The April TRIbune newsletter features TRI Research Day 2025, a two-day gathering that drew 169 attendees from across UAMS and its partners at Arkansas Children’s Research Institute and the Central Arkansas Veterans Health System.

This fourth annual event, expanded for the first time to two days, included insightful keynote addresses from Elizabeth Shenkman, Ph.D., from the University of Florida, and Sharla Smith, Ph.D., from the University of Kansas Medical Center. The event also included outstanding oral presentations from TRI-supported faculty and postdoctoral trainees.

The theme for Day 1 of the event was “Integrating Data to Further Translational Science,” and Day 2’s the theme was “Community Engaged Research Day: Impacting Community Health through Translational Science.”  Read The TRIbune.

The March issue of The TRIbune announces exciting changes for TRI’s K12 Mentored Research Career Development Scholar Award Program. These include changes in leadership with Mario Schootman, Ph.D., taking over as principal investigator and director. He is joined by co-directors Josh Kennedy, M.D., a 2015 graduate of the program, and Jason Farrar, M.D., who was named co-director last fall. Other changes in store include a greater emphasis on translational science, communication and community engagement as TRI focuses on meeting the requirements of its new grant and the recommendations of its External Advisory Board.

The newsletter’s Study of the Month features Sisira Yadala, M.D., who is the UAMS principal investigator on a multi-site epilepsy study.

The TRIbune also highlights Research Day on April 10-11, the Master of Science in Clinical and Translational Science program, and it features Spyridoula Maraka’s, M.D., recent success leveraging her TRI Implementation Science Scholar training to secure a VA Merit Award.

Read The TRIbune.

We’re thrilled to invite all UAMS-affiliated faculty and staff to join us for two inspiring days celebrating innovation in translational research! 

Location: Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute Conference Center, 10th floor.  

The themes for this year’s expanded TRI Research Day are:

Day 1: Integrating Data to Further Translational Science

Day 2: Community Engaged Research Day: Impacting Community Health through Translational Science

• Dynamic keynote speakers
• Oral presentations from TRI-supported investigators
• A poster session highlighting research from TRI’s funding and training programs
• Community-engaged programming
• Great opportunities for networking! 

Meet Our Keynote Speakers: 

• Elizabeth A. Shenkman, Ph.D., University of Florida
  Presentation: Translating Discoveries to Practice Using Real World Data and Clinical Settings
• Sharla Smith, Ph.D., MPH, University of Kansas Medical Center
  

Register now to save your spot. Registration deadline is Monday, April 7.

NEW: View the agenda here.

We can’t wait to see you there!

Contact: Christi Madden, cmadden2@uams.edu.

The February issue of The TRIbune features a vital partnership with UAMS Regional Programs to bring a national research effort to UAMS family medicine clinics in rural Arkansas. UAMS family medicine physicians Jacquelene Childs, M.D., in El Dorado and Jordan Weaver, M.D., in Batesville bring their crucial rural perspectives to the recently funded NIH initiative Communities Advancing Research (CARE) for Health. 

The TRIbune also includes a story introducing you to members of our Community Engagement Core team, as well as information about our expanded Research Day on April 10-11, and upcoming certified mentor training.

Read The TRIbune.

In this month’s TRIbune newsletter, we highlight Geoffrey Curran, Ph.D., who has made UAMS a national hub for implementation science. Dr. Curran has brought innovative approaches to build capacity in the field through his leadership of the Center for Implementation Research and TRI’s Implementation Science Scholars Program, which equips clinicians with practical tools to enact lasting changes in health care.

Our Study of the Month features John Arthur, M.D., Ph.D., the UAMS principal investigator who is utilizing TRI’s services and resources to participate in a multicenter clinical trial related to Long COVID-19.

We also highlight TRI Research Day 2025 and our new Clinical Trials Learning Collaborative Seminar Series, designed especially for clinicians who may be interested in leading clinical trials at UAMS. 

Read The TRIbune.

The Consortium of Rural States (CORES) Research Collaborative, which includes UAMS, recently released its multi-institutional pilot award Request for Applications (RFA), with up to $25,000 available per award per participating institution.

All UAMS-affiliated faculty are invited to apply, including those based at Arkansas Children’s Research Institute and the Central Arkansas Veterans Healthcare System.

Letters of intent are due Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2025.

The multi-institutional pilot awards involve eight institutions with Clinical and Translational Science Awards (CTSA). In addition to UAMS, the consortium includes Dartmouth SYNERGY Clinical and Translational Science Institute at Dartmouth College; Penn State Clinical and Translational Science Institute at Penn State University; the Clinical & Translational Science Center at University of New Mexico Health Sciences; Frontiers Clinical and Translational Science Institute at the University of Kansas; University of Kentucky Center for Clinical and Translational Science; The Institute for Clinical and Translational Science at the University of Iowa; and the Clinical and Translational Science Institute at the University of Utah Health.

The RFA requires the participation of at least two CORES institutions on each pilot application.

Funding emphasis for this RFA will be given to proposals that address one of the following: Climate change and environmental health; health equity for underrepresented populations; rural health; and maternal health.

Read the Request for Applications.

If you have any questions, please contact Hailey Rogers, HRogers@uams.edu. 

Kapil Arya, M.D., a  graduate of the TRI Implementation Science Scholar Program, has been selected for the 2025 Viste Patient Advocate of the Year Award from the American Academy of Neurology (AAN).

Arya will be honored at the AAN annual meeting in April for his outstanding work with Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA), including his leadership as an Implementation Science scholar to implement statewide newborn screening for the rare disease.

Arya is an associate professor in the Department of Pediatrics in the Section of Pediatric Neurology. He directs the SMA and spasticity programs at Arkansas Children’s.

If not detected and treated within a few weeks of birth, SMA can be debilitating and often fatal. The Arkansas General Assembly enacted a law requiring newborn screening for SMA in 2019, but a complex system was still needed for the screening to become routine across the state. Arya developed the system as an Implementation Science scholar in the UAMS Center for Implementation Research in 2020. You can read more about this transformative initiative in this UAMS news story.  In addition to receiving the AAN award, Arya will present the AAN’s priorities to congressional lawmakers as part of the “Neurology on the Hill” advocacy program in 2025.

In this November-December issue of The TRIbune, we highlight the TRI Community Partner Celebration, which honors community partners who play key roles in helping UAMS advance research and improve health, especially for rural and underserved communities. 

The celebration on Dec. 6 was a great success, with more than 80 attendees from across Arkansas.

The TRIbune also features Jure Baloh, Ph.D., who received National Institutes of Health funding to support his work related to addiction treatment. He is a 2022 graduate of the TRI KL2 (now K12) Mentored Research Career Development Program and an assistant professor in the Fay W. Boozman College of Public Health.

We also highlight the three new Implementation Science Scholars: Paige Beck, M.D., Ph.D., Tisha Deen, Ph.D., and Saritha Ranabothu, M.D.

In addition, we note the recent meetings of our UM1 and K12 External Advisory Boards. In its report following the November meeting, the UM1 EAB described TRI as a “gem activity” at UAMS.  

Read The TRIbune.

Gail Runnells, RN, a clinical research nurse manager at the UAMS Translational Research Institute, recently received the 2024 Bonny Hope Wallace Award for Excellence in Human Subject Research for her outstanding work as a research coordinator, mentor and manager.

The Bonny Hope Wallace Award goes to a UAMS certified research specialist selected by their peers. Wallace worked in research at UAMS for more than 30 years before her death in 2004. The award in her name was presented at the conclusion of the Dec. 11 Certified Research Specialist (CRS) Awards Ceremony, sponsored by the UAMS Office of Research Compliance.

Runnells, who joined the Translational Research Institute in 2017, was nominated by her colleagues.

Her passion for research and work ethic are an inspiration to those who work with Runnells, said Anja Rassmann, BSN, RN, CCRP, a clinical research nurse manager at the Translational Research Institute.

“Gail truly embodies what it means to be an outstanding clinical research professional,” Rassmann said. “She has a true passion for research and our research patients. She displays respect, integrity and professionalism in all aspects of the clinical trial.”

Rory McCoy, BSN, RN, CRS, a clinical research coordinator at the Translational Research Institute, said Runnells’ mentorship has had a profound impact on him.

“Gail’s unwavering support and mentorship have shaped my pursuit of knowledge and inspired my dedication to research,” McCoy said.

Erin Hatcher, a clinical research coordinator, also praised Runnells’ dedication to research participants as well as her less experienced colleagues.

“She always ensures that the participants understand the research process and that they feel comfortable and cared for during the process,” Hatcher said. “She takes on several studies and yet always is available to mentor and teach others. She is patient, nurturing and supportive when teaching others.”

Among Runnells’ significant contributions was her vital role recruiting participants for the breast cancer research project known as “Spit for the Cure.” The groundbreaking initiative, launched in 2007, recruited nearly 26,000 women from all 75 Arkansas counties to participate in breast cancer research through DNA collection. Gail’s recruiting efforts helped establish the robust cohort of volunteers, which continues to impact cancer research today.

“Receiving the Bonny Hope Wallace Award is truly an honor,” Runnells said. “Bonny set a high standard for research professionalism and integrity, and I’m humbled to be recognized in her name. I share this award with my incredible colleagues and mentors, who inspire and support me every day. Most of all, I’m grateful for the research participants who trust us with their care and make our work possible.”

Wallace was an instructor in surgery and laboratory director for surgical research at the Department of Surgery at UAMS as well as clinical coordinator of research at the Arkansas Children’s Hospital (ACH) Burn Unit. She was instrumental in pioneering ACH’s Burn Unit. Her efforts were focused on cutting-edge research to promote women’s health. She is remembered for her respectful treatment of research participants and her commitment to research integrity.