October 19, 2006

(SACRAMENTO, Calif.) — The newly established UC Davis Clinical and Translational Science Center has awarded its first grants to six School of Medicine faculty members. The pilot grants are part of a program designed to foster collaborative research and ultimately enable basic science to be translated into new prevention programs or treatments that will be widely available in all communities and for all patients.

With grants from a $200,000 pilot fund for initiating innovative investigations, the researchers will focus on studies ranging from a new therapy for asthma to reducing mental health service disparities in California.

These awards quickly followed news earlier this month that the National Institutes of Health had named UC Davis part of its national consortium of academic health centers working on innovative approaches to clinical research in medicine. The designation includes $24.8 million in funding over the next five years, with a portion directed to supporting innovative studies similar to the initial pilot projects.

“We aren't wasting any time in getting to work,” said Ann Bonham, executive associate dean for research and education at UC Davis Health System. “These pilot grants are a fitting start to launch our new Center and encourage innovative research. The newly formed interdisciplinary teams will move science and medicine forward.”

The following UC Davis investigators were selected for pilot funding from the Clinical and Translational Science Center:

• Nicholas Kenyon, assistant professor of pulmonary and critical care medicine. His study is entitled “L-arginine therapy in asthma.” L-arginine is a natural amino acid that may help decrease the intensity of asthma episodes in sufferers.
  
  
• Debora Paterniti, associate director for the Center for Health Services Research and associate professor of sociology. Her work will disseminate information on methods for reducing disparities in mental health services for minority and rural populations.
  
  
• Lorenzo Rossaro, professor and chief of gastroenterology and hepatology. Rossaro is testing the safety and effectiveness of telemedicine consultations in treating patients with hepatitis C viral infection.
  
  
• Mark Zern, professor of internal medicine. Zern is working on developing diagnostic tools for non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (a common form of liver disease).
  
  
• Joseph Tuscano, associate professor of hematology and oncology. Tuscano is looking at the clinical potential of a cultured soy-shiitaki extract product in treating cases of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.
  
  
• Kathryn DeRiemer, assistant adjunct professor for public health sciences. DeRiemer will further her work in diagnosing the infection and progression of tuberculosis through the use of a novel immunoassay system.

“Moving forward with the pilot projects and funding is key to encouraging unique collaborations among scientists from a variety of disciplines,” said Jill Joseph, co-principal investigator of the new center. “We want to set the pace for what is truly an innovative way of advancing health care for patients everywhere.”

UC Davis is among the first 12 institutions in the United States, and one of only three in the western region, that are part of the NIH initiative for transforming clinical and translational research. The sites are considered 'discovery engines' for improving medical care by applying scientific advances to real world practice. UC Davis' new center will be the academic home for multidisciplinary medical research among the university's many institutional and community partners.