This month, the United States and Canadian Academy of Pathology (USCAP) hosts its 108th annual meeting March 16-21, 2019, at the Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center in National Harbor, Maryland, where many of our Department faculty, residents and fellows will present recent work. It is the largest world meeting of pathologists.

On Sunday March, 17, Chairman and Professor George Netto, M.D., will kick things off with a talk on "Liquid Biopsy in Precision Oncology: Plasma and Beyond!" at the College of American Pathogists' companion meeting. That evening at 5:30-7:30pm, our team will host a booth at the Fellowship Fair, featuring information about our fellowship opportunities, giveaways and more. The coursework and poster sessions continue throughout the week until the conference conclusion on Thursday, March 21.

Monday throughout the day our faculty will present posters and talks, including a Genitourinary Platform presentation, "Is MRI/US Fusion-Targeted Biopsy Alone Adequate for Detecting Prostate Cancer in Patients with a Prior Negative Prostate Biopsy?" featuring Maria del Carmen Rodriguez Pena, M.D., Marie-Lise Eich, M.D., and Jennifer Gordetsky, M.D. That evening the Department will host a reception for all current and former faculty, staff and students, 5-7:30 p.m. in the National Harbor Room 8. Poster sessions will feature 10 posters in categories ranging from cytopathology to hematopathology to genitourniary pathology. 

Tuesday morning's highlights include a lecture by Anna Yemelyanova, M.D., Professor, on "Molecular Testing of Solid Tumors: Anatomic Pathologist in Charge of Pre-Analytics." It is part of the Molecular track, which Netto will introduce with a talk on "Molecular Diagnostic and Genomic Applications in Cancer: A Primer for the Pathologist." Poster sessions will include five UAB faculty posters. In the afternoon, Deniz Peker, M.D., will present "Characterization of Cancer Immune Profiles in Patients with Primary Central Nervous System Lymphoma," during the Neuropathology Platform, at 2:15 p.m.

On Wednesday Cristina Magi-Galluzzi, M.D., Ph.D., Division Director, Anatomic Pathology, Presents in the Genitourinary Pathology Short Course, and gives a "Hot Topic" talk on "Prostate Cancer Pathology: Grading, Reporting, Diagnosis." Nine more posters throughout the day, in the genitourinary, breast cancer, quality assurance categories, lead up to the Evening Specialty Conference in Genitourinary Pathology, in which Jennifer Gordetsky, M.D., Associate Professor, presents, "Poor Prognostic Findings in Genitourinary Pathology, What Not to Miss," at 8:30 p.m. 

Click here for a comprehensive listing of UAB Pathology presentations at the USCAP Conference. Look forward to conference coverage on our Twitter account, @UABPathology.

This year's third annual C. Bruce Alexander Lecture in Pathology Education, sponsored by the Department of Pathology, featured Jacob Steinberg, M.D., Professor and Program Director, Autopsy Service & Residency Training, and Chair, Subcommittee of GME Wellness at Montefiore Medical College of Albert Einstein College of Medicine. The event took place on February 28 in the West Pavilion Conference Center to a full audience.

Steinberg's talk, titled,"Why the Physician-Pathologist Matters," honored Alexander's legacy at UAB--the two have been friends for decades.

Dr. Steinberg with Dr. Alexander before the lecture starts. Steinberg with Marisa Marques, M.D., and her mentor, Dr. Bruce Alexander James Hackney, M.D., Neuropathology, with Drs. Steinberg and Alexander

Steinberg received his medical degree at Stritch-Loyola University of Chicago, and was trained at the University of Pennsylvania and NYU, including Bellevue & VA hospitals. At Einstein, Dr. Steinberg chaired the AMA-LCME Committee for the Granting of the M.D. Degree, and was a founding member of the Dean’s Letter Committee (MSPE), and chaired the Medical Student Thesis Committee. Dr. Steinberg is Program Director of Residency Training & the Autopsy Service. He was a member of the ACGME Residency Milestones Committee, & Chair of the Program Directors’ (APC/PRODS). JJ chairs the GME Housestaff Wellness SubCommittee, which helps to improve the quality of life of 1500+ residents and fellows. He served (under both Democratic & Republican Administrations) on the Scientific Advisory Panel for the United States Environmental Protection Agency. He was an AAAS Fellow.

Dr. Steinberg's awards include the Einstein’s Davidoff Teaching Honors Society, Einstein’s the Rosen Outstanding Teacher's Award, NIH Geriatric Leadership Academic Award, and Faculty Awardee, Bronx High School of Science, Science Education, Minority Students Program, and AOA faculty. He was a decade-long invited participant of the Dartmouth Health Care Leadership Institute. JJ has been awarded the National Distinguished Teaching Award in Graduate Medical Education in 2014 & is also the Montefiore Faculty & Alumni Physician Honoree for 2019.

Congratulations to Stephen Moser, Ph.D., Professor of Laboratory Medicine, who was appointed Professor Emeritus this month by the University of Alabama Board of Trustees.

Dr. Moser celebrated his retirement from the Department in November, 2018, after more than two decades of service. Read more about his career here.

Effective Friday, February 1, Adam Jones, M.D., will serve as Anatomic Pathology Chief Resident, and Danielle Fasciano, D.O, as Clinical Pathology Chief Resident for 2019-2020. Congratulations!

Congratulations to Professor Ralph Crowe, M.D., on his retirement from full-time services to the UAB Department of Pathology and UAB Hospital. Effective January 1, he will work reduced clinical hours. Crowe has served his entire academic career in the Department, starting as chief resident at the outset of his medical career.

D. Ralph Crowe, M.D.

Crowe is a surgical pathologist and cytopathologist with more than 30 years of experience in clinical diagnostic pathology of multiple organ systems. He joined the Department in 1989 as an assistant professor, and was promoted to associate professor in 2002, before his promotion to full professor in 2012.

Dr. Crowe became a primary pulmonary transplant biopsy pathologist in 2004. His involvement with non-neoplastic and neoplastic lung disease in the following years expanded to include medical student and fellowship-level teaching, and active participation in several interdisciplinary teaching and clinical conferences. This includes a weekly Interstitial Lung Disease Conference, a monthly Thoracic Oncology Tumor Board, a Lung Transplant Morbidity and Mortality Conference, and Multidisciplinary Chest Conference.

Dr. Ralph Crowe, back row, right-hand side, with his Cytopathology fellow faculty members.

Crowe is a Birmingham native who graduated magna cum laude with a degree in philosophy from Birmingham Southern College before receiving his medical degree at UAB. He completed an internship and residency at Carraway Hospital (then Carraway Methodist Medical Center), followed by a residency at UAB Hospital, serving as chief resident in the Department of Pathology.

His participation in professional societies and service to various committees and councils is too numerous to list, spanning from student mentorship to clinical studies and beyond. Crowe has published many academic articles, abstracts and manuscripts over his career, and presented lectures, papers and posters at conferences nationwide.

Isam Eldin-Eltoum, M.D., Professor and Vice Chair for Quality and Safety, has worked with Dr. Crowe for more than 20 years and said of his friend and colleague, “Dr. Crowe has always been very careful and methodical. He focuses on patients and on giving the best consultations to our clinical colleagues.” Eldin-Eltoum calls Dr. Crowe, “a southern gentleman. He is down to earth despite all the knowledge he has, not just medical but political, historical, and of the arts.”

Vishnu Reddy, M.D., Professor, Laboratory Medicine, calls Crowe, “one of the most valuable senior diagnostic pathologists in our department.”

Congratulations to Greg Davis, M.D., M.S.P.H., Director and Professor, Division of Forensics, UAB Department of Pathology, who was recently announced as a member of the 2018 School of Medicine Chapter of the Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Society. 

Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Medical Society is a professional medical organization that recognizes and advocates for excellence in scholarship and the highest ideals in the profession of medicine. Dr. Davis will be inducted on March 14, 2019, as a faculty level member.

The Division of Molecular & Cellular Pathology led by Director Ralph Sanderson, Ph.D., Professor, recently hosted a gathering to celebrate the end of the year, as well as the retirement of longtime Administrative Supervisor Cindy Brown. 

Cindy served as administrative supervisor for 11 years, taking over the position when John Chatham, Ph.D., was Division Director.

"She enhanced the staff, and improved morale, and over the years built an outstanding team of administrative staff," Sanderson says. "As Division Director I worked with her for only one year, but benefited from her leadership of the staff for 11 years."

The Division of Anatomic Pathology led by Director Cristina Magi-Galluzzi, M.D., Ph.D, Professor, is pleased to welcome Goo Lee, M.D., Ph.D., to the Division as assistant professor in the Surgical Pathology Section and Gastrointestinal Pathology.

Lee joins the Department from the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine at the Ottowa Hospital/University of Ottowa. He is board certified in Anatomic and Clinical Pathology, and has clinical expertise in GI and GYN Pathology.

Lee completed a fellowship at Emory University in GI/Hepatic Pathology. His research interests focus on chronic inflammation, molecular pathways, and chemoprevention in inflammatory bowel disease-associated colorectal cancer, as well as early detection of dysplasia in IBD and transepithelial migration of neutrophils in IBD.

Goo Lee, M.D., Ph.D.
Assistant Professor

On Friday, November 30, after more than two decades of service to the Department, Stephen Moser, Ph.D., Professor of Laboratory Medicine, retired from full time service to UAB and will work part time.

Moser has had a long and prolific career in pathology that was celebrated by friends, family and colleagues with a recognition event in the West Pavilion Conference Center. Chair George Netto, M.D., gave remarks about Moser, who was accompanied by his wife. Other noted guests include current and former students, staff, and former Chair Jay McDonald, M.D.

The UAB Department of Pathology is proud to announce the recent renewal and awarding of research funds to several investigators in the Department's Division of Molecular & Cellular Pathology (MCP) and Anatomic Pathology.

Rajasekaran Namakkal-Soorappan, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, successfully renewed his ongoing R01 grant on “Reductive Stress Induces Proteotoxic Cardiac disease” (competitive renewal) for the next term, with the major aim to address the translational potential of the “Reductive Stress in Heart Failure Patients.” The award, through July 2023, is funded by the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute.

Elizabeth Brown, M.D., Professor, is funded by the National Institute of Arthritis & Musculoskeletal & Skin Diseases/NIH/DHHS for her work on, "Association of Genetic and Autoantibody Signatures with SLE Clinical Course," as well as an award for "Characterization of the Lupus Nephritis microRNAome" from the National Institute of Arthritis & Musculoskeletal & Skin Diseases/NIH/DHHS.

November was a busy month in the Department, with several events for faculty. On Monday, November 5, Yabing Chen, Ph.D., Professor and Vice Chair for Faculty Development and Education, coordinated the second annual Faculty Development Forum meeting, with the theme, "Moving Up the Ranks." The meeting was designed as a forum for faculty members to discuss the process, and learn of potential pitfalls--of obtaining promotion and tenure.
Dr. Yabing Chen addresses the crowd gathered to learn about the Department's promotion and tenure process. 

The following evening, Chair George Netto, M.D., and his wife Ruby hosted a dinner reception in honor of the success of several of our faculty, including promotions, retirements, and awards. The event was held at Garden & Galley restaurant on Birmingham's Southside.

First, Anna Yemeleyanova, M.D., Professor, was introduced to Ira Gore, M.D., and Cynthia McCaleb Gore, benefactors of the Hazel Gore, M.D., Endowed Professorship in Gynecologic Pathology. Yemelyanova joined our team as Professor in the Division of Anatomic Pathology and Director of the Gynecologic Pathology Section in spring of 2018. In addition, Dr. Yemelyanova has the role of Associate Director of our Division of Genomic Diagnostics and Bioinformatics, led by Interim Division Director Shuko Harada, M.D. She received the endowment in October. 

On Tuesday, November 27, the UAB Department of Pathology, Department of Urology, Division of Gastroenterology and Division of Hematology/Oncology joined forces to host a No Shave November event in honor of Men’s Health Awareness Month.

Physicians and staff throughout the School of Medicine put down their razors for a month to raise awareness for some of the biggest health issues faced by men: prostate cancer, testicular cancer and mental health. Treadwell Barbershop and A New U Barber & Style helped shave it all off while attendees enjoyed the photo booth, refreshments and prizes donated by local businesses.

Pathology faculty Drs. George Netto, Daniel Dye, Sooryanarayana Varambally, and Upender Manne, plus several staff and others too part in the event by growing out their facial hair and contributing funds to the cause. Money raised by the department will be donated to the Prostate Cancer Foundation.

  
Clockwise from top left: George Netto, M.D., Chair, and Pathology colleagues show off their pre-shave growth; Netto is the first victim to get shaved by Steve Bishop of Treadwell Barbershop; Daniel Dye is up next; Forensics Division Director Greg Davis poses with Netto (post-shave) and Dye (pre) 

The UAB Department of Pathology on Tuesday, November 13, welcomed world-renowned expert in glycobiology Richard Cummings, Ph.D., Professor, Harvard Medicine, to present the fifth annual John Jay Listinsky Endowed Lecture in Glycobiology.

Cummings, an Alabama native, is Professor of Surgery at Harvard Medical School's Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Director, HMS Center for Glycoscience, and Director, National Center for Functional Glycomics. The topic of his lecture was "Integration of Glycomics, Immunology, and Infectious Disease."

Cummings presented his lecture, held in the Comprehensive Cancer Center's Wallace Tumor Institute, to a standing-room only audience.

Richard Cummings, M.D., presents his lecture on "Integration of Glycomics, Immunology and Infectious Disease," to a standing-room only audience.

Dr. Jay John Listinsky, an adjunct associate professor of pathology at UAB at the time of his untimely death in 2012, originally trained as a diagnostic radiologist but had a decades-long interest in fucosylated molecules and their overlapping physiologic properties. He collaborated with investigators in the Division of Anatomic Pathology for many years, which generated a number of novel manuscripts which added important data to the knowledge base of glycobiology. To further this work, his friends, colleagues, and family, spearheaded by his wife and UAB pathologist, Cathy, endowed this lectureship for future generations. Learn more.

From left to right: Ralph Sanderson, Ph.D., Division Director, Molecular & Cellular Pathology; Richard Cummings, M.D., Cathy Listinsky, M.D., former UAB Pathologist, and Gene Siegal, M.D., Ph.D., Professor & Vice Chair

 The Department sponsors several endowed lectureships, taking place annually. Learn more.

On Friday, November 16, UAB's Comprehensive Cancer Center held its 20th annual Research Retreat, with the theme of "Developmental Therapeutics," at The Club atop Red Mountain.

The Department of Pathology had a strong showing at the event, with students and faculty presenting dozens of posters. Postdoctoral fellow Darshan Chandrashekar, Ph.D., presented the afternoon lecture on "UALCAN: An Integrated Data-mining Platform to Facilitate the Comprehensive Analysis of Cancer Transcriptome." The UALCAN tool has been cited on numerous papers and the website has been visited 93,000 times since it launched in January 2017. Learn more.

The daylong event capped off with the announcement of the Albert F. LoBuglio Distinguished Faculty Award, presented to a faculty member of the CCC who has made distinguished contributions to the research activities of the Center. Michael Birrer, M.D., Ph.D., Director of the CCC, presented to Pathology faculty and CCC member Upender Manne, M.D., with the award. This is the 17th time the award has been presented; previous winners from the department include Ralph Sanderson, Ph.D., Division Director, Molecular & Cellular Pathology, in 2017; and William Grizzle, M.D., Ph.D., Professor, in 2005.

Upender Manne, M.D., above left, receives the Albert F. LoBuglio Distinguished Faculty Award from Michael Birrer, M.D., at the CCC's annual Research Retreat. 

The UAB Department of Pathology is proud to recognize Anna Yemelyanova, M.D., as the inaugural Hazel Gore, M.D., Endowed Professorship in Gynecologic Pathology, generously supported by the Gore family. The University of Alabama Board of Trustees approved the nomination October 1.

Yemelyanova joined our team as Professor in the Division of Anatomic Pathology and Director of the Gynecologic Pathology Section in spring of 2018. In addition, Dr. Yemelyanova has the role of Associate Director of our Division of Genomic Diagnostics and Bioinformatics, led by Interim Division Director Shuko Harada, M.D.

Anna Yemelyanova, M.D.

Yemelanova’s previous professional appointments include Associate Professor of Pathology at the Gynecologic Pathology Division at the University of Texas, MD Anderson Cancer Center, and Assistant Professor of Pathology at the Division of Gynecologic Pathology at Johns Hopkins University.

Two of our distinguished faculty have achieved emeritus status in the Department of Pathology. Congratulations to Dennis Kucik, M.D., Associate Professor, Pathology, and R. Pat Bucy, M.D., Ph.D., Professor, Laboratory Medicine. 

Dennis Kucik, M.D., retired on December 31, 2016. Dennis joined UAB’s Department of Pathology, Division of Laboratory Medicine in August of 1997. In 2003 he was appointed Chief of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine at the Birmingham Veterans Administration Medical Center. In addition to his invaluable service with the VA, Kucik maintained an active research portfolio during his career. He has been recognized nationally for his achievements related to his NASA-funded research project using both cell and animal models to determine the mechanism of radiation-induced aortic endothelial cell adhesiveness and its consequences for atherosclerosis. His research helped predict the risks associated with interplanetary travel for astronauts, as well as develop countermeasures to mitigate the adverse effects of prolonged exposure to cosmic radiation. Dr. Kucik served as a mentor to many UAB graduate students and Pathology residents throughout the years.

R. Pat Bucy, M.D., Ph.D., retired from active service at UAB on October 1, 2018 and was appointed Professor Emeritus. He began his scientific career studying physical organic chemistry while in college, graduating in 1975 from Austin College in Sherman, Texas. He joined the Medical Scientist Training Program at Washington University (one of only three in the nation with full funding at the time) in the fall of 1975.  Bucy completed his Ph.D. in cellular immunology with a focus on the Ir gene control of immune responses to insulin and graduated in 1981 with both an M.D. and Ph.D.  He completed a residency in Anatomic Pathology at Washington University and joined the Faculty there as Assistant Professor in 1984. Bucy joined UAB in 1987.

We are excited to announce the arrival of a new faculty member, joining the Division of Anatomic Pathology led by Director Cristina Magi-Galluzzi, M.D. Ph.D., Professor, Anatomic Pathology, in the Cytopathology section, directed by Isam-Eldin Eltoum, M.D., Professor, Anatomic Pathology.

Dina Kokh, M.D., is a board certified anatomic and clinical pathologist and cytopathologist. She completed her residency in anatomic and clinical pathology at the University of Maryland, followed by a fellowship in cytopathology. Kokh subsequently a pursued fellowship in gynecologic pathology at Stanford University. Her research interests include gynecologic and breast pathology/cytopathology. Kokh joins the division as an assistant professor.

Please join the Department in welcoming Dr. Kokh!

The UAB Computational Biology & Bioinformatics Center is offering a new course, "CB2-101: Bioinformatics Computing," replacing the old introductory course "CB2-101: Introduction to Scientific Computing” offered under the umbrella of the CB2 initiative at UAB (http://www.uab.edu/cb2). The course is led by Malay Basu, M.Tech, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Division of Informatics, Department of Pathology.

This free course will start on Thursday, November 1. It is a hands-on, rigorous, and fast-paced introduction to computational skills required for Bioinformatics research, modeled after the National Science Foundation "immersive learning" proposal (http://www.nsf.gov/pubs/2008/nsf08204/index.jsp).

UAB Pathology celebrated the 27th year of its Paulette Shirey Pritchett Endowed Lecture in Pathology with an outstanding lecture by Elaine Jaffe, M.D., Series Editor, World Health Organization Classification of Tumours. Jaffe's lecture, "Charting the Future of Lymphoma Classification: A Road Map for Disease Discovery and Treatment," took place before a full house on Monday, September September 17, with the Pritchett family in attendance.
From left to right: George Netto, M.D., Elaine Jaffe, M.D., Yabing Chen, Ph.D., and Robert Pritchett, M.D.

This endowed lecture series is named in honor of Dr. Paulette Shirey Pritchett, and is supported by Dr. Robert Pritchett, husband of Dr. Paulette Pritchett, and family. Dr. Pritchett was a highly respected, young member of the UAB Department of Pathology when she unexpectedly passed away on August 4, 1984.She was a native Alabamian who obtained her medical degree from the University of Alabama, where she was awarded the Stewart Graves Award and the William Boyd Medal for her demonstrated excellence in pathology.

Two papers featuring the results of research conducted in the laboratory of X. Long Zheng, M.D., Ph.D., related to the pathogenesis and novel therapeutics for immune-mediated thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (iTTP) are published recently.

The first, "Clinical Factors and Biomarkers Predicting Outcome in Patients with Immune-Mediated Thrombotic Thrombocytopenic Purpura" was featured in Haematologica, the journal of the European Haematology Association, online on August 23, 2018. Elizabeth Staley, M.D., Ph.D., Hemostasis Fellow of pathology, was first author on the paper, along with colleagues Wenjing Cao, M.D., Ph.D., Instructor, Pathology; Nicole Kocher, Researcher, TTP Lab; Lucy Zheng, senior of Indian Springs School, Huy Pham, M.D., M.P.H., and Robin Lorenz, M.D., Ph.D., former Assistant Professor and Professor of Pathology, respectively, Lance Williams, Associate Professor of Pathology, Marisa Marques, Ph.D., Professor, and X. Long Zheng, M.D., Ph.D., Professor of Pathology and Division Director, Laboratory Medicine.

The second, "Transfusion of platelets loaded with recombinant ADAMTS13 is efficacious for inhibiting arterial thrombosis in mice and in human," was published in the journal Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis, and Vascular Biology (ATVB), on September 13, 2018. First author Mohammed Abdelgawwad, M.D., Ph.D., a graduate student of pathobiology theme at UAB. Other contributors include Wenjing Cao, M.D., Ph.D., Nicole Kocher, B.S., Lance Williams, M.D., Liang Zheng, Ph.D. and X. Long Zheng, M.D., Ph.D.The findings suggest that transfusion of recombinant ADAMTS13-loaded platelets may be a novel and potentially effective therapeutic approach for arterial thrombosis, including congenital and immune-mediated thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura.

Haematologica and ATVB are top journals in the field of Hematology, with an impact factor of 9.09 and 6.6, respectively. 

The Zheng Lab is interested in understanding the biological mechanisms of iTTP, which is caused by a deficiency of plasma ADAMTS13, the enzyme responsible for cleaving von Willebrand factor (VWF). Dr. Zheng was among the first group of investigators who discovered and cloned the ADAMTS13 enzyme. The Zheng Lab has made many seminal contributions to the understanding of the structure-function relationship and regulation of ADAMTS13, by working to develop novel tools for the diagnosis and treatment of TTP.

Each year the Zheng Lab hosts the TTP Fair and Education Day, an event designed to create a conversation and a community between those affected by the disorder and the physicians and researchers who are working to improve the available treatments, outcomes, and recovery time. Visit the event website to learn more.