Discover | Teach | Heal

17th Edition | February 2022 After a month of virtual instruction, we are now back to in-person classes on campus. Additionally, with more and more of the public receiving the vaccine, we are starting to see the numbers of seriously ill COVID-19 patients drop in Orange County. Read More

UCI receives monumental gift towards depression research Chancellor Howard Gillman announced a transformative gift of $57.75 million, given to UCI on behalf of the estate of Audrey Steele Burnand.  More than $55 million of the gift, believed to be the largest philanthropic gift to a U.S. university for depression research, will be used to create the Noel Drury, MD, Depression Research Center. Read More   UCI study confirms linkage between altered DNA repair and DNA damage in neurodegenerative conditions causing movement disorders New research suggests potential therapies to treat spinocerebellar ataxia and its resulting coordination impairments. Read More

Research team discovers a molecular feature in prostate cancer with prognostic value, distinguishes ancestral differences Expression signatures may be useful for assessing greatest risk of progression in prostate and other cancers. Read More   UCI researchers discover cause, develop pharmacological treatment for reducing retinitis pigmentosa vision loss Inhibiting ceramide accumulation in retina protects photoreceptors, improves vision. Read More

Using cryo-electron tomography, UCI researchers reveal molecular mechanisms underlying mutations within the eye that lead to blindness Understanding the key structural determinants of a highly specialized membrane in the eye could lead to new treatments, even a cure. Read More UCI-led team first to discover new neural circuits that regulate spatial learning and memory in the brain’s hippocampal formation Understanding of novel functional roles can advance research in Alzheimer’s disease, other learning and memory disorders. Read More

Yama Akbari, MD, PhD, is 2021 recipient of Elizabeth Hurlock Beckman Award The annual award is given to professors who inspired their former students to achieve greatness. Read More   Krzysztof Palczewski, PhD, winner of 2022 Goodman and Gilman Award in Receptor Pharmacology Given by The American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics (ASPET) for significant contributions to the field of pharmacology and the future of pharmacology research and education. Read More

Kwang Mook Jung, PhD, receives investigator award from Department of Defense Jung recently received the New Investigator Award from the Department of Defense, Gulf War Illness Research Program for his study of "Cannabidiol as a Novel Therapeutic for Gulf War Illness." Read More   UCI and community partners expand efforts to build local resilience and address COVID-19 inequities The community-academic partnership will advocate for a health equity approach to COVID-19 recovery in Orange County and will inform policymakers on structural improvements. Read More

Academic Senate 2021-22 Distinguished Faculty Awardees named Claudia H. Kawas, MD, professor in the Department of Neurology, will be awarded the Academic Senate Better World Award on March 9, 2022. Read More Two School of Medicine graduate students selected as 2021-2022 Public Impact Distinguished Fellows Public Impact Fellowships highlight and support PhD or MFA students whose current research has the potential for substantial impact in the public sphere. Read More

Saving Lives with Stem Cells The Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplant and Cellular Therapy Program is thriving during its inaugural year. Read More   UCI Health intensive care units honored with Beacon Award for Excellence Critical care recognition reflects longstanding commitment to highest nursing standards. Read More

UCI Health and UC Investments team up to advance solutions for healthcare challenges UCI Health, Orange County’s academic health system, and UC Investments, the Office of the Chief Investment Officer of the Regents of the University of California, jointly announced the launch of a $50 million fund to invest in healthcare innovation and digital health aimed at revolutionizing patient care and public health. Read More   Type O blood shortage Critical need for blood donations to ease nation-wide shortage. Read More

Unmatched for excellence UCI Health is home to 187 doctors who have been named 2022 Physicians of Excellence by the Orange County Medical Association, more than any other hospital in the region. UCI Health is home to 187 doctors who have been named 2022 Physicians of Excellence by the Orange County Medical Association, more than any other hospital in the region. This prestigious honor, announced in the January 2022 issue of Orange Coast magazine, is bestowed by the volunteer physician organization as part of its mission to promote the art and science of medicine, the protection of public health and the betterment of the medical profession. The complete list includes more than 740 Orange County physicians in more than 65 specialties. The magazine is on newsstands now. Read More

In Depth: How a Scientist laid the groundwork for the mRNA Covid vaccines in San Diego Engineered particles efficiently deliver gene editing proteins to cells in mice UCI researchers create way to pay for things with high-five A future doctor’s illustration of a Black fetus went viral Experts explain the importantce of Black bodies in medical diagrams UCI team's preemptive COVID vaccine candidate has promising results Feb. 8 – Annual EpiCenter Symposium Feb. 18-19 –  48 hours of Otolaryngology Updates Feb. 23-25 – 2022 Healthcare Forecast Conference Feb. 23-26 – UCI Gastroenterology & Hepatology Symposium March 1 – Center for the Neurbiology of Learning and Memory (CNLM) Virtual Colloquium Series March 24-25 – Engaging Learners Through Innovation and Technology (ELITe) course See All Events UCI School of Medicine UCI Health SOMNews@uci.edu

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