UAB Synopsis, Vol. 25, No. 5, February 27, 2006
The University of Alabama Health Services Foundation (UAHSF) and its General Endowment Fund (GEF) Committee recently awarded approximately $4.25 million in research grants for the 2006 calendar year. After careful evaluation by the respective Review Group Committees, recommendations were made to the GEF Committee and then to the UAHSF Executive Committee and Board of Directors for approval.
“The Health Services Foundation is an integral part of the UAB community,” UAHSF President Ray L. Watts, MD, says. “Our goal is to help ensure the success of all School of Medicine departments and divisions.
“In fact, I don’t know of another medical school faculty practice plan that invests in open, peer-reviewed grants of such magnitude to support its academic mission,” adds Dr. Watts, who also chairs the Department of Neurology.
The grants fund initiatives in four research categories: clinical care, laboratory research, patient care research, and medical education. The awards enable university-wide projects benefitting UAHSF and the School of Medicine.
Recruitment of top-notch physician-scientists is also a key priority. Some $700,000 was allocated to the Scholar Award Program to attract distinguished scientists and clinicians who bring unusual potential or accomplishments to School of Medicine research. This year, the Scholars Award Program is offering seven $100,000 awards to enhance already established recruitment packages for exceptional faculty considering UAB.
Clinical Care Initiatives ($708,611)
• Nathaniel Robin, MD, Genetics, “Integrated Program for Evaluation and Treatment of Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension,” $160,000
• John Lucas III, MD, Ob/Gyn, “Center for Fertility Preservation in Cancer Survivors,” $198,061
• Lincoln Berland, MD, Radiology, “Development of Laboratory for 3D/Post-Processing of Radiological Imaging Examinations,” $150,000
• Devin Eckhoff, MD, Surgery, “Bereavement Support Services for Patients and Families Facing End of Life Issues,” $134,550
• Barton Guthrie, MD, Surgery,“Multi-modality Image Registration for Clinical/Investigative Applications,” $66,000
Laboratory Initiatives ($1,581,197)
• Patrick Higgins, PhD, Biochemistry, “Production of HEEBO Oligonucleotide Microarrays for Analysis of Human Genome Structure & Function,” $110,000
• Alan Eberhardt, PhD, Biomedical Engineering, “Enhancement of a Biomechanics Core with Low Force Testing,” $175,000
• Robert Kesterson, PhD, Genetics, “Establishment of Mice With Human Hemapoietic Systems,” $147,900
• Robert Carter, MD, Medicine, “Upgrade of AMC Flow Core Digital Vangate,” $47,500
• Tim Nagy, PhD, Nutrition Sciences, “Enhancement of Small Animal Phenotyping: Energetics and Body Composition,” $279,379
• Andrea Frost, MD, Pathology, “Updated — Multi-institutional Core Laboratory for Laser Microdissection,” $121,400
• Harald Sontheimer, PhD, Neurobiology, “Purchase of a high-resolution 4-D Spinning Disk Confocal Time-Lapse Video-Microscopy Workstation,” $150,000
• Bruce Korf, MD, Genetics, “Enhancement of DNA Sequencing and Microarray Facilities in Heflin Center for Human Genetics,” $350,000
• Stephen Barnes, PhD, Pharmacology, “A TOF-TOF Mass Spectrometer for Tissue Imaging and High Throughput Peptide Sequencing,” $200,000
Medical Education Initiatives ($115,350)
• Louis Justement, PhD, Microbiology, “Medical Students Scholar Research Program,” $65,350
• Craig Hoesley, MD, Medicine, “UAB Equal Access Clinic,” $10,000
• Stan Massey, MD, Medicine, “Preparing the Clinical Skills Center to Train & Assess New Domains of Professional Compentence,” $40,000
Patient Research Initiatives ($1,076,586)
• Larry Moreland, MD, Medicine, “Building Infrastructure in the GCRC,” $499,877
• David Calhoun, MD, Medicine, “Establishment of Two Research Beds with Full Sleep-Monitoring Capabilities,” $176,709
• Jeffrey Stringer, MD, Ob/Gyn, “Expanded UAB Center for Patient-Oriented Research in Lusaka, Zambia,” $400,000