Houston co-hosted Public Responsibility in Research & Medicine’s “At Your Door-Step” on May 13, 2013. The day-long conference addressed the ethical principles and regulations that guide IRB review of human subject research. Approximately 160 IRB members, investigators, study coordinators and regulatory staff were able to interact with national leaders in the area of research ethics.

Grant Portfolio Standards

All Research Institute-employed unmodified track scientists (Assistant, Associate, and Full Member) will be expected to meet the Grant Portfolio Standard (aka the“Magic 3”) for 2013. Please download the summary from the intranet for details.

Give your ideas a voice at Houston Methodist

The Faculty Research Council would like to hear your ideas on how to improve administrative operations at the Research Institute and the Education Institute. Contact them by email at tmhrifacultyresearchcouncil@houstonmethodist.org.

Donate Science Books

Do you have science books you no longer need? The Autonomous University of Mexico City library is seeking donations of books in the biological sciences. Please contact Linné Girouard for more information.

Inside the Institute, continued

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Diversity Day

On June 27, the Research Institute celebrated our employees and the culture of Spain with entertainment by Flamenco dancers from Young Audiences in Houston. Employees and students enjoyed paella, olive & cheese plates, banderillas and a cake decorated with the flag of Spain. In the auditorium, the soccer (fútbol) match between Spain and Italy was broadcast live to the audience.

Student / Mentor Highlight

In Dr. Haifa Shen’s Nanomedicine lab, Yu Wang is working on the development of new nanoparticles for tumor imaging and therapy. The other students are using nanovectors to deliver therapeutics for cancer treatment.

Dynamo Day

Summer students and faculty gathered for Dynamo Day on July 6th. After celebrating the Dynamo’s victory, the students enjoyed a fireworks celebration honoring our nation’s military troops.

Inside the Institute: Education News

Mentored Clinical Trials Training Program

Drs. Jorge Darcourt, Eric Bernicker and Huie Lin were selected to attend the first Mentored Clinical Trials Training Program with our Weill Cornell partners. Dr. Tim Boone helped organize this intensive four-day course to prepare junior faculty in clinical departments for designing all phases of clinical trials, including investigator-initiated studies, registry programs, bias and biostatistics, and a focus on the faculty’s individual projects.

Residents Graduate

On June 15, 2013, the Education Institute graduated 79 medical residents from 25 Methodist-sponsored graduate medical education programs. Also recognized at graduation were more than 20 faculty members who received Annual Faculty Teaching Awards presented by Dr. Judy Paukert, Vice President of the Education Institute. These awards are determined by resident and fellow nominations, and based on their educational and clinical experiences. Congratulations to all graduates and dedicated faculty.

San Jacinto Methodist Family Medicine residency program

Effective July, 1, 2013, Houston Methodist – Texas Medical Center assumed sponsorship of the San Jacinto Methodist Family Medicine residency program. The 24-resident program was first accredited by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) in 1990. Dr. Clare Hawkins has served as program director since 1998. With this program brings an exciting new partner, Legacy Community Health Services, a federally qualified health center serving the Houston community. The Methodist GME office directs the San Jacinto Methodist Family Medicine residency program, joining the 32 ACGME-accredited programs at Houston Methodist.

Methodist Academy for Medical Science and Technology

Summer Internship Retreat will be August 9, 2013

by Tim Boone, Trevor Burt and Amy Wright

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New Research Institute Members

Kemi Cui, Assistant Research Member, Systems Medicine and BioengineeringQingtian Li, Assistant Research Member, Inflammation & EpigeneticsHarold Craighead, Full Affiliate Member, NanomedicineAngelo Nascimbene, Assistant Affiliate Member, NanomedicineTejal Patel, Assistant Clinical Member, Cancer CenterKeith A. Youker, Assistant Research Member, Cardiovascular Disease Katherine Perez, Assistant Clinical Member, Infectious Disease Jianguo Wen, Instructor, Infectious DiseaseNianxi Zhao, Instructor, Infectious DiseaseJohn P. Cooke, Full Member, Cardiovascular DiseaseKapil N. Bhalla, Full Member, Cancer CenterWenhao Chen, Assistant Member, Transplant ImmunologyRoger Sciammas, Assistant Member, Transplant Immunology

Promotions

Farah Atassi, Neurology, Clinical Trials ManagerShenyi Chen, Systems Medicine, Research Database Analyst LaShawna Green, HMDHVC, Clinical Trials Manager Anisha Gupte, Diabetes, Research ScientistFransisca Leonard, Nanomedicine, Postdoctoral Fellow Jaime Meija, Cancer, Director of Business Development and Clinical ResearchChengfu Xu, Translational Imaging, Research Associate I

New Employees

AcademyRicardo Nawa, Graduate Research FellowHarrison Smith, Undergraduate Research Fellow

AOCTJessica Wilson, Operations Manager I

BiostatisticsTatiana Kovyrshina, Data Specialist

CancerWarren Fiskus, Research ScientistLaxmi Jakkula, Postdoctoral AssociateDevin Jones, Research Assistant IBrianne Martin, Regulatory Compliance Specialist IIShrimanth Rai, Project SpecialistMelissa Rodriguez Tallant, Postdoctoral Fellow

Welcome Jessica Wilson, Operations Manager for the Academic Office of Clinical Trials. Ms. Wilson joins us from St. Luke’s Episcopal Hospital with experience as a clinical trial manager, clinical research coordinator, and regulatory assistant and outreach coordinator.

A special welcome to our new faculty and staff

Leasha Schaub, Research Assistant IBhavin Shah, Research Assistant ISanthana Gowri Thangavelu Devaraj, Postdoctoral FellowJean Tien, Postdoctoral FellowJohn Valenta, Research Assistant IJan Zhang, Research Assistant I

Cardiovascular DiseaseCrystal Diaz Trejo, Financial AnalystYohannes Ghebremariam, ScientistMohamad Ghosn, Research Associate IPamela Hazen, Research Coordinator IIChizoba Ifeorah, Research Coordinator IIChioma Ikoku, Data SpecialistMarlena Kays, Financial AnalystShu Meng, Postdoctoral FellowAparna Mukherjee, Research Assistant IMaitreyi Muralidhar, Scientific WriterNazish Sayed, ScientistEmily Taylor, Clinical Research NurseAyesha Williams, Project CoordinatorWing Tak Jack Wong, ScientistEduard Yakubov, Research Scientist

Cockrell Center for Advanced TherapeuticsAndrea Dotting, Sr. Clinical Research Nurse

Comparative MedicineAndrew Alvey, Veterinary Technician ILindsay Mumma, Veterinary Technician I

Diabetes & Metabolic DiseaseRuya Liu, Postdoctoral Fellow

External RelationsColleen Kelly, Program Project Manager

Grants & ContractsJasmin Cooper, Grant & Contract Specialist

Infectious DiseaseLiliana Castillo, Research Assistant I Regina Fernandez, Research Assistant I

Welcome & Congratulations

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Editor-in-chiefRebecca Hall, Ph.D.Design & Coordination Michelle Shemon

The Research and Education Newsletter of Houston Methodist

Archives available online Intranet: Houston Methodist Research Institute > Newsletter/Town Hall > News Sharepoint Site

Images Matt LandryContributing Writers David Bricker

Tim Boone, M.D. Trevor Burt, M.D.Mariana Pope, JD

Welcome & Congratulations, continued

Inflammation & EpigeneticsRenyue Bao, Postdoctoral FellowQi Cao, ScientistXiang Chen, Postdoctoral Fellow

NanomedicineCarlotta Borsoi, Graduate Research FellowLewis Francis, Affiliated Scientist IYan Ting Liu, Research Assistant IZongbin Liu, Postdoctoral FellowRoberto Molinaro, Graduate Research FellowLaura Pandolfi, Graduate Research FellowYuki Saito, Research Assistant IMalisa Sarntinoranont, Affiliated Scientist IShilpa Scaria, Undergraduate Research FellowQi Shen, Postdoctoral FellowGianluca Storci, Postdoctoral Fellow Nima Taghipour, Research Assistant IFrancesca Taraballi, Postdoctoral Fellow Guohui Wang, Postdoctoral Fellow Yunlong Zhou, Postdoctoral Fellow

NeurosciencesZaid Kajani, Student InternDylan Rosenfield, Student InternXiujun Zhang, Research Associate I

Outcomes & QualityBeverly Shirkey, Biostatistician

Research PathologyJackie Oommen, Financial Analyst

Research ProtectionSurabhi Gaur, Project Specialist Roison Williams, Research Protection Analyst

Research TechnologyChristopher Colluro, Applications Analyst I

Systems Medicine & BioengineeringCharles Camposano, Postdoctoral FellowTian Ding, Operations Manager IZhiqiang Zhu, Graduate Research FellowZhiqiang Zhu, Graduate Research Fellow

Translational ImagingPrince Jeyabal, Research Associate IDaniel Paick, Research Assistant IRenduo Song, Research Associate I

Transplant ImmunologyMary Kueser, Clinical Research Nurse

Visitors

Cardiovascular DiseaseIsabelle BerngesJose Flores Arredondo Saba UsmaniMaris Zamovskis

METHODOLOGY

Diabetes & Metabolic DiseaseKatia Cristina Portero McLellanHongshan YinRicheng Yu

Genomic MedicineAsim KhushkTodd Link

Infectious DiseaseAshley NgoBrittany ShahBrittany Jewell

MITIEVictoria Hilford

NanomedicineGiacomo BrunoFrancisca CaraSharon LiKeyan MobliBoi-Chau NguyenErsilia RanieriKarun SalvadyJacopo SeccoSaher ZaidiSerena Zancla

Systems Medicine & BioengineeringOlen RambowDalton SidesZhuan Zhu

Translational ImagingEszter Voros

Gale SmithAmy Wright, MBA