Collection site for unwanted prescription drugs planned
Members of the university community can drop off old or unwanted prescription drugs, vitamins and over-the-counter medications for environmentally safe disposal from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesday. There are two locations: Ingalls Mall and the North Campus Research Complex. At Ingalls Mall on North University Avenue there will be a large white tent for collections. Drive-up service is available. And at the North Campus Research Complex, a collection site is located in Room G065, Building 10. More information, including a list of accepted items, is available at myumi.ch/JyGyP.
Researcher awarded grants to study incurable lung condition, sepsis
Kathleen Stringer, professor of clinical pharmacy, was awarded two separate grants totaling roughly $3 million to study treatments for a rare pediatric lung disease and the deadly infection known as sepsis. Stringer received a $2 million FDA Orphan Product Grant to start Phase II clinical trials for an inhaler medication to treat pediatric plastic bronchitis, a rare, incurable lung disease. Children with plastic bronchitis form rubbery “casts” in their airways that can block airflow and make breathing very difficult. These casts are made of a protein called fibrin. Studies have shown that inhaling a medicine called tissue plasminogen activator (tPA), can dissolve the airway casts. The grant will help develop tests to monitor the drug’s safety. The trial is a collaborative effort among Drs. Regine White, Kurt Schumacher, Samya Nasr, and Jeff Myers, all faculty at the U-M Health System. Stringer also received a $1 million grant from the National Institutes of Health to study a personalized medicine approach in the treatment of sepsis. This approach is called pharmacometabolomics, and it will help determine which patients are more likely to respond to a new therapy called L-carnitine. Study results will improve the design of future sepsis clinical trials and will help drive drug discovery for new sepsis treatments.
Staff nominations sought for Candace J. Johnson Award
The Office of the Provost wishes to recognize exemplary staff at the Ann Arbor and U-M Health System campuses with the Candace J. Johnson Award for Staff Excellence. Established in 2004, the award is a memorial to a dedicated staff member, Candy Johnson. Johnson’s special blend of professionalism and personality was a positive influence in the workplace. Faculty and staff are encouraged to nominate any regular staff member who they feel combines enthusiasm with excellence to truly make a difference at Michigan. A $500 cash award and certificate will be presented in January by the Office of the Provost. Oct. 31 is the final day nominations will be accepted. Learn more or submit a nomination by visiting hr.umich.edu/working-u-m/awards-recognition/candace-j-johnson-award-staff-excellence.
Nominations sought for Distinguished University Innovator Award
The Office of Research is seeking nominations for the 2017 Distinguished University Innovator Award, the university’s highest honor for faculty who have shown leadership in bringing new ideas to the marketplace. Nominees can include a current faculty member of the tenured, tenure track or research faculty, or a team of up to three such faculty members. Details on the award criteria, the nomination and selection processes, and previous winners can be found at research.umich.edu/research-um/office-research/recognition-awards/distinguished-university-innovator-award. Nominations are due Jan. 11, 2017, and the selection will be announced in March 2017.
— Compiled by Jill A. Greenberg, The University Record
