Category: news

The University System of Georgia Board of Regents voted in February to authorize the University of Georgia to establish a new independent School of Medicine in Athens. This new independent school springs from the foundation of the Augusta University/University of Georgia Medical Partnership, which has been educating medical students in Athens since 2010. The CTRU is excited for this new medical school and new opportunities for clinical research in Georgia. Full story here.

Join us Monday, May 10 for the Regenerative Engineering & Medicine Center’s annual (virtual) retreat, hosted by the University of Georgia, Georgia Tech, and Emory University. Advances in the delivery of molecular and biological therapeutics that will enhance the body’s ability to heal itself will be discussed, along with opportunities to meet and collaborate with PIs who will apply to the 2021-2022 “Therapeutic Delivery Innovation Initiative” collaborative grant RFA on this topic.

The free event will feature a keynote presentation from Dr. Ted Ross, “Universal Vaccines for Flu and COVID-19,” along with other engaging talks on innovation in therapeutics. Faculty who wish to apply to the “Therapeutic Delivery Innovation Initiative” collaborative grant RFA should submit their proposal by June 25.

Thanks to @UGAResearch for a great story on UGA’s partnership in the Georgia Clinical and Translational Science Alliance (Georgia CTSA). We are proud to help contribute to the Georgia CTSA’s mission of improving the health of Georgians by engaging the state’s communities, training and supporting researchers and clinicians, and translating health research for the benefit of society.

Eight CTRU seed grants were recently awarded to investigator teams to start new clinical and translational research studies using CTRU resources. The CTRU is excited to work with these principal investigators and their studies in the coming year:

Benjamin Brainard, VMD (Dept. of Small Animal Medicine and Surgery).  Title: Examination of Transmission of Multi-Drug Resistant Gram Negative Bacteria between Companion Animals and Human Owners.

Leidong Mao, PhD (College of Engineering). Title: Microfluidic isolation of clusters of circulating tumor cells from metastatic breast cancer patients.

Sheba MohanKumar, PhD and P.S. MohanKumar, PhD (Dept. of Veterinary Biosciences & Diagnostic Imaging).  Title: Sensitive, cost-effective, microfluidics-based assay for detecting breast cancer biomarkers.

Jarrod Mousa, PhD and Ted Ross, PhD (Dept. of Infectious Diseases/Center for Vaccines and Immunology). Title: Vaccine-elicited antibody responses to the hemagglutinin protein in HIV-positive individuals.

Balazs Rada, PhD (Dept. of Infectious Diseases).  Title: Association of autoimmunity with diabetes in cystic fibrosis.

Becky Stone, DPH (Augusta University Institute of Public and Preventative Health). Title: REMEDY Study (Remote Outpatient Temperature Monitoring for Early Detection of Febrile Neutropenia after Chemotherapy).

Gregory Strauss, PhD and Lawrence Sweet, PhD (Dept. of Psychology).  Title: Mechanisms of Amotivation in Youth at Clinical High-Risk for Psychosis.

Janani Thapa, PhD (Dept. of Healthy Policy and Management).  Title: Pilot study on technology-enhanced health coaching intervention for low-income patients with multiple chronic conditions.

We would like to thank all who applied for the seed grant awards this year. The quantity and quality of the applications far surpassed our expectations, and we are grateful for the continued interest in the CTRU.

The Clinical and Translational Research Unit (CTRU) has just announced an opportunity for FY20 funding (up to $40,000) to support pilot studies based in the CTRU. Proposals are due by May 31, 2019. For more details, please review the seed grant announcement.

Dr. Lilian Sattler and Dr. Renad Abu-Sawwa, of the UGA Clinical & Administrative Pharmacy Department, along with Drs. Sandra Dunbar and Arshed Quyyumi of Emory University, have written an article entitled, “Nutrition intervention in heart failure: should consumption of the DASH eating pattern be recommended to improve outcomes?” The article covers known details of nutritional status in heart failure patients as well as providing preliminary evidence for recommending the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) diet to this patient population. To read this article, please see:

Abu-Sawwa, R., Dunbar, S.B., Quyyumi, A.A. et al. Heart Fail Rev (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10741-019-09781-6

The Clinical and Translational Research Unit (CTRU) has just announced an opportunity for FY19 funding (up to $40,000) to support pilot studies based in the CTRU. Proposals are due by July 9, 2018. For more details, please review the seed grant announcement.

Registration is now open for the 2018 Southeastern Pediatric Research Conference, being held June 8, 2018 at the Georgia Aquarium in Atlanta, GA. The Southeastern Pediatric Research Conference is the primary annual educational and networking event for the Pediatric Research Alliance. This conference brings together both basic and clinical science researchers with pediatricians and healthcare providers to promote the integration of cutting-edge research into clinical practice. Registration is $40, or free for students, residents, post-docs and fellows.

 

Registration is now open for the Georgia Clinical & Translational Science Conference, being held Feb. 22-23, 2018 in Braselton, GA. Day one of the conference will focus on teaching attendees  about Georgia CTSA services and ways the alliance accelerates clinical and translational science in Georgia and beyond. Day two will showcase clinical and translational science advances within the state of Georgia through abstract and poster presentations, a KL2 panel discussion, and dynamic keynote speakers. For more information or to register, visit http://georgiactsa.org/discovery/academic-and-industry-intersection-conference/2018.html.