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F I Health Science Center
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On the Cover

Table of Contents

Many bacteria flourish in the heat and humidity of a
Florida summer. Should you worry? That depends on the
bacterium. This month, writer Ann Griswold spoke with
UF microbiology and infectious disease experts about
the good, the bad and the ugly in the world of bacteria.

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POST-it
Administration: New COM dean
Patient Care: International aid
Research: Aging and video games
Research: When mind meets machine
Extraordinary Person: A grad with a plan
Cover Story: The bacteria among us
Awards: Superior Accomplishment Awards
Awards: Service pins
Research Day: Awards
Research Day: Two lifetime achievements
Jacksonville: Residents win Ortho Bowl

Distinctions
Profile: Jerry

Kidney

S** ** ** ***SS SS SSS SS *** ** ** *** ** *** SS S *** ** ** *** **** *** *S SS S S ** **

~UP FRON

A promising

partnership

UF joins German company to test
prostate cancer vaccine
LUF College of Medicine researchers are teaming with the
German biopharmaceutical company CureVac to test an
experimental therapy for advanced prostate cancer patients
who no longer respond to traditional treatment. UF and CureVac
leaders announced the collaboration in June at the UF Cancer &
Genetics Research Complex (right). CureVac, which specializes in the
therapeutic application of messenger RNA, is developing a stabilized
mRNA-derived vaccine for treatment of prostate cancer. UF urology
researchers will conduct clinical trials in American patients with
metastatic prostate cancer who no longer respond to hormone therapy
beginning in 2009. "Several studies support the therapeutic potential
of mRNA for the treatment of cancer," said Johannes Vieweg, M.D., a
professor and chairman of UF's department of urology who is a
member of CureVac's scientific advisory board. "This, however, will
be the first clinical trial in the U.S. to use the direct application route
by injecting modified mRNA into the skin." Melissa M. Thompson

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066660

CONTENTS

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HEY, BIG LOSER!
Cavities aren'tthe only foe in the College of Dentistry these days. Staff
members are taking on fat, too. In June, employees started a 12-week
weight-loss challenge, competing against each other in teams. And it's
working. So far, participants have lost a total of 200 pounds. It's not a
pound-for-pound challenge, though. The "biggest loser" will be
determined according to the percentage of body weight lost. The 65
participants each paid $10to enterthe challenge. In the end, the
individual biggest loser will receive 25 percent of the money collected,
and the team that lost the most weight will receive 75 percent.

Vsit us oie @ http://news.health.ufl.edu for the tt ews d HC ents 3

-IPY~~

Not stepping

down

... yet

It's all Good

UF appoints interim dean

for College of Medicine

Barrett to stay on as

VP during search

By Tom Fortner
Douglas J. Barrett, M.D., will stay on as UF's
senior vice president of health affairs while the
search for his successor is conducted. UF
President Bernie Machen made the announcement at a
board of trustees meeting June 13.
Barrett had been scheduled to step down June 30 and
return to full-time service as a pediatrics faculty
member in the College of Medicine. Machen asked
Barrett to delay his plans until the search for a new
senior vice president is completed or until June 30,
2009, whichever comes first.
Barrett said the change in plans is primarily due to
the recent transition to interim leadership in the UF
College of Medicine and related issues within the
Health Science Center.
In addition to supporting interim medical dean
Michael Good, M.D., Barrett is focused on advancing
the recently announced partnership with the Moffitt
Cancer Center and assisting Machen with adjustments
to the roles of the university provost and the senior vice
president for health affairs.
Barrett, who has held his current position for six
years, announced his intention to resign March 14.

By Tom Fortner
A 20-year veteran of the UF
faculty who co-invented MICHA G M
the Human Patient
Simulator and served as chief of
staff at Shands at UF has been
named interim dean of the UF
College of Medicine.
Michael L. Good, M.D., the
college's senior associate dean for
clinical affairs, was named interim
dean in June after serving as acting
dean since May 22.
Douglas J. Barrett, M.D., UF's
senior vice president for health
affairs, made the appointment after
consulting with medical faculty
members and UF President
Bernie Machen.
"Mike is a proven leader who
enjoys the respect and support of
the faculty," Barrett said. "While"--
he certainly has the experience to
take on this assignment, he also has r-
a personal management style that
people respond to positively."
A professor of anesthesiology at
UF who joined the faculty in 1988,
Good, 48, is a Michigan native and
a graduate of the University of
Michigan and the UM School of Medicine. He completed his residency and a fellowship
in anesthesiology at UF.
During his residency and later as a faculty member, Good teamed with UF colleagues
to invent the Human Patient Simulator, a sophisticated computerized teaching tool that
is now used in health-care education programs throughout the world.
In 1994, Good became chief of anesthesiology at the Malcom Randall Veterans Affairs
Medical Center in Gainesville and two years later was named chief of staff at the VA. He
returned to the Shands at UF medical staff in 2003 and in 2004 was appointed senior
associate dean for VA affiliations. He became senior associate dean for clinical affairs in
2005.
Among other duties, Good has been responsible for implementing the College of
Medicine's new quality and patient safety initiative and one of its chief components, an
electronic patient medical record. Barrett said it will be important for Good and the
college to maintain momentum on this and other crucial initiatives in the months ahead.
Good's assignment will also include filling several open chair positions for which
searches are currently under way, as well as associate dean positions for the education
and research programs.
"I look forward to working with the college's exceptional group of department chairs
to ensure that our faculty and staff are supported in their work," Good said. "It's because
of their efforts that patients seek out our medical services, the best and brightest
students come here for their professional education, and the world looks to us for
discoveries to cure disease and improve health." O

4 Visit us online @ http://news.health.ufl.edu for the latest news and HSC ev

ADMINISTRATOR

PLAYING IT

SAFE

By Lauren Edwards

If you spend any time at the Health
Science Center, chances are you know
what a 24-hour operation it is. Doctors,
nurses, students, patients and staff come
and go at all hours, making safety an
important concern.
During 2007, the University Police Department reported more
than 240 thefts from buildings on the UF campus, and, though
that number might seem small, staying safe takes work. That's why
UF security officials are stressing the importance of being aware of
your surroundings so you don't become a victim.
Dennis Hines, the HSC's assistant director of medical and health
administration, says "being proactive" is key to keeping the HSC
as safe as possible. Listed below are some of the security services
the HSC offers, along with a few useful tips to help keep yourself
- and your property safe.

SERVICES:

ESCORT An after-hours escort
SERVICES service (from 6:30 p.m.
until 7 a.m.) is offered at
the East and West garages near the HSC. If
you do not see an escort immediately, use
the garage phone to arrange for someone to
meet and walk with you. You can even call
ahead! Call 265-0109. Also, remember that
there are emergency phones located in or
near the garages. Familiarize yourself with
their locations in case of emergency.

HANDS
\/A I1

EMERGENCY

The van runs until midnight
and is typically for those who

V Ii I l park farther away from the
HSC. At night, routes are
condensed and the van will drop you off
next to your car.

POLICE SERVICE Canserveas
TECHNICIANS "walking
escorts" 24/7 to
the garages and lots adjacent to the HSC.
PST vehicle patrols are also available from
6:30 p.m. until 3 a.m. to drive you anywhere
on campus. Call 392-1111.

THINGS TO REMEMBER:

BE PATIENT.
We must all do our part to keep ourselves safe,
even if that means waiting a few extra minutes
for an escort. "Take responsibility for your own
safety, security and well-being," says Kurt
Vahle, manager of Shands security.

PLAN AHEAD.
"When possible, try to plan your trips to and
from the HSC ahead of time," UPD Capt. Eric
Rice says.

BE AWARE.
Keep your eyes open and
report anyone or anything
that looks suspicious.

BUDDY UP.
Vahle says 98 percent
of assaults happen to
people who are alone,
so walk with a
co-worker.

THEFT: WAYS TO
PROTECT YOURSELF.
Theft happens, even at the HSC. Here are some ways to hold on to your
belongings.
Don't bring it if you don't need it.
Lock your office or desk when not there. "Crime is the result of
opportunity," says UPD Officer Cilitia Brown.
Don't talk about valuables or money you may have with you.
Question unfamiliar people in work areas, especially those without an
I.D. badge. If you feel uncomfortable, call UPD at 392-1111 or Shands
security at 265-0109 (non-emergency) or 265-0911 (emergency line.)

ADDITIONAL SERVICES:
UPD COMMUNITY SERVICES DIVISION
For more information on its programs, please visit
http://www.police.ufl.edu/csd/csad.asp.
SECURITY COMMITTEE AT THE HSC
Chaired by Rice, the meetings are open to the public and occur at
10 a.m. the third Tuesday of every month in Room H-4.
For additional questions, please call UPD Capt. Eric Rice at 846-3852
or Kurt Vahle of Shands Security at 265-0070. 0

Vsit us online @ http://news.health.ufl.edu for the latest news and HSC events 0]^^j 5

ADMINISTRATION

One smile

at a time

UF plastic surgeons perform

reconstructive surgeries in Honduras

Plastic surgeons perform a reconstructive surgery during a recent humanitarian
trip to Honduras.

Fantastic voyage 1 '

countries such as Mexico,
Costa Rica and the
Dominican Republic each
year to help people who
need care. Here, Lindsey
Willis, a UF audiology I
student shows a boy how to
signal that he hears a beep
during his hearing test while
fellow student Jason Schmitt
looks on. Audiology
students and faculty, along
with a pharmacist and UF pharmacy student, made their
fifth annual trip to Yucatan, Mexico to provide hearing
health care to children and families in rural Mayan
villages. On their trip to provide dental care to people in
Costa Rica, UF dental students and faculty members
pause to take a photo in front of the Arenal volcano. For
more photos from this year's international trips, visit www.
news.health.ufl.edu and click on the featured slideshow.

By Melissa M. Thompson

M Brent Seagle, M.D., has enhanced the human
form at UF for more than two decades, but he
really loves to build smiles.
In March, the UF chief of plastic surgery led 20 medical professionals to San Pedro
Sula, Honduras, where the team of surgeons, anesthesiologists, nurses and a pediatrician
operated on more than 50 patients with disfiguring congenital birth defects such as cleft
lips and palates, helping some of them smile normally for the first time in their lives.
"I can tell you the reaction of parents can bring a tear to your eye," Seagle said.
"That's probably part of what charges everybody up about it."
The South Florida-based group Interplast South organized the weeklong
humanitarian trip to Honduras, a place the group has been aiding since the 1970s. Few
plastic surgeons practice in the country, leaving patients without resources for corrective
or reconstructive surgeries, said Seagle.
Seagle hopes to organize regular trips to San Pedro Sula and invite UF residents to
join him.
Wayne Lee, M.D., the only senior plastic surgery fellow from UF to participate in this
year's trip, learned to expect the unexpected while operating in a foreign country. On the
first day of surgery, rolling power outages hindered the number of operations physicians
could perform.
"Most places in America have backup generators but not at this hospital," Lee said.
"Luckily, we had brought some battery-operated headlights so we were able to finish the
surgeries we started."
Physicians set up shop in a hospital that, from the outside, resembled a run-down,
stucco carriage house. A one-room surgical ward housed recovering patients while the
adjoining operating suite provided two operating rooms, a recovery room and support
spaces.
In the clinic, physicians examined nearly 100 patients who came from miles away by
bus or on foot to have their surgeries.
This type of reconstructive surgery is standard in America. Children receive
government-funded cleft lip surgeries as early as 3 months and palate operations at age 1.
"The kids who live down there would have lived with the stigma of having a cleft lip
or palate for much longer than kids in America," Lee said.
Many parents cried when they saw their children's faces after the operation, Lee said.
"It reminded me of how rewarding medicine can be," he said. "Sometimes we get so
jaded by malpractice and liability that some (physicians) forget this is why we got into
medicine." Q

6 |1 Visi us online @ http://news.health.ufl.edu for the Ictest news and HSC ev

PATIENT CARE

Planting

Private gift helps Guatemalan program sprout

C_

I 4 .

: .

UF researchers Allan Burns (from left) and Dr. Alba Amaya-Burns are starting a program
to help cut infectious disease and maternal mortality rates in Guatemala. UF received a
$50,000 gift from donor Scott Adams to fund the work.

ByJill Pease

sometimes all a great idea needs is a little seed money to

help it grow into something big.

That's the hope of Scott Adams, who recently made a $50,000 gift to UF to start an
infectious disease prevention program in Guatemala. The funding has allowed UF professors Alba
Amaya-Burns, M.D., and Allan Burns, Ph.D., to lay the groundwork for a program that seeks to cut
infectious disease and maternal mortality rates among Guatemala's disadvantaged populations.
Adams knows the importance of nurturing innovative ideas. In 1995, he co-founded and served as
president of Hiway Technologies Inc., which became the world's largest Web hosting company before
being acquired by Verio in 1999.
Adams has several philanthropic interests, but as the son of a Guatemala native, the country holds
a special place in his heart. A meeting last year with the Burnses a husband and wife team -
started the wheels turning on a project to address Guatemala's serious health issues while using a
culturally sensitive approach. More than 60 percent of Guatemala's population is composed of
indigenous Mayans who speak one of two dozen Mayan languages.

"To help people, you need hard work, integrity, values and to
roll your sleeves up and understand the culture," Adams said.
"That's what impressed me about the Burnses."
Alba Amaya-Burns, a clinical associate professor in the
College of Public Health and Health Professions' department of
behavioral science and community health and a former
infectious disease manager specialist with the US Agency for
International Development, helped implement a highly
successful tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS prevention program in
her home country of El Salvador. Allan Burns, a professor of
anthropology and associate dean for faculty affairs in the College
of Liberal Arts and Sciences, is an expert in Mayan culture, a
board member of the Universidad del Valle in Guatemala City
and president of the Society for Applied Anthropology.
With Adams' financial support, the Burnses, along with
anthropology and public health graduate students and Nabih
Asal, Ph.D., a professor of epidemiology and biostatistics, have
visited Guatemala twice to make assessments and develop
partnerships with the country's Ministry of Health,
international health agencies, non-government organizations
and regional and local officials. The UF group plans to focus its
initial efforts on the Izabal region, a remote area with high rates
of maternal mortality and multidrug-resistant TB and HIV/
AIDS, as well as several environmental and cultural barriers to
health care.
"Treatment for multidrug-resistant TB requires 18 months in
a Guatemala City hospital, which takes Mayan villagers far from
their families to a place where they don't speak the language -
Spanish and they are unaccustomed to the culture," Amaya-
Burns said. "So these patients may leave the hospital without
finishing their treatment, which means they could spread the
multidrug-resistant strain of TB to others or their own illness
could develop into extreme drug-resistant TB, which is currently
untreatable."
The UF team envisions a culturally friendly treatment facility
in the Izabal region that would have some of the comforts of
home. They also want to establish a community organization to
control TB and HIV/AIDS, increase detection, reduce stigma
and promote treatment.
Adams accompanied the UF group on a trip to Guatemala in
February and was struck by the possibilities for using new
technology to improve the country's weak public health
surveillance system, which suffers from a lack of training and
resources.
"We saw that disease reports were written down on pieces of
paper or not written down at all," Adams said. "So the
epidemiological data didn't get into a centralized system. But
new wireless technology could tie all the health departments
together into one system and new computers designed for a
hardened environment can withstand the humidity and power
fluctuations."
These ideas and more are part of proposals the UF team is
developing to request additional funding from several
international agencies.
"I gave the gift because I wanted to help this program get off
the ground in the hope that the work will create a successful
model for infectious disease prevention that could be used all
over Central America and in developing countries around the
world," Adams said. a

Visit us online http://news.health.ufl.edu for the Ictest news Snd HSC events 0Il I O 1 7

GIT

Red, r
Substance

RESEARCH

By Ann Griswold

ed wine
in red wine found to keel hearts \oung

Sow do the French get away with a clean bill of heart health despite a diet loaded with saturated fats? Scientists have long suspected the
answer to the so-called "French paradox" lies in red wine. Now, the results of a new study bring them closer to understanding why.
I Reporting in the journal Public Library of Science (PLoS) ONE in June, UF and University of Wisconsin-Madison researchers
discovered that low doses of resveratrol a natural constituent of grapes, pomegranates, red wine and other foods can potentially boost the
quality of life by improving heart health in old age.
The scientists included small amounts of resveratrol in the diets of middle-aged mice and found that the compound has a widespread influence
on the genetic causes of aging. Specifically, the researchers found that low doses of resveratrol mimic the heart-healthy effects of what is known as
caloric restriction, diets with 20 to 30 percent fewer calories than a typical diet. The new study is important because it suggests that resveratrol
and caloric restriction, which has been widely studied in animals from spiders to humans, may govern the same master genetic pathways related
to aging.
CHRISTIAAN LEEUWENBURGH, PH.D. "Caloric restriction is highly effective in extending life in many species. If you provide species with less food, the regulated cellular stress
response of this healthy habit actually makes them live longer," said study author Christiaan Leeuwenburgh, Ph.D., chief of the division of biology
of aging at UF's Institute on Aging and a professor of aging and geriatrics in the College of Medicine. "In this study, the effects of low doses of resveratrol (on genes)
were comparable to caloric restriction, the hallmark for life extension."
Resveratrol is currently sold over-the-counter as a nutritional supplement with supposed anti-cancer, anti-viral, anti-inflammatory and anti-aging benefits, although
few scientific studies have verified these claims in humans. That may soon change: UF researchers hope to explore the effects of resveratrol on older people in a phase 1
clinical trial, set to begin this summer. 0

Game on, Grandma!

Researchers to test whether video games improve seniors' mental functioning

ByJill Pease
M ove over, kids. You might need to make
room on that couch for grandma and
grandpa, as seniors gear up to join the video
game craze.
UF researchers have received a $100,000 grant from
the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation to explore
whether interactive digital games can enhance the
mental abilities of older adults. UF joins 11 other
research teams supported in this first round of funding
from Health Games Research, an RWJF program
established to strengthen the evidence base related to
the development and use of games to achieve desirable
health outcomes. Under the watchful
Scientists in UF's College of Public Health and video games in a F
Health Professions will study off-the-shelf video games
to see whether older adults who play them can improve
their mental functioning. The study will examine the effects of a popular
action-adventure driving game on older adults' ability to process visual
information. While there has been a growing body of studies examining the
positive effects of video games, the UF study is innovative because of its focus on
the mental benefits of games, and because the target population is seniors, said
Patricia Belchior, Ph.D., the study's lead investigator.
"This study is based on pilot work we have conducted, as well as the work of
others, that has shown that playing action video games, even for as little as 10
hours in total, can significantly improve visual attention and provide positive
mental benefits for adults aged 65 and older," said Belchior, a postdoctoral fellow
in the department of occupational therapy.
The UF research team also includes co-principal investigator Michael Marsiske,
Ph.D., an associate professor of clinical and health psychology, and co-investigator

eye of a UF undergraduate research assistant, older adults practice playing
)ilot study of the effects of the games on seniors' mental functioning.

William Mann, Ph.D., a professor and chair of occupational therapy.
"There have now been several decades of positive findings regarding cognitive
training in later life," Marsiske said. "Our laboratory-based training studies have
shown large improvements for older adults, with positive effects lasting as long as
five years. However, we have often been unable to answer seniors' questions about
what they can do at home, to initiate their own mental exercise programs."
The study will track changes in video game skill among players and will
investigate whether extended play improves visual attention and functional
activities of daily life, including simulated driving.
Another potential side benefit of the study is "fun," Belchior said.
"In contrast to other training approaches, our preliminary work told us that
older participants simply enjoyed playing these games more than laboratory-
based mental training, and this enjoyment may help keep participants motivated
to continue exercising mentally." 0

8 |1 Visi us online @ http://news.health.ufl.edu for the Ictest news and HSC events

7

I GRANTS

UF researchers Jack DiGiovanna (left) and Justin C. Sanchez worked with colleagues
to develop and test a brain-machine interface system that adapts to changes in brain
patterns over time.

When mind meets machine

Researchers develop neural implant that can learn

with the brain

By April Frawley Birdwell
Devices known as brain-machine interfaces could someday be used routinely to help paralyzed
patients and amputees control prosthetic limbs with just their thoughts. As futuristic as that
sounds, UF researchers have taken the concept a step further, devising a way for
computerized devices not only to translate brain signals into movement but also to evolve with the
brain as it learns.
Instead of simply interpreting brain signals and routing them to a robotic hand or leg, this type of
brain-machine interface would adapt to a person's behavior and use the knowledge to help complete
a task more efficiently, say UF College of Medicine and College of Engineering researchers who
developed a model system and tested it in rats.
Until now, brain-machine interfaces have been designed as one-way conversations between the
brain and a computer, with the brain doing all the talking and the computer following commands.
The system UF engineers created gives the computer a say in that conversation, according to
findings published in the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers journal IEEE Transactions
on Biomedical Engineering.
"This idea opens up all kinds of possibilities for how we interact with devices," said Justin C.
Sanchez, Ph.D., a UF assistant professor of pediatric neurology and the study's senior author. "It's
not just about giving instructions but about those devices assisting us in a common goal. You know
the goal, the computer knows the goal and you work together to solve the task."
Scientists at UF and other institutions have been studying brain-machine interfaces for years,
developing and testing variations of the technology with the goal of creating implantable, computer-
chip-sized devices capable of controlling limbs or treating diseases.
The devices are programmed with complex algorithms that interpret thoughts. But the
algorithms, or code, used in current brain-machine interfaces don't adapt to change, Sanchez said.
"We learn throughout our lives and come into different scenarios, so you need to develop a
paradigm that allows interaction and growth," he said.
To develop and test this concept, Sanchez collaborated with engineering professors Jose Principe,
Ph.D., and Jose Fortes, Ph.D., and engineering doctoral students Babak Mahmoudi and Jack
DiGiovanna, the study's lead author.
The system the researchers developed is based on goals and rewards, Sanchez said.
Fitted with tiny electrodes in their brains to capture signals for the computer to unravel, three
rats were taught to move a robotic arm toward a target with just their thoughts. Each time they
succeeded, the rats were rewarded with a drop of water.
The computer had a goal, too to earn as many points as possible, Sanchez said. The closer a rat
moved the arm to the target, the more points the computer received, giving it incentive to determine
which brain signals lead to the most rewards.
"We think this dialogue with a goal is how we can make these systems evolve over time," Sanchez
said. "We want these devices to grow with the user." 0

Revisiting development
Researchers studying
embryonic stem cells
have explored the first
fork in the developmental
road, getting a new look at
what happens when
fertilized eggs differentiate
to build either an embryo
or a placenta. Writing in
the journal Nature Genetics,
UF neuroscientist Chi-Wei
Lu, Ph.D., and Harvard
researchers reveal a
CHI-WEILU,PH.D.
cellular signaling
mechanism that causes embryonic stem cells to switch gears
and form a placenta.

Reviving leptin

O nce heralded as a
promising obesity
treatment, the hormone
leptin lost its fat-fighting
luster when scientists
discovered overweight
patients were resistant to
its effects. But pairing
leptin with just a minor
amount of exercise seems
to revive the hormone's
ability to fight fat again,
UF researcher Philip PHILIP SCARPACE, PH.D.
Scarpace, Ph.D., reports in
Diabetes. The combination of leptin and a modest dose of
wheel running prevented obese rats on a high-fat diet from
gaining weight, even though neither tactic worked alone.

Revamped vector
placing one amino ..
,acid on the surface of
a virus that shepherds '
corrective genes into cells t
could be the breakthrough 1lip
scientists have needed to
make gene therapy a more
viable option for treating
genetic diseases such as
hemophilia. Reporting in
the Proceedings of the
National Academy of
Sciences in May, UF ARUN SRIVASTAVA, PH.D.
geneticists led by Arun
Srivastava, Ph.D., say they have developed a new version of
the adeno-associated virus used in gene therapy that works
about 30 times more efficiently in mice than vectors
scientists currently rely on.

Vsit us online @ http://news.health.ufl.edu for the Ictest news and HSC events UI]0l9II 1

RESEARCH

A vaccine for AIDS?

This grant could bring U.S. researchers closer to developing one

By Melanie Fridl Ross
F AIDS researcher Maureen M. Goodenow, Ph.D., has been awarded a $400,000
Stwo-year developmental grant through a new federal program that aims to find ways
to outsmart HIV by stimulating the immune system to produce protective antibodies
that could neutralize the virus.
The $15.6 million, five-year multicenter research effort is sponsored by the National
Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, part of the National Institutes of Health.
Officials say it will strengthen and expand the scientific foundation of HIV vaccine research
through a network of 10 research teams that will share resources, methods and data to
accelerate progress.
The program will focus on B cells, which the immune system relies on to recognize key
M*U parts of microbes, called antigens. T cells, which kill cells infected by pathogens, spur B
MAUREEN M. GOODENOW, PH.D.
cells to produce antibodies, which can lock onto antigens and sweep them from the body.
But HIV can fool B cells, shielding itself from antibodies or changing its antigenic parts, so
antibodies can rarely rid the body of the virus.
Goodenow, the Stephany W. Holloway university chair for AIDS research at UF's College of Medicine and director
of the Florida Center for AIDS Research, will lead basic immunology studies of B cells using innovative methods and
will seek to identify subsets of these cells that produce antibodies capable of targeting various strains of HIV. She is
collaborating with Li Yin, Ph.D., a UF assistant professor of pathology, Connie J. Mulligan, Ph.D., a UF professor of
anthropology, and John Sleasman, M.D., a professor of pediatrics at the University of South Florida and All Children's
Hospital in St. Petersburg. W
"The results will provide major advancements in understanding the immune response to HIV and will form a basis J c
for developing novel vaccine strategies to induce an effective anti-HIV response," Goodenow said.

Shelter medicine gets boost from grant

By Sarah Carey
he UF College of Veterinary Medicine has received a $1.7 million grant to create a comprehensive shelter medicine program that will enhance support
for local animal rescue operations, improve disease control and adoption rates among shelter animals and expand professional training to fill the
current shortage of skilled providers in this area.
The three-year grant from Maddie's Fund, a national pet-rescue foundation, will establish the Maddie's Shelter Medicine Program at UF and will build
upon UF's existing shelter medicine program. Through that program, which was created in 2003, veterinary students gain clinical experience by providing
spay/neuter surgeries to animals awaiting adoption at the local animal shelter.
"This is a transitional time for the animal welfare field as growing demand for animal-friendly solutions is challenging traditional sheltering paradigms,"
said Julie Levy, D.V.M., Ph.D., who was a co-investigator on the grant and who will
S become the Maddie's professor of shelter medicine at UF.
S "There is an international desire to shift from a reactive animal control model in
3 which massive numbers of animals are processed through shelters with an overall
high euthanasia rate to one in which proactive preventive measures reduce shelter
admissions with individualized programs tailored to different types of animals to
result in higher save rates," Levy added.
S^ The college's existing shelter medicine program was founded by Natalie Isaza,
D.V.M., UF's Merial clinical assistant professor of shelter medicine, and has grown
in popularity among veterinary students in recent years.
UF scientist Cynda Crawford, D.V.M., Ph.D., will become the Maddie's clinical
assistant professor of shelter medicine. A co-discoverer of the canine influenza
virus, Crawford will work closely with Isaza and Levy to implement additional
clinical and educational programs aimed at educating not only veterinary students
but also technicians and others associated with shelter efforts.
Existing partnerships with Alachua County and local animal rescue groups will
also be enhanced through the new grant.

Dr. Natalie Isaza, the Merial clinical professor of shelter medicine at UF, checks on shelter animals being treated through UF's shelter medicine program.

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EXTRAORDINARYR AER

A grad with a plan

Megan Briggs uses 'Army brat' experiences to shape

career in occupational therapy

ByJill Pease

I was graduation day, and Megan Briggs'

parents were bursting with pride.

They watched as Megan graduated summa cum laude from
the College of Public Health and Health Professions' bachelor's in
health science program and received the dean's undergraduate
scholar award, one of the college's highest student honors.
Joined by a dozen extended family members also in attendance,
Brenda and Steve Briggs had made a rare visit to the United
States from their home in Garmisch, Germany for their daughter's
big day.
"We are extremely proud, but not surprised by Megan's success,"
said U.S. Army Col. Steve Briggs, a director at the George C.
Marshall European Center for Security Studies in Germany. "She
has always been able to balance her work and recreational
activities. If you think of a person being made of several parts,
like the spiritual, physical, mental and emotional, Megan has
been able to find that sweet spot where she balances it all."
Megan's unique childhood experiences as the daughter of a U.S.
Army colonel also may have played a role in her college
achievements.
"Our family moved 10 times," Megan said. "I went to three
high schools before graduating from Heidelberg American High
School, but looking back, I wouldn't have changed anything. I
met great people and had amazing experiences."
Megan believes the outgoing nature she developed to break the
ice in new situations helped her make friends easily her freshman
year at UF. But there were also some tough moments growing up.
Steve was deployed during the first Gulf War when Megan was 6,
and he served in Bosnia during Megan's entire junior year of high
school.
"I didn't want to turn on the TV and see the news," she said.
Megan, who recentlybegan the college's master's in occupational
therapy program, started preparing for her career while she was
in high school. A guest lecture at her school by an occupational
therapist piqued Megan's interest in the field. She volunteered at
Heidelberg Army Hospital's occupational therapy clinic to learn
more.
"We had soldiers coming in who had been wounded in Iraq,"
Megan said. "I was exposed to some pretty serious stuff at a young
age. But I was fortunate to know what I wanted to do when I
started college."
As an undergraduate, Megan earned the opportunity to
participate in the honors program, which requires students to
complete a research project and write a thesis. Megan jumped at
the chance to do her research at the Malcom Randall Veterans
Affairs Medical Center, where she worked under the direction of
Michelle Woodbury, Ph.D., a research assistant professor in

Megan Briggs (seated) and her parents, Col. Steve Briggs and Brenda Briggs (center
behind Megan), toured the VA Rehabilitation Center during the Briggs' recent visit
from Germany to celebrate Megan's graduation. Also shown here are PHHP student
and lab volunteer Chelsea Stanley (from left), her boyfriend (and former Gator
basketball star) Lee Humphrey, physical therapist Carolyn Hanson, associate
investigator Michelle Woodbury and research physical therapist Sandy Davis.

PHHP's department of occupational therapy and an investigator
in the VA Brain Rehabilitation Research Center.
There, researchers are studying constraint-induced movement
therapy, which requires patients who have experienced a stroke to
wear a hand mitt on the side of their bodies not affected by the
stroke, forcing them to use their weaker hand to complete
activities.
"Megan's results suggest an interaction between quantitative
and qualitative measurements of arm recovery, important findings
to help inform clinical rehabilitation practice," Woodbury said.
"We are in the process of editing her thesis for publication and
preparing her abstract for submission as a poster presentation at
next year's American Occupational Therapy Association national
conference."
Although she has proved to be a natural at research, Megan
plans to do clinical work at a military hospital when she completes
her master's degree.
"I've always had a soft spot in my heart for people who serve our
country," she said. 0

Visit us online http://news.health.ufl.edu for the Ictest news Snd HSC events 0S5I I 11

Loygest fIiqyt egLer!

I -/b

BY ANN CRwWOLo

SUTHED r SUMMER

SCARED OF BACTERIA? WE HAVE THE SCOOP ON YOUR MICROwIAL FRIENDS AND FOES

ake a moment to gaze at your reflection in
the mirror. What do you see? The surface of
your skin? The inside of your mouth? Take a
closer look: Believe it or not, bacteria
outnumber human cells 10 to one.
Where do they come from? Some hop on
board during the birthing process. Others
enter the mouth during infancy, when babies
breastfeed and fend off kisses from Aunt
Mildred. Many more are acquired from food
and drink over the years.
But before you try to scour the 90 trillion
or so bugs from your body, relax ... for the
most part, there's nothing to fear. As
disturbing as it sounds, bacteria make our
bodies work. Sure, we could do without the
body odor or stale morning breath our
microbial guests leave behind, but we
wouldn't necessarily want to live without
bugs such as Lactobacilli, which stop yeast
from infecting the female genital tract, or the
intestine-dwelling bacteria that fend off the
pathogens humans ingest.
"Americans tend to have an irrational fear
of bacteria everywhere," says Paul Gulig,
Ph.D., a professor of molecular genetics and
microbiology in the College of Medicine.
That's ironic, considering that "many, if

not most, of the infectious diseases you become infected with are caused by microorganisms that you
carry around with you all the time," says J. Glenn Morris, M.D., M.P.H., director of UF's Emerging
Pathogens Institute.
For the most part, these bugs keep us healthy. But when they appear in the wrong place at the wrong
time, illness can strike. Many women have experienced the painful burn of a urinary tract infection
when E. coli takes a wrong turn up the urethra, and it's no news that Staph loves to cause skin infections.
"We're surrounded by this cloud of bacteria," Morris says. "Our body is built with a variety of defense
mechanisms that keep those bacteria out and safely removed from where they're going to do harm. But if
there are breakdowns in the body's defense mechanisms, those bacteria can get their revenge and infect us."
And revenge is apparently a dish best served warm, at least for bacteria, which tend to thrive in the
summer months. That's why in this issue, the POST is taking a look at some of the top places bacteria
lurk. So before you hit the beach or down those raw oysters this summer, you may want to check out the
following words of advice UF experts had about our bacterial friends (and frenemies).

HAZARD No. 1: TIHE
Sharks aren't the only things to worry about off Florida's Gulf Coast. Almost all oysters there are
infected with a flesh-eating pathogen called Vibrio vulnificus. The good news? Fewer than 50 infections
are reported each year. The bad news? Half those patients die within hours.
Even if you don't eat oysters, walking barefoot over oyster beds isn't a good idea either. A small cut can
rapidly progress into a fulminating leg infection. Often, amputation is the best treatment.
Still, one of the biggest enigmas in the field is why so few people mostly those with compromised
immune systems become infected, while most do not.
"Why can such a terrible, rapid, destructive disease process occur so rarely when so many people,
particularly immunocompromised people, are exposed to the bacteria?" Gulig asks.
Gulig's group was among the first to show that some strains of the bacteria cause rapid and debilitating
disease, while others aren't quite as threatening. This year, they plan to compare the genetics of the two
strains to home in on genes important for causing disease.

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HAZARD No. 2:. E O OUT

Unless you've been living in a cave, you've probably heard about the
recent outbreak of illness associated with tomatoes. Researchers aren't sure
whether tomatoes were actually to blame, but they do know what stowaway
bacterium caused all the trouble: Salmonella, a foodborne pathogen that
causes gastrointestinal distress.
"There is a striking increase in the amount of foodborne disease during
the summer months," Morris says. "It's more difficult to follow the
standard food-safety recommendations as far as keeping cold foods cold
and hot foods hot."
Another often-overlooked pathogen is Listeria monocytogenes. Low
levels of Listeria are present in many foods, including meat, produce and
soft cheeses, and of the 2,500 people infected each year, few experience
more than mild symptoms. But pregnant women beware: This bacterium is
one of the most common bacterial causes of miscarriage and stillbirth.
"The woman usually gets a mild febrile illness, but it can pass through
the placenta and kill the fetus," says Fred Southwick, M.D., division chief
of infectious diseases at the UF College of Medicine, who studies the
movements of Listeria inside cells to understand how the bacteria hijack
human cells to sidestep antibiotics and the human immune response.
Unlike most bacteria, Listeria thrives at refrigeration temperatures, and
infections can be difficult to trace because the incubation period ranges
from two days to two months. Pregnant? Avoid foods that have been
refrigerated for more than a few days and zap cold cuts in the microwave
until steaming hot before layering them on your sandwich.

HAZARD N0. 3: HE GEAT OUTD O RS

Floridians have worried about a lot of things through the years, but
Lyme disease wasn't always one of them. Now, thanks to our RV-driving
friends from the North, the tick-borne disease is here to stay.
Veterinarians noticed the first cases of Lyme disease in South Florida in
the 1980s. It took several years before experts traced the influx of
infections to Yankee snowbirds. They brought their dogs. The dogs
brought the ticks. And the ticks brought the bacteria, Borrelia burgdorferi.
"For some time, the only animals we saw here in Florida with Lyme

were those that traveled back and forth," says Rick Alleman, D.V.M., Ph.D.,
a professor of physiological sciences in the College of Veterinary Medicine.
"Now it's here. There are dogs that have become Lyme positive that have
never left the state."
The infection can be treated easily with antibiotics, but in some cases,
the bacteria cause the human immune system to attack its own cells,
resulting in recurrent arthritis.
"Some people and animals that develop Lyme arthritis have perpetual
disease even once they're treated with antibiotics to kill the organisms,"
says Alleman, who studies Anaplasma phagocytophyla, a similar bacterium
also transmitted by deer ticks. "In some areas of the country where Lyme
is really prevalent there are even support groups that people will attend."

HAZARD No. 4: THEOSPITAL

If you've been stricken with any of the first three hazards, chances are
you've been admitted to a hospital. But don't rest too easy: If you're trying to
avoid bacterial infections, the hospital isn't necessarily the best place to be.
"Antibiotic resistance is becoming a huge problem, particularly in the
hospitals, and at the moment we don't seem to have a good handle on it,"
Morris says.
Historically, patients have been overtreated with antibiotics and then
released into the community, where they unknowingly spread drug-
resistant bacteria. One of them is Pseudomonas aeruginosa, the most
common cause of infection in patients hospitalized for more than a week.
"Pseudomonas is an environmental bacterium," says Shouguang Jin,
Ph.D., a professor of molecular genetics and microbiology in the College of
Medicine. "It's distributed all over the soil, the water, the air. Wherever
you go, it's there."
Like other pathogens, antibiotic resistance makes Pseudomonas
infections difficult to treat, says Jin, who studies how the bacteria avoid
being killed by antibiotics.
"One of the mechanisms that's really important is turning off the
membrane permeability, like shutting off the door (to the cell) so that the
antibiotics can't penetrate," says Jin, whose research has shown that this
doorway opens and closes in response to signals in the external
environment. Jin hopes his finding will pave the way for new therapies.

Richard Lamont, an assistant professor of oral biology, (left) and Martin Handfield, an associate professor of oral biology, recently made the
cover of Infection and Immunity for their findings on Porphyromonas gingivalis, a bacterium linked to periodontal disease.

' ie Pr/ SOM

Visit us online http://news.health.ufl.edu for the Ictest news and HSC events 0II O 13

Stephen Anderson, a postdoctoral associate for UF researcher Scott Grieshaber, uses a
high-powered microscope to create images like the one he and graduate student assistant
Andrea Knowlton are viewing to help scientists better understand how Chlamydia cells invade
human tissue. For more on Chlamydia, read the extended version of this story online at
www.news.health.ufl.edu.

Until new drugs become available, experts are focusing on preventing the
spread of drug resistance in the hospital. Southwick helped initiate a
stewardship program at Shands at UF that monitors the use of antibiotics
and encourages health-care workers to take precautions to stem the spread
of drug-resistant pathogens.
"The majority of infections are viral and antibiotics don't help," says
Southwick, who published a textbook to educate clinicians on the topic.
"However, physicians use antibiotics even though the patient doesn't have a
bacterial infection. That's one of the problems we have."

HAZARD No. 5: THE LOCKER ROM
About 30 percent of the population carries staph bacteria on their skin
and in their noses, but only about 1 percent of us are colonized with the
more lethal methicillin-resistant Staphyloccocus aureus, also called MRSA.
"MRSA used to be found almost exclusively in the hospital environment,
where you had very sick patients with staph infections who were being
treated with lots of antibiotics, putting the selective pressure on those
organisms to acquire resistance," Gulig says.
But eventually those bacteria evolved and acquired the ability to move
effectively outside of the hospital and throughout the community.
"All of a sudden, what we're seeing is the local football team showing up
with MRSA and your great-aunt showing up with MRSA," Morris says.
The latest hubs for MRSA infection are fitness centers, where sweaty
people share equipment ... and bacteria.
"I don't go to the fitness centers, but I wouldn't be surprised if people
spent more time wiping equipment down with disinfectant solutions than
actually working out," Gulig says.
Infections are also common among athletes in contact sports, such as
football.
"The problem with football players, in particular, is that it's a contact
sport and they get cuts and scrapes," says Southwick, who helped track the
source of an outbreak at UF. "If you carry MRSA on your skin and don't get
cuts and scrapes, it won't cause a problem. But when you get a break in your
skin, the bacteria can take hold and cause very serious problems."

HAzARD No. 6: YouR Mou r
It's been called the gateway to the body, and aptly so. Oral bacteria don't
always stay in the mouth. After a routine dental procedure, it takes less than
a minute for these bugs to appear in the heart, lungs and other areas of the
body.
"The interesting thing about the oral cavity is that there are probably 700
to 800 species that can be there," says Martin Handfield, Ph.D., an associate
professor of oral biology in the College of Dentistry. "In any given mouth,
you probably have between 60 to 70 different species at a given time."
But of all those bacteria, only a few are known agents of disease,
Handfield says. And they don't just cause diseases in the mouth.
Porphyromonas gingivalis, the bug that causes periodontal disease, has been
found in the wombs of women experiencing preterm labor and in the hearts
of patients with cardiovascular disease.
That isn't the only oral bacterium implicated in heart disease. Have a
sweet tooth? Watch out. Researchers in UF's department of oral biology
were among the first to discover that certain strains of Streptococcus mutans
- the same bacteria that love to eat sugar and spit out caries-causing acids
- are capable of invading tissues in the heart.
"We performed a series of investigations that may change the image of S.
mutans as an acid-puking bug that's only good at eating away your tooth
enamel," says Lin Zeng, Ph.D., a postdoctoral fellow in the College of Dentistry.

The take-home lesson? Bacteria cause problems when they go renegade in
the body. But unless you have another plan for breaking down certain
vitamins and foods or any of the other functions our microbial tagalongs
handle for us, we have to live with them. Germaphobes, this means you too.
"Maybe it's time to stop treating organisms as if they are pathogenic or
nonpathogenic," Handfield says. "Maybe all organisms are part of a
spectrum of pathogenicity where at one extreme they're typically good and
healthy and part of the good flora unless you're putting them in a weird
situation, and at the other extreme, they may be involved with disease most
of the time." 0

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A job w ell done ByLauren Edwards

UF recently doled out its annual Superior Accomplishment Awards. Three of the HSC's

own received universitywide honors. Why? Keep reading.

The nurse who helped stop an outbreak A shelter animal's saint
D iane Pecora, R.N., does it for the students. o call Natalie Isaza, D.V.M., a friend
Pecora, a nurse specialist at the UF Student Health Care Center, has .. to animals would be quite the
been dedicated to keeping students and staff healthy since 1993. And understatement.
during the past few whirlwind years that included battling a potential measles From working with shelter animals to
outbreak, that's been a pretty big job. Now, Pecora has been recognized for her f starting clinics for the pets of people with
efforts with UF's prestigious HRH Employee Recognition Award. low incomes, Isaza is a crusader for the
Perhaps the best example of Pecora's dedication occurred last May, when a UF health of Alachua County's furry friends.
student contracted measles. Pecora and the SHCC staff immediately coordinated a "I just decided that this is what I was
mass research effort, poring over staff and student records to determine those at meant to do," said Isaza, who started
risk. Pecora, whose background is in infectious diseases, also ran lab tests and gave practicing shelter medicine at UF in 2003.
MMR vaccines which usually cost about $70 to UF students and staff for free. I "It's extremely rewarding to me because
Their hard work paid off. Only one other case appeared on campus and the i you can take care of these animals (that no
SHCC was later honored with the Florida Department of Health Bureau of B one else wants) and make a difference."
Epidemiology 2008 Golden And making a difference she is. Because
Partnership Award. ..of her dedication to Alachua County's
"It could have been a animals, Isaza recently received a Superior Accomplishment Award at the
mess ... but we had a plan in universitywide level, the highest honor bestowed on faculty and staff during the
place and it worked," Pecora UF Superior Accomplishment Awards.
said. "She's an excellent teacher and an all-around wonderful person," said Colin
For her part, Pecora says Burrows, B.Vet.Med, Ph.D., chair of small animal clinical sciences at the college.
she is incredibly grateful for Burrows recommended Isaza for the award. "I can think of no one more deserving."
her award. A UF graduate, Isaza started a traveling clinic to care for pets of people with
"It's the highest honor I've low incomes and takes her students to Gainesville's St. Francis House to treat the
ever received," she said. "You animals of shelter residents.
give to the UF community, '- "I think it's good for the students to interact with a population of people they
and you also get back." wouldn't normally interact with and to help these animals," Isaza says.

Michelangelo of the dental school
If you want something done, give it to the busiest guy in the room.
If that guy is Robert Mann, this cliche couldn't be truer.
Mann, a medical artist who serves as coordinator of clinical programs in prosthodontics at the College
of Dentistry, works in the field of anaplastology, or the practice of restoring human anatomy by sculpting,
designing, painting and fitting head and neck prostheses made of silicone or acrylic to match surrounding
skin. Mann has created ears for the 5-year-old son of an Olympic athlete, a new nose for a woman bitten by a
dog and hundreds of other realistic protheses. And to his patients, it's a life-changing experience.' -
For his work Mann was recently honored with UF's HRH Employee Recognition Award. And it's not just
his work with patients that has garnered attention in recent years.
A former president of the American Anaplastology Association, he recently started the first journal for ..
anaplastologists, putting the editorial board together himself and securing a friend to design the cover. After
hours of unpaid work, Mann created the International Journal ofAnaplastology, a compilation of trustworthy
information relevant to the field.

UNIVERSITY WIDE WINNERS
Natalie Isaza, College of Veterinary
Medicine
Robert Mann, College of Dentistry
Diane Pecora, Student Health Care
Center

HSC WINNERS
COLLEGE OF DENTISTRY
Mark E. Davis
Edgar O'Neill
K. David Stillwell

Melissa M. Long
Robert M. Mann
Ruthie E. Hernandez
Mitchell C. Salisbury
David Flores
Elizabeth P. Apple
Karen S. Owens
Theresa Weber

COLLEGE OF MEDICINE
Chester B. Algood
Stephen C. Howard
Kenneth A. Marx

Cynthia Weinbrecht
Irma "Jeanette" Lynch
Wencui Zheng
Debra J. Beck
Christie L. Little
Shanna V. Silcox

COLLEGE OF NURSING
Jane M. Gannon

COLLEGE OF PHARMACY
David V. Jenkins

COLLEGE OF PUBLIC HEALTH AND
HEALTH PROFESSIONS
Lorie S. Martin
Kristy L. Radeker
Iris C. Campbell

COLLEGE OF
VETERINARY MEDICINE
Natalie J. Isaza
Andrew J. Specht
Bobby Lee
Kathryn N. Vinzant
Marilyn M. Bryant

Patricia A. Lewis
Peter E. Nadeau
Michael P. O'Sullivan
KellyA. Rick
Joyce E. Stewart
Nancy L. Meagher
Lynn E. Varner

STUDENT HEALTH CARE CENTER
Jane F. Emmeree
Diane E. Pecora

Vsit us online @ http://news.health.ufl.edu for the latest news Snd HSC events Uj .O 115

AWRD

service HSC honors longtime employees

Tuhe HSC and HSC-Jacksonville recently recognized staff members who have served UF's health colleges for

5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35 and even 40 years. For a complete list of "Service Pin" honorees, visit www.health.

ufl.edu and click on "employee recognition."

Celebrating 35 years at UF are (from left) Mary Bryan, Linda Luecking,

Rebecca Lovely and Tonie He

College of

Dentistry
10 years
Solomon Abraham
Mary Bennett
Patricia Carpenter
Kristi Duncan
Nancy Harvell
Ruth Hernandez
Daisy Infante
Linda Kennan
Sandra Thomas

15 years
Tara Taylor
Connie White-Paulson

20 years
Peronia Brown
Susan Loffredo
Deborah Lynn
Sonia Nango-Henesy
Yvonne Trebilcock
Cassandra Williams

25 years
Joyce Lee
Robert Lee
Joan Whitlock

30 years
Janie Carnegie

40 years
Jane Moore

College of
Medicine
10 years
Amer Abouhamze
Terry Beauchamp
Neil Boyle
Katrina Bradley
Michele Brooks
Denise Cloutier
Aundrea Corbit
Robert Cottey
Pedro Cruz
Judy Daugherty
Karen Dees
Tamara Edwards
Robbie Eller
Polly Glattli
Nancy Hendricks
Nancy Hodgson
Kevin Hollen
Christopher Hughes
Brenda Isaac
Rose Jesse

Joseph Larocca
Melissa Lewis
Angela Lovelock
Michael Mahoney
Christine Meyer
John Neeley
Angela Newsome
Christine Pampo
Leigh Perkins
Constance Pruitt
Kellie Ritari
Janet Romrell
Andrea Rugulo
Amy Smith
Warren Tanton
Douglas Theriaque
Kathleen Thompson
Brenda Tieden
Wendy VanOrder
Hazella White
Christina Williams
Lucy Williams
Sandra Williams
Irene Zolotukhin

15 years
Sheila Anderson
Kenneth Atkins
Shirley Bryant Smith
Patricia Butterfield
Ernestine Carroll
Christine Davis

Mary Dennis
Betty Douglas
Genia Dubose
Rachel Eastman
Jon Gregg
Lynda Hanssen
Cynthia Hartley
Herbert Houck
Zhi Huang
James Hunn
Evette Hutchinson
Kim Jacobs
Leann King
Allison Kleinfeldt
Pamela Lynn
Sherry Mann
Sheryl Montrowl
Renee Parks-James
Karen Pastos
Betty Poole
Susan Porterfield
Karen Reed
Theresa Rhodes
Michael Richards
Amy Roberson
Anita Simmons
Randy Zinnerman

20 years
Darlene Bailey
Judith Beckham
David Brumbaugh
Joyce Coleman
Vatsala Desai
Alison Edwards
Elizabeth Guillarmod
Marsha Harben
Dottie Howard
Theresa Huber
Sherry Hunt
Carol Katovich
Angela King
Dana King
Mary Latham
Ronald Lester
Melinda Millsaps
Debbie Neubauer
Roxane Nolen
Debbie Rafanan
Barbara Reichert
Donna Reinstra
Melba Rogers
Jill Sandersen
Tina Sporer
Betty Streetman

Janice Taylor
Clara Theus
Tearetha Thomas
Shirley Tomlinson

25 years
Roberta Anderson
Virginia Boone
Sergio Caballero
Susan Conway
Karen Hyde
Eduardo Mondragon
Julie Smith
Anita Yeager

30 years
Helen Booth
Thomas Connor
John David
Oran Hutchinson
Kay Lopez
Roberto Luchetta
Patricia Mutch
Kenneth Nelson

35 years
Mary Bryan
Frederick Congdon
Rebecca Lovely
Linda Luecking

40 years
Jean Kaufman

College of
Nursing
10 years
Kelly Reid

15 years
Lynne Collis
George Kolb
Phyllis Stephens

College of
Pharmacy
10 years
John Dew
Elizabeth Nelson
Rosemary Smith

20 years
Donna Walko

College of
Public Health
and Health

Professions
10 years
Juanita Cooper
Sherri Garrett
Weihong Han
Eileen Phillips

25 years
Geraldine Lee

College of

Veterinary
Medicine
10 years
Mabelin Castellanos
Lauren Curry
Hasuna Hines
Kevin Kroll
Patrick Russell
David Tiffany
Margaret Wilding

15 years
Linda Lee
Lela Lynch
Ruiyu Pu
Sommer Sharp
Carolyn Whitford

20 years
Kelly Kirkendall-Merritt
Sally O'Connell
Katherine Rode

25 years
Linda Archer
Deborah Sundstrom

30 years
Lorene Jackson
Cecilia Yemma

IPS16 0/88 1w

AWRD

http://news.health.ufl.edu

Fabulous at

Celebrating 30 years at UF are (front row, from left) Pansy Poppell, Linda Green, Janie Carnegie, Kay
Lopez, Helen Booth (back row, from left) Roberto Luchetta, Peder Winkel, Kenneth Nelson, John
David, Rick Lockwood, Roger Keroack and Howard Plumley.

35 years
Tonie Henry

Animal Care
Services
10years
Warren Tanton
Sandra Williams

15 years
Kenneth Atkins
Kim Jacobs

20 years
Alison Edwards

30 years
Oran Hutchinson
Roberto Luchetta
Kenneth Nelson

Ph\ sical Plant
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10 years
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Center
10 years
Beverly Brady
Araceli Chiodo
Bonnie James
Soeun Miel
Carol Rhodes

15 years
Mickey Bath
Linda Lewis
Mary Mcglothlin
Jacques Roberts

20 years
Nancey Joyner
Mimi McClendon

25 years
Phylis Craig
Wanda Davis
Vanessa Humphrey

30 years
Roger Keroack

Senior Vice
President,
Health Affairs
10 years
Sharon Bauer
Mary Fenton
Truly Hardemon
Michael Mahoney
Sabrina McLaughlin
Shawn Petty
Regina Shaw
Linda Sheets

15 years
Gabrielle Dupre
Dennis Hines
Rebecca Johnson
Anita Smart
David Twombley

20 years
James Ferrer
Cheryl O'Quinn
Wanda Washington

25 years
Lorrain Douglass

30 years
Teresa Benton
Linda Green
Richard Lockwood
Hoyt Plumley
Pansy Poppell
Linda Roberson

PFt law SCewa Put ceweAogw
P"/otb, 4W h back pag&

HSC-
Jacksonville
10years
Salena Smothers
Sue Stack
Katherine Stephens
Tina Swanson
Maureen Turrall
Heidi Vetter
Lynda Vining
Geraldine Wade
Sherryl Watkins

15 years
Karen Albertson
Mari Beth Anderson
Maria-Corazon Calinao
Jan Campbell
Stacey Dingman
Sharon Flemmings
Traci Harrison
Cathy Hartley
Connie Jackson
Sabrina Jordan
Marla Murnahan
Jeanette Robinson
Pamela Schirkofsky
Nancy Thrun
Angelique Williams

20 years
Joyce Willis

25 years
Rita Carstens
Sylvia Gabbard
Patrcia garner
Katherine Isaacs
Sharon Omeechevarria

30 years
Everlena Owens

College of Dentistry Dean Teresa Dolan (right) pauses
for a picture with longtime UF employee, Jane Moore.

C an you imagine getting a job application asking
how tall you are and how much you weigh?
Fortunately, we don't have to answer those
questions anymore, but Jane Moore did when she
applied for a job at UF in 1968. Moore was one of two
HSC staff members to reach the 40-year mark at UF this
year. Jean Kaufman of the College of Medicine was also
honored for her 40 years at UF.
Moore, an executive secretary at the College of
Dentistry, started her career at UF in the College of
Medicine. She moved to the College of Dentistry in 1973
when the Dental Sciences Building was little more than
a sketch on paper and has worked in five different
positions in the college.
Now an executive secretary in the Office of Research,
Moore says she never expected to be at UF this long.
"It was a different era," she said. "Women in the area
got married and had babies."
Moore's plan was to work as long as she could. She
plans to retire in two and a half years but leaving will be
bittersweet, she says.
"I love working in a university atmosphere because
the students help you stay young," she said. "I'll miss it
when I retire."
Kaufman, a research lab technician in the College of
Dentistry, was a licensed practical nurse before she took
at job training lab animals at UF. She spent most of her
UF career working for retired neuroscientist Charles
Vierck, Ph.D.
"I have been in the same building, and I worked for
the same guy for 38 years," she said. "The people are
friendly and kind. You couldn't ask for a better job."

Visit us online http://news.health.ufl.edu for the Ictest news and HSC events fIS lSI I 0 17

AWRD

COLLEGE OF MEDICINE
Lifetime Achievement Award:
Edward Copeland, M.D., and Kenneth
Heilman, M.D.
Basic Science Award:
Gregory Schultz, Ph.D.
Clinical Science Award:
Mark L. Brantly, M.D., and W. Stratford
May, M.D.
Special Appreciation Award:
Cynthia Weinbrecht
Medical Guild Awards:
Gold medal finalist: Allyn Spear
Silver medal finalists: Jason O'Rourke and
Jeffrey Brower
Bronze medal finalists: Jason Weinstein,
Stephanie Jefferson and Stephen Fernand&,

COLLEGE OF NURSING
Undergraduate awards:
First place: Brittany Dion, Leslie Parker
and Charlene Krueger
Second place: Emily Holtzclaw, Kristen
MacConnell and Veronica Feeg
Graduate awards:
First place: Salvacion Powell
and Saunjoo Yoon
Second place: Melissa Dodd Inglese and
Jennifer Elder, Ph.D.
Clinical Innovation awards:
First place: Maude Rittman and
Melanie Hinojosa
Second place: Arlene Davis, Diane Johnson,
Robin Odom, Carla Parker and
Jerry Stephenson

COLLEGE OF DENTISTRY
D.M.D. Division awards:
First place: Christopher A. Bonesteel
Second place (tie): Jessica L. Wiedey
Second place (tie): Barbara I. Llanes
M.S./Resident Division awards:
First place: Melanie M. Wexel
Second place: Tames D. Tones
Third place: KI Iii a'. Ji li
Ph. D./Postdoctoral Division awards:
First place: aiia R Pa inei
Second place: Ai, na i Y [ l \ 1I1e-P ,'
Third place: Airnjidi Bi ji Ie

omeday, somewhere a scientist will cradle the gold medal from a Nobel Prize and say, "It all goes back to that poster
I presented at UF on Research Day, 2008." Check out this list and one day you can say you knew them when.

COLLEGE OF MEDICINE-JACKSONVILLE
Faculty Researcher/Scholar of the Year Award:
Dominick J. Angiolillo, M.D., Ph.D.
Poster winners:
First place: Joe E. Khoury, M.D.
Second place: Ni Jin, M.D., Ph.D.
Third place: Patrick Aaronson, Pharm.D.
Fourth place: Marilin Rosa, M.D.
Fifth place: Amitra Caines, M.D.
Sixth place: Geoffrey Gillen, M.D.
Oral/platform winners:
First place: Andrew Darlington, D.O.
Second place: Stuart A. Smalhesier, M.D.
Third place: Ivan E. Rascon-Aguilar, M.D.
Fourth place: Lemuel Aigbivbalu, M.D.
Fifth place: Todd J. Reuter, D.M.D., M.D.
Sixth place: Melissa Tucker, M.D.

COLLEGE OF PHARMACY
Oral competition:
Senior division winner: Christian Grimstein
Senior division finalists: Zhimin Li and
Anzeela Schentrup
Junior division winner: Jason Kwan
Junior division finalists: Huong Le
and Zhaohua Wang
Levitt division winner: Michael Mueller
Levitt division finalist: Chienning Hsu
Poster competition:
Graduate student winners: April Barbour,
Christian Hampp, Stephan Schmidt
and Kanchan Taori
Pharmacy student winners: Samantha Barfield
and Gregory Welder
Postdoctoral fellow division winner:
Yanxia Liu. Ph.D.

COLLEGE OF PUBLIC HEALTH AND HEALTH PROFESSIONS
Undergraduate poster presentation winners:
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Visit us online @ http://news.health.ufl.edu for the Ictest news cnd HSC events

RESEARCH DAY

noTI o 07/0808

TWO LIVES TWO

HUGE ACHIEVEMENTS

A father of behavioral neurology

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disli n iiu!,h J
prolebbo ol
neurology at the UF
College of Medicine
- during a clinical
rotation while he
was in medical
school at the
University of
Virginia in the
1960s.
"The plate had a
partition and the
meat was on the
left," Heilman said.
"He ate all of his
vegetables on the KENNETH HEILMAN
right, and he asked
why there were never any servings of meat. I thought he must not be
able to see on his left, even though tests showed he had full visual
fields. He had suffered a stroke of the right hemisphere, and I realized,
'Wow, this is telling us that there is a part of the brain that allows

, M.U.

people to switch attention to one side, and this part of his brain is
injured."'
Experiences like that one edged Heilman toward a career in
neurology a career recognized recently through the College of
Medicine's 2008 Lifetime Achievement Award.
Heilman's work has played a part in revealing the areas of the brain
that mediate attention, and he has helped define the roles of the right
and left hemispheres of the brain, often toppling established paradigms
of brain function along the way.
"He has inspired researchers and literally helped populate the world
with experts in behavioral neurology," said Leslie Gonzalez Rothi,
Ph.D., the Bob Paul family professor of neurology who nominated
Heilman for award. "Those who have been lucky enough to receive his
mentorship have been cultivated and given truly the best academic
preparation I know of."
Heilman, who joined the faculty in 1970 and became the James E.
Rooks Jr. professor of neurology in 1998, was a member of the first elite
group of faculty to receive the title "distinguished professor."
"People don't enter medicine to receive recognition like this,"
Heilman said. "We do it because we get joy out of people getting well,
students learning things, or being involved in great research. But it is
always nice to get a pat on the back. When people you have known for
years and years let you know they think highly of you, it's the greatest
compliment." -By John Pastor

A surgeon, a teacher and a leader

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sii hcngI.. iN1 hUisi i.yc in,, hr on cei hi,
!IcJl I I j ,..rn1 hrn, .ri d, miii hi,
) c y j! ji 1I
"I'm most proud of the residents
we've trained," Copeland said before
listing at least a half-dozen
colleagues and moments that have
shaped his experiences as a surgical
oncologist at UF. "I clearly owe my i v,
career to this institution."
It's almost impossible to sum up a
career as celebrated as Copeland's in
one moment. It's not just the
hundreds of hours he spent
mentoring and recruiting some of
the best physicians in the nation. It's
a montage of the moments he spent
caring for cancer patients and the
year he served as the College of
Medicine's interim dean, helping
the institution overcome financial EDWARD M. COPELAND III, M.D.
instability.
While it was difficult for Copeland to choose from the torrent of memories
swirling in his psyche since he announced his retirement, effective July 3, it was easy
for his colleagues to decide to honor the Edward R. Woodward distinguished
professor of surgery with a 2008 Lifetime Achievement Award.
"You're often never king or queen in your own castle," said Copeland, who
accepted the award at the Research Day awards dinner in April. "For your own
institution to honor you is truly the greatest honor you can receive."
Copeland's career in Gainesville began in 1982 when he was named professor and
chair of the department of surgery. He gained recognition for his contributions to
breast cancer surgery and treatment, including for the development of a test that
determines whether surgeons have removed an entire tumor before a patient leaves
the hospital, reducing the need for additional procedures. He has been director of
the UF Shands Cancer Center and president of UF Physicians. This year, he served
as president of the American College of Surgeons.
"Dr. Copeland demonstrates the rare combination of excellent surgeon, teacher
and administrator," said Steven N. Hochwald, M.D., chief of surgical oncology. "The
only reason that I looked at the job was because he was here and previous residents
and faculty from the department had gone on to excellent academic positions around
the country."
Copeland, a decorated Vietnam veteran, will celebrate the culmination of his
45-year career by fishing and golfing, hobbies he put on hold as a practicing surgeon.
"I have a friend who says, "You better enjoy yourself now because you're kind of in
the fourth quarter of your life,"' Copeland joked, adding he'll still be around if UF
needs him. "I'm available to do anything the University of Florida would like me to
do in my retirement." By Melissa M. Thompson

Visit us online http://news.health.ufl.edu for the latest news and HSC events OI O II 19

.......... :::::::::::::::::::::::...... ............... . . = = = = = = = =

RESEARCH DAY

iiiiii

Bad to the bone

Orthopedic residents claim
'Ortho Bowl' victory

Ryan Riel (left) and Aaron Bates, orthopedic medicine
residents at the UF College of Medicine in Jacksonville,
pose with the trophy they won at the Florida Orthopaedic
Society's annual "Ortho Bowl."

Back to school

UF faculty members refine research
skills in postgraduate program

By Melissa M. Thompson
Nearly 20 years after earning a doctor of pharmacy degree from the
University of California, San Francisco, and six years after joining the
UF faculty, Rhonda Cooper-DeHoff, Pharm.D., M.S., decided she
wanted more.
The seasoned assistant research professor had more than 20 years of clinical
research experience under her belt but decided to undergo additional training
in the Advanced Postgraduate Program in Clinical Investigation, which further
preps UF's faculty and fellows for careers in clinical investigation.
In the program, which is funded by the National Institutes of Health's K30
Clinical Research Curriculum Award, fellows take courses such as grant writing
and biostatistics while simultaneously conducting an approved research project
under the guidance of a senior faculty mentor. Funding covers the cost of
tuition and fees for eight to 12 fellows each academic year.
"Participating in (the program) is supposed to give you protected time to
perform research and take courses," Cooper-DeHoff said "You rarely, as a
junior faculty member, have the opportunity to not only think about research
but also the time to conduct it."
Cooper-DeHoff is one of nearly 40 UF faculty members since 1999 who have
earned master's degrees or certificates from APPCI, which is designed to
nurture fellows' research interests and help them learn how to secure funding
for future projects.
"We want people to know how to conduct good research and how to present
their research well," said Eve Johnson, the APPCI program assistant. "There
are so many projects that are retracted or undone because of poor preparation."

By Lauren Edwards
K nowing your stuff can pay off.
Just ask Ryan Riel and Aaron Bates, two residents from the UF College of
Medicine in Jacksonville who recently won bragging rights and a little cash, to
boot at the annual Ortho Bowl in May.
Put on by the Florida Orthopaedic Society at its annual meeting, the Ortho Bowl is a type
of "brain bowl" that tests residents' knowledge of orthopedic medicine. Representing UF's
Jacksonville campus, Riel and Bates competed against teams from across the state, ultimately
going head-to-head in the final round with residents from the University of South Florida.
Riel, who has participated in the competition once before, was excited to get a second shot
at Ortho Bowl victory.
"It was fun," the fourth-year resident said. "I did it several years ago (as a first-year
resident) and didn't win, so I was happy to do it again. I wanted to get my name on the
trophy at least once."
Riel and Bates, a fifth-year resident, earned the chance to compete by getting the top two
scores among their peers on the Orthopaedic In-Training Examination.
The bowl included questions similar to those typically found on orthopedics board exams,
with queries ranging from practical application such as diagnosing a "patient" in a given
scenario to those regarding orthopedic medicine history.
The two men each took home $300 and a somewhat-humorous trophy wrapped in
fiberglass casting material, designed by UF's own Hudson Berrey, M.D., in 1998.
Bates, who also received the Florida Orthopaedic Resident Research Award, said that
while the Ortho Bowl isn't necessarily taken too seriously, it was nice to represent his college
in this way.
"We wanted to win," he said. "I think everyone who competes wants to win ... I felt proud
and honored (to represent my college.)" 0

Rhonda Cooper-DeHoff is one of 40 UF faculty members who have
earned master's degrees and certificates through the Advanced
Postgraduate Program in Clinical Investigation.

Sherrilene Classen, Ph.D., M.P.H, OTR/L, an assistant professor of
occupational therapy and public health, graduated from APPCI in 2004 and
says the program gives fellows the tools to be competitive in the research field.
"It's pretty amazing to get a federal grant on your first submission," said
Classen, who was awarded a $500,000 grant from the Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention in September 2004 to fund older driver safety research
and has received five additional grants from various institutions since then. "It
gave me a level of humble confidence because in research, there is always
another question to ask." 0

S20 *0088 1tp w t

http://news.health.ufl.edu

School's in ... for teachers

Florida science educators get their own lesson at UF

By Lauren Edwards
WC hen you're a teacher, much of your time is spent in the
role of leader: You plan the lessons, teach the material,
give the tests and grade the homework. But for some
of Florida's top science educators the tables were turned this
summer as they became students themselves during a two-week
UF program geared toward giving teachers a hands-on lesson in-
scientific research.
Presented by the UF Center for Precollegiate Education and
Training and funded by the Howard Hughes Medical Institute,
the Interdisciplinary Center for Ongoing Research/Education
Partnership program is an extended laboratory workshop that
Mary Jo Koroly, Ph.D., describes as "research outreach" for
science teachers.
"We are teaching them how to research and how to translate
that into their classrooms and communities," said Koroly, director
of CPET and an associate research scientist in the College of
Medicine. "It's outreach ... to help improve science education
throughout the state."
Chosen by their various school districts, these 26 teachers Wendy Helmey-Hartman (left) and Amye Goff, teachers at Keystone Heights Junior/
learned about the many emerging pathogens and related issues Senior High School, try out an experiment to adapt for use in their classrooms. Top
that threaten society today, from bird flu to bioterrorism. high school science teachers from around Florida recently visited UF to get
"(Emerging pathogens) are an incredibly important scientific hands-on research experience as part of the Center for Precollegiate Education and
and social issue in Florida," Koroly said. "We're using (this) as a Training's ICORE Partnership project.
really cool 'hook' to get (students) interested in academic and
industrial career opportunities."
At the end of the two weeks, the teachers presented a proposal to show how they will implement their chosen research in the classroom. As ICORE partners,
these teachers will return to UF with some of their students to present their research results at the Florida Symposium in February.
Nancy Dunbar, a teacher at Park Vista High School in Palm Beach County, says this program made her feel like she was back at college.
"It's renewed my passion for things I don't get to do in the (high school) classroom," Dunbar said. "It's on a higher level for us ... I've really missed that."
Dunbar, who teaches biology, anatomy and physiology, and genetics, normally focuses her teaching on humans, but says that because of this program, has
found plant pathogens "fascinating" and now plans to include them in her curriculum.
"I'm going to come back here every year if I can," she said. "This is feeding me."

The next generation of students
Brittni Davis shares her name and favorite
medical TV show with other high school students
during orientation for the Health Care Summer
Institute, a four-week program at UF's College
of Medicine that provides minority students with
a glimpse of opportunities in the medical field.
High school students come to UF from across
\ north Florida to participate in the camp, which is
directed by Donna M. Parker, M.D., and
Michelle Jacobs, M.D., both assistant deans for
the College of Medicine Office of Minority
Affairs. The goal of the camp is to expose
students to different health careers and prepare
them for the educational road ahead. The
College of Medicine Office of Minority Affairs,
Shands at UF and the UF Area Health Education
Centers sponsor the program.

Vsit us online @ http://news.health.ufl.edu for the Ictest news Snd HSC events 0II 1 21

JACKSONVILLE

MICHAEL S. NUSSBAUM,
M.D., has been named chair
of the department of surgery
at the College of Medicine-
Jacksonville. Nussbaum has been
on the faculty at the University
of Cincinnati since 1986. At UC
he was the assistant dean for
hospital affairs, the vice chair for Micha
clinical affairs in the department of
surgery and also the department's interim
2006 to 2007.

MOEEN PANNI, M.D., Ph.D.,
has been named chair of the
department of anesthesiology
at the College of Medicine-
Jacksonville. Prior to coming
to UF, Panni served as an
associate professor and director
of obstetric anesthesia at the
University of Texas Medical
School at Houston. Panni's
goals include recruiting new faculty, dev
a research program and fostering an ed
environment for students and residents.

COLLEGE OF MEDICINE

UF diabetes team earns national honors

There isn't a way to prevent or cure diabetes -yet. But that doesn't
stop UF researchers from combining forces to discover therapies
to treat the disease, a team effort that has recently drawn national
recognition from the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation
International. The foundation honored UF researchers (shown from
left) Desmond Schatz, M.D., Mark Atkinson, Ph.D., and Michael
Haller, M.D., June 13 with the Mary Tyler Moore and S. Robert
Levine, M.D., Excellence in Clinical Research Award at its annual
meeting in Washington, D.C. Honorees are selected for their
dedication and success in converting clinical diabetes discoveries
into treatments for patients. Around-the-clock collaboration spurs
the team's success as they make advances in clinical studies, from
genetic testing that may help determine an infant's risk of developing
the disease to umbilical cord-blood infusion therapies that help
preserve insulin production in some newly diagnosed children.

DENNIS STEINDLER, Ph.D.,
executive director of the Evelyn
F. and William L. McKnight
Brain Institute and co-director
of the Regeneration Project,
received the Atena Onlus
Foundation Award for his
research on adult stem cell
biology and regenerative Dennis Steindlel
medicine at a June 4 ceremony
ael S. Nussbaum with officials from the Catholic University in Rome,
the university's teaching hospital the Gemelli
chair from University Polyclinic and the Italian government.

COLLEGE OF NURSING

Moeen Pc
eloping
ucational

TIMOTHY FLYNN, M.D., a
professor of surgery and
associate dean for graduate
medical education, has been
named the college's interim
senior associate dean for clinical
affairs. Flynn, who has been on
the UF faculty for 24 years, has
served as chair of the American
Board of Surgery and as Timothy Flynn
president of the Alachua County
Medical Society and is currently a member of the
board of directors of the Accreditation Council for
Graduate Medical Education.

THE UF STUDENT HEALTH CARE CENTER
received the Florida Department of Health Bureau
of Epidemiology 2008 Golden Partnership Award
May 30 in Orlando. The UF SHCC was honored
for its public health epidemiology efforts, which
helped prevent a measles outbreak in 2007.

JOYCE STECHMILLER,
Ph.D., A.R.N.P., an associate
professor in the college, has
been named a fellow of the
American Academy of Nursing.
Stechmiller, a national expert in
wound care, teaches didactic
and clinical courses to master's
degree students and mentors Joyce Stechmiller
doctoral students. She also
holds appointments at the North Florida/South
Georgia Veterans Health System as director of
skin and wound education and research and
as a member of the Rehabilitation Outcomes
Research Center.

COLLEGE OF PHARMACY

RAYMOND G. BOOTH, Ph.D.,
a professor of medicinal
chemistry, received a $1.5
million, 4-year grant from
the National Institute of Drug
Abuse for his research on
cocaine addiction. He will
investigate a new compound
discovery that may, for the Raymond G. Booth
first time, target a receptor
that diminishes the addiction cycle without
cardiovascular side effects. He also received a
$1.8 million grant from the National Institute of
Mental Health for a discovery that may lead to
development of an antipsychotic medication that
doesn't cause weight gain.

SIHONG SONG, Ph.D.,
an associate professor of
pharmaceutics, has received
a $130,000 award from the
Alpha-1 Foundation to support
his project, "Development of
AAT Deficient Mouse Models."
Sihong Song
PUBLIC HEALTH AND HEALTH PROFESSIONS

MARK BOWDEN, M.S., P.T.,
a student in the rehabilitation
science doctoral program and
an affiliate faculty member in
the department of physical
therapy, received the American
Physical Therapy Association
Neurology Section Award to
a post-professional student. Mark Bowden
Bowden received the award
at the association's combined sections annual
meeting in February in Nashville.

JAMES W. HALL III, Ph.D., a
clinical professor and associate
chair of the department of
communicative disorders, has
been named an extraordinary
professor in the department of
communication pathology at the
University of Pretoria in South
Africa. In this role, Hall will serve
as a faculty and doctoral-student James W. Hall III
mentor and will participate in the department's
research on hearing loss in mine workers. He is also
helping to establish a universal newborn hearing
screening program in South Africa.

College lauds professors, alums

The College of Veterinary Medicine recently honored
four of its own with Distinguished Awards, honoring
the accomplishments of a South Florida equine vet, a
professor emeritus of small animal neurology, a small
animal surgeon and the director of UF's mobile equine
diagnostic service. Michael Porter, D.V.M., Ph.D.,
a clinical assistant professor and director of the UF
mobile equine diagnostic service, received the college's
Outstanding Young Alumnus Award. The Distinguished
Service Award went to Cheryl Chrisman, D.V.M.,
a longtime veterinary neurologist at the college who
retired in 2007. Gary Ellison, D.V.M., a UF professor
of small animal surgery, received the college's award for
special service, and the Alumni Achievement Award was
presented to Robert Boswell, D.V.M., an alumnus
who owns the Palm Beach Equine Clinic and helped
found the Florida Association of Equine Practitioners.
Shown here are Chrisman (from left), Ellison, Boswell
and Porter.

IPS22I 07080 1w

DISTINCTIONS

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http://news.health.ufl.edu

Into the sunset

Longtime administrator Jerry Kidney retires

By Melissa M. Thompson

t's the middle of May and Jerry Kidney is so close to retirement he can almost smell it. But instead of
dreaming about the brisk air surrounding his 20-acre surrogate home in Maine, Kidney's thoughts
are focused solely on his son.

His adopted son Greg, an Army corporal, was wounded when a
terrorist's bomb exploded near his Humvee in Baghdad. Just two weeks
away from his June retirement, Kidney's office phone rings with updates
from his wife and the hospital in Texas, where his son is recovering.
"We all look forward to retirement as a time to set aside usual
responsibilities and pursue new experiences," said Kidney, who has since
retired as assistant vice president for health affairs for administrative
support. "But sometimes reality sets in and through no act of our own,
priorities get reset. We are thankful that Greg is alive, that he did not
receive worse injuries ... but that's little consolation to the family of Greg's
buddy who lost his life in the explosion."
Even as the father of six grapples with life's speed bumps, he's forced
to find time to prepare for the retiree lifestyle. And it shows.
Among collections of cardboard boxes and half-eaten, orange-and-
blue candy gifts remain nearly a dozen framed photographs of his
ever-expanding brood that will no doubt be fixtures in his office until he
officially moves out.
But for now, the family photos remind him of his New England roots,
and his journey to the South. Born and raised in Maine, Kidney was
accustomed to small-town life. He was valedictorian of his graduating
class of 72 students. After graduating from college, he taught high school
math and later moved to a job in higher education to provide for his
growing family. In 1982, the man who admits he had never been south of
Boston before he was 24 decided to interview for a job at UF, where he
has been ever since.
"I'll miss the good people I see around here every day," he said. "But
I'm so looking forward to (retirement). I love change. I think after we
come back from Maine, it won't be long before I look for something that
gets me up in the morning."
Well-known for his good nature and large family (he proudly
announces he will be the grandfather of eight by Christmas), Kidney
said all he wanted to do was retire without fuss or fanfare while riding
quietly off into the sunset. But for someone who touched so many lives at
UF and in the Gainesville community, it was difficult for Kidney to
make a quiet exit.
"Jerry is going to be someone who takes so much institutional
knowledge with him that he's going to be hard to replace," said Tom
Harris, associate vice president for health affairs and Kidney's longtime
lunch buddy. "He'll do anything to help anybody and he never says, 'It's
not in my job description.'"
Farewell festivities included a reception attended by four generations
of Kidney's family as well as friends and colleagues who gathered to

reminisce. A hallway display pays tribute to the man of many talents
with a montage of newspaper clippings and photographs. There's Kidney
riding his cherry-red Honda motorcycle. Acting in the Gainesville
Community Playhouse's production of "Guys and Dolls." Volunteering
at the Ronald McDonald House. He does it all.
Kidney said he will remain active in the community because his
family will stay in Gainesville for nine months of each year and travel to
scenic Maine during the summer. It might be beautiful there, but he's
not looking forward to footing the fuel bill.
"I bought a humongous fifth wheel (camper), and we'll haul it up
there and stay for the summer," he said. "Down in the cafeteria, they
have shrimp that's 50 cents a piece. I figure it will cost me one shrimp
per mile all the way up to Maine." 0

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PRFL

Peder Winkel, (left) and his son Peder Winkel, were both Celebrating 25 years at UF are (front row, from left) Robbie Anderson, Vanessa
honored at the HSC Service Pin ceremony. The elder Winkel Humphrey, Laurie Douglass, Joyce Lee, Eduardo Mondragon, Virginia Boone,
has worked in the Physical Plant Division for 30 years, while Linda Archer (back row, from left) Anita Yeager, Joan Whitlock, Robert Lee, Julie
his son has worked in the same division for 10. Smith, Phyllis Craig, Geraldine Lee and Karen Hyde.

0

Celebrating 20 years at UF are (front row,
from left) Sonia Nango-Henesy, Debbie
Streetman, Dottie Howard, Vatsala Desai,
Debbie Neubauer, Katherine Rode, Susan
Loffredo, Yvonne Trebilcock, Carol Katovich,
Annie Guillarmod, Darlene Bailey, (back row,
from left) Dana King, Mimi McClendon,
Cassandra Williams, Ron Lester, Cheryl
O'Quinn, Jim Ferrer, Donna Walko, Tearetha
Thomas, Jill Sanderson, Peronia Brown, Mary
Latham, Alison Edwards, Sally O'Connell and
Roxane Nolen.

Published by
UF Health Science Center
Office of News & Communications
Senior Vice President,
Health Affairs
Douglas J. Barrett, M.D.
Director, News &
Communications
Tom Fortner
Editor
April Frawley Birdwell
afrawley@ufl.edu

Senior Editors
Melanie Fridl Ross, John Pastor
Designer
Mickey Cuthbertson
Staff Writers
Kandra Albury, April Frawley Birdwell,
Tracy Brown, Sarah Carey, Anney
Doucette, Ann Griswold, Linda
Homewood, John Pastor, Jill Pease,
Karen Rhodenizer, Melanie Fridl Ross

Contributing Writers
Lauren Edwards, Emel Ozdora,
Melissa M. Thompson

Photo Editor
Sarah Kiewel
Support Staff
Cassandra Jackson, Beth Powers,
Kim Smith

The POST is the monthly internal
newsletter for the University of
Florida Health Science Center, the
most comprehensive academic
health center in the Southeast,

with campuses in Gainesville
and Jacksonville and affiliations
throughout Florida. Articles feature
news of interest for and about HSC
faculty, staff and students. Content
may be reprinted with appropriate
credit. Ideas for stories are welcome.
The deadline for submitting items
to be considered for each month's
issue is the 15th of the previous
month. Submit to the editor at
afrawley@ufl.edu or deliver to the
Office of News & Communications
in the Communicore Building,
Room C3-025.

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