Schweizer Receives VA Merit Grant

Dr. Marin Schweizer, Assistant Professor of General Internal Medicine and Epidemiology, has been awarded a 3-year, $912,000 VA Merit grant through Health Services Research and Development to potentially develop more reliable guidelines for prescribing indefinite oral antibiotics, also known as chronic antibiotic suppression (CAS). CAS can last anywhere from 6 months to 10 years and […]

Targeting epigenetics for treatment of BRAF mutated metastatic melanoma with decitabine in combination with vemurafenib: A phase lb study

Article: Targeting epigenetics for treatment of BRAF mutated metastatic melanoma with decitabine in combination with vemurafenib: A phase lb study Authors: Yousef Zakharia, Varun Monga, Umang Swami, Aaron D. Bossler, Michele Freesmeier, Melanie Frees, Mirza Khan, Noah Frydenlund, Rithu Srikantha, Marion Vanneste, Michael Henry and Mohammed Milhem Journal: Oncotarget. 2017; 8:89182-89193 Abstract: Introduction: Epigenetic modifications […]

Our Role as Influencers

October has been a busy month for Internal Medicine. It began, as I mentioned in my last post, with Progress, the two-day multidisciplinary conference, and the 22nd Annual Meeting of the Iowa Physiological Society. That week was followed by impressive showcases of innovations in research and clinical care: our 51st Annual Research Day, Heart Failure […]

You Make a Difference in Internal Medicine, June to September Edition

The University of Iowa Health Care Making a Difference program is designed to recognize individuals who have performed in an exemplary manner, consistent with the goals of service excellence, and with a commitment to quality care. In the last four months, five members of our department were nominated by colleagues and patients for a variety […]

CF airway smooth muscle transcriptome reveals a role for PYK2

Article: CF airway smooth muscle transcriptome reveals a role for PYK2 Authors: Cook DP, Adam RJ, Zarei K, Deonovic B, Stroik MR, Gansemer ND, Meyerholz DK, Au KF, Stoltz DA Journal: JCI Insight. 2017 Sep 7;2(17). pii: 95332. doi: 10.1172/jci.insight.95332. [Epub ahead of print] Abstract: Abnormal airway smooth muscle function can contribute to cystic fibrosis […]

Current Topics in Allergy & Clinical Immunology, 10/13/17

What goes on in the Press Box of the UI Stead Family Children’s Hospital when it is not Game Day and tens of thousands of Hawkeye football fans are not waving? Last week, health care providers from around the region got to spend the day on the twelfth floor, while they participated in an annual […]

Heart Failure in the Heartland, 10/12 & 13

The full name for this year was the 9th Annual Heart Failure in the Heartland: Healing Hearts, Changing Lives Symposium, and just as with last year’s symposium, organizers represented as diverse a coalition as the event’s attendees. Faculty from four different departments within the Carver College of Medicine and the University of Iowa Hospitals and […]

51st Annual Research Day, 10/10/17

The move from spring to fall did not deter participants and attendees as Internal Medicine began a sixth decade of hosting its annual research showcase. The afternoon-into-evening event followed a similar schedule as previous years. The first hour featured invited presentations from four faculty members. Dr. Nandakumar Narayanan, Assistant Professor of Neurology, gave an overview […]

Francisella novicida inhibits spontaneous apoptosis and extends human neutrophil lifespan

Article: Francisella novicida inhibits spontaneous apoptosis and extends human neutrophil lifespan Authors: Kinkead LC, Fayram DC, Allen LH Journal: J Leukoc Biol. 2017 Sep;102(3):815-828. Abstract: Francisella novicida is a Gram-negative bacterium that is closely related to the highly virulent facultative intracellular pathogen, Francisella tularensis Data published by us and others demonstrate that F. tularensis virulence […]

Building Relationships and Investing in Our Own

Last week I was honored to participate in Progress, a two-day interdisciplinary CME conference that Internal Medicine has hosted for more than three decades. In more recent years, the conference has evolved into a collaboration with the College of Pharmacy, inviting physicians and pharmacists to deliver multiple perspectives on many pressing issues facing health care […]