View the abstracts submitted via the OHSU Institutional Repository from Research Week 2022.

2022 keynote schedule

Monday, May 2: Students Choice Keynote
Colin Coleman, Ph.D. candidate
Cell and Developmental Biology, OHSU
View the recording.

Tuesday, May 3: Research Week Keynote
Marguerita Lightfoot, Ph.D., associate dean of research
OHSU-PSU School of Public Health
View the recording.

Tuesday, May 3: Mild Traumatic Brain Injury Symposium Keynote
Nina Kraus, Ph.D., Hugh Knowles Professor of Communication Sciences, Neurobiology, and Otolaryngology
Northwestern University
View the recording. (Dr. Kraus's keynote starts at 1:52:00.)

Wednesday, May 4: Brain Awareness Lecture Keynote
Christopher Kroenke, Ph.D., professor, Behavioral Neuroscience, and scientist
Advanced Imaging Research Center and Oregon National Primate Research Center
View the recording.

Thursday, May 5: Innovation Day Keynote
Paul R. Sandberg, president, National Academy of Inventors (NAI)
University Distinguished Professor and Vice Chair, Department of Neurosurgery and Brain Repair, USF Health

Thursday, May 5: Innovation Day Closing Keynote
Graciela Gomez Cowger, J.D.
Chief Executive Officer, Schwabe, Williamson & Wyatt

Friday, May 6: Research Matters Lecture, OHSU School of Nursing series
Peter Graven, Ph.D., director, Office of Business Intelligence and Advanced Analytics, OHSU

OHSU Research Week 2021 featured more than 180 talks, 20 sessions, four keynotes and many hundreds of engaged participants.  

The Research Week planning committee thanks all the presenters, volunteers, and student and postdoc organizers Kayla Tabari and Leire Abalde Atristain for making Research Week 2021 a success.

Follow the links for recordings of the keynotes. 

Kelsey Priest, Ph.D., M.D., M.P.H.
Graduating student from the OHSU M.D./Ph.D. program
Students Choice Keynote: “Striving for just systems”

Michael Lauer, M.D. 
Deputy Director for Extramural Research at the NIH
Research Week Keynote: “NIH perspectives on extramural research in 2021” 
Cut and paste link: https://ohsu.webex.com/ohsu/ldr.php?RCID=c8f1586a914d47a6a0efafd6c2537166; password Mi4M29Bp.

Kelly Monk, Ph.D. 
Co-director and senior scientist at the Vollum Institute 
Brain Awareness Lecture: "Zebrafish and the Secret to Brain Development"

Michelle McMurry-Heath, M.D., Ph.D., President and CEO, Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO)
Innovation and Commercialization Day Keynote: “Science, social justice and advocacy”

Each year during Research Week, OHSU News features profiles of faculty researchers.

Understanding pollution from the gene’s perspective 
Caren Weinhouse, Ph.D., M.P.H., explores how environmental pollutants prompt epigenetic changes. 

Sexual, gender minority health researcher has a keen eye on quantitative data 
Jae Downing, Ph.D., is using methodologies that avoid erasing transgender and gender diverse people from research. 

Treating addiction as a brain disease
Milky Kohno, Ph.D., combines science, personal experience to better understand neurological impacts of substance abuse. 

Imaging tumors, improving outcomes 
Neuroradiologist Ramon Barajas focuses on improving techniques to measure brain tumors.

Innovation and Commercialization Day showcased a sampling of the work that OHSU researchers are doing with the help of OHSU Technology Transfer and OHSU Collaboration and Entrepreneurship. Follow the links to recordings of the panels.

A Researcher’s Guide to Partnering with Industry
Liisa Bozinovic, executive director of Oregon Bioscience Association, moderated a conversation among OHSU faculty-entrepreneurs and business partners from the OHSU-Cepheid partnership and the OHSU-GE Healthcare Research and Technology partnership.

OHSU Innovation Showcase
Jonathan Jubera, OCTRI awards project manager, moderated a pitch-style forum featuring presentations on four projects by OHSU faculty innovators: Michael Cohen, Ph.D., Jessica Grant, M.B.A., Jeff Gold, M.D., Vishnu Mohan, M.D., and Matthew Hansen, M.D.

See the recording: The 2020 Research Week Student’s Choice Keynote Address

In 2020, Kalisha Bonds, R.N., Ph.D., presented  "When grandkids take the reins" on the decision-making processes exercised by African American persons living with dementias and their care partners. She also spoke about how her race, gender and socioeconomic status has influenced her research. Watch the recording of the keynote (recording password is EyHZJ7r2).

Bonds is a National Institute of Nursing Research T32 postdoctoral fellow at Emory University in the Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing. She earned her Ph.D. at OHSU in 2019.

Monday, May 13

Morning and afternoon oral presentations, panel and poster session with Research Week opening reception.  

Panel: "There are no conflicts in research, right?"
A conversation on current trends and best practices related to conflicts of interest in research. Panelists include Andrew R.O. Watson, Ph.D., CLP; Kara Drolet, Ph.D.; Ken Gatter, M.D., J.D.; Mark K. Slifka Ph.D.; Jeff Jensen, M.D., M.P.H.; and Erick H Turner, M.D. 
1 to 2 p.m., OHSU Auditorium

Poster session and opening reception
Research Week kicks off with a festive poster session and reception in the OHSU Library. 
4 to 7 p.m., BICC 

Tuesday, May 14

Morning and afternoon oral presentations, keynote address, panel, science game show, awards and forum on gene editing. 

Students' Choice Keynote Address
Sarah Andrea, M.P.H., Ph.D.,  OHSU-PSU School of Public Health
Introduction by David Bangsberg, M.D., M.P.H., founding dean of the joint OHSU–PSU School of Public Health.
11 a.m. to noon, OHSU Auditorium

Andrea recently defended her dissertation on the effects of subminimum wage on maternal and child health. She published in the June 2018 American Journal of Epidemiology findings that service sector employees are more susceptible to mental health issues. 

Andrea's investigations of gender, racial and class-based inequities in health are fueled by her personal experience growing up in a working class family.

Panel: "Alternative Careers in Science"
Guest panelists discuss a range of career paths for Ph.D. science graduates
2:30 to 3:30 p.m., OHSU Auditorium

Research Game Shows
Three big games and two interstitials with mics, clickers and great prizes! 
4 to 5:30 p.m., OHSU Auditorium

Research Week Gene Repair Forum: A Discussion of Science and Ethics
5:30 to 7 p.m., OHSU Auditorium

OHSU researchers have been at the forefront of gene repair techniques, including the first demonstration of the CRISPR technique to repair a disease-causing mutation in humans.

The international community, led in part by OHSU faculty, has called for broad discussion on the implications and ethical uses of these techniques. How and when is it appropriate to carry out research with CRISPR and related techniques on human embryos? How should we regulate these techniques? How do we ensure all stakeholders’ voices are heard? 

Join the Research Week organizing committee and OHSU Research and Innovation for a university-wide discussion of emerging gene repair technologies. Short scientific presentations will be followed by a panel discussion, including opportunities for audience questions.

Panelists include:

• Kurt Freeman, Professor of Pediatrics and Director Institute on Development and Disability, OHSU
• Dana Braner, Professor and Chair of Pediatrics, OHSU
• Shoukhrat Mitalipov, Professor, ONPRC & Obstetrics and Gynecology, and director, Center for Embryonic Cell & Gene Therapy, OHSU
• Paula Amato, Associate Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology, OHSU
• Brian Cwik (panel moderator), Assistant Professor, Philosophy and University Studies, Portland State University

Wednesday, May 15

Clinical research day: Best practices, latest developments

Clinical research day with three plenary speakers and breakout sessions on clinical research topics ranging from regulatory issues and administrative support systems to subject recruitment.

Plenary talks are open to all

Vinay Prasad, M.D., M.P.H.
Associate professor of medicine, School of Medicine, OHSU 
9 to 10 a.m.

Douglas B. Pham, Pharm.D., J.D.
Regulatory counsel, FDA, Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, Office of Scientific Investigations
1 to 2 p.m.

Jennifer J. Cory Doeschot, M.A., CRA
Director of operations, Center for Definitive and Curative Medicine, Stanford University 
4 to 5 p.m.

Panel discussions 

• Regulatory issues
• Subject recruitment and retention
• Special topics in clinical research
• Clinical research administrative supports systems
• Basics of clinical research

Below is a list of students and postdocs who were recognized for exceptional oral and poster presentations, as well winners of the Fast Pitch competition. 

Special thanks to all of our volunteer judges who evaluated over 200 student posters and presentations throughout the week.

Student oral presentations

Adel Al Fatease: "Evaluation of combinatorial chemotherapeutics nano-carriers in breast cancer model for inhibition of angiogenesis and tumor growth"

Connor Barth: "Nerve-specific fluorophores for image-guided nerve sparing surgical procedures"

Emily Calabro: "Does salary relieve burnout in registered nurses: A secondary analysis"

Matthew Hagen: "Static micropatterning reduces endothelial colony forming cell immunogenicity"

Sunil Joshi: "Transforming NTRK2 and NTRK3 mutations as potential drivers of leukemia"

Hsin-Yun Lin: "Mechanisms of IL-1-mediated clonal expansion and disease progression in acute myeloid leukemia"

Saundra Schlesinger: "Quantification of cellular addition during tendon development"

Eileen Torres: "Apolipoprotein E isoform-specific effects on cortical oxysterols in mice"

Katie Truong: "Modifying the surface properties of poly(vinyl alcohol) vascular grafts with extracellular matrix biomolecules"

Jeffrey Wagner: "The role of respiratory mucins in antiviral immune defense"

Student poster presentations

Natalie Damen: “Maternal dietary fat intake during pregnancy and infant body composition at birth”

Catlin Dennis: “Mothers with chronic pain: Comparing clinic-based and Internet recruitment approaches for a longitudinal mechanistic study of child outcomes”

David Jacobs: “Sex differences in a novel model to assess resistance to punishment risk during reward seeking”

Phillip Lam: “Identification and characterization of phenotypically stable and endochondral progenitor cells isolated from human articular cartilage”

Kas Maas: “Is freezing of gait impacting functional limits of stability in people with Parkinson's disease?”

John Mootz: “Trace amine-associated receptor 1 functionality can dictate some methamphetamine-related behaviors”

Tommy Navis: “Effect of footshock stress on acquisition and maintenance of ethanol preference”

Andrew Summers: “Patterns of radiation referral after femoral stabilization in metastatic disease”

Elizabeth Swanson: “Aldosterone-induced transcripts identified from rapidly isolated collecting duct cells”

Robin Tarter: “Roles, regrets and expectations: A mixed-methods study of lung cancer bereavement”

Crystal Tsai: “Postpartum traditions and food choices among Asian WIC participants”

Jacob Weber: “Prognostic value of pre-transplant ferritin for infectious outcomes in the first 100 days following HSCT in pediatric patients”

Tom Wolken: “Comparing the accuracy of AlignRT and ExacTrac at intrafractional time points during cranial stereotactic radiosurgery and stereotactic radiotherapy treatments”

Fast Pitch competition

Postdoctoral Fellow: Vinita Chittoor, Ph.D., “Effects of dietary amino acids on Parkinson’s disease phenotypes”

Graduate Student: Daelyn Richards, “No regerts (sic): Permanent gene therapy for PKU”

Below is a list of students and postdocs who were recognized for exceptional oral and poster presentations. Students were evaluated on hypothesis, research approach, impact, layout/use of media, and presentation skills. The top 15 percent of presenters were selected for an award. Presentation winners receive a cash prize. 

Special thanks to all of our volunteer judges who evaluated over 200 student posters and presentations throughout the week.

Student oral presentation winners

Brett Daniel Dufour: “Corticosterone dysregulation exacerbates disease progression in the R6/2 transgenic mouse model of Huntington’s disease”

Sweta Ravisankar: “Identification of small molecules predictive of oocyte and embryo developmental potential in rhesus macaques via high-throughput metabolomics analysis”

Anna Mammel: “Myelin sheath formation in the peripheral nervous system”

Katie Truong: “Surface modification of poly(vinyl alcohol) vascular grafts for implantation”

Alexandra Quackenbush: “Lipids in weaning-induced liver involution: A role in the liver pre-metastatic niche?”

Cymon Kersch: “Interactions of metastatic HER2-positive breast cancer with the brain microenvironment”

Veronica Cochrane: “Calcium imaging illuminates leptin signaling in pancreatic β-cell”

Rebecca Lynn Hood: “Cortical disinhibition improves motor function in a progressive mouse model of Parkinson’s disease”

Canan Schumann: “Nanoparticle mediated therapy for the treatment of muscle wasting disorders”

Andrew Phillip Sill: “Practice gap in atrial fibrillation oral anticoagulation prescribing at emergency department discharge”

Michael Heskett: “Dissecting tumor heterogeneity with single cell transcriptomics”

Student poster presentation winners

Sarah Larimer: “Intestinal colonization of a probiotic strain, lactobacillus salivarius UCC118, in critically Ill patients”

Jordan Lueras: “Longitudinal data reveals atypical development of spatial working memory brain activation in binge-drinking adolescents”

Nicole Ovregaard: A validated 7-minute tool to examine pediatric safety and quality: The Pediatric prehospital safety Event Detection System (PEDS)”

Xiaoming Ouyang: “Co-targeting epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) and anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) overcomes EGFR inhibitor resistance in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma patient-derived models”

Rebecca Broeckel: “Novel cytomegalovirus and adenovirus vectors induce protective T cell responses to Chikungunya virus in mice”

Emily Calabro: “Resilient trait mechanisms in night, day, and rotating shift nurses: A secondary data analysis”

Erin Elizabeth Takemoto: “Insurance status differences in weight loss and regain over five years following bariatric surgery”

Lotte Elisabeth Tholen: “Evaluating miR-1246 as an onco-miR and driver of AML disease progression”

Quinn Roth-Carter: Eosinophil peroxidase increases thymic stromal lymphopoietin expression in keratinocytes”

Theodore Wright: “Improving retrieval of datasets: OHSU participation in the bioCADDIE evaluation Challenge” 

Three Minute Thesis winners

First place: Katie Lebold, M.D./Ph.D. Biomedical Engineering Graduate Program: “Maternal asthma changes airway nerve development in offspring”

Second place: Prerna Das, M.S. student, Department of Medical Informatics and Clinical Epidemiology: “In pursuit of genetic risk factors for Alzheimer’s”

People's Choice winner: Ben Doron, Ph.D. student, Cancer Biology Graduate Program: “Acute Myeloid Leukemia: BAD TO THE BONE

Below is a list of students and postdocs who were recognized for exceptional oral and poster presentations. Students were evaluated on hypothesis, research approach, impact, layout/use of media, and presentation skills. The top 15 percent of presenters were selected for an award. Presentation winners receive a cash prize. 

Special thanks to all of our volunteer judges who evaluated over 200 student posters and presentations throughout the week.

Postdoc poster presentation winners

1st place: Arpita Ray, “Investigating the neuroprotective role of the glial engulfment receptor Draper in a drosophila model of Alzheimer’s disease”

2nd place: Douglas Martini, “Long-term effects of adolescent concussion history on cognition”

3rd place: Thomas Meyer, “Retrotransposon-associated differential expression of genes in macaques”

Postdoc oral presentation winners

1st place: Saurabh Thosar, “Endogenous circadian rhythm in vascular function and cardiovascular risk”

2nd place: Chelsey Dawn Kline, “Understanding the roles of antioxidants in human melanocytes and melanoma”

3rd place: Daniel Coleman, “Androgen content and BET bromodomain proteins influence enzalutamide agonism of mutant F876L androgen receptor”

Student oral presentation winners

Brittany Alperin, “ADHD and emotion dysregulation: An issue with top-down or bottom-up processing of emotional stimuli?”

Charlie Gast, “Cancer-macrophage fusion as a mechanism for metastatic disease”

Tyler T. Risom, “Measuring and managing phenotypic heterogeneity in basal-like breast cancer to improve therapeutic control”

Christie Pizzimenti, “Context-independent effects of footshock on drug-seeking”

Courtney Brooke Betts, “Reproductive state-dependent alterations in mammary dendritic cells and a potential role for collagen”

Sharmeen Chagani, “Role of vitamin D3-vitamin D receptor (VDR) signaling in melanocyte homeostasis and UV-induced DNA damage”

Katie Tallman, “Mycobacterial enzyme profiling with chemical tools”

Cymon Kersch, “The role of αvβ3-integrin and HER2 in breast cancer metastasis to the brain

Rebecca Hood, “Cortical activation as a mechanism of neuroprotection in a mouse model of Parkinson’s disease”

Chelsea Jenkins, “Defining the functional role of TNK2 in PTPN11-mutant JMML”

Student poster presentation winners

Mady Stovall, “Moral injury in nurse second victims: Wounded healers in the workforce”

Emily Calabro, “ost-traumatic growth’s influence on experienced ICU nurses”

Audrey Anne Drake, “Using a points of health resource map for the Medicaid population: A pilot study”

Joshua Garrison Burkhart, “ReactomeFIFusion: Discovering gene fusion events’ effects on protein-protein interactions”

Quin Denfeld, “Physical symptoms and depression interact in predicting quality-of-life in heart failure”

Paul Jones, “A case series: Optimal timing of pediatric hip spica casting in children with isolated diaphyseal femur fractures”

Patricia Ann Barfield, “Life satisfaction in children with ADHD: A mixed-methods study proposal”

Amy Rey Williams, “Effects of acute ethanol withdrawal and intoxication on the extinction and reconditioning of contextual fear memories”

Elizabeth Rosa Sunderhaus, “The role of ER stress in neuropathy target esterase-related diseases”

Michael Ha, “Micropatterned ECM-derived gelatin methacryloyl hydrogels for dental pulp regeneration”

Molly Rae Rabinowitz, “Gender disparities in small group verbal participation among first year medical students”

Ginger Keller, “Determining level, direction, and rate of change of attentional function in women with breast cancer receiving chemotherapy: A pilot study”

Wafaa BinAli, “Bring continuous back to CRRT!”

Christopher Abdullah, “Estrogen stimulates cell cycle progression dependent upon SRC kinase activity”

Ryan Mulqueen, “Characterization of Rett syndrome and wild-type neuronal methylomes by single-cell bisulfite sequencing”

Three Minute Thesis winners

1st place: Kevin Watanabe-Smith, cancer biology, “Which mutations cause cancer?”

2nd place: Kevin Burfeind, M.D./Ph.D., neuroscience graduate program, “Infiltrating leukocytes in the hypothalamus as mediators of cancer cachexia”

People’s Choice: Allison Stickles,M.D./Ph.D., physiology and pharmacology, “One is the safest number”

Ugly Data Award

The Ugly Data Award was designed to underscore the message that succeeding in science might mean failing at science—in other words, without failure, you never progress. The award is given to brave souls who put their failures out there. This year’s winners are:

Nathan Bahr

Brittany Alperin