Hale named 2008 Distinguished Alumnus
Dr. Daniel Hale, ’77, a nationally known pediatric endocrinologist at The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, has been named the 2008 Distinguished Alumnus of The University of Texas Medical School at Houston.
Established in 1987, the purpose of the award is to recognize outstanding contributions in the areas of medical science and education, or the prevention and treatment of diseases, as well as continued interests in the Medical School and its students.
Hale has devoted nearly 30 years to the studies and clinical treatment of pediatric diabetes, pediatric obesity, and pediatric endocrinology disorders. A professor and division chief of Pediatric Endocrinology and Diabetes at the UT Health Science Center at San Antonio since 2002, he also has served as interim division chief of Pediatric Genetics and Metabolic Disorders since 2004 there.
“He has provided outstanding service to the state of Texas in delivery of pediatric diabetes and obesity health services and community relations by working with the public in many settings, including schools and community programs,” wrote his nominator.
Hale said his first reaction to hearing the news of the award was to think of four people.
“Thanks Dad, Mom, Dr. Willingham, and Dr. Baker. My father was a tenant farmer in rural East Texas and did not complete the ninth grade. Knowing how tough life had been for my mother and him, they always preached ‘education, education, education.’ Dr. Willingham was my childhood physician, who also paid my way through medical school. Dr. Baker was my mentor and friend at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, where I worked for many years. And due to these four people (all now deceased), a great education at Texas A&M and at the UT Medical School at Houston, and many lucky circumstances, I have been successful,” he said.
He said he also was thankful for Dr. Jan Patterson, ’82, for nominating him, and could not wait to tell Betty Murphy, the Medical School ‘s first registrar. “She was by far and away the person at UTMSH who made medical school ‘welcoming’ (especially the first year) – and the first person I always think of, when I think of UTMSH,” he said.
The Medical School was a “wonderful training environment” for Hale, who said that connections to people made it worthwhile.
“Thanks to Dr. Gil Castro for my first research project; great role models like Dr. Allan Katz and Dr. Patti Jayne Ross for making clinical medicine appealing – although I still do not dress as well as they do; fabulous medical facilities (yes even in the 70s); great friends - I still think of Ray Mussett and Barbara Felkins just about every day; and connections to other people – Dr. Arlyn Hartsfeld regularly refers patients to me; and institutions -- I have active collaborations with physicians at both UTMSH and Baylor,” he said.
Following medical school, Hale completed a residency in pediatrics at Medical University of South Carolina and a fellowship in pediatric endocrinology at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine. He presently holds five National Institutes of Health grants in addition to several grants from foundations and pharmaceutical companies.
-D. Brown
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Hagberg named interim chair of anesthesia Jan. 11
Dean Giuseppe Colasurdo has announced that Dr. Carin Hagberg has been named the interim chair of the Department of Anesthesiology, effective Jan. 11.
Dr. Colasurdo named Hagberg and Dr. Evan Pivalizza vice chairs Oct. 30. Dr. James Arens, chair of the Department of Anesthesiology, is retiring Jan. 10. Pivalizza will continue to serve in the role of vice chair.
“I am confident in Dr. Hagberg’s leadership. She will provide stability and recruit outstanding faculty and residents to enrich the clinical and educational programs,” Dean Colasurdo said. “Our school will continue to build our culture of excellence based upon quality and service – and today we are focusing on the Department of Anesthesia. I would like to thank Dr. Arens for playing a vital role over the past three years.”
Dean Colasurdo said the department will have the support of the Medical School administration and Memorial Hermann – Texas Medical Center leadership to ensure success.
“I am pleased with Dr. Colasurdo’s decision to name Dr. Hagberg interim chair of the Department of Anesthesiology, and I support her and Dr. Pivalizza in this very important role,” said Juanita Romans, chief executive officer of Memorial Hermann -Texas Medical Center.
Romans and Dean Colasurdo reiterated that the success of the department is critical to the Medical School and Memorial Hermann as the two institutions continue to focus on the growth and development of the surgical programs.
Hagberg is a 1988 graduate of the Medical School. She completed her residency at Parkland Memorial Hospital in Dallas, followed by a cardiovascular anesthesia fellowship at Methodist Hospital and a neuroanesthesia fellowship at Zale Lipshy University Hospital, both in Dallas. She joined the Medical School faculty in 1992.
-D. Brown
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Life-threatening gene defect located by researchers
A research team led by Medical School scientists has identified a defective gene that affects vascular smooth-muscle cells in people who suffer from hereditary thoracic aortic disease, which can kill victims with little warning in the prime of their lives.
Thoracic aortic disease, specifically thoracic aortic aneurysms leading to aortic dissections, is the 15th leading cause of death in the country, killing up to 20,000 people a year. Actor John Ritter (age 54 years) and “Rent” creator Jonathan Larson (age 35 years) both died from the disease. Cardiac surgeons in the Texas Medical Center – including Dr. Michael DeBakey, and Dr. Denton Cooley – pioneered the surgical repair of thoracic aortic disease.
The study, “Mutations in Smooth Muscle Alpha-Actin (ACTA2) Lead to Thoracic Aortic Aneurysms and Dissections,” was published in the Nov. 11 issue of Nature Genetics.
Research on 14 families with 93 members from across the United States, along with Europe and Australia, led the team to a mutation in the smooth muscle cell alpha-actin (ACTA2), which affects muscular contractions in other blood vessels and the aorta. The wall of the aorta, the main blood vessel leading out of the heart, weakens and then enlarges, forming an aneurysm and ultimately leading to an aortic dissection, which often causes sudden death.
“Our results suggest that contraction of the smooth muscle cells in the aorta is important in keeping it healthy and preventing the disease,” said the study’s senior author, Dr. Dianna M. Milewicz, professor and director of the Division of Medical Genetics. “This information provides insight into the cause of this condition and helps us understand, for the first time, the pathology of the aortic wall degeneration.”
Milewicz said that mutations in ACTA2 account for 14 percent of the inherited form of thoracic aortic aneurysms and dissections, making it the major gene identified for this condition.
“Dr. Milewicz has been an international leader in discovering gene defects that can cause vascular abnormalities,” said study co-author Dr. Dong Kim, chair of the Department of Neurosurgery and co-director of the Mischer Neuroscience Institute at Memorial Hermann. “This recent finding has enormous implications for diseases affecting blood vessels, from the aorta to the arteries in the brain. I believe that Dr. Milewicz’s work is going to lead to cures in the near future, and I feel privileged to be able to work with her.”
The aorta supplies blood to the rest of the body. Some people develop a progressive degeneration of the aortic wall, leading to a bulging aneurysm, which then can dissect, or tear.
Family members who test positive for the defective gene are encouraged to have routine imaging of their thoracic aortas in order to surgically repair an aneurysm before it dissects or ruptures. If caught early enough, when an aneurysm is 5 centimeters or less, a surgical procedure to replace the diseased portion with a Dacron graft has a high degree of success.
Early in her decade-long research into the disease, which includes the discovery of two other genes linked to thoracic aortic aneurysms, Milewicz and her team took blood samples from a large family. For years they could not link them to any known gene defects until now.
The study results from collaborative efforts of physicians and scientists at the Texas Medical Center including surgeons Dr. Hazim Safi, chair of the Department Cardiothoracic and Vascular Surgery, Kim and Dr. Anthony Estrera, associate professor of cardiothoracic vascular surgery. Genetic statistics for the study were completed by Dr. Sanjay Shete at The University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center and sequencing of the gene was done in part through collaboration with Dr. Steve Scherer and the Human Genome Center at Baylor College of Medicine.
Co-authors of the study, along with Milewicz, Kim,Safi and Estrera, from the Medical School, include: Dr. Dong-Chuan Guo, assistant professor of medical genetics; Dr. Hariyadarshi Pannu, assistant professor of medical genetics; Van Tran-Fadulu, genetic counselor and instructor of medical genetics; Christina Papke, graduate research assistant, UT Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences at Houston (GSBS); Dr. Nili Avidan, instructor of medical genetics; and Dr. Maximilian Buja, executive vice president of academic affairs.
Funding for the research comes from a grant from the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation and the National Institutes of Health, including an $11.6 million grant from the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, which created the multi-institutional Specialized Center for Clinically Oriented Research in Thoracic Aortic Aneurysms and Dissections.
-D. Mann Lake
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