UTHealth Houston Awarded $4M NIH Grant to Fund Liver Disease Research in Hispanic/Latino Populations | |
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As one of just six sites in the country chosen for a new consortium of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), UTHealth Houston School of Public Health in Brownsville will use multi-omics in combination with environmental, epidemiologic, and clinical data, along with social determinants of health, to study non-alcoholic and non-viral liver disease in Hispanics/Latinos.
The $4 million School of Public Health project, built on the framework of the landmark Cameron County Hispanic Cohort of Hispanic/Latino participants, is funded as part of the NIH’s $50.3 million Multi-omics for Health and Disease Consortium. EHGES Professor Joseph McCormick, MD, MPH, will serve as principal investigator on a $4 Million NIH grant for multi-omics research on liver disease in Hispanics/Latinos.
“We hope this research will lead to knowledge that will help us identify those at high risk before they develop significant liver disease, as well as for possible treatments with special emphasis on understudied minorities such as our Hispanic/Latino population,” said McCormick.
Read the full article here.
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$2.1M U01 Grant Awarded to Add Texas Data to National Database for Birth Defects | |
EHGES Associate Professor A.J. Agopian, PhD, was awarded a $2.1 million U01 grant from the CDC to research further into leading causes of birth defects in Texas.
Funding for the Birth Defects Study to Evaluate Pregnancy Exposures(BD-STEPS) will facilitate the recruitment and collection of data from infants with birth defects in Texas to be added to the national database for further study.
The National Birth Defects Prevention Study (NBDPS) was established in 1997, which includes births from 1997-2011, and has made key contributions toward understanding the risk of specific medications when used before and during pregnancy. BD-STEPS builds on the success of NBDPS and presents an opportunity to explore NBDPS findings further and follow up on leads to understand better what causes birth defects.
You'll be able to read more about the grant here.
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Assistant Professor Awarded New Grant to Aid in Maternal Health Research in Brownsville | |
UTHealth Houston School of Public Health researchers will participate in a national research collaborative to establish 16 minority-serving institutes in the United States to conduct maternal health research.
The Maternal Health Research Collaborative for Minority-Serving Institutions (MH-RC-MSI) Coordinating Center (CC) grant from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' Health Resources and Services Administration was awarded to collaborators at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley School of Medicine to establish the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley Maternal Health Research Center in the Rio Grande Valley.
The five-year grant totals $2.3 million, with UTHealth Houston researchers to receive more than $200,000 as co-investigators to address health inequities within maternal health research.
Associate Professor Candace Robledo, PhD with UTRGV School of Medicine, is the principal investigator for the grant. Assistant Professor Audrey Choh, PhD, will serve as the principal investigator of the sub-award for UTHealth Houston.
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Cas12a-based Gene Drives Open a New Avenue for Controlling Mosquito Populations | |
One way of reducing the impact of diseases spread by mosquitoes is by modifying or suppressing their populations through manipulating their CRISPR-based gene drives. Current gene drives have used the Cas9 nuclease in insects, limiting innovation and our ability to create different types of gene drives.
In a new study published by Nature Communications, Assistant Professor Victor Lopez Del Amo, PhD, has employed different molecular scissors called Cas12a, which can be controlled by modulating the temperature.
The team found they could turn the gene drives on and off when desired to fine-tune gene drive activity.
Furthermore, they have combined Cas9 and Cas12a to create double gene drives that can simultaneously propagate two different engineered genes.
This new method with Cas12a opens a new avenue to design tools for controlling disease-carrying insects and pests in agriculture.
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EHGES Welcomes Associate Professor Divya Patel, PhD
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Please join us in welcoming Divya Patel, PhD as Associate Professor for the Department of EHGES in the Austin region.
Patel graduated from the University of Michigan, earning her BS, MPH, and PhD.
Her research focuses on increasing access to healthcare and reducing disparities in maternal and child health.
She is currently integrating students into her research projects as she finds mentoring students to be one of the most rewarding parts of her work.
In her free time, she enjoys traveling, gardening, playing tennis, and spending time with her family.
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CHARGE Consortium conference in San Antonio, Texas
EHGES faculty, staff, and students recently participated in the CHARGE Consortium conference in San Antonio, Texas.
Professor and Chair Alanna Morrison, PhD, Professor Myriam Fornage, PhD, Associate Professor Paul de Vries, PhD, and Senior Statistician Taryn Alkis, MS, were featured speakers at the conference. Alkis also received the Early Career Achievement CHARGE Tiger Award in the final ceremony.
Assistant Professor Chloé Sarnowski, PhD was a featured presenter during the poster blitz session. Sarnowski and Epidemiology PhD students Songmi Lee, MPH, Biostatistician Jeewoen Shin, PhD, and Statistician Simon Braendle, MS, displayed their posters during the poster reception.
Alkis and Sarnowski both received CHARGE travel awards to attend the conference.
Associate Professor Bing Yu, PhD, Assistant Professor Jan Bressler, PhD, Faculty Associate Megan Grove, Senior Statisticians Michael Brown, MS, and Adam Heath, MS, represented the School of Public Health at the conference.
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Steele Lecture Now Available on YouTube
Thank you to Professor Jon T. Skare, PhD, for speaking at the James H. Steele, DVM Annual Fall Lecture.
Skare's presentation featuring his work on Borrelia burgdorferi, the causative agent of Lyme Disease, is now available on our EHGES YouTube channel.
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From Medicine to Epidemiology: A Journey of Academic Discovery | |
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Shinhye Chung, PhD started her educational journey with UTHealth Houston School of Public Health by earning her MPH in health promotion and behavioral science and was accepted into the PhD program.
Having explored a diverse range of courses at the School, she discovered her true passion for research and statistical analysis, prompting her to change her major to epidemiology. This journey culminated in her successful completion of a PhD in epidemiology this year. Chung recently accepted a post-doctoral fellowship position with Associate Professor Bing Yu, PhD, to work in her research lab.
You can learn more about Chung's journey through our PhD program to a post-doctoral fellow here.
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CPRIT Innovations Conference October 2-3 | |
Epidemiology PhD Candidate Riddhi Patel, MBBS, MPH, presented her research poster at the CPRIT Innovations conference in Galveston, Texas.
Working with MD Anderson Cancer Center, Patel showcased an institutional review of localized primary intrathoracic synovial sarcomas.
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NASA Health and Air Quality Applied Sciences Team (HAQAST) Public Meeting in Utah | Assistant Professor Yun Hang, PhD, and Associate Professor Qian Xiao, PhD presented their research projects that utilized NASA data and tools to benefit health and air quality stakeholders at the NASA Health and Air Quality Applied Sciences Team (HAQAST) Public Meeting held in Salt Lake City, Utah. | |
American Heart Association
Quality Outpatient Award
| The UTHealth School of Public Health, Center for Health Promotion and Prevention Research, and the McWilliams School of Biomedical Information Center for Quality Health IT Improvement were honored with an American Heart Association Quality Outpatient Award for our exceptional contributions to the Target: BP program, Type 2 Diabetes program, and Check. Change. Control. Cholesterol programs. All three of these health improvement programs assist healthcare organizations and care teams in improving blood pressure control rates, reducing diabetes and cholesterol incidence through evidence-based practices and quality improvement approaches. | |
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Teaching Kitchen
Multisite Trial
by the Nourish Program
Want to learn to eat, cook, move, and think more healthfully? Join the Nourish Program in the Teaching Kitchen Multisite Trial!
This 12-month lifestyle program for people with obesity and metabolic risk will include free cooking classes with nutrition, exercise, and mindfulness education.
Learn more at tktrial.org or email us at nourish.tkmt@uth.tmc.edu
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APHA Annual Meeting
and Expo
November 12 - 15
Atlanta, GA
Students, faculty, and staff attending APHA this fall are welcome and encouraged to attend our Reception on Monday, November 13th, at Omni Atlanta at Centennial Park's CNN Center, 6:30 - 8:30 PM.
Are you presenting at the 2023 APHA annual meeting in Boston?
If so, email SPHAlumni@uth.tmc.edu with your name, presentation title, and the date of your presentation so we can share this information with the School of Public Health community.
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Student InterCouncil Sports Day - November 4, 10:00 AM - 2:00 PM
SIC’s annual Sports Day event promotes health, overall wellness, and some fun competition. We hope this event provides you with a much-needed break, an opportunity to meet fellow students from all six schools, and some enjoyment! Register Now!
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Thomas F. Burks Scholarship for Academic Merit
Application is due: November 10, 2023
Dr. Thomas F. Burks was an outstanding researcher, an inspirational teacher, an academic leader, and a friend to faculty and students. The Thomas F. Burks Scholarship for Academic Merit ("Burks Scholarship") was established on the recommendation of Interfaculty Council (IFC) at UTHealth Houston to provide scholarship support to students based on academic merit. The scholarship is to be awarded to a student who is matriculated and has established an academic record at one of the schools at UTHealth Houston. Each UTHealth Houston school is allowed to submit two applications for this competitive award.
The School's scholarship committee will select two applications to forward for consideration by the UTHealth Houston IFC scholarship selection committee.
Click here to apply.
Click here to review the guidelines and process for this scholarship.
A faculty recommendation letter is optional and can be emailed to Melanie.E.House@uth.tmc.edu or uploaded with the application.
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Are You Interested in Joining a NACCHO Student Chapter?
UTHealth Houston has one of the original National Association of County and City Health Departments (NACCHO) Student Chapters and is looking to revitalize this student group after a hiatus during the pandemic. Students have access to a vast array of resources, including internships and professional development opportunities, public health subject matter experts, and pertinent data to inform best practices for local public health.
Please contact Dr. Troisi (catherine.l.troisi@uth.tmc.edu) if you’re interested in joining the UTHealth Houston NACCHO student group.
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Stay in the Loop with EHGES! Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube to catch up with EHGES news, events, and more! | |
Calling all EHGES alums! EHGES in the News would like to include alum updates and news to feature in our monthly spotlight! Please email Jana Satterwhite, Communications Specialist, to be considered for our upcoming newsletters. | Reminder: For more information on how to handle media requests, see the UTHealth Houston HOOP policy here. If you are contacted by the media, please call the UTHealth Houston Media Relations team on the hotline, 713-500-3030 - someone is available 24/7. Deb Lake is the designated School of Public Health contact. Always choose to call the hotline for immediate assistance. | |
SUBMISSIONS AND NEWSLETTER DEADLINE | |
All campuses are encouraged to submit items for consideration for the monthly EHGES newsletter. Please feel free to submit your items to sphehges@uth.tmc.edu. | | | | |
