March College News Headlines

March 29, 2024

The Department of Translational Neuroscience hosted its annual MSU Neuroscience Fair on Saturday, March 16. More than 1,200 visitors attended the event at the Grand Rapids Public Museum where our researchers and medical students demonstrated the marvels of the brain through fun, hands-on activities for the whole family. 

Student Success

• The International Society for the Study of Women’s Sexual Health (ISSWSH) has awarded a $7,500 research grant to Flint Campus third-year student Eliza Burr her project titled “Assessing sexual function among women receiving medication for opioid use disorder in an obstetrics and gynaecological clinic.” She will present her findings at the ISSWSH Annual Meeting in Atlanta, Georgia, Feb. 27 – March 2, 2025.
• A number of fourth-year students participated in media interviews during Match Day:
  • FOX 17 Grand Rapids - Future doctors celebrate next steps on Match Day
  • WILX TV Lansing - College of Human Medicine holds Match Day
  • MLive - Big dreams, new destinations: MSU med students ecstatic on Match Day residencies
  • WOOD TV Grand Rapids (starts at 19:14:45) - Match Day for MSU medical students
  • WLNS Lansing - Match Day for MSU medical students
  • ABC 12 Flint - MSU College of Medicine in Flint participated in Match Day on Friday
  • WNEM 5 Flint (starts at 17:08:41) - Match Day for MSU medical students in Flint
  • FOX 17 Grand Rapids - Future doctors anxiously await results of "Match Day" on Medical Mile
• Five Upper Peninsula Region Campus students received tuition assistance scholarships from the Copper Shores Community Health Foundation. Kyle Burton, Katrina Elzinga, David Klemet, Lindsay Sandell and Mackenzie Suarez were awarded the scholarships based on their desire to practice in the Upper Peninsula after residency training.

Research and Scholarship

• Photo above. FOX 17: The Department of Neuroscience hosted the MSU Neuroscience Fair at the Grand Rapids Public Museum.
• MLive: The Flint Registry will receive $5M in new federal budget.
• WZZM-TV: Charles Hong, MD, PhD, professor and chair of the Department of Medicine, discusses a potential game-changer for fighting brain cancer.
• HealthDay: According to research by Jennifer Johnson, PhD, C. S. Mott Endowed Professor of Public Health, many can’t access the mental health services necessary to keep people out of jail. Related: The State News, Michigan Radio, Murphy’s Law, Legal News, US News & World Report.
• WNEM: Heatherlun Uphold, PhD, assistant professor in the Charles Stewart Mott Department of Public Health, comments on the health disparities reflected in the Genesee County Health Equity Report Card. Related: MSUToday
• ScienMag: Dawn P. Misra, PhD, chair of the Department of Epidemiology, co-authored a study about psychosocial stressors linked to higher inflammation in Black pregnant women. Related: Science Daily
• Science News Explores: A decade after the Flint water crisis began, the Flint Registry is one major program helping Flint residents cope with health problems. Nicole Jones, who leads the Flint Registry and works for MSU and the Hurley Children’s Hospital Public Health Initiative, has focused on “identifying impacts of the lead crisis on Flint residents’ health.”
• CNN International: Monna Hanna-Attisha, MD, MPH, associate dean for public health and C. S. Mott Endowed Professor of Public Health, details how lead exemplifies environmental racism in news coverage about lead levels in Chicago’s water.
  • Related: Yahoo, AOL
• NPR: Monna Hanna-Attisha, MD, MPH, brings NPR into the pediatric clinic where she is spreading the word about the Rx Kids cash aid program in Flint.
• MSUToday: Experts including Sean Valles, PhD, director of the College of Human Medicine’s Center for Bioethics and Social Justice, can comment on measles, Michigan seeing a rise in measles. Related: Newswise, WILX
• AAMC: Cara Poland, MD, provides her viewpoint on the rising alcohol-related death rates: “So why don’t we take alcohol addiction more seriously?”
• The State News: Gayle Shipp, PhD, assistant professor in the Department of Public Health, and fourth-year student, Orezime Uyeh, discuss how they integrate DEI into health care research and advocacy.
• Bridge Michigan: The Michigan Opioid Advisory Commission is charged with making recommendations to close coverage gaps, but the group’s chair, Cara Poland, MD, says Michigan Health and Human Services officials have withheld data and other resources.
• Applied Radiology: More hysterectomies can be averted with earlier uterine artery embolization for postpartum hemorrhage. Related: Endovascular Today, Drugs.com, Physician’s Weekly, Biotech Gate, EurekAlert, WDAF-TV, KFOR-TV, KLFY-TV (links not available).
• Buffalo News: Dean of the Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences at UB, Allison Brashear, MD, MBA, reflects on the Remembrance Conference they hosted along with the College of Human Medicine.
• Yahoo Finance: News coverage about the research of Morteza Mahmoudi, PhD, associate professor in the Department of Radiology and Precision Health Program, on characterizing the protein corona of the investigational neurodegenerative disease drug, CNM-Au8®. Related: ALS News Today.
• Prevention Magazine: In an article about daily supplements, Amit Sachdev, MD, MS, medical director in the Department of Neurology, discusses brain function improvements in older adults.
• Fortune: Jamie Alan, PhD, associate professor in the Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, comments on new exercise pill offering same benefits as a workout.
• MSUToday: Kenneth Rosenman, chief of the Division of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, offers safety advice during National Poison Prevention Week.
• Yahoo Finance: Jamie Alan, PhD, associate professor in the Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, comments on vitamin D supplements after man died from “overdose” in UK.
• WILX: Is Daylight Savings dangerous to diabetics? Saleh Aldasouqi, MD, chief of the Division of Endocrinology and Metabolism, chimes in.
• PopSugar: Amit Sachdev, MD, MS, medical director in the Department of Neurology, discusses stiff-person syndrome, including causes, signs and symptoms, and best treatment options.
• Prevention Magazine: Jamie Alan, PhD, associate professor in the Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, explains how weight loss drug can help prevent heart disease.

Faculty & Staff Success

• Three endowed College of Human Medicine faculty were recognized at a special university-wide investiture ceremony on March 4, including Nicholas Kanaan, PhD, Maibach Smiley Alzheimer's Research Professor, Steve Ondersma, PhD, C.S. Mott Endowed Professor of Public Health, Kurt Zinn, PhD, Hickman Family Endowed Chair in Oncology.
• Dr. Mona Hanna-Attisha will receive the 2024 Arnold P. Gold Foundation National Humanism in Medicine Medal.
• Effective April 1, Michael Lewis, MD, will be the founding chair of the Department of Anesthesia.