Opportunities for enhanced collaboration were revealed as leaders from USF Health and the James A. Haley Veterans’ Hospital gathered for a panel discussion and symposium May 23 —  a prelude to the annual Haley VA Research Day held May 24.

A panel of leaders from USF Health and James A. Haley Veterans’ Hospital met to discuss ways to strengthen research collaborations between the two institutions. The panel and symposium preceded the hospital’s annual VA Research Day on March 24.

Senior leaders from USF Health and the Haley VA  Hospital each shared their current research collaborations, as well as ideas for future endeavors. Representing USF Health were Charles Lockwood, MD, senior vice president for USF Health and dean of the Morsani College of Medicine; Dianne Morrison-Beedy, PhD, dean of the College of Nursing; Donna Petersen, ScD, dean of the College of Public Health; and Kevin Sneed, PharmD, dean of the College of Pharmacy.  Representing the Haley VA were Joe Battle, director of  the hospital and its clinics; Robert Campbell, JD, MPH, PhD, acting associate chief of staff; Gail Powell-Cope, PhD, ARNP, co-director of the Center of Innovation on Disability and Rehabilitation Research (CINDRR); and Edward Cutolo, Jr., MD, chief of staff.

The news that seemed to generate the most buzz was the availability of data from the VA – big data. The Veterans Administration is capturing information for U.S. veterans, likely the largest compilation of population data that touches all 50 states and is being gathered across time.

Dr. Robert Campbell, acting associate chief of staff at James A. Haley Veterans’ Hospital, says the hospital has about 200 ongoing research projects at any given time.

“My story today is big data, health informatics, and predictive analytics,” said Dr. Campbell, whose research emphasizes identifying patient and system-level risk factors associated with fall-related injuries and other adverse events.  “I’ve been here for 16 years and I fell in love with the big data the first day I arrived and realized they were compiling it at the (Houston) Texas VA. Over the decades, they’ve made it more and more transparent and readily available for researchers to use.”

Dr. Campbell said the challenge making all that data meaningful is doing a better job training researchers and clinicians in health informatics.

“Things as simple as appreciating the strengths and weaknesses of diagnosis and procedure coding and how they’re used in the real world, primarily for administrative purposes and secondarily for clinical research,” he said.

Dr. Charles Lockwood, senior vice president for USF Health and dean of the Morsani College of Medicine, said it makes sense for USF’s academic health center to strengthen its partnership with Haley VA, one of the busiest VA hospitals in the country, including jointly recruiting top researchers.

He shared a recent experience that underscored his point when he met with clinicians and “for the first time they saw what we meant by big data rather than hearing about it,” he said.

“It’s one thing to say we have millions and millions of records, encounters and discharges and they’re coded in the following way, but to see how the VA has systemically attempted to organize that information was a revelation. That only comes from taking the time to bring your collaborators over and show them the data and ask them what they’re interested in. There are a lot of strengths, but the weaknesses are that predictive analytics will require a clearer understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of those coding systems. It’s a work in progress and a dialogue that continues with our USF colleagues.”

Among the symposium presenters was Dr. Frank Kozel, a staff psychiatrist and associate investigator in the Center of Innovation on Disability and Rehabilitation Research (CINDRR) at James A. Haley Veterans’s Hospital and an associate professor of psychiatry at USF Health. He spoke about a randomized trial using repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation to augment combat processing therapy in combat veterans with PTSD.

USF Health’s Dr. Lockwood emphasized that students and residents exposed to faculty and staff conducting research are exposed the rigors of scientific inquiry and more likely to question the validity of approaches to  diagnosis and treatment and probe for evidence.

“On a broad scale, research improves health by demanding evidence-based care,” he said. “At the individual level, it can make you a better nurse, doctor, pharmacist, public health practitioner, physical therapist — a better health care provider — by challenging assumptions.”

Dr. Lockwood said it makes sense for USF’s academic health center to strengthen its partnership with Haley VA, one of the busiest VA hospitals in the country, including jointly recruiting top basic science, translational and clinical researchers.

“Given the VA’s access to an enormous amount of data, extraordinary comparative effectiveness research and clinical trials, its interest in neuroscience, which we are so committed to on our side of the campus, as well as common interests in rehabilitation, post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injury, we’d be foolish not to work together,” he said.  “We have an obligation, in particular, to take the very best care of our veterans.”

Dr. Denise Cooper is a professor of molecular medicine at the Morsani College of Medicine whose research is supported in part by the VA. She spoke about the use of exosomes from human adipose-derived stem cells in wound healing.

The other panelists also addressed the many advantages of more collaboration among researchers from both the VA and USF Health. And threading the narrative for these ideas – such as building a common foundation that includes representatives who meet regularly to share information and ideas – was panel moderator Shyam Mohapatra, PhD, MBA, Distinguished Health Professor at USF and research career scientist at James A. Haley Veterans’ Hospital.

“I’m delighted that both our organizations have come together today,” said Dr. Mohapatra, “Our goal is to start a dialogue between the VA and USF that leads to something more meaningful, offering more collaboration of education, clinical care and research.”

Participating in the VA Research Day’s poster presentations were, from left: Nikita Patel, PhD, and Subhra Mohapatra, PhD, both associate professors of molecular medicine; Beth Grimmig, a PhD student in integrated biomedical sciences at MCOM (Dr. Bickford’s graduate student); Paula Bickford, PhD, professor of neurosciences at the USF Health Center for Excellence in Aging and Brain Repair and VA senior research career scientist; and Shyam Mohapatra, PhD, Distinguished Health Professor at USF and VA research career scientist.

Following the panel discussion, several researchers affiliated with both USF (medicine, public health, biomedical engineering) and the VA, presented highlights of their research.  Their symposium topics ranged from applying human adipose-derived stem cell exosomes in wound healing, to ways the growth factor GCSF promotes brain repair following traumatic brain injury, to trends in data mining and knowledge discovery.

The next day, March 24, more than 50 poster presentations were on display in the hospital’s auditorium for VA Research Day.

Dr. Jamie Morano, (left) an infectious diseases physician at Morsani College of Medicine and James A. Haley Veterans’ Hospital, explains her team’s research poster.

Among the presenters was Jamie Morano, MD, MPH, assistant professor in the Division of Infectious Disease and International Medicine, USF Health Morsani College of Medicine, and a physician at the Haley VA Hospital.  Dr. Morano’s study tapped into a powerful VA data tool to analyze the outcomes of hepatitis C virus treatment among Tampa Bay veterans with hepatitis C and HIV.

“We have residents and fellows who cross train at the VA and Morsani College of Medicine,” Dr. Morano said, “so it’s a great opportunity to build upon collaborative research that benefits both institutions.”

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Anne DeLotto Baier contributed to this article.
Photos by Eric Younghans, USF Health Communications and Marketing

When lone survivor Marcus Luttrell, a former Navy SEAL, came to Tampa Theater this Tuesday evening to kick off the first stop of his multicity Patriot Tour, the audience included a group of USF medical students.

The students, members of the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine’s Medical Humanities Scholarly Concentration, were accompanied by two physicians from James A. Haley Veterans Hospital. Many in the group had previously watched the current film Lone Survivor, which depicts the harrowing Operation Redwing mission that spared only Luttrell, and discussed challenges faced by veterans rebuilding their lives after military service.

But the Tampa Theater presentation brought the experience to life.

First-year USF medical student Stefanie Grewe, left, with classmate Paolina Pantcheva. – Photo by Dr. Brooke Baldwin, James A. Haley VA Hospital

“Medicine is about stories, and it’s important for a story like this one to be told,” said Lois LaCivita Nixon, PhD, professor of medical humanities at USF Health. “It’s even more relevant when you consider that an increasing number of the students entering our medical school have served in the military. Their experiences and stories are dynamic and varied, and may add another perspective to how they practice medicine.”

On June 28, 2005, Luttrell and three fellow SEALS were assigned a mission in Afghanistan to kill or capture a high-ranking Taliban leader. During an intense gun battle with Taliban forces, Luttrell was the only member of his team to survive, though he sustained multiple gunshot wounds, a horrific fall, and walked and crawled seven miles to shelter before being rescued by American forces. Luttrell, awarded the esteemed Navy Cross, has worked to honor the sacrifice of his fallen brothers in his best-selling book, which became the basis for the movie , and supported charities focused on helping returning veterans.

Luttrell was joined on the Patriot Tour by other speakers who served on special forces teams, from Navy SEALS to Army Rangers.

Former Navy SEAL Marcus Luttrell’s best-selling book became the basis for the current movie Lone Survivor.

Their compelling stories were of particular interest to first-year medical student Stefanie Grewe, whose scholarly concentration project is focusing on the life of military heroes after war through film, poetry and real-life accounts.  Grewe plans to meet with veterans to elicit how health care practitioners can better serve them and ease the transition back home. She will document the differences between generations of veterans, from the Civil War through the recent wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

“War has a ripple effect not only on the veterans themselves and their families, but on our society as a whole,” said Grewe, who volunteers at the VA hospital each week. “I see there is room for improvement in connecting our students, the public and military heroes to minimize the separation that often exists when veterans integrate back into civilian life.”

Luttrell with members of his Navy SEAL team in Afghanistan

Raymond Cutro, MD, chief of Electrophysiology and Cardiac Catheterization Services at James A. Haley VA Hospital and affiliated assistant professor of cardiology at USF Health, was among the doctors attending Tuesday’s presentation with the students.   Cutro served as a U.S. Marine Corps infantryman in the 1990s, primarily in non-combat roles, including a brief stint in Somalia delivering food to starving Somalis and helping restore order in a chaotic society.

“The physical manifestations of battlefield injuries are often quite clear. But the individual emotional and psychological sequelae of these experiences are something hard to comprehend,” Dr. Cutro said.

“What I think Marcus Luttrell and his crew did well, was illustrating just how complex these issues are, and as health care providers, we must be aware of not only how hard they are to treat, but simply the challenges of recognizing ‘calls for help’ in a very proud population of veterans.”

Photos of Marcus Luttrell courtesy of patriottour.com

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=wcaOx28CjKg

NT-020, a proprietary supplement including blueberries and green tea, improved cognitive processing speed in clinical trial participants without impaired memory

Tampa, FL (Feb. 6, 2014) – Declines in the underlying brain skills needed to think, remember and learn are normal in aging. In fact, this cognitive decline is a fact of life for most older Americans.

Therapies to improve the cognitive health of older adults are critically important for lessening declines in mental performance as people age. While physical activity and cognitive training are among the efforts aimed at preventing or delaying cognitive decline, dietary modifications and supplements have recently generated considerable interest.

Now a University of South Florida (USF) study reports that a formula of nutrients high in antioxidants and other natural components helped boost the speed at which the brains of older adults processed information.

The USF-developed nutritional supplement, containing extracts from blueberries and green tea combined with vitamin D3 and amino acids, including carnosine, was tested by the USF researchers in a clinical trial enrolling 105 healthy adults, ages 65 to 85.

University of South Florida researchers Paula Bickford, PhD, and Brent Small, PhD, teamed up to investigate the effects of a USF-developed, antioxidant-rich nutritional supplement on the cognitive performance of older adults.

The two-month study evaluated the effects of the formula, called NT-020, on the cognitive performance of these older adults, who had no diagnosed memory disorders.

Those randomized to the group of 52 volunteers receiving NT-020 demonstrated improvements in cognitive processing speed, while the 53 volunteers randomized to receive a placebo did not. Reduced cognitive processing speed, which can slow thinking and learning, has been associated with advancing age, the researchers said.

The study, conducted at the USF Health Byrd Alzheimer’s Institute, appears in the current issue of Rejuvenation Research (Vol. 17 No. 1, 2014).  Participants from both groups took a battery of memory tests before and after the interventions.

“After two months, test results showed modest improvements in two measures of cognitive processing speed for those taking NT-020 compared to those taking placebo,” said Brent Small, PhD, a professor in USF’s School of Aging Studies. “Processing speed is most often affected early on in the course of cognitive aging. Successful performance in processing tasks often underlies more complex cognitive outcomes, such as memory and verbal ability.”

Blueberries, a major ingredient in the NT-020 formula, are rich in polyphenols, a type of antioxidant containing a polyphenolic, or natural phenol substructure.

“The basis for the use of polyphenol-rich nutritional supplements as a moderator of age-related cognitive decline is the age-related increase in oxidative stress and inflammation,” said study co-principal investigator Paula C. Bickford, PhD, a professor in the Department of Neurosurgery and Brain Repair, USF Health Morsani College of Medicine, and senior research career scientist at the James A. Haley Veterans’ Hospital in Tampa. “Non-vitamin polyphenols are the most abundant modulators of oxidative stress and inflammation in our diet. NT-020 is 95 percent polyphenols.”

One of the main ingredients of the supplement, called NT-20, is extracted from blueberries.

In several preclinical trials, researchers gave aging laboratory rats NT-020 to see if it boosted memory and other cognitive performance by promoting the health of neurons in the aging brain. Those studies demonstrated that NT-020 promoted the growth of stem cells in the brain, produced an overall rejuvenating effect, benefitted animals with simulated stroke, and led to better cognitive performance.

The researchers plan future clinical trials with longer intervention periods so that the optimal time for taking the formula may be better understood.  The researchers speculated that if the study had included participants cognitively less healthy, or those with memory impairments, they may have observed “more robust findings.”

“In the future, having markers of oxidative stress and inflammation, as well as brain-based measures of functioning, may allow us to identify the manner by which this compound, as well as others, may influence functioning,” they concluded.

The NT-020 formula was patented by the University of South Florida, in partnership with the James A. Haley Veterans’ Hospital, and licensed to Natura Therapeutics, Inc.  The supplement is commercially available as NutraStem®.

The study was supported by a grant from the University of South Florida Neuroscience Collaborative to Dr. Small and Dr. Bickford.

Dr. Bickford is a co-founder of Natura Therapeutics, Inc.

– USF Health –

USF Health’s mission is to envision and implement the future of health. It is the partnership of the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine, the College of Nursing, the College of Public Health, the College of Pharmacy, the School of Biomedical Sciences and the School of Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Sciences; and the USF Physician’s Group. The University of South Florida is a Top 50 research university in total research expenditures among both public and private institutions nationwide, according to the National Science Foundation. For more information, visit www.health.usf.edu

Video Editor:  Klaus Herdocia, USF Health Communications

Media contact:
Anne DeLotto Baier, USF Health Communications
abaier@health.usf.edu or (813) 974-3303

Media release by Florida Science Communications, Inc. 

The Department of Defense grant may lead to better treatments, readjustment skills for veterans

Tampa, FL (Jan. 31, 2012) – The University of South Florida has received a $1.57 million U.S. Department of Defense grant to conduct translational research on traumatic brain injury and other battlefield related injuries and diseases. The studies, many in collaboration with James A. Haley Veterans’ Hospital, are intended to improve the quality of life for military personnel returning from Iraq and Afghanistan.

Traumatic brain injury, or TBI, is known as the signature injury of soldiers returning home from Afghanistan and Iraq. Blast forces sustained in combat often cause damage to parts of the brain critical to high-level functions influencing memory, attention, decision-making and motor skills. Many veterans developing symptoms after TBI also suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), according to the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA).

U.S. soldiers conduct combat patrol in Afghanistan. Photo courtesy of Department of Defense.

“Working with the VA, the Department of Defense and private research entities, we will develop novel studies – everything from drug discovery and preclinical work to clinical, social and behavioral trials,” said principal investigator Dr. Paul R. Sanberg, USF senior associate vice president for research and innovation and director of the USF Center of Excellence for Aging and Brain Repair. “Our multidisciplinary work will provide critical knowledge about TBI and its complications that could lead to more effective diagnosis and treatments for soldiers and veterans, as well as skills to improve their physical and psychological adjustment into civilian life.”

“This new federal award is a tremendous boost to USF’s efforts to build a research infrastructure to support our veterans reintegration strategy,” said Karen Holbrook, PhD, USF senior vice president for research, innovation and global affairs.

The two-year, DOD-funded grant joins faculty from across colleges and disciplines. Among USF faculty members leading studies are Cesar Borlongan, PhD; Juan Sanchez-Ramos, MD, PhD, and Michael Schoenberg, PhD; all from the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine; Theresa Chisolm, PhD, William Kearns, PhD, and Larry Schonfeld, PhD, College of Behavioral and Community Sciences; David Diamond, PhD, College of Arts and Sciences; William S. Quillen, PT, DPT, PhD, and Larry Mengelkoch, PhD; School of Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Sciences; and Larry Braue, USF Office of Veterans Services.

Dr. Paul Sanberg, USF senior associate vice president for research and innovation, is overseeing the DOD-funded projects.

The grant involves four major projects:

• Researchers will assess in animal models how granulocyte colony stimulating factor (GCSF), a growth factor that mobilizes the body’s own stem cells, may help treat traumatic brain injury.

• A clinical trial will test whether GCSF reduces neurological damage and improves recovery of memory, decision-making and other cognitive functions in soldiers and veterans with TBI, even when administered a month or two after the initial injury. Patients will be recruited from the polytrauma rehabilitation and blast injury programs at James A. Haley Veterans’ Hospital.

• In an attempt to identify better diagnostic measures for mild TBI, a frequently underdiagnosed condition, a study will compare the balance, gait, hearing and vestibular functions of otherwise healthy USF student veterans with and without self-reported TBI to those of non-veteran students. Evaluations will be conducted at the USF School of Physical Therapy & Rehabilitation Sciences Human Functional Performance Laboratory.

• Using advanced technology researchers will monitor changes in patterns of everyday movement and the cognitive function of TBI patients undergoing smart house-based rehabilitation at the Tampa VA hospital’s Polytrauma Transitional Rehabilitation Program. The study will evaluate whether scientific analysis of movements, tracked by devices like radiofrequency identification and global positioning systems, can help assess therapeutic improvement. A second arm of the study will investigate whether variability in walking patterns is greater for USF student veterans reporting mild TBI than for those without this diagnosis.

The new DOD award adds momentum to USF’s plans to work with the VA and DOD to build a first-of-its kind Center for Rehabilitation, Science, Engineering and Medicine, an interdisciplinary research, education and treatment facility. Over the last three years, the university’s Veterans Reintegration Strategy program has joined researchers across colleges and disciplines to work on studies in areas including TBI, PTSD, robotics and prosthetics, gait and balance, and aging-related disorders.

“This award reflects USF’s collaborative efforts to leverage our research and academic expertise to enhance the quality of life of our men and women in uniform, and their families, who have so selflessly served this country,” said Lt. Gen. Martin Steele (USMC retired), executive director of USF Military Partnerships. “It builds, not only upon interdisciplinary research within the university, but also strengthens our longstanding ties with Tampa Bay’s military community through two major VA hospitals, MacDill Air Force Base, U.S. Central Command and U.S. Special Operations Command.”

Earlier this month at a news conference announcing an initiative of the country’s top medical schools, including the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine, to ensure care for veterans and their families, First Lady Michelle Obama recognized USF as an example of universities stepping up to meet veterans’ unique health care needs.

– USF –

The University of South Florida is a high-impact, global research university dedicated to student success. USF is classified by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching in the top tier of research universities, a distinction attained by only 2.2 percent of all universities. It is ranked 44th in total research expenditures and 34th in federal research expenditures for public universities by the National Science Foundation. The USF System has an annual budget of $1.5 billion, an annual economic impact of $3.7 billion, and serves 47,000 students in Tampa, St. Petersburg, Sarasota-Manatee and Lakeland.

First Lady mentions USF as example of universities stepping up to care for veterans and their families

Tampa, FL (Jan. 11, 2012) – Today, as part of First Lady Michelle Obama’s Joining Forces initiative, the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine at the University of South Florida (USF), the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC), and the American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine (AACOM) committed to creating a new generation of doctors, medical schools, and research facilities that will make sure our heroes receive the care worthy of their service.

Recognizing veterans and their families’ sacrifice and commitment, the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine pledged to mobilize its uniquely integrated missions in education, research, and clinical care to train the nation’s physicians to meet veterans and their families’ unique health care needs, including Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI).

Dr. Stephen Klasko, dean of the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine, was among the deans who pledged to leverage their academic missions to train physicians to meet the unique health care needs of the military and veterans communities.

“We are honored to participate in the White House Joining Forces initiative to address the health care needs of military service members and veterans and their families,” said Dr. Stephen Klasko, CEO of USF Health and dean of the Morsani College of Medicine . “USF Health has created a veterans reintegration initiative, including our medical school, partners in physical therapy, nursing and other disciplines and two VA hospitals in Tampa Bay, to serve the heroes who have served our country for so long. Our goal is to show these heroes that their country is there for them, no matter what they’re going through.”

“I’m inspired to see our nation’s medical schools step up to address this pressing need for our veterans and military families. By directing some of our brightest minds, our most cutting-edge research, and our finest teaching institutions toward our military families, they’re ensuring that those who have served our country receive the first-rate care that they have earned,” said First Lady Michelle Obama.

First Lady Michelle Obama announced an initiative of the country’s top medical schools, including USF’s, to ensure care for veterans and their families.

Together, the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine, the AAMC and AACOM are committing to enriching medical education along its continuum to ensure that physicians are aware of the unique clinical challenges and best practices associated with caring for this group; develop new research and clinical trials on PTSD and TBI so that we can better understand and treat these conditions; share their information and best practices with each other through a collaborative web forum created by the AAMC; and grow the body of knowledge leading to improvements in health care and wellness for our military service members, veterans, and their families.

The University of South Florida is helping create a new generation of integrated comprehensive care for veterans and their families:

• USF is ranked fifth nationwide by Military Times Edge magazine for being veteran friendly and is the only Florida university participating in the Yellow Ribbon Reintegration Program.

• The USF Health Morsani College of Medicine is affiliated with two major VA Hospitals, including the James A. Haley Veterans Hospital (Tampa, FL), home to one of the five busiest polytrauma centers in the United States. All USF residents and medical students receive part of their training in these VA hospitals.

• The medical director for the new USF Health Center for Advanced Medical Learning and Simulation is Dr. John Armstrong, who previously directed medical simulation for the army and has close ties to U.S. Central Command and U.S. Special Operations Command.

• Many patents held by USF — ranked ninth worldwide among universities for U.S. patents — are based on medical inventions and therapies in such areas as prosthetics, TBI and brain repair.

• USF is planning a first-of-its-kind Center for Veterans Reintegration, led by Retired Marine Corps General Martin Steele and Dr. Paul Sanberg of the Morsani College of Medicine. This interdisciplinary research, education and treatment facility will propel a unique collaboration among the university, the VA system, Department of Defense and private research and educational entities – all of which are part of the building plan.

First Lady Michelle Obama and Dr. Jill Biden created Joining Forces to bring Americans together to recognize, honor and take action to support veterans and military families as they serve our country and throughout their lives. The initiative aims to educate, challenge, and spark action from all sectors of society to ensure veterans and military families have the support they have earned. The initiative focuses on key priority areas – employment, education, and wellness while raising awareness about the service, sacrifice, and needs of America’s veterans and military families. More information is available at: www.JoiningForces.gov.

– USF Health –

USF Health’s mission is to envision and implement the future of health. It is the partnership of the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine, the College of Nursing, the College of Public Health, the College of Pharmacy, the School of Biomedical Sciences and the School of Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Sciences; and the USF Physician’s Group. The University of South Florida is a global research university ranked 34th in federal research expenditures for public universities.