The UIC National Center of Excellence in Women's Health (CoE) and the UIC Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology received the NIH Building Interdisciplinary Research Careers in Women's Health (BIRCWH) beginning in September of 2007. This K12 grant from the National Institutes of Health provides funding for junior faculty to pursue research interests in women's health.
UIC BIRCWH NEWS AND EVENTS
NEW! BIRCWH scholar Julienne Rutherford has been awarded an NIH R01 grant for her project titled, “Womb to Womb: Programming reproductive development in female common marmoset monkeys,” with collaborators Suzette Tardif, Don Dudley, and Corrina Ross at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, and Toni Ziegler at the Wisconsin National Primate Research Center. This study interrogates the developmental mechanisms from fetal life to early adulthood that contribute to reproductive dysfunction in three generations of monkeys. The data will allow researchers to determine what role first generation characteristics play in the trajectory of second generation gestations, linking the womb in which a female developed to the womb she will provide to her offspring. The impact of this study lies in its potential to generate new ways to screen, diagnose, and treat human reproductive dysfunction within the context of developmental milestones. Congratulations, Julienne!
NEW! BIRCWH scholar Julienne Rutherford received the American Society of Primatologists Legacy Award, which was established by the ASP to facilitate multidisciplinary career development for a junior-level post-PhD/MD/DVM primatologist. Dr. Rutherford will use the award to pursue novel training in fetal brain imaging techniques with colleagues at UIC (Dr. Melissa Lamar) and Trinity University, San Antonio, Texas (Dr. Kimberly Philips). Her work will use MRI to document the growth and maturation of the brain in postmortem fetal vervet monkeys. This $10,000 award is the largest monetary amount that the ASP has ever awarded. More information about the award is available online. Congratulations, Julienne!
NEW! Former BIRWCH scholar Patricia Hershberger received the Association of Women's Health, Obstetric, and Neonatal Nurses (AWHONN) Award of Excellence in Research for 2013. Dr. Hershgerger will be honored for her accomplishments at the upcoming AWHONN conference on June 16. A list of previous award winners is available on the AWHONN website. Congratulations, Patricia!
NEW! A copy of Susan Johnson's presentation from her "Work/Life Balance" seminar is avaible for download here: Susan Johnson "Work/Life Balance" seminar presentation
NEW! BIRCWH scholar Julienne Rutherford, along with colleagues, was featured in Science for her recent survey of fieldwork experiences in biological anthropology. The article, which describes a distressing status quo, is available online.
BIRCWH scholar Thasarat Vajaranant has been recognized on the lists for Best Doctors in America, Castle Connelly America’s Top Doctors, and Chicago Super Doctors. Congratulations, Thasarat!
BIRCWH mentor Alicia Matthews, PhD, has been appointed as the inaugural Helen K. Grace Faculty Diversity Scholar for her internationally recognized work on physical and mental health disparities among members of marginalized social, groups. Congratulations, Dr. Matthews!
Congratulations to BIRCWH scholar Thasarat Vajaranant, who was named the first recipient of the “American Glaucoma Society – Thom J. Zimmerman, MD, PhD Memorial Award, Supported by Valeant Ophthalmics.” The award is in memory of Dr. Thom J. Zimmerman, the developer of the glaucoma medication timolol maleate (TIMOPTIC) and consists of an unrestricted grant to support Thasarat’s clinical research study, “A Feasibility Study to Assess the Accuracy of Self-Reported Glaucoma Outcomes and Participant Interest in Ancillary Glaucoma Studies as Part of the Women’s Health Initiative (WHI) Extension.” More information about the award is available online.
A recent article examining mortality rates among females and males determined that female mortality rates have increased at exponentially higher rates in comparison to male mortality rates. The article, "Even As Mortality Fell In Most US Countries, Female Mortality Nonetheless Rose In 42.8 Percent Of Countries from 1992 To 2006," urges a focus on social and environmental determinants of health in understanding population health. The article is available for download here.
BIRCWH scholar Lisa Tussing-Humphreys is serving as the Assistant Director of The Diet and Behavior Shared Resource (DSBR), an initiative that aims to support the integration of behavioral and psychosocial factors into UICC Investigator research protocols. The DSBR Winter Newsletter, which features highlights from the DSBR Dietary Assessment Symposium and a list of upcoming events on campus is available for download here.
Congratulations to BIRCWH scholar Sadia Haider, who gave birth to baby girl Zahra on January 8, 2013 at 6:59 am! Both mom and baby are doing well.
Congratulations to Dr. Stacie Geller who was named the 2012 Distinguished Researcher of the Year in Clinical Sciences by the University of Illinois at Chicago. A complete description of this high honor and Dr. Geller's achievements is available at the UIC News Center.
BIRCWH scholar Sadia Haider recently published an article in Contraception titled, “Evaluation of e-mail contact to conduct follow-up among adolescent women participating in a longitudinal cohort study of contraceptive use.” The article is available ahead of print online.
BIRCWH scholar Bethany Everett published an article in the Journal of Community Health titled, “Differences in Hypertension by Sexual Orientation Among U.S. Young Adults.” The article is available ahead of print online.
BIRCWH scholar Kirstie Danielson was featured in an article in the UIC News Center for her work on islet transplantation and progression of atherosclerosis in type 1 diabetes. The article is available online.
BIRCWH scholar Julienne Rutherford’s recent edited volume titled “Building Babies: Primate Development in Proximate and Ultimate Perspective” is one of a select list of books that will be highlighted for discussion at the 2013 ScienceOnline Conference at North Carolina State University. A complete list of the books that received this distinction can be found online.
Former BIRCWH scholar Angela Black has accepted a research fellowship position in complementary and alternative medicine with the Department of Family Medicine at the University of Wisconsin. Dr. Black will begin her research fellowship in August 2013.
BIRCWH scholar Bethany Everett recently published an article (with colleagues) in the American Journal of Public Health titled, “Eating Disorder Symptoms and Obesity at the Intersections of Gender, Ethnicity, and Sexual Orientation in US High School Students.” The article is available ahead of print online.
BIRCWH scholar Kirstie Danielson received a CRB grant from OVCR for her proposal titled, "Role of the Bone Hormone Osteocalcin in Type 1 Diabetes and Islet Transplantation.
BIRCWH scholar Leah Rubin received a CRB grant from OVCR for her proposal titled, "A pilot study: Sex differences in cognitive response to a hydrocortisone challenge in HIV."
BIRCWH scholar Thasarat Vajaranant received funding through The WHI Extension Feasibility Study Funding Program for her proposal titled "A Feasibility Study to Assess the Accuracy of Self-reported Glaucoma outcomes and Participant Interest in Participating in Ancillary Glaucoma Studies." This study aims to test the feasibility of obtaining medical records to assess the accuracy of self-reported glaucoma outcomes and participant interest in participating in ancillary glaucoma studies.
Former BIRCWH scholar Joanna Burdette was featured in the November 28 issue of UIC news for her work on examining the link between ovarian cancer and ovulation. The full article, featuring an interview with Dr. Burdette, can be found online.
BIRCWH scholar Thasarat Vajaranant recently served as co-editor of a book with Dr. Deepak Edward titled "Glaucoma (Oxford American Ophthalmology Library Series)."
BIRCWH scholar Thasarat Vajaranant received the 2012 Publication Incentive Award from the Cless Family Foundation. This award was created to acknowledge each faculty member in the Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences at UIC who has published peer-reviewed articles with an accumulative journal impact factor greater than 10 in a given year.
Emily Anderson (of Loyola) recently hosted a seminar at UIC titled "Ethical Issues in Community Engaged Research: Delivering Human Research Protection Training to Community Partners." Anderson developed CIRTification in response to the need for a more community-centric IRB training for partners who may not live in the "research world" on a day-to-day basis, but are required to complete a training. Anderson’s training presents the same principle as the CITI training, but in a more approachable manner for community partners. CIRTificaiton is an approved alternative at UIC, UofC, NU, etc. to the CITI training that is traditionally utilized. Here is the link to CIRTification, which has the curriculum (FREE download): http://www.uic.edu/depts/mcam/CCTS/CIRTification/
BIRCWH scholar Julienne Rutherford recently published an article in Placenta titled "Toward a nonhuman primate model of fetal programming: Phenotypic plasticity of the common marmoset fetoplacental complex," which explores the marmoset monkey as a potential powerful nonhuman primate model of multiple pregnancies, restrictive prenatal experiences, and differential reproductive outcomes in adulthood.
A new FOA on Administrative Supplements for Research on Sex/Gender Differences (PA-13-018) has just been posted to the NIH Guide website. For more information, click here.
"Ignition Sequence: On Mentorship," an article exploring what mentorship is (and is not) by Andrés Martin. The article can be downloaded here.
Current BIRCWH Scholars
Kirstie Danielson, PhD
Assistant Professor, Division of Transplant Surgery
Departmental Affiliate, Division of Epidemiology & Biostatistics
Bethany Everett, PhD
Assistant Professor, Department of Sociology
Sadia Haider, MD, MPH
Assistant Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology
Michelle Kominiarek, MD
Assistant Professor of Obstetrics & Gynecology, College of Medicine
Julienne Rutherford, PhD
Assistant Professor, Department of Women, Children, and Family Health Sciences, College of Nursing
Former BIRCWH Scholars
Angela Rose Black, PhD
Assistant Professor of Kinesiology & Community Health, College of Applied Health Sciences, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Joanna Burdette, PhD
Assistant Professor of Medicinal Chemistry & Pharmacognosy, College of Pharmacy
Colleen Corte, PhD
Associate Professor of Health Systems Sciences, College of Nursing
Bryna Harwood, MD, MS
Associate Professor of Obstetrics & Gynecology, College of Medicine
Patricia Hershberger, PhD
Assistant Professor of Women, Children, and Family Health Science, College of Nursing
Hyunyoung Jeong, PharmD, PhD
Assistant Professor of Pharmacy Practice and Biopharmaceutical Sciences, College of Pharmacy
Leah Rubin, PhD
Assistant Professor of Psychiatry, College of Medicine
Thasarat Vajaranant, MD
Assistant Professor of Ophthalmology & Visual Sciences, College of Medicine