Issue 15 February 22, 2013

Patricia W. Finn, MD - Department Chair

George T. Kondos, MD (gtkondos@uic.edu) Vice Chair for Clinical Affairs Fred Zar, MD (fazar@uic.edu) Vice Chair for Education Dean Schraufnagel, MD (schrauf@uic.edu) Vice Chair for Faculty Affairs Chet Szerlag, MBA (cszerlag@uic.edu) Vice Chair for Finance Jason Yuan, MD, PhD (jxyuan@uic.edu) Vice Chair for Scholarly Activity Max Brito, MD, MPH (mbrito@uic.edu) Vice Chair for Urban Global Health

Updates from the Chair

Team Member of the Week: Lisa Tussing-Humphreys

Lisa Tussing-Humphreys, PhD, MS, RD, is an assistant professor in the Division of Health Promotion Research. She received her PhD in human nutrition from UIC in 2009 and holds a masters degree in nutritional sciences from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and a bachelors degree in clinical dietetics from SUNY Buffalo. After completing her doctoral degree at UIC she accepted a position with the USDA Agricultural Research Service in Baton Rouge, LA where she conducted a church-based diet and physical activity efficacy intervention for African American adults residing in the Lower Mississippi Delta region. During her doctoral training at UIC, she examined the mechanisms linking obesity to dysregulated iron metabolism in premenopausal women. Her passion for this work prompted Lisa to leave her USDA post and return to UIC in July 2012. She hopes to expand upon her earlier research and pursue an independent research career examining how altered iron metabolism in obese individuals may be associated with greater intestinal and gynecologic cancer risk. She also collaborates with researchers from the UIC College of Nursing, USDA, and Louisiana State University to examine the impact of maternal obesity on maternal and neonatal inflammation, iron status, and health outcomes. She was recently awarded an American Cancer Society, Illinois Division grant to investigate the impact of a community-based diet and physical activity intervention in reducing cancer risk in older obese African American adults. Dr. Tussing-Humphreys is a UIC Womens Health research associate and serves as the assistant director for the University of Illinois Cancer Center Diet and Behavior Shared Resource, heading the dietary data collection and management team. Dr. Tussing-Humphreys spends her free time cooking, listening to music (her favorite artist is Morrissey), and going to concerts with her husband Tim.
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Go Red Por Tu Corazon

The Go Red Por Tu Corazon workshop will be held on February 28, 2013 at the Consulate General of Mexico, 204 S. Ashland, Chicago, IL from 10a-1p. The University of Illinois Hospital and Health Sciences System will partner with the American Heart Association in planning meetings and providing Spanish language speaking health care providers for the Consulate General of Mexicos office Community Partners. Currently, there about 150 partners and usually about half of the organizations are represented at the event. The workshops are meant to encourage open dialog between these agencies and the American Heart Association on topics affecting cardiovascular disease and stroke within the Latino Community. To learn more, visit: http://english.goredcorazon.org/ or contact 773-738-2383 x. 1240.
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News from Pulmonary

Sharmilee Nyenhuis, MD, assistant professor in the Division of Pulmonary, Critical Care, Sleep, and Allergy has been awarded the 2013 ARTrust Mini Grant by the Allergy, Asthma & Immunology Education and Research Orgainization of the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology. Her project is entitled Polyunsaturated Lysohposphatidic Acid as a Potential Asthma Biomaker in Exhale Breath Condensates.
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CCTS Funding Opportunities

The UICs Center for Clinical and Translational Science (CCTS) has issued the following RFAs: KL2 Scholars Program for Postdoctoral Junior Faculty in Clinical and Translational Research, and TL1 PECTS Program for Pre-doctoral Clinical and Translational Research. The KL2 Scholars Program is a mentored postdoctoral training program that supports junior faculty in clinical disciplines as they transition to independent investigators. The application deadline is March 11, 2013. The TL1 PECTS Program supports the dissertation research of biomedical PhD candidates as they pursue careers in translational research. The application deadline is March 12, 2013. If interested, contact Lauren T. Walsh, investigator interface coordinator, Center for Clinical and Translational Science, at laurenw@uic.edu.
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Birth Announcement
We congraulate Luci Chen, MD, and her husband Steve Churman, MD, PhD, on the birth of their son, Zachary Chen Chmura. Zachary was born on January 31, 2013 at 1:41pm weighing 7 lbs. 7 oz. and measuring 20.5 inches. Dr. Chen is an assistant pofessor in the Division of Hematology/Oncology.
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131st COM Commencement

The 131st College of Medicines Commencement will take place on Friday, May 10, 2013 at 1:30pm at the UIC Pavillion. The Department of Medicine encourages all faculty to attend the commencement cermony. Interested faculty should contact Michael Paprzyca (paprzyca@uic.edu) to order cap and gown (free of charge) before the February 28, 2013 deadline. Students appreciate faculty participation during one of the most important days of their lives and hope to see you there!

Upcoming Events
Tuesday, February 26, 2013, 8:00 am 9:00 am, COMRB, 909 S. Wolcott Ave., Moss Auditorium DOM Grand Rounds
Familial and Hereditary GI Cancers and the Time for Personalized Medicine presented by Xavier Llor, MD

Tuesday, February 26, 2013, 3:00 pm 4:00 pm, COMRB, 909 S. Wolcott Ave., Moss Auditorium Advanced Cardiac MRI Imaging to Explore Basic Pathophysiologic Concepts in Atrial Fibrillation and Ventricular Tachycardia
Presented by Jeffrey J. Goldberger, MD, Professor of Medicine, Director of Cardiac Electrophysiology Research, Northwestern University

Wednesday, February 27, 2013, 8:30am 2:00pm, the Hilton Chicago Go Red for Women Community Expo
The Division of Cardiology and the University of Illinois Hospital & Health Sciences System are sponsoring this event, presented by the American Heart Association. To learn more and to register visit: http://www.chicagogoredforwomen.org/

Do you have questions, comments, updates, or good news for future issues? Contact Michael Paprzyca at paprzyca@uic.edu