Research News
![[Portrait of Marvin Slepian, an older white man in a white lab coat in a lab setting.]](https://deptmedicine.arizona.edu/sites/default/files/styles/1x_widescreen/public/2023-11-06_051923-marvin-slepian-nhg_3403-card1.jpg?itok=y0FdhDGM×tamp=1699309098 "Marvin Slepian, MD, JD")
Dr. Marvin Slepian, cardiologist, Sarver Heart Center member and Regents' Professor at the University of Arizona College of Medicine – Tucson, has been named a 2023 Biomedical Engineering Society Fellow.
![[Janko Ž. Nikolich, MD, PhD, professor and head of the Department of Immunobiology at the University of Arizona College of Medicine – Tucson]](https://deptmedicine.arizona.edu/sites/default/files/styles/1x_widescreen/public/2023.11.01_janko-lab-blood_klh6254-card-hero-2120107634.jpg?itok=1KNKuE_x×tamp=1706638343 "Janko Ž. Nikolich, MD, PhD, professor and head of the Department of Immunobiology at the University of Arizona College of Medicine – Tucson")
As part of a long-running research program to develop strategies for “rejuvenating” the aging immune system, the National Institute on Aging has awarded a $13.1 million grant to a team of investigators across the country led by Dr. Janko Ž. Nikolich, a professor of medicine, Center on Aging co-director and head of the Department of Immunobiology.
Six women from the University of Arizona Health Sciences, including GI Division Chief Dr. Juanita Merchant, received UArizona Women of Impact Awards from the office of Research, Innovation and Impact on Oct. 20. Thirty female faculty and staff members from across campus were honored.
Specialized cells take out the trash in the brain, finds UArizona researcher Dr. Fei Yin, of the Center for Innovation in Brain Science. When they break down, waste builds up, possibly setting the stage for Alzheimer’s disease.
![[Dark, curly haired woman wearing maroon blouse stands in front of desert scene with hand on hip]](https://deptmedicine.arizona.edu/sites/default/files/styles/1x_widescreen/public/shroff-rachna_021623-comt_nhg_4456-card.jpg?itok=JOy9iin-×tamp=1697568798 "Rachna T. Shroff, MD, MS, FASCO")
Having served as interim chief of the division at the University of Arizona College of Medicine – Tucson and UArizona Cancer Center since early 2022, the specialist in pancreatic and hepatobiliary cancers hits ground running to realize the division’s full potential.
![[Photo of an older white man wearing a doctor's white coat on a yellow background with the words: Celebrating 20 Years of Impact - AZBIOAWARDS]](https://deptmedicine.arizona.edu/sites/default/files/styles/1x_widescreen/public/galgiani_pioneer_award_azbio_385019065_card.jpg?itok=hlqkg9pY×tamp=1697150635 "Photo of John N. Galgiani, MD, on a yellow background with gold confetti and the words: Celebrating 20 Years of Impact – AZBIOAWARDS")
The infectious diseases professor and Valley Fever Center for Excellence director recognized for a nearly 50-year career fighting this fungal disease endemic to Arizona and Southwest. See mini-photo gallery from ceremony and day's events.
![[Rachna T. Shroff, MD]](https://deptmedicine.arizona.edu/sites/default/files/styles/1x_widescreen/public/021623-comt-rachna-shroff-nhg_4445-card.jpg?itok=qd3XDX_I×tamp=1697156793 "Rachna T. Shroff, MD")
Dr. Rachna Shroff got a new moniker earlier this year as “Woman Disruptor of the Year” by the Healio website during the American Society of Clinical Oncology Annual Meeting this summer.
UArizona researchers will use a $3.2 million grant from the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases to study gastrointestinal symptoms as a condition of long COVID.
![[Eugene Levy and Sydney Salmon buildings at the University of Arizona Cancer Center]](https://deptmedicine.arizona.edu/sites/default/files/styles/1x_widescreen/public/uacc-main_campus_card.jpg?itok=zm0NNjLh×tamp=1697596425 "Eugene Levy and Sydney Salmon buildings at the University of Arizona Cancer Center")
Drs. Juanita Merchant, Rachna Shroff and Clara Curiel-Lewandrowski – all Department of Medicine division chiefs – were picked to lead Arizona’s only NCI-Designated Comprehensive Cancer Center in the absence of former director Dr. Joann Sweasy.
![[Juanita Merchant, MD, PhD, talks to attendees at Docs in the Kitchen culinary demonstration for healthy eating at the Hacienda at the River retirement community in June 2023.]](https://deptmedicine.arizona.edu/sites/default/files/styles/1x_widescreen/public/docs_in_kitchen_2023-06-10_img_8368-4898_900x600_0.jpg?itok=J7wxWt5T×tamp=1695772251 "Juanita Merchant, MD, PhD, talks to attendees at Docs in the Kitchen culinary demonstration for healthy eating at the Hacienda at the River retirement community in June 2023.")
The University of Arizona Gastroenterology division chief and UArizona Cancer Center associate director of basic sciences joins 29 others honored by Office of Research, Innovation and Impact.
![[Tuba City Regional Health Care Nurses and doctors working in a tent set up for COVID-19 testing.]](https://deptmedicine.arizona.edu/sites/default/files/styles/1x_widescreen/public/navajo-nation-donations-nhg-dsc5712-card.jpg?itok=0vhgRd1q×tamp=1695243193 "Tuba City Regional Health Care Nurses and doctors working in a tent set up for COVID-19 testing.")
The Aegis Consortium awarded seed funding to eight projects, including one led by Integrative Medicine’s Dr. Esther Sternberg, that align with the UArizona Health Sciences center’s mission to create a pandemic-free future.
National journal Engineering News Record has named the Center for Sleep, Circadian and Neuroscience Research winner of the Award of Merit as the Best Small Project in the Southwest for 2023. It and three other UArizona awards will be presented at a Phoenix luncheon in October.
John Galgiani, MD, director of the Valley Fever Center for Excellence and a professor in the Department of Medicine's Division of Infectious Diseases, will receive the AZBio Pioneer Award, which recognizes his career accomplishments, Sept. 27 at a ceremony in Phoenix.
Open house showcases new services available for those suffering from a variety of dermatological needs as well as training the next generation of physicians on the most advanced laser modalities that offer less pain and faster recovery.
The GI Genius Intelligent Endoscopy Module improves colorectal cancer detection by nearly 50%, says Dr. Avin Aggarwal, Banner – UMC South Endoscopy Services medical director.
A $1.5 million grant from the National Cancer Institute will help University of Arizona Cancer Center researchers Drs. Jennifer Bea and Cynthia Thomson establish a training program geared to introduce students to prevention science careers.
Dr. Alberts, who passed away July 29 at age 83, not only assisted in creating the Arizona Cancer Center in 1976, but also developed the center’s Cancer Prevention and Control Program into one of the top programs in the U.S.
After being displaced for two years as Tucson’s best hospital, Banner Health’s flagship hospital in Southern Arizona is once again No. 1 in the region and No. 2 in the state, according to U.S. News & World Report’s annual rankings.
To increase chances of receiving proper care, people with pneumonia symptoms should ask to be tested for Valley fever, says Dr. John Galgiani, an infectious diseases professor and Valley Fever Center for Excellence director at the UArizona College of Medicine – Tucson.
An open house Tuesday, July 25, will showcase advanced technology and technical skills for trainees as well as translational research opportunities across the university. Service will be largest in state.