Publications
News releases
May 2012
UC Davis School of Medicine celebrates commencement
May 19, 2012 — One hundred and eight medical students can officially enjoy being addressed as "doctor" following the commencement ceremony at UC Davis School of Medicine this morning.
UC Davis School of Medicine announces students and faculty awarded for excellence
May 18, 2012 — More than 80 graduating UC Davis medical students were honored yesterday at the UC Davis School of Medicine's annual awards banquet recognizing graduating seniors and their faculty.
Talented UC Davis School of Medicine student receives scholarship
May 18, 2012 — Annahita Sarcon, a 4th year student in the UC Davis School of Medicine, has been awarded a Ruth G. White Scholarship from the California chapter of the national Philanthropic Education Organization.
UC Davis Comprehensive Cancer Center celebrates survivors
May 17, 2012 — Each year, cancer survivors around the country celebrate National Cancer Survivor's Day with events to honor their journeys through the disease and their survivorship. UC Davis Comprehensive Cancer Center will mark the occasion with a week of free activities for survivors and their families. [en español]
School of nursing graduate students elected to Honor Society of Nursing
May 16, 2012 — Several Nursing Science and Health-Care Leadership Graduate students from the Betty Irene Moore School of Nursing at UC Davis were elected to membership in the Honor Society of Nursing, Sigma Theta Tau International at a special induction ceremony May 10.
Keeping an eye on solar eclipse safety
May 15, 2012 — Northern Californians are in for a solar treat as the moon's shadow sweeps across the Earth to create an annular eclipse of the sun on, appropriately, Sunday, May 20. [en español]
Cancer Center's golf tourney to benefit prostate cancer peer navigator program
May 15, 2012 — The second annual Navigating Prostate Cancer Golf Tournament, sponsored by the UC Davis Comprehensive Cancer Center, will be held Friday, June 22 from 11:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. at Empire Ranch Golf Club in Folsom.
Cancer vaccine combination therapy shows survival benefit in breast cancer
May 15, 2012 — A vaccine that targets cancer cells in combination with the drug letrozole, a standard hormonal therapy against breast cancer, significantly increased survival when tested in mice, a team of UC Davis investigators has found.
Annual Spaghetti Western tickets on sale now
May 14, 2012 — The 5th Annual Spaghetti Western presented by the Amador Cancer Research Foundation (ACRF) will be held on June 16 at 6 p.m. at Cooper Vineyards in Plymouth. Guests can ride the tram through the vineyards, dance to music provided by Dick Cooper's Country-Western band, and enjoy an authentic chuck-wagon/tri-tip barbecue with specially prepared spaghetti, salad, rolls and dessert.
UC Davis Comprehensive Cancer Center physician and research director selected as leadership fellow
May 14, 2012 — Karen Kelly, associate director for clinical research at the UC Davis Comprehensive Cancer Center, has been selected as a fellow of the prestigious Hedwig van Ameringen Executive Leadership in Academic Medicine® (ELAM) Program for Women at Drexel University College of Medicine.
UC Davis student receives Alpha Omega Alpha student research award
May 10, 2012 — A first-year UC Davis medical student has been named recipient of the Alpha Omega Alpha Carolyn Kuckein Student Research Award.
Physician-advocate to speak about equalizing access to quality health care
May 9, 2012 — Anthony Iton -- a primary-care physician, lawyer and public-health advocate dedicated to improving the health outcomes of disadvantaged populations -- will speak in Sacramento as part of UC Davis Health System's Snively Visiting Professorship in Family and Community Medicine.
UC Davis researcher receives Grand Challenges Explorations Grant for groundbreaking malaria research
May 9, 2012 — UC Davis functional genomics expert David Segal will receive a $100,000 Grand Challenges Explorations grant to advance his work in identifying pharmaceuticals that target the genetics of malaria and overcome antimalarial drug resistance.
Kuppermann receives award for best research abstract at national conference
May 8, 2012 — Nathan Kuppermann, professor and chair of emergency medicine at UC Davis Health System, has been honored with an award for his research into finding a better way to distinguish bacterial infections from viral infections in young, febrile infants.
Global health training opportunities announced
May 7, 2012 — The deadline is fast approaching for researchers and aspiring investigators interested in studying diseases and conditions in developing countries to submit their applications for a University of California Global Health Institute Fellowship. Applications for the new program, which supports an 11-month, mentored research project at one of the training sites around the world, are due May 21.
UC Davis offers robotic-assisted gallbladder surgery
May 4, 2012 — Minimally invasive robotic-assisted gallbladder surgery procedure reduces scarring, recovery time.
Villablanca to deliver keynote address at "Battle Heart Disease" event
May 3, 2012 — Amparo Villablanca, professor and director of the Women's Cardiovascular Medicine Program at UC Davis, will be the keynote speaker at "Battle Heart Disease 2012," a community event to encourage Latinos to adopt heart-healthy lifestyles. [en español]
Advertising campaign wins national awards
May 2, 2012 — UC Davis Health System's advertising campaign and the 2011 Vice Chancellor's Annual Report are among the winners of the 2012 Aster Awards, one of the largest national competitions of its kind. The awards are hosted by Marketing Healthcare Today Magazine and Creative Images, Inc.
Health system wins national Partner for Change award for sustainability efforts
May 2, 2012 — UC Davis Health System has been selected to receive a 2012 "Partner for Change" Award from Practice Greenhealth, the nation's premier membership organization for health-care facilities committed to environmentally responsible operations. The award is one of the organization's Environmental Excellence Awards given each year to honor outstanding environmental achievements in the health-care sector.
Study using stem cell therapy shows promise in fight against HIV
May 1, 2012 — UC Davis Health System researchers are a step closer to launching human clinical trials involving the use of an innovative stem cell therapy to fight the virus that causes AIDS.
Flash-heating breastmilk to inactivate HIV is feasible for women in resource-poor countries, UC Davis study finds
May 1, 2012 — An international team led by UC Davis researchers has found that mothers in sub-Saharan Africa could successfully follow a protocol for flash-heating breastmilk to reduce transmission of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) -- the virus that causes AIDS -- to their infants. [en español]
Biomedical researchers receive Hartwell Foundation Awards
May 1, 2012 — Two faculty members from the University of California, Davis, are among 12 scientists selected to receive Individual Biomedical Research Awards from The Hartwell Foundation this year.
New virtual reality study and book series help advance educational opportunities for children with autism
May 1, 2012 — UC Davis autism researcher and education specialist Peter Mundy has received a $1 million grant from the U.S. Department of Education to apply virtual-reality technology to evaluate social attention and its relation to academic achievement among school children with autism.
Fishman gives keynote at Federation of State Medical Boards meeting
May 1, 2012 — Scott Fishman, chief of the Division of Pain Medicine and professor of anesthesiology at UC Davis Health System, was the keynote speaker at the annual meeting of the Federation of State Medical Boards (FSMB) on Saturday, April 28, in Fort Worth, Texas.
Srinivasan awarded Clinician Educator of the Year
May 1, 2012 — Malathi Srinivasan, associate professor of internal medicine at the UC Davis School of Medicine, has won the "Clinician Educator of the Year" award from the Society of General Internal Medicine for the California/Hawaii region.
April 2012
UC Davis to hold Summer Institute on Neurodevelopmental Disorders
April 30, 2012 — The annual Summer Institute on Neurodevelopmental Disorders Across the Lifespan, one of the nation's premier gatherings of educators, health professionals and families interested in advances in the field of neurodevelopmental disorders, will be held Friday, Aug.3 from 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the University Union Ballroom, Sacramento State University, 6000 J Street in Sacramento.
UC Davis researchers create molecule that blocks pathway leading to Alzheimer's disease
April 30, 2012 — UC Davis researchers have found novel compounds that disrupt the formation of amyloid, the clumps of protein in the brains of people with Alzheimer's disease believed to be important in causing the disease's characteristic mental decline.
Training course on Parent-Child Interaction Therapy available online
April 30, 2012 — A web-based training course on Parent-Child Interaction Therapy is now available from the UC Davis Child and Adolescent Abuse, Resource, Evaluation (CAARE) Diagnostic and Treatment Center.
African-American breast cancer survivors report inadequate information, options, support services
April 30, 2012 — African-American breast cancer survivors were satisfied with their cancer treatment, but most were never offered clinical trials opportunities or support services during or after their treatment, according to a study by a UC Davis Comprehensive Cancer Center researcher and her community partner, Rev. Tammie Dynse.
Pathology professor recognized for nutrition research
April 27, 2012 — Ishwarlal Jialal, professor of pathology and laboratory medicine, was selected to receive the 2012 Garry Labbe Award from the American Association of Clinical Chemistry for his outstanding work in the field of nutrition.
Palmieri inducted as president of American Burn Association
April 27, 2012 — Tina Palmieri, professor and director of the Firefighters Burn Institute Regional Burn Center at UC Davis Medical Center, was inducted as president of the American Burn Association (ABA) at the association's annual meeting in Seattle this week.
UC Davis School of Medicine scientist awarded for excellence in research
April 26, 2012 — Wei Yao, a bone biologist who is conducting leading-edge stem cell research to treat osteoporosis, will receive the 2012 UC Davis Academic Federation Award for Excellence in Research at a ceremony on May 2 on the UC Davis campus.
Free lecture on "What Happens When You Have a Heart Attack"
April 25, 2012 — The community is invited to a special lecture by UC Davis physicians Javier López and Ehrin Armstrong on "What Happens When You Have a Heart Attack" on Friday, April 27, at 6 p.m. at Underground Books, located at 2814 35th Street in Sacramento.
Research shows how PCBs promote dendrite growth, may increase autism risk
April 24, 2012 — New research from UC Davis and Washington State University shows that PCBs, or polychlorinated biphenyls, launch a cellular chain of events that leads to an overabundance of dendrites -- the filament-like projections that conduct electrochemical signals between neurons -- and disrupts normal patterns of neuronal connections in the brain.
UC Davis ophthalmologist recognized for establishing eye-banking and tissue-donation services
April 24, 2012 — Mark J. Mannis, an international authority on corneal transplantation and external diseases of the eye, will receive the 2011-12 Distinguished Scholarly Public Service Award from the UC Davis Academic Senate at a reception on May 2. [en español]
Renowned health and RealAge expert to speak in Pioneers in Integrative Medicine lecture series
April 24, 2012 — Renowned wellness expert Michael F. Roizen, also known as "The Enforcer," will speak as part of the Pioneers in Integrative Medicine lecture series on Tuesday, May 1 from noon until 1 p.m. at the Education Building, Lecture Hall 1222.
UC Davis cellular and molecular biologist to receive distinguished teaching award
April 23, 2012 — Richard Tucker, professor of cellular biology and human anatomy at the UC Davis School of Medicine, will receive the 2011-12 Distinguished Scholarly Teaching Award from the UC Davis Academic Senate at a reception on May 2. The award is bestowed annually to a handful of faculty campus-wide who demonstrate excellence in a broad range of teaching activities, including mentoring.
Esophageal cancer rates high in Northern California, yet survival rates are improving
April 20, 2012 — Esophageal cancer doesn't get as much attention as more common malignancies such as breast or prostate cancer, but rates of the deadly disease in Northern California, including the Sacramento and Central regions, are among the highest in the state. [en español]
UC Davis MIND Institute hosts "22Q at the Zoo"
April 20, 2012 — The UC Davis MIND Institute is partnering with the Sacramento Zoo to raise awareness about chromosome 22q11.2 deletion syndrome, a condition caused by the deletion of a small piece of chromosome 22.
Health system's advertising campaign wins in national Healthcare Advertising Awards
April 20, 2012 — UC Davis Health System's advertising campaign is among the winners in the 29th Annual Healthcare Advertising Awards, sponsored by Healthcare Marketing Report.
UC Davis residents named Residents of the Year by the California Academy of Family Physicians
April 19, 2012 — Two UC Davis physicians-in-training have been named 2012 Residents of the Year by the California Academy of Family Physicians (CAFP). The award honors new physicians who represent the finest characteristics of family medicine.
Dean Heather M. Young honored with mentorship award by Western Institute of Nursing
April 19, 2012 — UC Davis Associate Vice Chancellor for Nursing and Founding Dean Heather M. Young was awarded the Anna M. Shannon Mentorship Award at the 45th Annual Western Institute of Nursing Communicating Nursing Research Conference today in Portland.
Muizelaar to hold first Julian R. Youmans Endowed Chair in Neurological Surgery
April 19, 2012 — The first holder of the Julian R. Youmans Endowed Chair in the Department of Neurological Surgery in the UC Davis School of Medicine is J. Paul Muizelaar, professor, chair and training program director. The chair was established through a significant gift from Julian R. Youmans, the department's founding chair.
Gershwin selected as medical honoree for the Arthritis Walk
April 19, 2012 — M. Eric Gershwin, professor and chief of rheumatology, allergy and clinical immunology at UC Davis, will be the 2012 medical honoree at the Greater Sacramento Valley Arthritis Walk on May 5 at the State Capitol, where he will be recognized for his dedication to treating arthritis and arthritis-related diseases.
UC Davis medical student wins pediatric cancer research grant
April 19, 2012 — First year UC Davis School of Medicine student Marin Nishimura has been awarded a $6,000 grant from Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation for Childhood Cancer, a Pennsylvania-based philanthropy that supports pediatric cancer awareness and research nationally.
Postdoctoral scholar receives dissertation award, fellowship
April 18, 2012 — The Midwest Nursing Research Society honored Betty Irene Moore School of Nursing Postdoctoral Fellow Michelle M. Fennessy with a 2012 Acute Care Research Section Dissertation Award during the organization's annual conference on April 14.
Nursing school dean tapped for national Future of Nursing Strategic Advisory Committee
April 16, 2012 — Heather M. Young, associate vice chancellor for nursing and dean of the Betty Irene Moore School of Nursing at UC Davis, was selected to serve on The Future of Nursing: Campaign for Action Strategic Advisory Committee to guide the national Campaign for Action, an initiative to ensure all Americans have access to high-quality, person-centered health care, with nurses contributing to the full extent of their capabilities.
Large international study finds memory in adults impacted by versions of four genes
April 15, 2012 — Two research studies, co-led by UC Davis neurologist Charles DeCarli and conducted by an international team that included more than 80 scientists at 71 institutions in eight countries, has advanced understanding of the genetic components of Alzheimer's disease and of brain development. [en español] [中文 Chinese]
Nesbitt awarded by American Hospital Association for advancing telemedicine
April 13, 2012 — Thomas Nesbitt, Associate Vice Chancellor for Strategic Technologies and Alliances, and director, Center for Health and Technology, has received the Justin Ford Kimball Innovators Award from the American Hospital Association. Nesbitt also is a professor of family and community medicine.
Wine tasting, food featured at annual benefit for UC Davis Hospice Program
April 9, 2012 — "Celebrate Life!", an annual event featuring wine tasting, food and a silent auction benefiting the UC Davis Hospice Program, will be held on Thursday, May 17, from 5-8 p.m. at the Sierra II Center, 2791 24th St., Sacramento.
Maternal obesity, diabetes associated with autism, other developmental disorders
April 8, 2012 — A major study of the relationships between maternal metabolic conditions and the risk that a child will be born with a neurodevelopmental disorder has found strong links between maternal diabetes and obesity and the likelihood of having a child with autism or another developmental disability. [en español]
Concert performance at Mondavi to benefit Medicos: The Kenya Project
April 5, 2012 — Classical pianist Tien Hsieh will perform a concert benefiting an exchange program between medical students at UC Davis and the University of Nairobi on Saturday, May 5, at 3:30 p.m., at the Mondavi Center for the Performing Arts in Davis.
MIND Institute holds Family Open House for Autism Awareness Month
April 4, 2012 — On Saturday, April 28, the UC Davis MIND Institute will hold a Family Open House, in recognition of Autism Awareness Month. The event will feature fun activities for the entire family, including food, live entertainment, discussion of MIND Institute research and demonstrations. More than 1,000 people attended last year's open house, and more attendees are anticipated this year.
Imaging and the brain the focus of the next MIND Institute distinguished lecture
April 2, 2012 — F. Xavier Castellanos, director and vice-chair for research at the New York University Child Study Center's Phyllis Green and Randolph Cōwen Institute for Pediatric Neuroscience, will discuss "The Restless Brain: Spontaneous Brain Fluctuations and Increased Variability in ADHD," during the next UC Davis MIND Institute Distinguished Lecturer Series presentation.
March 2012
Teen sleep study shows link between timing of brain and sexual maturation
March 29, 2012 — In the largest longitudinal study to date of electrical activity in the brains of sleeping adolescents, UC Davis scientists have discovered that the timing of brain maturation is associated with the timing of puberty. [en español]
Participants needed for UC Davis MIND Institute brain-imaging study on motivation in autism
March 28, 2012 — Researchers at the UC Davis MIND Institute are seeking children and young adults to participate in a groundbreaking brain-imaging study aimed at understanding one of the most critical aspects of autism spectrum disorders: motivation in learning.
UC Davis medical student receives award to study broken-heart syndrome
March 27, 2012 — Annahita Sarcon, a fourth-year medical student at the UC Davis School of Medicine, was awarded a $2,500 grant from the American Medical Association (AMA) Foundation's Seed Grant Research Program to support investigations on broken-heart syndrome, a temporary condition that mimics a heart attack brought on by stressful situations. [en español]
Supporting efforts to transform health care in China
March 27, 2012 — Chinese officials have begun a massive strategic planning process to update the health-care delivery system. Last month, Kenneth W. Kizer, director of the Institute for Population Health Improvement at UC Davis Health System, was invited o deliver the keynote address and discuss reform strategies in Beijing, China, at the first international conference on restructuring China's public hospital system.
"Coaching Boys into Men" an effective tool for stopping teen dating violence
March 25, 2012 — Male high school athletes' ability to recognize and intervene to stop dating violence -- the physical, sexual and emotional aggression prevalent in adolescent romantic relationships -- is improved with the intervention of some of the most important role models in young men's lives: their coaches. [en español]
UC Davis Health System receives grant for teen internships in stem cell research
March 23, 2012 — The state stem cell agency, the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM), has awarded a $264,000 grant to UC Davis Health System to support summer internships for high school students over the next three years.
Research identifies the beginnings of COPD
March 21, 2012 — The third most deadly disease in the U.S., chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), appears to be partly driven by the action of immune cells circulating in the blood entering into the tissues of the lungs. UC Davis scientists have discovered that this key process begins in the blood vessels around the large airways in the center of the lung. The discovery helps clarify how smoking can bring about this severe respiratory condition. [en español]
UC Davis pulmonologist selected for award from American Federation for Medical Research
March 21, 2012 — Amir A. Zeki, assistant professor in the Division of Pulmonary, Critical Care and Sleep Medicine, has been selected as a 2012 winner of the Henry Christian Award from the American Federation for Medical Research.
New UC Davis physician training programs help meet demand for heart, lung and vascular specialists
March 20, 2012 — UC Davis School of Medicine offers two new integrated residency programs and a new fellowship program to train physicians for careers in vascular and thoracic surgery and meet the national need for highly trained surgical specialists who can treat diseases of the blood vessels, heart and lungs -- leading causes of death and disability in the U.S.
UC Davis medical students celebrate Match Day
March 16, 2012 — In a room filled with excitement and joy, 106 graduating students from UC Davis School of Medicine today learned where in the United States they will be continuing their medical education over the next several years as they train to become licensed physicians. [en español]
Second-year student wins Virginia Toombs, M.D. Memorial Scholarship
March 15, 2012 — Brittany Lewis, a second-year student at the UC Davis School of Medicine, is the 2011-12 recipient of the Virginia Toombs, M.D. Memorial Scholarship.
UC Davis Cancer Center earns "comprehensive" status from National Cancer Institute
March 14, 2012 — UC Davis Cancer Center has earned the world's most prestigious honor in oncology: a "comprehensive" designation from the National Cancer Institute, and will now be known as the UC Davis Comprehensive Cancer Center. [en español]
Lung doctors expect respiratory diseases will worsen with global climate change
March 14, 2012 — Worldwide increases in the incidences of asthma, allergies, infectious and cardiovascular diseases will result from a variety of impacts of global climate change, including rising temperatures, worsening ozone levels in urban areas, the spread of desertification, and expansions of the ranges of communicable diseases as the planet heats up, the professional organization representing respiratory and airway physicians stated in a new position paper released today. [en español]
AMA Foundation honors UC Davis medical student with Leadership Award
March 14, 2012 — Adam Dougherty, a second-year student at the UC Davis School of Medicine recently received the American Medical Association (AMA) Foundation's 2012 Leadership Award (www.amafoundation.org). This award provides medical students, residents, fellows and early career physicians from around the country with special training to develop their skills as future leaders in organized medicine and community affairs.
UC Davis School of Medicine recognized for strong conflict-of-interest policies
March 9, 2012 — The UC Davis School of Medicine ranks among the top medical schools on the 2012 American Medical Student Association (AMSA) PharmFree Scorecard, a national assessment of medical school policies governing how the pharmaceutical industry interacts with faculty and students. [en español]
Health system's ad campaign wins in second award competition
March 9, 2012 — UC Davis Health System's multimedia "What Do You See?" clinical marketing campaign has earned another award for excellence, taking the silver award for local, consumer mixed/multiple media advertising campaigns at the Sacramento Ad Club's annual "ADDYs" awards event on March 8.
Postdoctoral student Fan Yang awarded UC Davis Loren D. Carlson Prize in Physiology
March 7, 2012 — Fan Yang, a doctoral student in the molecular, cellular and integrative physiology program (MCIP), received the 2011-12 Loren D. Carlson Prize in Physiology for his work on the molecular mechanisms underlying temperature-dependent activation of thermo-TRP channels. Yang will be recognized at the graduate studies commencement in June 2012.
Alzheimer's Disease Center offers 5th annual Mini-Medical School in Spanish
March 7, 2012 — UC Davis Health System will host the 5th annual Spanish Mini-Medical School on Saturday, April 7, on the Sacramento campus of UC Davis. The event is sponsored by the health system's Alzheimer's Disease Center, the UC Davis Center for Reducing Health Disparities and the UC Davis Clinical and Translational Science Center.
UC Davis Professor Emeritus Robert R. Traut dies at 77
March 6, 2012 — Dr. Robert R. Traut, professor emeritus in the UC Davis Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Medicine, died on Feb. 29 in Davis, Calif., following a brief illness. He was 77.
UC Davis physician named to national panel evaluating how physicians are paid
March 5, 2012 — Richard Kravitz, UC Davis professor of internal medicine, has been named to a newly formed independent commission that will assess how physicians are paid.
UC Davis research shows how the body senses a range of hot temperatures
March 2, 2012 — The winter sun feels welcome, but not so a summer sunburn. Research over the past 20 years has shown that proteins on the surface of nerve cells enable the body to sense several different temperatures. [en español]
UC Davis performs Sacramento's first minimally invasive heart valve replacements
March 2, 2012 — For James Carleton, tennis is a second career. He took up the sport in his late 50s and became a regular on the senior circuit. But when he collapsed on a court last year at age 91, he feared that second career might be over.
