CUIMC Update - Feb. 15, 2022
CUIMC Update is a weekly e-newsletter featuring medical center news and the accomplishments of our faculty, staff, and trainees. Please send your news, honors, and awards to cuimc_update@cumc.columbia.edu. Grants are provided by the Sponsored Projects Administration office.
NEWS
Welcome Assembly for Katrina Armstrong on Feb. 28
The CUIMC community is invited to attend an assembly to welcome incoming CUIMC and VP&S leader Katrina Armstrong, MD, on Monday, Feb. 28, at 5 p.m. in the Alumni Auditorium. All are welcome to attend, either in person or virtually. Those who plan to attend virtually should register here.
Three Columbia Physician-Scientists Named to American Society for Clinical Investigation
Markus David Siegelin, MD, Associate Professor of Pathology & Cell Biology, Anne-Catrin Uhlemann, MD, PhD, Associate Professor of Medicine, and Shan Zha, MD, PhD, James A. Wolff Professor of Pediatrics, were elected to the American Society for Clinical Investigation. Read more.
CUIMC Celebrates Black History Month
Join the CUIMC community to celebrate Black History Month in February. The events, sponsored by CUIMC HR and the African, Black, and Caribbean Employee Resource Group, will culminate with a virtual celebration of Black history and culture later this week.
In Case You Missed It: Campus Update Forum
Last week’s Campus Update Forum for faculty, researchers, and staff discussed updates on COVID-19 plans for spring 2022 and the campus work environment. View recording.
VP&S Cardiologist: What Black Women Should Know About Heart Disease
Black American women are more likely than white women to develop heart disease, with stress and structural racism playing a role. Marwah Abdalla, MD, MPH, assistant professor of medicine at VP&S, explains this disparity and what measures patients, physicians, and policymakers can take to improve heart health in this vulnerable population. Read more.
VP&S Researchers: We Need to Know More About Long COVID in Kids
VP&S researchers could receive up to $9.4 million to learn about long COVID in children and young adults as part of NIH’s REsearching COVID to Enhance Recovery (RECOVER) initiative. Read more.
VP&S and Mailman Research: Common Virus May Cause Serious Disease in Transplant Patients
A common virus that causes no harm in most people may be a danger to organ transplant recipients and other immunocompromised people, according to a study by VP&S and Mailman researchers. Read more.
Building Better Representation in Psychiatry’s Ranks
Only 10% of practicing psychiatrists in the United States are from underrepresented groups, an imbalance that negatively affects patients and the profession. A Columbia summer program spearheaded by Patrice Malone, MD, assistant professor of psychiatry, introduces medical students from racially and ethnically diverse backgrounds to the specialty in an effort to boost the numbers. Read more.
GRANTS
VAGELOS COLLEGE OF PHYSICIANS AND SURGEONS
Atlas Khan, PhD, Medicine will receive $846,230 over five years from the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases for “Predictive utility of polygenic risk scores for chronic kidney disease.”
Tal Korem, PhD, Systems Biology, will receive $3,404,285 over five years from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development for “A large scale investigation of the vaginal metagenome and metabolome and their role in spontaneous preterm birth.”
Cathy Lee Mendelsohn, PhD, Urology, will receive $500,000 over two years from the JPB Foundation for “Investigating the link between diabetes, urothelial differentiation, and bladder cancer.”
Anne Moscona, MD, Pediatrics, will receive $3,639,039 over five years from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases for “Engineering protease-resistant antiviral peptide inhibitors for SARS-CoV-2.”
Jonathan Overdevest, MD, Otolaryngology/Head & Neck Surgery, will receive $893,050 over five years from the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders for “Neurocognitive & neuropsychiatric impact of chemosensory alterations: Implications of olfactory dysfunction in COVID-19.”
AWARDS AND HONORS
Sandra Soo-Jin Lee, PhD, Medical Humanities & Ethics; Katrina A. Armstrong, MD, incoming Chief Executive Officer for Columbia University Irving Medical Center; and Molly Przeworski, PhD, Biological Sciences and Systems Biology, have been appointed by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine to serve on the Committee on the Use of Race, Ethnicity, and Ancestry as Population Descriptors in Genomics Research.
EVENTS
A Virtual Talk With Dr. Ibram X. Kendi About Anti-Racism, Feb. 16, 6 p.m., register here.
What Pediatricians and Obstetricians Should Know About Prenatal Genetic Testing Today, Feb. 16, 6 p.m., register here.
CopeColumbia’s New Workshop Series: Surviving Pandemic Fallout, Feb. 17 - March 10, 12 p.m., register here.
Charles R. Drew Black History Month Blood Drive, Feb. 17, 10 a.m. - 4 p.m., 50 Haven Ave., Main Lounge, sign up here.
Writing Effective Op-eds and Columns: A Virtual Learning Workshop, Feb. 17, 2:30 p.m., register here.
Institute of Human Nutrition Seminar Series - Alexis Stranahan, PhD, Feb. 17, 4 p.m., view here.
Employee Appreciation Meals have been extended through Feb. 18. Learn more.
Ethical Challenges in the Care of the Critically Ill Newborn with Dr. Mark Mercurio, Feb. 23, 6:30 p.m., register here.
2021 Louisa Gross Horwitz Lectures and Awards Presentation, March 1, 10 a.m., 3:30 p.m., and 4:35 p.m., register here.
ACE Master Clinician Mentorship Series - Session 2: "Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Excellence in Mentorship,” March 3, 8 a.m., register here.
Going from Micro-aggressions to Micro-interventions, March 3, 2 p.m., register here.
For more events, visit the CUIMC Events listing.