RESEARCH FUNDING: Despite the continued highly difficult funding environment at NIH, NSF and other agencies, the 2010-2011 academic year was actually a growth year for our department with total research funding increasing by 29% over last year to a total of $7,584,726. Total NIH research funding in the department was $6,303,6928 (total costs). Our department is ranked 15th nationally in research funding among all public University Physiology Departments and 28th among 127 public and private medical schools. Also noteworthy is the fact our department is second among all departments at the Medical Center in the number of NIH grants held and first in the number of NIH R01 grants held. Nearly every faculty member’s research program was supported by major external funding. It is a tribute to the dedication and talent of our faculty that the department has continued to do so well in spite of a very difficult funding environment at NIH.
EDUCATION: Dr. Merrill Tarr, Director of Medical Education for the department, continues to play a major role in running the two modules of the medical curriculum - Cardiopulmonary and Renal-Endocrine. To the credit of all the individual faculty instructors and particularly to Merrill, the Cardiopulmonary and Renal-Endocrine modules were both rated highly by the students. This was again another very successful year in terms of teaching awards. At the “Grande Affair” celebration in April, Dr. John Wood and Dr. Gustavo Blanco were recognized for excellence in teaching. They each won the Student Voice Award for “Outstanding Lecturer” in the first year of the medical curriculum. This continues what is now many consecutive years for each of them winning this award. We congratulate both John and Gustavo on their teaching success. And once again this year our department was the recipient of the “Outstanding Module in the First Year” award which went to Cardio-pulmonary. Dr. Tarr serves as director of this module and he deserves a lot of credit for its success.
The medical curriculum will expand to a full four year program at Wichita with eight students starting next year and eventually expanding to about 25. Particularly noteworthy is the fact that a former long-term member of our department, Dr. Dennis Valenzeno, was recruited from his roles as Associate Dean for Medical and Pre-Medical Programs and Director of the Alaska WWAMI Biomedical Program at the University of Alaska at Anchorage to become Associate Dean for Medical Sciences and Chair of the Department of Medical Sciences at the University of Kansas Medical Center at Wichita. Congratulations to our long-time friend and colleague and welcome back. A four year program will also be initiated in Salina with eight students entering the program in the Fall of 2011.
MORE STATE RESCISSION: The rescission continued this year with our department returning another 5% of state funding. This continues to be a painful exercise that has resulted in permanent elimination of faculty and staff positions. We look forward to better times in the future and hopefully a year with no more rescissions.
TENURE TRACK APPOINTMENTS: We are pleased and excited to have added Dr. Shri Anant to the department as a new full professor. In addition to his appointment in our department, Shri is Associate Director of Cancer Prevention and Control within the University of Kansas Cancer Center. He is also Associate Dean for Research and Graduate Studies in the School of Medicine. Prior to joining our department, Shri led the gastrointestinal cancers program at the University of Oklahoma Cancer Institute where he was also director of gastroenterology research. Among Shri’s many research accomplishments is the discovery of a new gene, RBM3, which can transform normal cells in to cancer cells. Blocking the expression of RBM3 causes the cancer cells to die. He is also well known for determining the mechanism of action of natural products such as curcumin in preventing cancer. Shri is a key member of a new research theme within our department focusing on the pathophysiology of cancer.
RESEARCH TRACK APPOINTMENTS: There were many new appointments to the research track during the year.
Satish Ramalingam, Ph.D. was appointed at the assistant professor level. Satish was recruited from the University of Oklahoma Medical Center and works closely with Dr. Anant. Satish’s research interest is the role of RNA binding proteins in tumor progression and metastasis.
Dharmalingam (Dharma) Subramaniam, Ph.D. was appointed at the assistant professor level. Dharma was also recruited from the University of Oklahoma Medical Center with Dr. Anant. Dharma works on the mechanisms by which gastric epithelial cells respond to the small peptide hormones gastrin and pro-gastrin, and also the pathophysiology of infection by Helicobacter pylori. He also has an interest in mechanisms by which dietary phyto-chemicals inhibit the growth of colon and pancreatic cancer cells.
Lynda McGinnis, Ph.D. was appointed to the research track as an assistant professor. Lynda received her Ph.D. from our department working with Dr. David Albertini and then has been working as a postdoctoral fellow with Bill Kinsey. Her research interest focuses on the embryonic developmental effects of in-vitro manipulation techniques commonly used for in vitro fertilization.
Vijayalaxmi (Vijay) Gupta, Ph.D. was appointed as research assistant professor. She received her Ph.D. from Mumbai University in India and has been working as a postdoctoral fellow with Dr. Tash since 2007. Her work focuses on the male contraceptive agent H2-Gamendezole and the effects of microgravity on reproductive health.
Prabhu Ramamoorthy, Ph.D. joined the department at the assistant professor level from the University of Kansas, Lawrence. His research interest is the regulation of hypoxia protein-1 (HIF-1) in cortical neurons during ischemia. He will be working closely with Dr. Anant as a mentor.
JOINT AND ADJUNCT APPOINTMENTS: Several secondary appointments to the department were made.
Danny Welch, Ph.D., was given a joint appointment as professor in the department. He is Chair of the new Department of Cancer Biology and also serves as Associate Director of Basic Science within the University of Kansas Cancer Center. His research interest is tumor progression and metastasis. He interacts closely with the cancer biology members of our department.
Alan Yu, MB, BChir, was given a joint appointment as professor in the department. Alan is the new Director of the Kidney Institute and also division director of nephrology within the department of Internal Medicine. Before joining KUMC, Alan was an associate professor of medicine, physiology and biophysics at the Keck School of Medicine at the University of Southern California. His research interest is the molecular and structural basis of paracellular epithelial transport and its regulation. Paracellular transport refers to transport in between cells.
Rachel Williams, Ph.D., is a recent graduate of our department. She was given an adjunct appointment as research instructor. Her current position is senior research scientist with the Midwest Neuroscience Institute in Lenexa, KS. She is involved with the research program of the Institute which includes animal studies that utilize some of the resources of the Medical Center.
FACULTY PROMOTIONS: Congratulations to Dr. Paige Geiger who was promoted to associate professor with tenure. Paige’s research focuses on the mechanism of insulin resistance and its role in type II diabetes. In addition to her NIH funded research program, she makes an integral contribution to both the medical and graduate education programs of the department.
FACULTY/STAFF DEPARTURES:
Linda Carr retires as department administrator: After 31 years and 11 months of service to the Physiology Department, Linda Carr decided the time was right to retire. Linda had a very difficult year starting in June of 2010 with acute and severe stricture of the colon requiring surgery and hospitalization for many weeks. The good news is that Linda has made a complete recovery and is enjoying retirement immensely. Linda was a storehouse of knowledge about the department and medical center. She led the Physiology office with great efficiency and dedication throughout her tenure. We all deeply appreciate her contributions to the department and her continuing friendship.
FACULTY AWARDS/ACCOMPLISHMENTS:
Merrill Tarr wins three teaching awards: Congratulations to Dr. Tarr on winning three teaching awards over the past year and a half. Merrill won the Bohan Teaching Award in 2009, which was presented at the annual Education retreat. He also won the Chancellor's Club Distinguished Teaching award, which was recognized at the 2010 Commencement in May; and the Kemper teaching award, which was presented at a medical student lecture in September. Merrill has done a remarkable job as Director of Medical Education in the Department and theses awards are well deserved.
Numerous members of our faculty served on NIH grant review panels, editorial boards for journals and gave invited lectures at other Universities and at national and international meetings.
GRADUATE PROGRAM AND PHYSIOLOGY SOCIETY: The graduate students in the department had another active year. The “Physiology Society” leadership included Eva Selfridge as President, Ed Urban as Vice President and Valentine Agbor as Social Event Coordinator. We are very pleased with the growth of the graduate program in Physiology. In August of 2010, six new students were recruited to the department. Including students who are working at Stowers with faculty members who have their academic appointment in Physiology, we now have forty doctoral students actively enrolled in the department.
Nine students completed their degrees during the year. Emily McDonald (July 12, 2010) received her degree with Dr. Wolfe. The title of her dissertation was “A Role for Adiponectin in Trophoblast Function.” Emily has a post-doctoral position at Brown University. Jie Chao (August 20, 2010) received his degree with Dr. Gonzalez. The title of his dissertation was “Mechanisms of Microvascular Inflammation Induced by Alveolar Hypoxia. Jie is now a post-doctoral research associate in the Cellular and Integrative Physiology Department at the University of Nebraska Medical Center. Sarah Tague (March 21, 2011) received her degree with Dr. Smith. The title of her dissertation was “Vitamin D Deficiency causes Musculoskeletal Hypersensitivity: The Role of Nociceptor Hyperinnervation.” Sarah decided to stay at KUMC for a post-doctoral fellowship with Dr. Peter Smith. Heather Hudson (April 12, 2011) received her Ph.D. with Dr. Cheney. The title of her dissertation was “Cortiospinal Output to Hindlimb Muscles in the Primate.” Heather is now a post-doctoral fellow in the Neurology Department at the University of Minnesota. Brittany Gorres (April 15, 2011) received her degree with Dr. Geiger. The title of her dissertation was “Estrogen Receptor Regulation of Glucose and Fat Metabolism in the Skeletal Muscle and Adipose Tissue.” Brittany is now an Assistant Professor of Physiology at Cleveland Chiropractic College. Tamara Jimenez Alarcon (June 7, 2011) received her degree with Dr. Blanco. The title of her dissertation was “The Na,K-ATPase α4 Isoform: Mechanisms of Action, Regulation and Relevance to Male Fertility.” Tamara also decided to stay at KUMC as a post-doctoral fellow with Dr. Gustavo Blanco. Won-Mee Park (June 10, 2011) received her degree with Dr. Belousov. The title of her dissertation was “Interplay of Chemical Neurotransmitters Regulates Developmental Increase in Electrical Synapses.” Won-Mee is now a post-doctoral fellow in the Department of Internal Medicine at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas, TX. Jill Morris (June 17, 2011) received her degree with Dr. Geiger. The title of her dissertation was “Nigrostriatal Dopamine Function and Insulin Resistance.” Jill stayed at KUMC for a post-doctoral fellow with Dr. Paige Geiger. And finally, Kendall Smith (June 29, 2011) received her degree with Dr. Hawley. The title of her dissertation was “Characterization of Matrimony’s Role as a Polo Kinase Regulator during Drosophila Female Meiosis.” Kendall is an MD/PhD student and is now finishing up her medical degree at KUMC. Congratulations to all of them and their mentors.
Prepared by:
Dr. Paul D. Cheney
Professor and Chair
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The University of Kansas Medical Center