CUIMC Update - September 4, 2024

September 4, 2024

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CUIMC Update is a weekly e-newsletter featuring medical center news and the accomplishments of our faculty, staff, and trainees. Please send your news, honors, and awards to cuimc_update@cumc.columbia.edu. Grants are provided by the Sponsored Projects Administration office.

News

Roy and Diana Vagelos Make Historic Gift for Biomedical Science Research and Education
A $400 million gift from Roy and Diana Vagelos will secure Columbia’s leadership in biomedical science research and education and produce an array of opportunities for improving society’s health and well-being. The gift is the single largest ever made to Columbia’s medical school.

Medical Center Launches Women’s Basketball League
Faculty, staff, and students of any experience level are welcome to join a new women’s basketball league, which offers a chance to de-stress and connect with colleagues on Thursdays at 5:30 p.m. at the 50 Haven Ave. Athletic Center.

Get the Most from Your Employee Assistance Program
Learn about the range of services provided by Columbia's EAP, including individual counseling, life coaching, legal and financial assistance, and even finding a real estate agent or a pet sitter. 

A Long-Standing Nursing School Tradition Gets an Update
At this year’s Pinning Ceremony, students in the Masters Direct Entry program received a newly designed pin that signifies their preparedness to enter the practice of nursing.

How Video Visits Help Moms Meet their Breastfeeding Goals
A telelactation service at Columbia, in collaboration with the NewYork-Presbyterian Ambulatory Care Network, is helping to expand access to lactation support services to more moms.

Events

Grants

Mailman School of Public Health

  • Allison Kupsco, Environmental Health Sciences
    $2,186,358 over four years from the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences for "The placental epitranscriptome as a novel mechanism behind prenatal metal mixture exposures and child growth and development."

Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons

  • Marwah Abdalla, Medicine
    $778,006 over five years for a subaward from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute for "Sleep and circadian contributions to nighttime blood pressure rhythms."
  • Devangere Devanand, Psychiatry
    $8,468,903 over five years from the National Institute on Aging for "Cognitive Training and Neuroplasticity in Mild Cognitive Impairment."
  • Yian Gu, Sergievsky Center
    $575,750 over five years for a subaward from the National Institute on Aging for "Asian Cohort for Alzheimer's Disease (ACAD)-Project 2."
  • Gustavo Maegawa, Pediatrics
    $2,938,536 over five years from the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke for "A Novel Molecular Neutralization Strategy for Cytotoxic Sphingolipid in a Neurogenetic Disorder."
  • Joshua Milner, Pediatrics
    $1,439,375 over five years for a subaward from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases for "Mechanistic elucidation of pathogenic CBM complex mutations associated with atopic disease."
  • Harris Wang, Systems Biology
    $600,000 over two years for a subaward from the Department of Energy for "From Sequence to Cell to Population: Secure and Robust Biosystems Design for Environmental Microorganisms."
  • Noelia Zork and Uma Reddy, Obstetrics & Gynecology
    $359,810 over five years for a subaward from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development for "Offspring Neurodevelopment and Growth after Early-Pregnancy Antihypertensive Therapy OR Preeclampsia in Women with Chronic Hypertension (CHAP Child)."

Honors

Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons

Social Media Snapshot

Columbia Medicine | As International Overdose Awareness Day approaches, #ColumbiaMed’s Dr. Adam Blumenberg is sharing essential steps to take if you encounter... | Instagram

In the News Highlights

  • In Some States, Having a Guardian Means Not Having a Vote
    Aug 29, 2024
    The New York Times
    Some experts argue that there are valid reasons to limit the voting rights of people under guardianship, or to require them to prove competency before going to the polls. Dr. Paul Appelbaum, director of the division of law, ethics and psychiatry at Columbia University, suggested a minimum competency standard would not be unreasonable. “My concern is more with the participation of people who may simply not really understand what it is that they’re doing,” he said.
  • America Is Doubling Down on Sewer Surveillance
    Aug 26, 2024
    The Atlantic
    Today, wastewater monitoring offers one of the most comprehensive pictures anyone has of COVID-19’s summer surge. This type of surveillance has been so effective at forecasting the risks of the virus’s rise and fall that local governments are now looking for other ways to use it. That has meant turning from tracking infections to tracking illicit and high-risk drug use.
    Editor's Note: Helen Ouyang, author of this article, is an associate professor of emergency medicine at Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons.
  • The Bite Is On: What to Know About the Viruses Mosquitoes Are Spreading
    Aug 29, 2024
    NBC News Online
    There is no specific treatment for either EEE or West Nile. People who are sick enough to be hospitalized are given supportive care to deal with severe symptoms. “All we really can do is keep them hydrated, keep their fevers down and make sure they don’t have respiratory failure,” said epidemiologist Dr. W. Ian Lipkin, director of the Center for Infection and Immunity at the Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health in New York City.