Newswise — Bethesda, MD – National Institutes of Health director Dr. Francis Collins will deliver the Presidential lecture during the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences (USU) annual Research Days symposium, May 12-13. More than 300 basic and clinical scientists and students will also present their scholarly works during the two-day event held on the university’s Bethesda, Md., campus.
This year’s theme, "Celebrating Excellence in Research," reflects the complementary roles that nursing, public health, behavioral science, basic science, and medicine play in health promotion. The annual two-day event formally encompasses four primary events -- the Graduate School of Nursing Research Colloquium, which brings together faculty and students to present and discuss nursing-specific research findings; the Graduate Student Colloquium, which highlights the research interests and accomplishments of graduate students in USU’s F. Edward Hébert School of Medicine; and the Postdoctoral Fellows Symposium and Faculty Senate Research Day, which draw the entire USU community to share research achievements, foster collaborations, and stimulate intellectual exchange. Together, these events serve to inform the local scientific community, collaborative institutions, and other federal agencies about significant research projects conducted across the health sciences at USU and its affiliates.
Collins will present, “Exceptional Opportunities in Biomedical Research,” on Wednesday, May 13, in the University’s Sanford Auditorium.
On Tuesday, May 12, Janet D. Pierce, Ph.D, APRN, CCRN, FAAN, the Christine A. Hartley Endowed Professor of Nursing from the University of Kansas School of Nursing, will present “Researchers: Guardians of Science,” as this year’s Faye G. Abdellah Lecturer. Mary Helen-Barcellos-Hoff, Ph.D., professor of Radiation Oncology and Cell Biology and director of Radiation Biology at the New York University School of Medicine, Langone Medical Center, will deliver the first Armed Forces Radiobiology Research Institute Lecture, “Cancer in Context: A Systems Biology Approach to Radiation Carcinogenesis.” The Bullard Lecture, named for the late USU associate dean for Graduate and Continuing Education Dr. John Bullard, will be given by Bruce Alberts, Ph.D., the chair in Biochemistry and Biophysics for Science and Education at the University of California, San Francisco. Dr. Alberts’ lecture is titled, “The Future of Biology: Keeping Science Healthy.”
Joining Collins on Wednesday, May 13, Kim Lewis, Ph.D., University Distinguished Professor and Director of the Antimicrobial Discovery Center, Department of Biology at Northwestern University, will present the USU Postdoctoral Lecture, “The Quest for Novel Antibiotics.”
Army Capt. Paul Joseph Crites, DDS, MS, Department of Oral Biology in USU’s Postgraduate Dental College, will deliver the Dental Award Lecture, “A Report on a Thesis: Microtensile Bond Strength of an Adhesive System Containing 0.2% Chlorhexidine.”
Rounding out the day’s talks on Wednesday will be the annual Wu and Leonard Award for Excellence in Research lectures. The awards are named for former USU department chairs, Henry C. Wu, Ph.D., and James J. Leonard, M.D. Army Lt. Col. (Dr.) Michael Ellis, deputy director of the Infectious Diseases Division in USU’s Department of Medicine, this year’s Leonard Award recipient, will give, “Prevention of Skin and Soft Tissue Infections in Military Trainees: Results from a Field-based Prospective,” while Michael J. Daly, Ph.D., professor in the Department of Pathology at USU, the Wu Award recipient, will present, “A Revolutionary Approach to Vaccine Development: Deinococcus radiodurans Mn Antioxidants.”
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The Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences (USU), founded by an act of Congress in 1972, is the academic heart of the Military Health System. USU students are primarily active duty uniformed officers in the Army, Navy, Air Force and Public Health Service who receive specialized education in tropical and infectious diseases, TBI and PTSD, disaster response and humanitarian assistance, global health, and acute trauma care. A large percentage of the university’s more than 5,200 physician and 790 advanced practice nursing alumni are supporting operations around the world, offering their leadership and expertise. USU also has graduate programs in biomedical sciences and public health committed to excellence in research, and in oral biology. The University's research program covers a wide range of clinical and basic science important to both the military and public health. For more information, visit www.usuhs.edu.
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