Lowe named new chair of Orthopaedic Surgery

Following a national search, Dean Giuseppe Colasurdo has named Dr. Walter Lowe the new chair of the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, effective Aug. 15.

Lowe comes to the Medical School from Baylor College of Medicine, where he has served as an associate professor of orthopaedic surgery since 1995. He also was the chief of the Sports Medicine Section and served as medical director of the Roger Clemens Institute of Sports Medicine and Human Performance. He serves as the team physician for the Houston Texans and the University of Houston.

In his new role at the Medical School, he also will serve as medical director of orthopaedic surgery services at Memorial Hermann–Texas Medical Center and LBJ General Hospital.

“Dr. Lowe has distinguished himself in the field of orthopaedic surgery and sports medicine,” said Dean Giuseppe Colasurdo. "I am certain he will build an extraordinary department with emphasis on the highest standard of patient care and service. And, I am confident that he will be particularly committed to the advancement of our educational programs."

Lowe is a 1983 graduate of the Medical School and completed an internship at John Peter Smith Hospital in Fort Worth, an orthopaedic residency at Tarrant County Affiliated Hospitals, and a fellowship at Kerlan-Jobe Orthopaedic Clinic in Los Angeles. He is certified in orthopaedic surgery and sports medicine. He specializes in sports medicine with an emphasis on diagnosing and treating a wide range of knee, shoulder, and elbow injuries and disorders.

— Darla Brown, Office of Communications, Medical School

Study: Interferon alpha extends "honeymoon phase" of diabetes

A low dose of oral interferon alpha shows promise in preserving beta cell function for patients with newly diagnosed type 1 diabetes, or juvenile diabetes, according to Medical School researchers.

The results of the Phase II trial are published in Diabetes Care, a journal of the American Diabetes Association.

"It shows a strong trend in preserving insulin-producing beta cell function that is significantly better than placebo," said Dr. Staley Brod, principal investigator of the trial, which includes the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK). "It can extend the ‘honeymoon phase’ of the disease, allowing the body to still produce insulin from beta cells, which correlates with decreased complication rates."

As many as 3 million Americans may have type I diabetes, formerly called juvenile diabetes, according to the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation International. Each year, 15,000 children are diagnosed with the autoimmune disease, in which the pancreas stops producing the insulin needed to transfer glucose from the blood to cells for energy. The result is too much glucose in the blood, which can lead to kidney failure, blindness, nerve damage, amputations, heart attack, and stroke.

A honeymoon phase sometimes occurs just after diagnosis as the body tries to rebound. Many patients experience a period when their need for insulin becomes minimal, control of blood sugar improves, and beta cells partially recover. If the pancreas is still able to function, the highs and lows experienced by taking manufactured insulin can be decreased.

The Phase II trial included 128 patients from the NIDDK’s Intramural Studies Office, The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas, and Children’s Hospitals and Clinics in Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minn. Research was conducted at The University of Texas Clinical Research Center at Memorial Hermann-Texas Medical Center, which is part of the Center for Clinical and Translational Sciences.

Research subjects ages 3 to 25 diagnosed with type 1 diabetes within six weeks of enrollment were randomized to receive 5,000 units of interferon alpha, 30,000 units of interferon alpha, or placebo once daily for one year. Patients treated with 5,000 units lost only 29 percent of their beta cell function compared to 48 percent for patients receiving 30,000 units, and 56 percent for patients receiving the placebo.

Austin resident Jarod Wallquist, 11, was 5 years old when he was diagnosed with type I diabetes and his mother, Amy, learned about Brod’s study. Jarod received the 5,000 units of interferon alpha, but neither she nor the researchers knew it at the time because of the double-blind nature of the study.

“My husband and I are both scientific-minded, so we understood the importance of the research even if we didn’t know whether it would help Jarod,” said Wallquist, whose family made regular trips to Houston for the study. “Jarod is doing really well. He wears an insulin pump, but he’s never had to go to the emergency room. To this day, according to his doctor, his amount of insulin needed is much lower than other kids his age and weight. He plays baseball and is on the swim team, and he totally has a normal life.”

The research builds on Brod’s earlier studies on oral interferon alpha in animals and a Phase I safety trial. After the results of the safety trial, NIDDK researchers asked to join Brod’s research before the Phase II trial.

Brod’s theory is that autoimmune diseases, which occur when the body is attacked by its own immune system, are actually an alpha interferon immunodeficiency syndrome. Interferons are a group of proteins produced by cells in response to an attack by a virus.

The research was supported in part by two grants from the National Institutes of Health: one to Brod, professor of neurology, from the NIDDK and one to The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston for the Center for Clinical and Translational Sciences. The research also was supported by grants from the Children’s Hospital of Minnesota Foundation and the Diabetes Action Research and Education Foundation.

Co-authors of the study from the Medical School are Dr. Philip Orlander, professor and director of the Division of Endocrinology, Diabetes, and Metabolism, and Miriam Morales, consultant. Corresponding author from the NIDDK is Dr. Kristina Rother.

— Deborah Mann Lake, Office of Institutional Advancement, Media Relations

Smith receives award from hemophilia foundation

Dr. Keri Smith, assistant professor of pathology and laboratory medicine, has received a Career Development Award from the National Hemophilia Foundation.

The award will support Smith’s research into the development of a therapy for people with Hemophilia A, a bleeding disorder, whose immune systems are resistant to treatment. Hemophilia A affects about one in every 5,000 males born in the United States.

Through the award, Smith is eligible for up to $70,000 per year for a maximum of three years. The National Hemophilia Foundation is a nonprofit organization founded in 1948 to find cures for bleeding disorders.

People with Hemophilia A are born with a shortage of a blood-clotting protein called Factor VIII, and current treatments include injections of synthetically-produced, replacement Factor VIII. Symptoms include uncontrolled, sometimes unprompted bleeding.

Nearly one in three people with Hemophilia A have immune systems that are resistant to replacement Factor VIII and produce antibodies that attack the synthetic protein.

"Current therapies to treat these antibodies are expensive and often unsuccessful," Smith said.

Smith’s solution is to alter the chemical signals produced by T cells that trigger the production of the anti-Factor VIII antibodies in people with Hemophilia A, which in turn would make people with the disease more receptive to the replacement protein.

"The real advances in science often occur at the interface between two different fields," said Dr. Steven Norris, Robert Greer Professorship in the Biomedical Sciences and vice chair for research in the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine. "In this case, Dr. Smith has applied her expertise in T cells and their role in inflammatory reactions to an important problem in the treatment of hemophilia with Factor VIII. She will first look for inflammatory responses to Factor VIII, and then see if they can be blocked by using a novel protein that inhibits such responses. This approach may decrease the occurrence of inhibitory antibodies that often interfere with an otherwise effective treatment for hemophilia."

Smith’s hemophilia research also received support through the Health Science Center’s Center for Clinical and Translational Sciences. Smith completed her undergraduate work at The University of Delaware, received her doctorate from Montana State University, and did postdoctoral training at The University of Michigan.

— Robert Cahill, Office of Institutional Advancement, Media Relations

Weekly radio broadcast brings UT experts to Panama and the world

Bringing the latest clinical, research, and education news about the Medical School and Memorial Hermann–Texas Medical Center to the citizens of the Republic of Panama is the goal of a new radio program co-hosted by two UT physicians.

Broadcasting live from the Medical School building at 6431 Fannin, Dr. Adan Rios and Dr. Jorge Quesada, both associate professors of internal medicine, interview UT faculty at 7 a.m. each Wednesday for the live broadcast.

The show is heard on Omega Stereo and simultaneously accessed by listeners worldwide through the Omega Stereo Web site (click top right button). In the current format the program is presented in Spanish, and Rios translates the interview from English as needed.

The early news program of Omega Stereo is one of the most important in the country and the region, Rios said, adding that the Medical School program debuted May 5.

"It is a very powerful format for the showcasing of the Medical School" said Rios, who is from Panama and joined the Medical School faculty in November. "In 5 to 7 minutes, a specialist can relate their expertise to a vast audience. We are bringing UT — preventive medicine, research updates, and descriptions of our programs — to millions of homes."

The Panama Canal is of great economic importance to the region, Rios said, and as a result, the entire region relies upon news from the Panama radio stations.

"We have been told that the radio station gets numerous calls after our program airs," Rios said, adding that the program is for both lay persons and scientists.

In addition to callers, Rios said there has been an increase in the number of patients traveling from Panama to Memorial Hermann-Texas Medical Center.

"And an improved collaboration will help in the recruitment of students, residents, and faculty from the area," he said.

The radio program has featured Dr. Philip Orlander, professor of internal medicine; Dr. Gloria Heresi, professor of pediatrics; Dr. Dong Kim, chair of the Department of Neurosurgery; and Dr. Jorge Quesada. Rios said basic science researchers will be featured in the near future.

"Because of recent and revolutionary changes in communication and transportation, the world is now smaller and we can fulfill our important education responsibilities by letting the world know what we have to offer. The geographic location of Houston makes us a natural partner of Latin America," Rios said.

The program is made possible by an in-kind donation of air time from Guillermo Adames, president of Omega Stereo Group in Panama.

— Darla Brown, Office of Communications, Medical School

Band Against MS foundation donates $150,000 for MS research

A Pebble Beach golf tournament is paying off big for researchers looking for a cure for multiple sclerosis. The researchers took home the top prize: a $150,000 contribution from multi-platinum recording artist Clay Walker and the non-profit Band Against MS (BAMS) organization. The money will fund important studies on the disease and potential cures at the Medical School.

The check was presented to Dr. Jerry Wolinsky at the Second Annual Clay Walker Charity Classic golf tournament at Pebble Beach. Wolinsky, professor of neurology, serves as director of the Multiple Sclerosis Research Group and Magnetic Resonance Imaging Analysis Center at the Medical School. Wolinsky and his colleagues are known for their imaging research to better understand how the disease works and for clinical trials to better treat MS and search for a cure. Including this gift, BAMS has provided the Medical School with a total of $500,000 for its research efforts since 2004.

"It is a wonderful feeling to give Dr. Wolinsky and The University of Texas Medical School the necessary funding to continue valuable research in the battle against MS," said Walker, who was diagnosed with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis in 1996. "My hope is that our support will help researchers find the cause of and ultimately a cure for MS."

"Clay and his organization have demonstrated amazing dedication to not only the researchers in the area of MS but also to the millions of people who live with the disease on a daily basis," Wolinsky said. "We are extremely grateful for their generosity and their confidence in our continuing efforts to research the disease."

MS is a chronic, autoimmune disease of the central nervous system that affects approximately 400,000 people in the U.S. and is thought to affect more than 2.5 million people worldwide. It is the leading cause of non-traumatic disability in young people throughout the world.

Walker has sold over 11 million albums and had 11 number one hit singles. Thanks to his success, he has made it his mission to help others with MS manage their disease.

Band Against MS, Inc., (BAMS) is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit public charity committed to providing educational information for those living with multiple sclerosis, funding programs researching a cure for multiple sclerosis, and funding programs helping those living with the disease. Walker established BAMS in February 2003 because he wanted to help others living with the same disease he has battled since 1996. For more information about BAMS, see www.bandagainstms.org.

Iron Intern Award

 

Location & Contact

6431 Fannin Street,
Houston, Texas 77030

PO Box 20708,
Houston, Texas 77225

713.500.4472