{"id":12559,"date":"2022-03-10T12:33:46","date_gmt":"2022-03-10T17:33:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.med.unc.edu\/neurology\/?p=12559"},"modified":"2022-11-17T13:38:24","modified_gmt":"2022-11-17T18:38:24","slug":"neurology-news-march-2022","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.med.unc.edu\/neurology\/neurology-news-march-2022\/","title":{"rendered":"Neurology News – March 2022"},"content":{"rendered":"

Department<\/h2>\n

The UNC Child Neurology Clinic<\/strong> has moved to Carolina Pointe II, 6011 Farrington Road, Suite 100, Chapel Hill, NC 27517. Thanks to all who helped to make it happen!<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\"Child<\/td>\n\"\"<\/td>\n\"Child<\/td>\n\"\"<\/td>\n\"Child<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

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\"Children's<\/td>\n\"\"<\/td>\n\"Children's<\/td>\n\"\"<\/td>\n\"Children's<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

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Dr. Robert Smith<\/strong>, Associate Chair for Administration, will begin his new role as the Vice Dean of the Gillings School of Public Health in March. Dr. Smith will retain his adjunct appointment as a lecturer and will also serve as an operations consultant for UNC Neurology to help guide the completion of several strategically important initiatives. We are thankful for his exceptional leadership over the past ten years. Daily Tar Heel article ><\/a><\/p>\n

The Faculty Satisfaction Committee is accepting Wellness Mini-Grant proposals<\/strong> for the funding of enjoyable activities to be shared by small groups of staff. Please submit proposals to jalmo@neurology.unc.edu<\/a>. Learn more ><\/a><\/p>\n

The NC School of Science and Mathematics Mentorship<\/strong> Program<\/strong> finds researchers to mentor students in often their first experience in real world research. Opportunities to mentor a student this summer and\/or academic year 2022-2023 are now available. NCSSM mentorship students applied to participate and were granted admission based on merit.\u00a0Learn more ><\/a><\/p>\n

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Honors \/ Awards \/ Recognition
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Neurology Today<\/a> lists the article by James F. Howard, Jr, MD, <\/strong>and other researchers, \u201c<\/strong>Safety, efficacy, and tolerability of efgartigimod in patients with generalised myasthenia gravis (ADAPT): a multicentre, randomised, placebo-controlled, phase 3 trial\u201d as a top editorial pick for \u201cThe News That Mattered in 2021.\u201d The Lancet Neurology<\/a>, July 2021<\/p>\n

In January, William J. Powers, MD<\/strong>, was appointed to the editorial board of the Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery and Psychiatry<\/em> as Commissioning Editor in charge of soliciting review articles.<\/p>\n

UNC Neurology has been invited to join Epi25<\/a> through the efforts of Senyene Hunter, MD, PhD,<\/strong> and the Epilepsy Neurogenetics Initiative team<\/a>. Epi25 is an NHGRI-funded collaborative committed to curing genetic epilepsies. Patients who meet the broad enrollment criteria will receive sponsored whole genome sequencing.<\/p>\n

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Grants<\/h2>\n

\"GraphicMonica Diaz, MD, MS,<\/strong> is the lead PI for her recently funded project, \u201cA vulnerability index for cognitive impairment risk in Latin America.\u201d The Alzheimer\u2019s Association Research Grant to Promote Diversity offers $150,000 over three years starting July 1. In collaboration with colleagues from the Peruvian Neurological Institute in Lima, Peru and UCSF Memory & Aging Center, the study seeks to evaluate the epidemiology of neurocognitive disorders in two districts of Lima, Peru (one socioeconomically vulnerable and one affluent), assessing individual-level data pertaining to social, behavioral and environmental determinants of brain health. This will be the first large-scale door-to-door study seeking to expand our understanding of cognitive resilience and potentially modifiable neurocognitive disorder risk factors in Latin America.<\/p>\n

Steven Trau, MD<\/strong>, is coinvestigator of \u201cA novel perspective on mental illness in children: Investigation of the association between Bartonella <\/em>and Borrelia <\/em>infection and pediatric Tourette\u2019s disorder using serology and a novel droplet digital PCR approach.\u201d Grant amount: $75,192.<\/p>\n

Ian Shih, PhD<\/strong>, and two Duke researchers were awarded with a $50,000 Duke\/UNC Alzheimer\u2019s Disease Research Center Norins Pilot Award. The team will work to establish preliminary data exploring the interaction of P. gingivalis <\/em>infection (the keystone bacteria associated with gingivitis and periodontal disease) and the APOE genotype (recognized as one of the largest risk factors for developing Alzheimer\u2019s Disease) in the development of Alzheimer\u2019s disease.<\/p>\n

NC TraCS awarded funding for a $5K-50K grant application submitted by Rebecca Traub, MD<\/strong>, and Xiaoyan Li, MD,\u00a0 PhD<\/strong>, (former UNC Neurology resident) titled, \u201cPredictive modeling of disease-modifying immunophenotypes in ALS patients.\u201d Learn more ><\/a><\/p>\n

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Clinical Trials
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UCB Biosciences announced positive top line results<\/a> for its study, \u201cRAISE: A Phase 3, Multicenter, Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Study to Confirm the Safety, Tolerability, and Efficacy of Zilucoplan in Subjects with Generalized Myasthenia Gravis.\u201d James F. Howard, Jr, MD<\/strong> was the global principal investigator for the trial. Manisha Chopra, MBBS<\/strong>, was the study coordinator. Learn more ><\/a><\/p>\n

Yael Shiloh-Malawsky, MD<\/strong>, is the principal investigator for two multicenter studies:<\/p>\n