Womack hosts NIH Director Bertagnolli in Arkansas’ Third District

National Institutes of Health (NIH) Director Monica Bertagnolli, M.D., Flickr Image

Rogers, AR—October 23, 2024…Congressman Steve Womack (AR-3) hosted National Institutes of Health (NIH) Director Monica Bertagnolli, M.D., in the River Valley on Monday and in Northwest Arkansas on Tuesday. Congressman Womack, Director Bertagnolli, and Senator John Boozman (R-AR) visited medical organizations, gained a comprehensive understanding of the region’s medical needs, and saw the partnership between the NIH and local healthcare in action.

Congressman Womack said, “It’s important to bring Washington to Arkansas to ensure Third District Arkansans' needs are met and their voices are heard. I want leaders in our nation, such as Director Bertagnolli, to see the exciting medical research and advancements happening in the Third District while fully understanding the area’s healthcare needs. I’m grateful Director Bertagnolli took the opportunity to see firsthand the remarkable work of our local health providers, researchers, and partners. Senator Boozman and I look forward to a continued partnership with Director Bertagnolli to improve health outcomes for Arkansans.”

Director Bertagnolli said, “The entire community – academic institutions, public health departments, health care providers, businesses, and state and federal government – all play a critical role in making health better for everyone. It is so inspiring to see how Arkansas is working to address the needs of their communities on all fronts, and partnering to eliminate the extra health challenges this region is experiencing. I am so grateful to Congressman Womack and Senator Boozman for hosting me. I have learned so much and am eager to bring more health research to Arkansas. The talent and dedication I have witnessed here makes me sure that we will make tremendous progress.”

Senator Boozman said, “The collaboration in Northwest Arkansas and the River Valley as growing hubs for local and regional medical care as well as nationally recognized innovative research is a tremendous asset. NIH plays a critical role in funding this vital work through the grants and partnerships it supports that generate advanced treatments, cures and overall better outcomes in our communities. Congressman Womack and I were pleased to show Director Bertagnolli the impact of these investments and provide our medical professionals an opportunity to share their feedback directly with the leader of America’s premier health research organization.”

UAMS Establishes Proteomics Center of Excellence in Little Rock with Thermo Fisher Scientific

By Marty Trieschmann

The University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) announced the launch of the Thermo Fisher Scientific Center of Excellence for Proteomics at UAMS — the first and only academic-industry partnership of its kind in the United States.

The world leader in serving science, Thermo Fisher Scientific, entered into a formal agreement with the IDeA National Resource for Quantitative Proteomics, which was founded in 2020 with a $11 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) as the only NIH-funded proteomics service provider in the United States, providing the most cost-effective access to proteomics for any researcher in the U.S. performing biomedical research.

Proteomics allows researchers and clinicians to rapidly identify novel disease biomarkers, new drug targets and unique mechanisms driving human diseases. IDeA National Resource for Quantitative Proteomics is equipped with multiple Thermo Fisher advanced Thermo Scientific™ Orbitrap™ mass spectrometers, including the most recent installed state-of-the-art mass spectrometry technology, Thermo Scientific™ Orbitrap™ Astral™ mass spectrometer, to provide premium quantitative proteomics services to researchers.

UAMS Establishes Proteomics Center of Excellence in Little Rock with Thermo Fisher Scientific

The University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) announced the launch of the Thermo Fisher Scientific Center of Excellence for Proteomics at UAMS — the first and only academic-industry partnership of its kind in the United States. Image by Bryan Clifton

Marius Nagalo, Ph.D., First at UAMS to Receive NIH New Innovator Award

By Marty Trieschmann

LITTLE ROCK — A researcher at the Winthrop P Rockefeller Cancer Institute at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS), Marius Nagalo, Ph.D., has received the prestigious New Innovator Award from the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

Granted directly from the NIH Director’s Office “this award supports early career investigators of exceptional creativity who propose bold and highly innovative research projects with the potential to produce a major impact on broad, important areas relevant to the NIH mission,” according to the NIH.

Nagalo is the first UAMS researcher to receive the New Innovator Award from the NIH, joining an elite group of previous award recipients from Stanford University, Harvard, Cornell, MIT, Penn, Duke, Yale, and the Cleveland Clinic.

Marius Nagalo, Ph.D., First at UAMS to Receive NIH New Innovator Award

Marius Nagalo, Ph.D., (left) is the first UAMS researcher to receive the prestigious New Innovator Award from the National Institutes of Health. Image by Evan Lewis

NIH Awards UAMS $3.7 Million in Quest for More Effective Tuberculosis Vaccine

By David Robinson

LITTLE ROCK — UAMS researcher Lu Huang, Ph.D., has received a $3.7 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to support his pursuit of a more effective tuberculosis (TB) vaccine, a feat that has eluded scientists for more than 100 years.

The five-year grant from the NIH National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases will allow Huang to explore new ways to help the body fight TB based on his recent findings.

Bacille Calmette-Guérin (BCG) is the only approved vaccine available today and has been used since 1921. Although protective for children, its effectiveness when given to adults remains uncertain, and it is not commonly used in the United States.

NIH Awards UAMS $3.7 Million in Quest for More Effective Tuberculosis Vaccine

Lu Huang, Ph.D., center, with his lab team at UAMS (front, l-r): J. Tucker Andrews and Ananya Ranaraja; and (back): Grant Dawson and Jilliyn Jeu.

UAMS Receives $3 Million NIH Grant to Address Feeding Practices at Early Child Care Sites

By David Robinson

LITTLE ROCK — University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) researcher Taren Massey-Swindle, Ph.D., and a Louisiana Tech University collaborator have secured a $3 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to address feeding practices at 80 early childhood care and education sites in Arkansas and Louisiana.

Massey-Swindle and Julie Rutledge, Ph.D., from Louisiana Tech University in Ruston, found in prior studies that early childhood care and education settings frequently use inappropriate feeding practices such as hurrying children and encouraging them to eat more. Such practices contribute to eating less healthy foods, overeating and long-term food rejections.

A big part of the five-year, $3,043,419 grant from the NIH National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases is its “de-implementation” plans for eliminating inappropriate feeding practices.

UAMS Receives $3 Million NIH Grant to Address Feeding Practices at Early Child Care Sites

UAMS' Taren Massey-Swindle, Ph.D. (right), with her collaborator, Julie Rutledge, Ph.D., from Louisiana Tech University.

NIH Awards Additional $3.7 Million to UAMS to Continue Groundbreaking Research into High Blood Pressure

By Linda Satter

LITTLE ROCK — In a major boost to cardiovascular research, the National Institutes of Health has awarded an additional $3.7 million to Shengyu Mu, Ph.D., and his team of researchers at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) to continue their groundbreaking study on the role of immune cells in hypertension.

Mu, an associate professor in the UAMS College of Medicine Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, was awarded an initial $1.89 million grant in 2019 to fund his laboratory’s exploration of the link between immune cells and hypertension, a widespread and serious health condition.

During that time, the team made substantial discoveries indicating that immune disorders contribute to high blood pressure, paving the way for the next phase of research.

NIH Awards Additional $3.7 Million to UAMS to Continue Groundbreaking Research into High Blood Pressure

NIH Awards UAMS Researchers $2.27 Million to Study Estrogen’s Role in Preventing Bone Loss

By David Robinson

LITTLE ROCK — Researchers at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) will use a $2.27 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to answer key questions about the cellular mechanisms used by estrogen to prevent bone loss and osteoporosis.

The five-year NIH National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS) R01 grant is led by co-principal investigators Maria Schuller Almeida, Ph.D., and Ha-Neui (Hans) Kim, Ph.D. Almeida is a professor in the College of Medicine Department of Internal Medicine, Division of Endocrinology and Metabolism, as well as the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery. Kim is an assistant professor in the Department of Internal Medicine, Division of Endocrinology and Metabolism.

Aging and estrogen deficiency are major causes of osteoporosis and lead to a higher risk for bone fractures particularly in women.

NIH Awards UAMS Researchers $2.27 Million to Study Estrogen’s Role in Preventing Bone Loss

UAMS’ Maria Schuller Almeida, Ph.D. (left), and Ha-Neui (Hans) Kim, Ph.D., will use new funding from the National Institutes of Health to answer key questions about estrogen’s important role in preventing bone loss.

NIH Awards UAMS $1.54 Million to Tackle Brittle Bone Disease

By David Robinson

LITTLE ROCK — A UAMS research team is using a $1.54 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to support its goal of finding better treatments for osteogenesis imperfecta (OI), also known as brittle bone disease.

The four-year award from the NIH National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute will allow Roy Morello, Ph.D., and his interdisciplinary team to test whether lung abnormalities in OI patients can be treated separately from OI’s bone-related defects.

An estimated 25,000 to 50,000 people in the United States live with OI, a rare genetic disorder of connective tissues that has no cure. It is mainly caused by mutations in the genes responsible for producing Type I collagen, a protein that normally holds bones together and makes them strong. With inadequate collagen, bones become brittle and prone to fractures.

NIH Awards UAMS $1.54 Million to Tackle Brittle Bone Disease

Roy Morello, Ph.D., in his lab at UAMS.

NIH Awards UAMS $7.9 Million to Create More Space for Pandemic Response, Infectious Disease Research

By David Robinson

LITTLE ROCK — The University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) will use a $7.9 million National Institutes of Health (NIH) grant to expand its infectious disease research capacity and establish a Pandemic Response and Public Health Laboratory by renovating existing research space.

The renovation will create about 9,900 square feet of additional research space on the first floor of Biomedical Research Center Building One. The extra space will be realized through a redesign that repurposes an atrium, large diagonal hallways, and converts offices to laboratories.

UAMS’ Daniel Voth, Ph.D., who is leading the project, said the renovation is expected to begin in mid-2024 and be completed in 2025. It will include new Biosafety Level-3 space, which is equipped to handle highly infectious pathogens transmitted by air. It will better prepare UAMS for future pandemic responses, create new opportunities for collaboration and help UAMS recruit new infectious disease researchers, he said.

https://news.uams.edu/2022/10/25/nih-awards-uams-7-9-million-to-create-more-space-for-pandemic-response-infectious-disease-research/

UAMS’ Daniel Voth, Ph.D., is leading the NIH grant supporting renovations to increase infectious disease research space in Biomedical Research Center Building One.