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  1. University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences
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Front

TRI Facilitates Breakthrough Device Implant at UAMS Restoring Young Woman’s Pain-Free Life

Jolee Camp, here on her parents' farm, is grateful for having access to a cutting-edge device study at UAMS that has cured her disabling back condition. Image by Evan Lewis
Jolee Camp, here on her parents’ farm, is grateful for having access to a cutting-edge device study at UAMS that has cured her disabling back condition. (Photo by Evan Lewis)

Jolee Camp was a thriving 15-year-old who dreamed of becoming a professional dancer and enjoyed hunting, fishing and working on her family’s farm in Lonoke when she was suddenly disabled by unexplained low back pain.

“She spent her senior year in a wheelchair,” said her mother, B.J. Camp, who took her daughter from doctor to doctor for six years in the futile pursuit of a diagnosis and an effective treatment.

Jolee Camp’s life-changing break came two years ago, at age 20, when she saw UAMS pain specialist Johnathan Goree, M.D. He not only diagnosed her condition, he offered a potential long-term solution: a promising new implantable device available as part of a research study he is leading at UAMS.

The news was overwhelming for Camp and her mother.

“We both just started crying,” said Camp, who had endured numerous injections, nerve ablations, pain medications that sickened her, and doctors who doubted her. “I was just so thankful that I got to see Dr. Goree. He fought for me when other doctors were telling me it was in my head, that I was making it up.”

Johnathan Goree, M.D. (left), was the first doctor able to diagnose Jolee Camp’s back condition and offer a successful treatment option. Camp, center, credits Goree and Susan Smith Dodson, MBA (right), clinical research coordinator, with ensuring her speedy enrollment in the device study after she turned 21. (Photo by Evan Lewis)

Goree, who leads the UAMS Pain Clinic, said her journey is like that of many patients who finally make it to his clinic after years of suffering.

“They’ve had physicians tell them the pain is in their head, and so I can only imagine the kind of emotional trauma that Jolee experienced,” he said.

The Diagnosis

Goree diagnosed Camp’s condition as multifidus dysfunction. People who have it experience weakness and atrophy of the multifidus muscles in the lower back, which help support the lumbar spine.

Although unusual for someone as young as Camp, it’s a condition that Goree and his team see routinely at the Pain Clinic.

After injuring her multifidus muscle at some point, he explained, Camp’s exceptionally strong core likely helped stabilize her spine as her injured multifidus muscle continued to weaken and shrink as her activity level declined.

“Eventually your lack of multifidus back core muscles got to the point where you couldn’t compensate for it anymore,” Goree told the Camps during a recent visit to The Orthopaedic and Spine Hospital at UAMS.

Without an accurate diagnosis, Camp’s previous doctors prescribed injections and nerve ablations that provided only temporary relief, as well as pain medications and muscle relaxers that helped her sleep but also made her sick.

Physical therapy also failed because the muscle wasting was too severe to overcome.

The Solution

Goree is the UAMS principal investigator for the multisite study of the first and only Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved implantable neurostimulation device that can restore muscle and relieve chronic low back pain. The study, “ReActiv8 Stimulation Therapy vs Optimal Medical Management: A Randomized Evaluation (RESTORE),” is supported by the UAMS Translational Research Institute.

The device, ReActiv8®, developed by Mainstay Medical, includes a small generator implanted under the skin in the lower back that delivers electrical stimulation through wire leads that are hooked into the multifidus muscle. The stimulation interrupts the pain and causes the muscles to contract, which also makes them grow and strengthen so they can support the spine.

Although approved by the FDA, ReActiv8® continues to be researched with the RESTORE Trial to provide the evidence necessary for insurance companies to offer coverage.

At the time she heard about the device study, Camp was in her junior year at Arkansas Tech University, which she attended remotely because of her condition. She graduated in 2023 with degrees in criminal justice and political science and was on the Dean’s List all four years. Her academic skills came in handy when she needed to learn more about the device.

“I researched everything that I possibly could about it,” she said. “I looked into the studies that they did in the United Kingdom because the devices were approved over there, first. I looked at a lot of the testimonials and the surgery process and how long the recovery would be and all of that stuff.”

She concluded that it had a good chance of helping her, and she enthusiastically agreed to be a study participant.

While Goree could not make Camp any promises about the device’s effectiveness, he thought she would be an ideal candidate. The only hold up was her age; she would have to be 21 to enroll, and she was eight months away from that milestone.

Goree and Susan Smith Dodson, MBA, BSN, RN, the study’s clinical research coordinator at the Translational Research Institute, didn’t want Camp to wait any longer than necessary, so they worked with Mainstay to ensure all the preliminary hurdles were cleared to help expedite enrollment after her August birthday.

Jolee Camp was excited to be able to walk across the stage to receive her college diploma, something she didn’t expect to do before receiving the implanted device.

“Both of us really understood how uncomfortable she was, and we wanted to make sure that she had this option as soon as she could,” Goree said. “Also, the longer we waited, the worse her pain would get because that loss of muscle would continue.”

Camp was also fortunate to be randomly assigned to the device treatment group rather than the study’s control group. Had she been in the control group, she would have had to wait another year to receive the implant.

“I waited for eight months to turn 21 and then within the course of three months, I had the surgery,” she said.

‘Super Motivated’

The Nov. 14, 2022, surgery, performed by Goree and his colleague and co-investigator G. Lawson Smith, M.D., went as planned. Camp, determined to have a successful outcome, was a model patient and study participant, Goree and Dodson said.

She dutifully followed the recovery guidelines and study protocol, activating the device twice a day. At 6 a.m., she would lie on her stomach and run the stimulator for 30 minutes, then repeat it at 4 p.m.

“She was super compliant, super motivated,” Goree said.

“I adhered to it strictly because I wasn’t going to waste this opportunity after all the years of just having to fight and fight and fight,” she said. “Dr. Goree fought for me to get it, and I wasn’t going to waste his efforts.”

Jolee Camp, here at her family’s farm, said UAMS’ Johnathan Goree, M.D., “gave me my life back.” (Photo by Evan Lewis)

Goree cautioned Camp that it would take time to see results. Like building muscles at the gym, it doesn’t happen overnight, he said.

Instant Relief

While the muscle building would take time, the device provided instant relief during the 30-minute stimulation sessions. Although pain returned afterward, the intensity was diminished, she said.

At her three-month follow-up visit, Camp reported at least a 20% pain reduction and was able to quit all prescription pain medication.

“I was so excited just to have any relief, and then at about the six-month mark I had about 50% relief,” she said. “I was able to start going out with my friends, and I could drive the car for more than an hour, and I could walk more than 10 minutes without feeling like I had to sit down, and I was getting eight hours of sleep.”

Attending her college graduation was a seminal accomplishment.

“I was able to wear heels, and I was able to walk across the stage. It was just amazing, and I never thought I was going to be able to do that before,” she said.

She was excited to tell Goree and Dodson about her progress at her six-month visit a few weeks later.

“They have been with me since I’ve been in college, so it was a really big thing for me to be able to do,” she said.

At one year, she was nearly pain free and reported the same result during her 18-month follow-up visit.

She told Goree that she wakes up in the mornings pain free, although depending on what she has done on a given day, her pain in the evening may rate a five or six on a 1-10 scale.

“It’s nowhere near that 10 that I felt every single day, and I’m not taking any pain medication at all right now,” she said.

In addition to rejoining friends and resuming her many hobbies, she has held as many as three jobs at one time, including as an in-home health care provider, a waitress and an optician. She hopes to start a career in the criminal justice field, possibly in cybersecurity.

“I have so much gratitude for Dr. Goree,” she said. “He gave me my life back.”

Her final follow-up visit will be at the two-year mark this fall, and she can choose to keep the device at no cost.

“I plan on keeping it as long as you’ll let me have custody of it,” she told Goree.

Goree assured her that she could, and he said the generator battery should last seven to 10 years.

Inspired Care

Camp said she is also grateful for the cutting-edge medical technology that helped her return to a normal life, especially so close to home.

“My parents and I looked into going to all sorts of places, like the Mayo Clinic and Johns Hopkins,” she said. “But then there’s also trying to figure out how to afford it. I’m very, very thankful because I live about 30 minutes from UAMS.”

Goree said outcomes such as Camp’s are what inspire him to seek the latest treatments, techniques and promising therapeutics.

“This is why I do what I do,” he said.

The device has delivered similarly exciting results for three other study participants at UAMS and exemplifies the role of research in achieving his goals for patients.

“Research gives Arkansans access to cutting-edge therapies,” Goree said, noting that new treatment innovations have traditionally been available only at health centers on the East and West Coasts.

“I think we have now built a center where a lot of the new innovation is happening in Arkansas,” he said. “It helps patients here and around the world because we are helping to bring new techniques and treatments to the market. Thanks to this research, this device is now covered by many insurances and we are happy to offer it to patients in our clinic.”

The Translational Research Institute is supported by a Clinical and Translational Science Award funded by the National Institutes of Health’s National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences, award number UL1 TR003107.

Filed Under: Front, News, Newsroom

TRI Announces Two Postdoctoral Fellows for Entrepreneurship Training Program 

Nicholas Callais, M.D.

The UAMS Translational Research Institute (TRI) has announced two postdoctoral trainees for its Health Sciences Innovation and Entrepreneurship (HSIE) Postdoctoral Training Program, beginning July 1. Selected in a competitive application process, the trainees will receive two years of mentored entrepreneurship training in partnership with the University of Arkansas Sam M. Walton College of Business.

The HSIE postdoctoral trainees, their research goals and mentors are:

Nicholas Callais, M.D., a surgical resident in the College of Medicine Department of Surgery. His research focuses on evaluating DNA-PK(cs) as a novel target for therapeutic immunosuppression in transplant patients.

Alexa C. Escapita, Ph.D.
(Image credit: Evan Lewis)

Mentor: Marie Burdine, Ph.D., assistant professor, Department of Surgery.

Alexa C. Escapita, Ph.D., a postdoctoral fellow in the College of Medicine Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology. Her research focuses on using optically pumped magnetometers to detect early neurodevelopment delays in children from high-risk pregnancies.

Mentor: Hari Eswaran, Ph.D., professor and vice chair for Research, College of Medicine Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology

Filed Under: Front, News, Newsroom

TRI Implementation Science Scholar Holly Maples, Pharm.D., Recognized for Effort to Improve Antibiotic Utilization in Pediatric UTIs

Holly Maples, Pharm.D., presented her award-winning poster at the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America Spring 2024 Conference.
Holly Maples, Pharm.D., presented her award-winning poster at the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America Spring 2024 Conference.

Holly Maples, Pharm.D., an associate professor in the UAMS College of Pharmacy, was recently recognized by the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America for having a top featured poster abstract, which she presented at the society’s Spring 2024 Conference.

The recognition stems from her work as a UAMS Translational Research Institute Implementation Science Scholar. The two-year training program provides mentoring and protected time for research and implementing new practice guidelines or other approaches that will improve medical care.

Maples’ poster, one of 21 selected for the April 16-19 conference, is titled, “Capitalizing on Implementation Science to Advance Antimicrobial Stewardship and Health Equity in Treating Pediatric UTIs.”

Pediatric urinary tract infections (UTIs) are the most common pediatric infection with increasing antibiotic resistance. Her implementation science project provided a framework and tools to improve antimicrobial utilization by physicians and to provide equity across races.

Maples, who graduated from the Implementation Science Scholars Program in December 2023, noted in her poster abstract that overutilization of antimicrobials, which include third-generation cephalosporins, are known drivers of antibiotic resistance.

“Antimicrobial stewardship efforts have recently shown that antibiotic selection may be influenced by patient race,” her poster states.

Maples conducted research on the general pediatric floors at two children’s hospitals, assessing the impact of a set of tools developed to improve provider knowledge of best-practice antimicrobials based on local susceptibilities for treatment of UTIs. Implementation strategies included development of stakeholder relationships to co-design a pathway and order set (guidelines to assist a physician or other provider in decision-making). Other strategies included provider education and leveraging of local clinical champions.

“With order set utilization not improving with implementation of a new dynamic order set, education of clinical champions that included providing our local UTI antibiogram (information about the susceptibility of microorganisms to different drugs) is felt to have contributed to both the improvement in best antimicrobial for treatment of UTIs and to positively impact potential implicit bias,” the poster states.

Maples also concluded that additional study is needed to understand why clinicians did not use the order set. Further study is ongoing.

Her mentor and a co-author on the project is Geoffrey Curran, Ph.D., director of the Implementation Science Scholars Program. He is also a professor in the College of Pharmacy Department of Pharmacy Practice and director of the UAMS Center for Implementation Research.

Filed Under: Front, News, Newsroom

TRI Names Mathias Brochhausen, Ph.D., to Leadership Post

Mathias Brochhausen, Ph.D.
Mathias Brochhausen, Ph.D.

The UAMS Translational Research Institute (TRI) is pleased to announce the appointment of Mathias Brochhausen, Ph.D., to the role of associate director for Strategic Collaborations, effective May 1. Brochhausen is a professor and vice chair in the UAMS College of Medicine Department of Biomedical Informatics.

He will continue to co-chair TRI’s Clinical and Translational Science Pilot Program with Shelley Crary, M.D., MS. In addition, he will serve as TRI’s liaison for PCORNet® Initiatives through an affiliation with the University of Florida’s OneFlorida+ PCORNet® program. PCORNet® is a national resource funded by the National Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) and enables comparative effectiveness research to advance health outcomes through community, research and data partnerships.

TRI’s other two associate directors are Antiño Allen, Ph.D., associate director, Pathway Initiatives, and John Arthur, M.D., Ph.D., associate director, Translational Research.  Congratulations Dr. Brochhausen!

Filed Under: Front, News, Newsroom

TRI Announces Two Pilot Awardees

Tiffany Miles, Ph.D.
Tiffany Miles, Ph.D.

The UAMS Translational Research Institute (TRI) is pleased to announce that UAMS’ Tiffany Miles, Ph.D., and Ellen van der Plas, Ph.D., have received one-year TRI pilot grants of $25,000 each.

Miles is a postdoctoral fellow in the College of Medicine Department of Neurobiology and Developmental Science. The grant will support a project she developed in collaboration with the Boys, Girls, Adults, Community Development Center (BGACDC) of Marvell as part of TRI’s Community Based Participatory Research (CBPR) Scholars Program. 

The project, “Community Developed and Implemented Obesity Interventions in Marvell, AR,” aims to develop a community-led obesity intervention program and develop ideas for sustaining the intervention.

Miles was the academic partner on one of six teams that completed the two-year CBPR training program, which involves collaborations between UAMS-affiliated researchers and community-based organizations to address health disparities and promote community health and well-being.

Ellen van der Plas, Ph.D.
Ellen van der Plas, Ph.D.

Miles is also a 2023 graduate of the two-year TRI Health Sciences Innovation and Entrepreneurship (HSIE) Training Program.

Van der Plas is a neuroscientist and associate professor of pediatric hematology/oncology in the College of Medicine Department of Pediatrics. Her research project, “SONIC Teens: Sickle Cell Neurological Impact and Cognition in Teenagers,” aims to identify neurodevelopmental abnormalities in adolescents ages 12-17 with sickle cell disease using a neurocognitive testing, behavioral assessments, neuroimaging and quantification of protein markers of brain health. She hopes the study will generate compelling data for a National Institutes of Health (NIH) R01 award application. For more information about funding opportunities available through TRI, please visit TRI.uams.edu.

Filed Under: Front, News, Newsroom

TRI Announces Six K12 Scholars for 2024-2026

Lauren Appell, M.D.
Lauren Appell, M.D.
(Image credit: Bryan Clifton)

Six early-career researchers have been selected to receive two years of funded translational research training and support in TRI’s K12 Mentored Research Career Development Scholar Awards Program.

The promising junior faculty researchers were selected for the 2024-2026 program through a competitive application process. K12 (formerly KL2) scholars receive two years of mentored translational research training, 75% salary support and up to $25,000 a year for research, tuition, travel and education.

Shiloah Kviatkovsky, Ph.D.
Shiloah Kviatkovsky, Ph.D.
(Image credit: BRYAN CLIFTON)

Funding for the program comes from TRI, supported by a Clinical and Translational Science Award from the NIH National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences, as well as the UAMS College of Medicine, UAMS Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute and Arkansas Children’s Research Institute (ACRI).

The scholars, their project titles and mentors are:

Lauren Appell, M.D., assistant professor, College of Medicine Department of Pediatrics, based at ACRI

Project: STRONGER ALL: An Early Exercise Regimen for Pediatric Patients with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL)

Ramey Moore, Ph.D.
Ramey Moore, Ph.D.

Mentor: Ellen van der Plas, Ph.D., associate professor of hematology/oncology, based at ACRI

Shiloah Kviatkovsky, Ph.D., assistant professor, College of Medicine Department of Orthopaedics.
Project: Effects of Collagen Supplementation on Surgical Outcomes Following TKA

Mentor: Roy Morello, Ph.D., associate professor, College of Medicine departments Physiology & Cell Biology, Orthopaedic Surgery, and the Division of Genetics.

Ramey Moore, Ph.D., assistant professor, College of Medicine Department of Internal Medicine, Institute for Community Health Innovation.

Bernard Muriithi, Ph.D.

Project: Enhancing HPV Vaccine Recommendations in Clinics Serving Rural Arkansans

Mentor: Geoffrey Curran, Ph.D., professor, College of Pharmacy Department of Pharmacy Practice; professor, College of Medicine Department of Psychiatry

Bernard Muriithi, Ph.D., assistant professor, College of Health Professions Department of Occupational Therapy

Project: Adapted Lifestyle Redesign for Diabetes Management among the Marshallese

Mentor: Steven Wheeler, Ph.D., Ed.D., department head, Communication Disorders and Occupational Therapy, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville (effective 7-1-24) 

Mollee Steely Smith, Ph.D.
Mollee Steely Smith, Ph.D.

Mollee Steely Smith, Ph.D., assistant professor, College of Medicine Department of Psychiatry

Project: Adaptation and Implementation of an Evidence-Based Parenting Intervention for Postpartum Women Receiving Medications for Opioid Use Disorder

Mentor: Michael Cucciare, Ph.D., professor, College of Medicine Department of Psychiatry

James Williams, M.D., assistant professor, College of Medicine Department of Pediatrics, based at ACRI.

James Williams, M.D.
James Williams, M.D.
(Image credit: John David Pittman)

Project: scRNA seq Analysis of Lower Respiratory Tract Immune Cells to Uncover Immuno-Endotypes in Sepsis-Associated Pediatric Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome

Mentor: Brian Varisco, M.D., vice chair of Research and professor of Pediatric Critical Care Medicine, College of Medicine Department of Pediatrics

Filed Under: Front, News, Newsroom

Ready to WIN the Summer? The 2024 Summer Writing Challenge Is Nigh!

Get ready to make this summer your winning season! The TRI 2024 Summer Writing Challenge begins in just 24 days! 

Join your research colleagues for this friendly competition with a chance to win one or more great prizes and burnish your reputation as well as your tenure portfolio. 

You are eligible to participate if you have received any TRI funding or other TRI research services since Jan. 1, 2019.

Please submit your manuscripts here starting June 1 through Aug. 31.

Check out our helpful writing resources! 

Got questions? Please contact Nikolas Berardi, NDBerardi@uams.edu.

Let’s make this summer one for the record books!

Filed Under: Front, News, Newsroom

The TRIbune Is Here!

UAMS’ Susan Emmett, M.D., invited the TRI Research Day 2024 audience to “join us in changing the world.”
UAMS’ Susan Emmett, M.D., invited the TRI Research Day 2024 audience to “join us in changing the world.”

In our April TRIbune, we feature TRI Research Day 2024, a gathering of more than 100 researchers from across UAMS’ research enterprise. This third annual event at the Little Rock Marriott included powerhouse keynote speakers Susan Emmett, M.D., MPH, and Al Richmond, MPW, as well as outstanding oral presentations by TRI-supported faculty and postdoctoral trainees. The day wrapped up with a lively poster session and presentations to the poster contest winners.

This issue also includes comments from several attendees who shared their thoughts about Research Day.  

In addition, we announce the six teams of UAMS researchers and community partners that graduated from the TRI Community-Based Participatory Research (CBPR) Scholars Program.  

Read The TRIbune.

Filed Under: Front, News, Newsroom

TRI-Supported Researchers Participate in, Compete at Translational Science 2024

Jenny Rumpel, M.D., a TRI KL2 scholar, competes in the Three Minute Thesis at the national Translational Science 2024 meeting.
TRI KL2 scholar Jenny Rumpel, M.D., competes in the Three Minute Thesis at the national Translational Science 2024 meeting.

TRI took a strong contingent of UAMS researchers to the national Translational Science 2024 meeting, including two TRI KL2 scholars who qualified to compete in the Three Minute Thesis (3MT®), part of the event sponsored by the Association for Clinical and Translational Science (ACTS).

The annual meeting on April 2-5 drew over 1,200 researchers and staff from across the United States representing more than 60 Clinical and Translational Science Awards (CTSA) institutions and several non-CTSA clinical research organizations.

TRI’s 3MT® competitors, Nakita Lovelady, Ph.D., and Jenny Rumpel, M.D., both supported by KL2 Mentored Research Career Development Program Scholar Awards, were among the TRI-supported investigators and TRI staff at the ACTS meeting in Las Vegas. Lovelady, an assistant professor in the Fay W. Boozman College of Public Health, presented her implementation of Arkansas’ first Hospital-based Violence Intervention Program. Rumpel, an assistant professor in the College of Medicine Department of Pediatrics, presented how acute kidney injury contributes to infant mortality and its associated racial disparities.

TRI KL2 scholar Nakita Lovelady, Ph.D., competes in the Three Minute Thesis at Translational Science 2024.
TRI KL2 scholar Nakita Lovelady, Ph.D., competes in the Three Minute Thesis at Translational Science 2024.

The 3MT® is an academic research communication competition developed by The University of Queensland (UQ), Australia that cultivates students’ academic, presentation, and research communication skills.

Two other TRI KL2 scholars, Timothy “Cody” Ashby, Ph.D., and Alicja Urbaniak, Ph.D., had poster abstracts that ranked in the event’s top 50 of 560 posters displayed, a recognition that placed them in an elite group of oral presenters.  

TRI KL2 scholar Alicja Urbaniak, Ph.D., with her poster at Translational Science 2024.
TRI KL2 scholar Alicja Urbaniak, Ph.D., with her poster at Translational Science 2024.

Ashby, an assistant professor in the College of Medicine Department of Biomedical Informatics, presented his poster, titled, “Unraveling the Impact of Alternative Splicing in Multiple Myeloma.”

Urbaniak, an instructor in the College of Medicine Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, presented her poster, “Beyond Antibiotics: Monensin and its Derivatives as Promising Anti-Breast Cancer Agents.”

“Translational Science 2024 was a great opportunity for trainees, early-career researchers and CTSA staff from across the country to connect and learn from each other,” said TRI Executive Director Christi Madden, MPA, who was a panel presenter at the Research Operations and Administration Special Interest Group meeting.  

TRI’s Mathias Brochhausen, Ph.D., and Mario Schootman, Ph.D., served as judges for the 3MT® competition. Brochhausen leads TRI’s Pilot Translational and Clinical Studies Program and is a professor in the Department of Biomedical Informatics. Schootman co-directs TRI’s Translational Workforce Development Program and is a professor in the College of Medicine Department of Internal Medicine, Division of Community Health and Research.

TRI's Paul Duguid, MPH, presents a poster about TRI's Strategies for Training and Advancing underrepresented Researchers (STARS) Program.
TRI’s Paul Duguid, MPH, presents a poster about TRI’s Strategies for Training and Advancing underrepresented Researchers (STARS) Program.

Antiño Allen, Ph.D., TRI associate director of Diversity Initiatives and Paul Duguid, MPH, TRI director of Research Programs, co-presented a poster on TRI’s Strategies for Advancing underrepresented Researchers (STARS) program.

TRI KL2 scholar Brian Piccolo, Ph.D., discusses his poster at Translational Science 2024.
TRI KL2 scholar Brian Piccolo, Ph.D., discusses his poster at Translational Science 2024.

TRI’s Crystal Sparks, MSAM, assistant director of programs, presented a poster with colleagues in the CTSA External Reviewer Exchange Consortium (CEREC) team on how translational research vs. translational science is perceived by topic experts in CTSA-funded pilot projects.

Other UAMS-affiliated researchers representing TRI were:

  • John Arthur, M.D., Ph.D., and Elisabet Borsheim, Ph.D., co-directors of the KL2 program
  • Kevin Sexton, M.D., and John Imig, Ph.D., co-directors of the TRI TL1 Health Sciences Innovation and Entrepreneurship (HSIE) Program.
  • Tiffany Haynes, Ph.D., director of the TRI Community Engagement Program, and Keneshia Bryant-Moore, Ph.D., APRN, co-director of the program
  • Anna Huff-Davis, chair of the TRI Community Advisory Board and a TRI community liaison.
  • KL2 scholars: Jennifer Anderson, Ph.D., Nishank Jain, M.D., Michail Mavros, M.D., Brian Piccolo, Ph.D., Katy Allison, Ph.D., Akilah Jefferson, M.D., Megha Sharma, M.D., and Deepa Raghavan, M.D.
  • HSIE trainees: David Church, Ph.D., Lauren Russell Fitzgerald, Ph.D., Ashley Pike, Ph.D., Stephen Shrum, Ph.D., Henry Palfrey, Ph.D., and Tiffany Miles, Ph.D.
  • Taren Swindle, Ph.D., TRI Implementation Science Scholars Program faculty representative and KL2 scholar graduate.

Filed Under: Front, News, Newsroom

Research Day 2024 Poster Winners and Testimonials!

Poster Contest Winners

TRI Director Laura James, M.D., concluded Research Day 2024 with the presentation of poster awards in four categories, selected by a four-judge panel of UAMS faculty. The winners and poster titles are:

David Church, Ph.D., tied for Best Overall Content.
David Church, Ph.D., tied for Best Overall Content.

Best Overall Content (tie):

David Church, Ph.D., assistant professor, College of Medicine Department of Geriatrics; a TL1 TRI Health Sciences Innovation and Entrepreneurship Program trainee and TRI Strategies for Training and Advancing underrepresented Researchers (STARS) Program participant.

Muscle Protein Synthesis and Whole-Body Protein Balance Following Ingestion of Beef or a Soy Protein Based Meat Alternative

Stephen Shrum, Ph.D., tied for Best Overall Content.
Stephen Shrum, Ph.D., tied for Best Overall Content.

Stephen Shrum, Ph.D., TL1 postdoctoral trainee in the TRI TL1 Health Sciences Innovation and Entrepreneurship Program; College of Pharmacy Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences.

Development of a Novel Tocotrienol Analogue, Tocoflexol, as a Radiomitigator

Best Overall Visual:

Akilah Jefferson, M.D.
Akilah Jefferson, M.D.

Akilah Jefferson, M.D., M.Sc., assistant professor, College of Medicine Department of Pediatrics, Division of Allergy and Immunology; TRI KL2 Mentored Research Career Development Scholar Award Program scholar (KL2 scholar).

Association of Asthma Specialty Care and Adverse Outcomes for Children Enrolled in the Arkansas Medicaid Program

Best Overall Impact:

Timothy “Cody” Ashby, Ph.D., assistant professor, College of Medicine Department of Biomedical Informatics, KL2 scholar.

Unraveling the Impact of Alternative Splicing in Multiple Myeloma

Timothy "Cody" Ashby, Ph.D., won Best Overall Impact.
Timothy “Cody” Ashby, Ph.D., won Best Overall Impact.

People’s Choice:

Megha Sharma, M.D., M.S., assistant professor in the College of Medicine Department of Pediatrics, Division of Neonatology, KL2 Scholar

Objectively Assessed Skin Color and Its Association with Pulse Oximeter Bias in Critically Ill Infants

Megha Sharma, M.D., (left) was presented the People's Choice Award by TRI Director Laura James, M.D.
Megha Sharma, M.D. (left), won the People’s Choice Award, presented by TRI Director Laura James, M.D.

Winners of the Content, Visual and Impact awards received certificates for their choice of an electronic manuscript submission or support for design of a research poster via TRI, and the People’s Choice winner received a certificate for manuscript submission fee support up to $2,000.

Talking About Research Day

(Image credit: Evan Lewis)

Research Day was an opportunity for investigators and research staff to network, gather ideas and feed off the enthusiasm of their peers. Here is what some had to say:

“Research Day gives us an opportunity to mingle with like-minded research professionals, voice our achievements, seek advice from our counterparts, and brainstorm together to find answers to lingering questions. More than that, these gatherings spur new collaborations, ideas and connections.” – Laura Adkins, MAP, CCRP, CCRA, CRS, AdvCRS, director, UAMS Office of Research Regulatory Affairs

“It was great to see what so many other people are doing. This is one of those events where you find ways to engage with other collaborators and come up with creative solutions to problems.” – Jocelyn Anderson Ph.D., RN, associate professor, UAMS College of Nursing

“Having a Research Day like this is very helpful because we all do our research in different locations and we rarely get a chance to talk to each other. When you come here and attend some of these research meetings, you get to hear about basic science, clinical science and community partnered projects.” –  Shruti Tewar, M.D., MPH, associate professor of pediatrics and a TRI implementation science scholar.

“The Research Day was the first conference I attended after joining UAMS two months ago. It was very well organized, and I learned a lot from presentations and meeting with new colleagues. Specifically, I am impressed by the translational effort of the TRI, which brings researchers across the campus together. As a molecular cancer epidemiologist, I hope to integrate more molecular tools into population-based research and contribute to the ongoing success of the TRI.” – Yong Zhu, Ph.D., professor, Fay W. Boozman College of Public Health, and associate director for population science and translational science, Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute

“This is a wonderful way to learn about all of these other researchers and clinicians that have similar stories like mine. They’re implementing research that they are so passionate about, and they are overcoming barriers and creating their own pathway to get to their dream.”  – Ashley Pike, Ph.D., postdoctoral fellow, TRI Health Sciences Innovation and Entrepreneurship Program trainee

“Coming from a basic science background, I really appreciated the examples of how researchers have involved the community in their research. That and the networking opportunities have provided me with new ideas and resources to help guide my research to the next translational step. Ultimately, I want my research to impact human health in a meaningful way and it seems that Research Day was beneficial in this regard.” – Brian Piccolo, Ph.D., assistant professor of pediatrics, Arkansas Children’s Nutrition Center, and TRI KL2 scholar and pilot grant recipient

(Image credit: Bryan Clifton)

“As one of the program evaluators of the TRI, it was wonderful to watch the presentations and see the exceptional work being done by the TRI scholars. Hearing the scholars talk about their experiences and the support they received from their mentors demonstrates how well those programs are conducted and the importance of those support networks to produce exceptional research. –  Alex Jauregui-Dusseau, DH.Sc.

Read here about Research Day keynote speakers Susan Emmett, M.D., and Al Richmond, MSW.

Filed Under: Front, News, Newsroom

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