nBME marks Medical School’s 24th department

The Medical School has established a Department of NanoMedicine and Biomedical Engineering (nBME), which will give students an opportunity to get hands-on experience in these emerging fields of medicine.

Dr. Mauro Ferrari, an expert in the area of nanomedicine, was named professor and chair of the new department Sept. 1.

“This is the first department of nanomedicine in a medical school in the United States that I’m aware of,” said Ferrari, who has received about $50 million in funding since moving his laboratory to the Health Science Center in 2006.

Medical students will be eligible for nBME research rotations. “They will get a chance to work with cutting edge nanotechnologies that are engineered for medical applications. They will also get to attend lectures and workshops,” he said.

“Dr. Ferrari and his team will arm our medical students with the latest knowledge about drug development and therapies that they will be able to use to improve their patients’ health. We are proud to be one of the first medical schools to incorporate nanomedicine into our curriculum,” Dean Giuseppe Colasurdo said.

Defining nanomedicine as the application of nanotechnology to medicine, Ferrari said nano drugs like liposomal doxorubicin and Abraxane® are already in use and more are in the pipeline. “Nanomedicine can contribute to the early diagnosis of illness and personalized treatment,” he said.

The nBME department will be housed on the sixth floor of the Center for Advanced Biomedical Imaging Research (CABIR), which is scheduled to open in 2010. The department will have 33,000 square feet of office and research space. “We will have the resources needed to take an idea from conception through commercialization,” Ferrari said. CABIR is on the South Campus at the intersection of South Bertner and East Road.

Attracting national and international attention, the department has received coverage in Nature and Nature Medicine.

The nBME is affiliated with The University of Texas Department of Biomedical Engineering, which is an inter-institutional venture formed by the Health Science Center, the University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center, and The University of Texas at Austin.

Ferrari is the co-founder of two nanomedicine startups. NanoMedical Systems, Inc., of Austin is developing nano-channeled drug delivery systems, and Leonardo Biosciences, Inc., of Houston is developing nano-based therapeutics. The startups licensed patents through the Office of Technology Management.

Currently, Ferrari’s laboratory is developing a multi-stage drug delivery system to improve therapeutic efficacy, implantable drug release systems designed to provide controlled long-term release of medications, silicon nano chips for early detection and prognosis of disease, and a “fracture putty” using synthetic biodegradable scaffolds together with specially engineered silicon particles with nano-scale features to treat bone fractures both in civilian clinics and on the battlefield.

Ferrari said his laboratory has about 80 people, including faculty, staff, and trainees, and is projected to reach 100 by the end of the year, making it one of the largest nanomedicine programs in the world.

Ferrari also serves as a professor of experimental therapeutics at the UT M. D. Anderson Cancer Center, adjunct professor of bioengineering at Rice University, adjunct professor of biochemistry and molecular biology at The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston, adjunct professor of mathematics and mechanical engineering at the University of Houston, and president of the Alliance for NanoHealth, Houston.

— Rob Cahill, Office of Institutional Advancement, Media Relations

Faculty Senate takes on issues of transparency

With its first meeting of the new fiscal year Sept. 17, Faculty Senate pledged to focus on transparency in areas of faculty compensation and incentives. Dr. Donald Molony, professor of internal medicine, welcomed the senators to a new year as the organization’s chair — the fourth time he has held this faculty leadership role.

“I am pleased to be a part of a new era of our Medical School, one of cooperation and building together, and I hope that together we can contribute new ideas,” he said.

Molony said he expects it to be an active year ahead for the Faculty Senate as the group seeks to tackle transparency in compensation and incentives. Senators raised questions about which faculty members have received pay incentives and what criteria have been established for their receipt. Having the dean present information detailing the dollar amounts dispersed to departments and which faculty members received incentives were raised, as well as having the chairs present a departmental financial report to their faculty. A subcommittee will be tasked to present a proposal to the Senate on these issues.

How senators are elected also was discussed. Senators are to be elected in each department; however, some are simply nominated by the chair to serve. There are 18 Faculty Senate positions for the current year that are vacant — 10 in departments and 8 at-large positions.

Dean Giuseppe Colasurdo gave an update, saying that the fiscal year had shown a growth in the group practice, with an increase in the gross collection rates. He said he was looking forward to help from the Senate in building relationships and improving transparency in how incentives are distributed.

The Faculty Senate will meet next at 4:30 p.m. Oct. 15.

— Darla Brown, Office of Communications, Medical School

Crafters needed for annual holiday sale

The Employee Relations Committee is seeking craft vendors from the UT community. Home-made crafts are needed for the 24th annual holiday craft show, which is scheduled for 9 a.m.–3 p.m., Tuesday, Dec. 1 in the Medical School’s Leather Lounge.

To be included in this year’s show, please sign up by Oct. 31 by contacting Kathy Merceri, 713.500.6385, or Debbie Rivas, 713.500.6367.

Research study seeks volunteers

Healthy adult volunteers (ages 30-75 years) with no personal history of autoimmune diseases (such as diabetes, thyroid disease, rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis, etc.) are sought for a research study to compare normal skin samples to skin samples from patients with connective tissue disease.

The study will involve a screen for autoimmune diseases via brief questionnaire and a short physical examination by a physician. The procedure involves obtaining two 3 mm (or 1/8 inch) diameter skin biopsies under local anesthesia from an area that is normally covered by clothing, such as the upper arm. The risks are small and include minor pain and bruising at the biopsy site. The time involved is less than 15 minutes, and compensation will be provided.

To schedule an appointment at the CRU at Memorial Hermann Hospital (3 Robertson), call Andrew Karnavas, 713.500.6859. For more details, contact Dr. Roozbeh Sharif, 713.500.6298.

Appreciating post docs