UCLA Pathology and Laboratory Medicine—Winter Edition February 2014 | Page 1

UCLA Pathology & Laboratory Medicine Website

Annual Holiday Party

Happy 2014! The Department of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine continues its wonderful Holiday

Party tradition. Below are highlights of the celebration. Click here for more photos AWARDS AND RECOGNITIONS

2

ASSISTANTS AND SCHOLARSHIP

3

NEW EMPLOYEES 4

HOLIDAY EVENT 5

PUBLICATIONS 6

IMED SERIES 7

DEPARTMENT NEWS 8

Inside this issue:

Winter Newsletter—February 2014

U C L A P A T H O L O G Y A N D L A B O R A T O R Y M E D I C I N E

Q U A R T E R L Y N E W S L E T T E R

Our website is getting lots of attention! During January, we had:

● 10,935 visits to the website ● 8,121 unique visitors

● 30,736 page views ● from 121 countries

This is a 12% increase in unique visitor traffic compared to just six

months earlier – and we expect growth to be even stronger this

year. This means greater opportunity for your labs, news and ef-

forts to get noticed.

If you would like information about traffic on your area’s webpag-

es, we can provide you with detailed tracking information. This

can be very helpful to track interest in a new service, advertise-

ment, or to knowing traffic trends to your pages.

The website is a great resource for easy access to the information

you need. We encourage you to become familiar with the ―For

Faculty and Staff‖ section on the front page. Here, you’ll find fre-

quently used information about the business office, contracts and

grants, purchasing, reimbursements, travel, conference rooms,

forms portal and more.

Consider making http://pathology.ucla.edu your homepage. The

front page of the website has been designed to give quick access to

many commonly used sites, including the Faculty and Staff pages,

division pages, as well as through the ―Quick Links‖ on the top

left side where you can find one-click access to the ―Mednet‖

page, Path IT Service Now, our intranet pages, emergency and

safety information, manuals, and more.

The website is also an important resource of information for visi-

tors from outside the department, as well as an opportunity to

highlight and promote your programs. You can help us make the

website better and attract more attention by:

Let us add your lab (or similar) pages. Contact us for infor-

mation.

Don’t be shy about sending us your (or your colleagues) big

news; e.g. awards, accolades, grants awarded, or publications

released. Your good news is good news for us too! We will be

happy to post your upcoming department-related seminars

and events.

Add http://pathology.ucla.edu (or your specific Path and Lab

landing page) to your email signature line and business cards.

This helps increase traffic to the website which means in-

creased attention to your efforts.

Email us with your requests or news, and don’t forget…

Path and Lab is now on Facebook—please ―Like‖ us!

UCLA Pathology and Laboratory Medicine—Winter Edition February 2014 | Page 2

Awards and Recognitions

Drs. Jianyu Rao, Kimberly Mislick, Marie

Sohsman and Yong Ying are among the authors

of a groundbreaking study laying the ground-

work for broader validation of label-free quanti-

tative biophysical markers for clinical diagnoses

for cancer and inflammation. This could help to

reduce laboratory workload and improve clini-

cal decision making. Read More

Dr. Dennis Goldfinger was recently chosen by

the American Society for Apheresis to receive

the annual Francis S. Morrison Memorial Lec-

ture Award. The award recognizes individuals

who have made major contributions to the field

of apheresis medicine and apheresis profession-

als who have made a lasting difference in the

field at the national level.

Dr. Oliver Hankison has been elected a Fellow

of the American Association for the Advance-

ment of science (―AAAs‖) for his scientifically

distinguished efforts to advance science or its

applications. His election was announced in the

Nov. 29 Science journal.

The UCLA Kidney Exchange Program cele-

brated its 100th transplant on Dec. 2. Congratu-

lations to UCLA Immunogenetics, Renal Pa-

thology and all who made this important mile-

stone a reality. Read More

Dr. Stan Nelson was quoted in an article by Al-

Jazeera America, about personalized medicine

discussing UCLA’s Exome Sequencing pro-

gram, which enables parents to obtain a clear

diagnosis and effective treatment for children

with rare genetic disorders.

Drs. Samuel Strom, Hane Lee, Kingshuk Das,

Eric Vilain, Stanley Nelson, Wayne Grody and

Joshua Deignan have successfully demonstrat-

ed a way to alleviate significant labor and cost

burdens to clinical laboratories wishing to use

next-generation sequencing technology by re-

ducing the amount of required Sanger-based

confirmation without sacrificing test quality.

Genetics in Medicine

Drs. Samuel Strom and Hane Lee are co-

authors on a recently published paper in Hu-

man Molecular Genetics establishing HDAC8

as an important gene for patients with clinical

features of Cornelia de Lange Syndrome. A

mutation and phenotype discovered through

Clinical Exome Sequencing performed at

UCLA helped define the spectrum of condi-

tions. Read More

Dr. Michael Teitell has been appointed Associate

Director for Clinical Integration of the UCLA-

Caltech Medical Scientist Training Program

(MSTP). More Info

He has also been appointed UCLA’s next Faculty

Athletic Representative (FAR) effective July 1,

2014. The FAR provides a faculty voice and per-

spective in the administration and oversight of

the Department of Intercollegiate Athletics.

Dr. Siavash Kurdistani has been appointed Co-

Director of the UCLA-Caltech Medical Scien-

tist Training Program (MSTP), having previ-

ously served as an Associate Director.

More Info

Dr. Wayne Grody explored the difference be-

tween Hollywood fact and fiction, and dis-

cussed his film and TV advisory experiences in

the Smithsonian’s Genomics, Hollywood Style

program, webcast on January 29.

The Voice of Russia explores what makes Dr.

Grody ―Hollywood’s go-to scientist.‖

A Promise Fulfilled—UCLA’s Clinical Ge-

nomics Center’s exome sequencing program is

featured in the Winter 2014 edition of U Maga-

zine. More Info

Dr. Alistair Cochran is a senior author of an

important study showing that lymphatic map-

ping and sentinel node biopsy, with immediate

complete lymph node dissection if the sentinel

nodes contains metastases, significantly pro-

longs disease-free survival for patients with in-

termediate and thick melanomas, and prolongs

distant disease free survival and reduces death

from melanoma for patients with intermediate

thickness primary melanomas. | Abstract

Rita Effros, Ph.D., discusses the challenge of

meeting the needs of an aging Baby Boomer

generation in The Silver Tsunami, in the Winter

2014 U Magazine | More Info

UCLA Pathology and Laboratory Medicine—Winter Edition February 2014 | Page 3

Congratulations Alisa!

Our very first recipient of the Loni Calhoun CLS Educational Scholarship and

Conference Stipend Award

UCLA Blood Bank has established an award to honor Ms. Loni Calhoun for her commitment

to the field of Transfusion Medicine.

Ms. Calhoun is a passionate immunohematologist and consummate teacher who is always

willing to share her knowledge. She recently retired from UCLA after 27 years in the blood

bank as a Transfusion Medicine Education Coordinator and Technical Specialist, then another

6 years as a per diem blood bank CLS.

The purpose of this award is to encourage our staff to become active in the Transfusion Medi-

cine community by attending educational meetings and participating in our state blood bank

society. Each year, the award recipient will receive a 1-year membership to the California Blood Bank Society (CBBS) including ―sponsorship‖

by senior members, registration for one regional seminar and registration plus a $750 travel stipend to attend the CBBS annual meeting.

Our first awardee is Ms. Alisa Wood. Alisa started her career in the blood bank as a hospital laboratory technician in 2003 and pursued her CLS

degree in 2008. With her passion for transfusion service, she returned to the blood bank after working 5 years as a generalist at the Santa Monica

Hospital. Alisa has a thirst for knowledge – she is always inquiring about patients, asking questions about Immunohematology, and attending

seminars. She also shows initiative in the blood bank by taking an active role in quality-driven projects.

We are very happy to present this award to Ms. Wood.

Department News

Jeanette Racho is the Administrative Support

to Dr. Fernando Palma-Diaz and in charge of

slide filing room and special

projects.

Hui-Ling Wang goes by Ling and is

the Administrative Support and As-

sistant to Doctors: Jian Yu Rao,

Sunita Bhuta, Sharon Hirschowitz,

Peggy Sullivan, and David Lu.

Tami Langevin is the Administra-

tive Support to Doctors: David

Dawson, Samuel French, Charles

Lassman, Bita Naini, and Hanlin

Wang.

Gayana Kisiyan is the Administrative Sup-

port for Jonathan Said, M.D., Chief of Ana-

tomic Pathology.

Leslie Chew is the Administrative Support for

Doctors Michael C. Fishbein, W. Dean Wal-

lace, and Haodong Xu. She also assists the

autopsy services.

Bill Schram is the Administrative Support for

Doctors: Scott Nelson, Nicole Dawson, and

Steven Hart.

Tina Thomas is Administrative Sup-

port to Doctors: Harry Vinters, Mau-

rice Anthony Verity (Emeritus), Wil-

liam H. Yong, and Negar Khanlou.

Assistants to Faculty Members

Veronica Mani is the Administrative Support

to Doctors: Sophia Apple, Jiaoti Huang, Neda

Moatamed, and Susan Kerkoutian.

Carmen Jones (Interim) is the Administrative

Support to Doctors: Sarah Dry, Anthony

Butch, Kathleen Kelly, Thomas Drake, and

Lu Song.

Michael Richards (Interim) is the Adminis-

trative Support for Doctors; Linda Baum,

Kingshuk Das, Wayne Grody, Dennis Gold-

finger, Samuel Strom, Joshua Deignan and

Alyssa Ziman.

Nykole Cole is the Administrative Support for

Doctors Nagesh Rao, Fabiola Quintero-

Rivera, Carlos A. Tirado, and Sibel Kantarci.

Roya Hariri is the Administrative Support to

Doctors: Dinesh Rao, Sheeja Pullarkat, So-

phie Song, and Stephen Lee.

Vanessa Lira is the Administrative

Support to Scott Binder, M.D..

Senior Vice Chair/Director, Pathol-

ogy Clinical Services Chief,

Dermatopathology.

She is also the Administrative Support to

Doctors: Raymond Barnhill, Alistair Cochran,

Peter Sarantopoulos, Chandra Smart, Sharona

Yashar and Dana Haydel.

Jill Narciso is a Sr. Admin. Analyst

and is the assistant to Elaine Reed,

Ph.D,. Vice Chair for Research Ser-

vices, Director, UCLA Immunogenet-

ics Center.

Brenda Mueller is assistant to Gay Crooks,

MBBS, Professor, Rebecca Smith Chair in A-

T Research.

Sheri Klein is assistant to Elena Stark, M.D.,

Ph.D., Vice Chair for Medical and Dental

Education; Director, Integrative Anatomy;

Thread Chair, Anatomy and Histopathology,

School of Medicine.

Evelina Ter-Avetisyan is assistant to Peter

Tontonoz, M.D., Ph.D.

UCLA Pathology and Laboratory Medicine—Winter Edition February 2014 | Page 4

Benedick Aguas - CLS, Core Lab

Andrea M. Alvarez - SRA I, Immunogenetics

Emily Rader - Admin Specialist, Support Services

Thomas Truong - CLS, Blood Bank

Jessica Victorio - HLT II, Support Services

Jesus Villanueva, Jr. - HLT, Immunogenetics

Doris (He) Xu - HLT II, Cytology

Leticia Alvarez - CPT I, Support Services

Marlene Diosomito - CLS, Flow Cytometry

Debreguenet Fikru - CPT, Support Services

Shelly Rajput -Admin. Spec., Float Pool, Blood & Platelet Center

Maria Rayas-Rivera - Admin. Spec., Float Pool, Report Office

Alice Seidman - Hospital Medical Transcriber, Report Office

David Avalos - Health Info. Coder II

Laura Bedolla - HLT II, Outreach

Norma Meneses - CLS Sup., SMH

Alicia Middleton - HLT, Brentwood

Amanda Patrick - Admin. Spec., Path. Business Office

Philippe Quitevis - CLS, Blood Bank

Manmohan Sagoo - Health Info. Coder

Jackelyn Shinn - Sr. Admin. Analyst, Path Business Office

Nevine Wahba - Admin. Spec., Clinical Lab Report Office

Welcome New Employees

Steven King - MLT, Santa Monica Hospital

Raquel R. Sulat - CLS , Cytogenetics

Jennifer Yi - HTL I, Neuropathology

January 2014

December 2013 November 21, 2013

November 15, 2013 New members of the UIC team

Prabitha Natarajan—Postdoc Jesus Villanueva—HLT

Shontell Taylor—HLT

February 2014

Eric Basanes – CLS, Brentwood Annex

Vladimyria Caringal – CLS, Brentwood Annex

Ciara Stewart – CLS, BURL

Kerry Doughty – CLS Registry, Brentwood Annex

Alexander Funk – CLS, RRH Core Lab

Yan Li – CLA, Molecular Pathology

Caroline McNeal – CLS Registry, Brentwood Annex

Allison Nomura – Sr. CLS Specialist, Brentwood Annex

Diana Peraza – CPT I, SMH

Luke Sesco – Brentwood Annex

Xinhe Wei – CPT, RRH Core Lab

UCLA Pathology and Laboratory Medicine—Winter Edition February 2014 | Page 5

Holiday Events

Holiday Cheer! The Department of Pathology & Lab Medicine hosted

various inter-department holiday lunches to show appreciation for all

the hard work faculty and staff have provided throughout the year.

Pathology’s Got Heart - February

The ―Heart‖ of the Department of Pathology and Lab Medicine was on full display during the Countdown to Valentine’s Day

posted on the website and Facebook page. If you have slides or photos of interest to share (not just hearts!), please email them.

Small liver slide submitted by Dr.

Charles Lassman

Photographer Don-ny Dumani,

Submitted by Jef-

frey Petersen

GI slide Submitted

by Dr. Sarah Dry

Slide submitted by Dr. Michael Teitell

(by way of Steve

Peckman of the Broad Research and

stem Cell Center)

Genitourinary slide submitted by Dr.

Jiaoti Huang

Heart vessel slide

submitted by Dr.

Charles Lassman

Holiday Lunch Parties - December

Pathology’s Men of Movember - November

Left to Right: Philip Scumpia (Fellow, Dermatopathology), Serge Alexanian (Fellow, Dermatopathology), Matthew

DeNicola (Fellow, Hematopathology)

Movember, an annual worldwide event which sees gentlemen nurture fledgling

moustaches in an attempt to raise awareness of men’s health issues, has come to

UCLA Pathology!

While naysayers abounded, our inaugural year saw a jaw dropping THREE (3!)

volunteers take on the challenge. This tenacious trio braved the arched eyebrows

and stupefied stares of curious and/or horrified onlookers alike, showing us all the

true face of courage – or at the very least, blind single mindedness.

So next November when you see legions of (now inspired) pathologists and staff

roaming the halls of our great institution with a half baked attempt at a man-stache,

cut them some slack, give them a hug, and remember – it’s for a good cause people.

-Serge Alexanian

UCLA Pathology and Laboratory Medicine—Winter Edition February 2014 | Page 6

One of the goals of the Pathology Research Alumni Committee is to highlight publications from our current and

recently former graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, and residents in the departmental newsletter. If anyone

has additional publications (newly published, first-author only) that should be highlighted, please contact Doug

Smoot (dsmoot@mednet.ucla.edu).

-- Joshua Deignan, PhD, FACMG

Assistant Professor, Pathology & Laboratory Medicine

Chair, Pathology

Research Alumni Committee

PATHOLOGY RESEARCH ALUMNI COMMITTEE & PUBLICATIONS

PUBLICATIONS:

November 2013 – February 2014

GSRs:

Maomeng Tong – GSR (Jonathan Braun lab)

A modular organization of the human intestinal mucosal microbiota

and its association with inflammatory bowel disease.

Tong M, Li X, Wegener Parfrey L, Roth B, Ippoliti A, Wei B,

Borneman J, McGovern DP, Frank DN, Li E, Horvath S, Knight R,

Braun J.

PLoS One. 2013 Nov 19;8(11):e80702. doi: 10.1371/

journal.pone.0080702. eCollection 2013.

Parissa Solaimani – recent GSR (Oliver Hankinson lab)

Genome-wide RNAi high-throughput screen identifies proteins nec-

essary for the AHR-dependent induction of CYP1A1 by 2,3,7,8-

tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin.

Solaimani P, Damoiseaux R, Hankinson O.

Toxicol Sci. 2013 Nov;136(1):107-19. doi: 10.1093/toxsci/kft191.

Epub 2013 Aug 31.

Xin Rong – CMP Student (Peter Tontonoz lab)

LXRs regulate ER stress and inflammation through dynamic modu-

lation of membrane phospholipid composition.

Rong X, Albert CJ, Hong C, Duerr MA, Chamberlain BT, Tarling

EJ, Ito A, Gao J, Wang B, Edwards PA, Jung ME, Ford DA, Tonto-

noz P.

Cell Metab. 2013 Nov 5;18(5):685-97. doi: 10.1016/

j.cmet.2013.10.002.

Airie Kim – CMP Graduate (Tomas Ganz lab)

A mouse model of anemia of inflammation: complex pathogenesis

with partial dependence on hepcidin.

Kim A, Fung E, Parikh SG, Valore EV, Gabayan V, Nemeth E,

Ganz T.

Blood. 2013 Dec 19. [Epub ahead of print]

Jeanette Grant – CMP Graduate (Steven Dubinett lab)

A Novel Molecular Pathway for Snail-Dependent, SPARC-

Mediated Invasion in Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer Pathogenesis.

Grant JL, Fishbein MC, Hong LS, Krysan K, Minna JD, Shay JW,

Walser TC, Dubinett SM.

Cancer Prev Res (Phila). 2014 Jan;7(1):150-60. doi: 10.1158/1940-

6207.CAPR-13-0263. Epub 2013 Nov 19.

Cell Metab. 2013 Jul 2;18(1):106-17. doi: 10.1016/

j.cmet.2013.04.021.

Post Docs:

Yoko Kidani - postdoc (Steven Bensinger lab)

Lipids rule: resetting lipid metabolism restores T cell function in

systemic lupus erythematosus.

Kidani Y, Bensinger SJ.J Clin Invest. 2014 Feb 3;124(2):482-5. doi:

10.1172/JCI74141. Epub 2014 Jan 27.

Nicole Valenzuela- current postdoc (Elaine Reed lab)

Antibodies in transplantation: the effects of HLA and non-HLA

antibody binding and mechanisms of injury.

Valenzuela NM, Reed EF.

Methods Mol Biol. 2013;1034:41-70. doi: 10.1007/978-1-62703-

493-7_2.

Nicole Valenzuela - currentpostdoc (Elaine Reed lab)

Antibody-mediated graft injury: complement-dependent and com-

plement-independent mechanisms.

Valenzuela NM, McNamara JT, Reed EF.

Curr Opin Organ Transplant. 2014 Feb;19(1):33-40. doi: 10.1097/

MOT.0000000000000040.

Residents/Fellows:

Aaron W. James - Resident

Review of signaling pathways governing MSC osteogenic and adi-

pogenic differentiation.

Scientifica. Dec 12 2013, Epub ahead of print. Invited Spotlight

Article.

Aaron W. James - Resident

Abnormal karyotypes in osteochondroma: Case series and literature

review.

James AW, Tirado CA, Levine B, Dry SM.

J Orthop, Dec 2013, In press.

Aaron W. James- Resident

Clavicular and meningeal alveolar soft part sarcoma: An unusual

case and literature review.

James, AW, Chang L, Levine B, Dry SM.;

J Orthop, Dec 2013, In press.

Albert Su – current Resident

Malignant melanoma with neural differentiation: an exceptional

case report and brief review of the pertinent literature.

Su A, Dry SM, Binder SW, Said J, Shintaku P, Sarantopoulos GP.

Am J Dermatopathol. 2014 Jan;36(1):e5-9. doi: 10.1097/

DAD.0b013e31828cf90a.

Annie Wu – current Resident

Bifid cardiac apex in a 25-year-old male with sudden cardiac death.

Wu A, Kay D, Fishbein MC.

Cardiovasc Pathol. 2014 Jan-Feb;23(1):59-60. doi: 10.1016/

j.carpath.2013.06.003. Epub 2013 Aug 6.

UCLA Pathology and Laboratory Medicine—Winter Edition February 2014 | Page 7

Upcoming IMED Seminars

Date Photo Speaker Subject Location

Feb. 26th @

12pm

Craig Venter, Ph.D. Life at the Speed of Light NRB Auditorium

March 5th @

12pm

Thomas Sudhof, M.D. Towards a Molecular Understanding of

Synapse Formation, Autism, and Schiz-

ophrenia: Neurexins and Company

NRB Auditorium

March 6th @

12pm

Steve Rosenberg, M.D.,

Ph.D

The Curative Potential of T Cell Immu-

notherapy for Cancer

NRB Auditorium

March 19th @

12pm

Joan Steitz Ph.D. Noncoding RNAs: With a Viral Twist NRB Auditorium

March 26th @

12pm

George Church, Ph.D. TBA NRB Auditorium

April 2nd @

12pm

Jeanie Buss TBA NRB Auditorium

April 4th @

12pm

Robert Roeder, Ph.D. TBA NRB Auditorium

April 9th @

12pm

Doug Melton, Ph.D TBA NRB Auditorium

April 23rd @

12pm

Margaret Hamburg, M.D. TBA NRB Auditorium

April 23rd @

12pm

James Spudich, Ph.D. TBA NRB Auditorium

May 28th @

12pm

David Kessler, M.D. The End of Overeating NRB Auditorium

UCLA Pathology and Laboratory Medicine—Winter Edition February 2014 | Page 8

UCLA Blood & Platelet Center

The UCLA Blood & Platelet Center is very proud to have been

featured on the front page of the Daily Bruin! More Info.

Remember to donate blood at either our Gayley or Ackerman

locations! Our patients are depending upon you!

Make an appointment today: CLICK HERE

Contact - (310) 825-0888

Email - gotblood@ucla.edu

Department News

Visit UCLA Clinical Genomics at ACMG

March 25-29 | More info

UCLA Immunogenetics—Cell Exchange

Lead SRA Arlene Locke presented data from a pilot study at the 39th Annual meeting of the American Society for

Histocompatibility and Immunogenetics in Chicago, IL, on November 17-21, 2013. The pilot study was initiated

in August, 2012 by the International Cell Exchange Program at the UCLA Immunogenetics Center, a program

which provides laboratories around the world with a means to validate their typing methods and reagents. The goal

of the pilot study was to develop a PT survey to correlate antibody testing and virtual crossmatch prediction

through the comparison of MFI data with flow crossmatch outcomes among centers. Analysis of the data led to the

conclusion that the incorporation of solid phase assays into proficiency testing surveys based on flow cytometric

crossmatch tests should be considered.

The International Cell Exchange celebrates its 40th anniversary this year and will soon feature the Flow Crossmatch Exchange,

which will test two cells with known types against four unknown sera, with the purpose of comparing MFI data with crossmatch

outcome. The exchange will be shipped three times per year, with the first shipment scheduled for April 9, 2014. Single antigen and

flow crossmatch results will be reported online via the Cell Exchange Program website. | More Info

Today our Patients at UCLA Need:

Visit UCLA Pathology Outreach at USCAP

March 1 –7 | More Info

Annual Meetings

Newsletter Committee: Arnold Scheer, Daisy Castro, Khanh Andrews, Karyn Greenstone,

Bushra Yasin

Send us your suggestions for future newsletters at : Email Dcastro@mednet.ucla.edu