Robert Allen has been named chief financial officer for Keck Hospital of USC and USC Norris Cancer Hospital.

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Six researchers from the Keck School of Medicine of USC were recently selected to join the Society for Pediatric Research. Membership in the society is based on peer nomination and election, and marks the member’s standing as an internationally recognized pediatric researcher.

The newest members will be honored at the Society for Pediatric Research annual meeting in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, on May 3. Researchers to be recognized include: Jamie Wood, MD, assistant professor of clinical pediatrics; Robinder Khemani, MD, assistant professor of clinical pediatrics; Vincent Wang, MD, MHA, associate professor of clinical pediatrics; Yong-Mi Kim, MD, MPH, PhD, assistant professor of pediatrics; Douglas Vanderbilt, MD, assistant professor of clinical pediatrics; and Toni Frederick, PhD, MSPH, associate professor of pediatrics. … Read More »

Keck School of Medicine of USC has named one of its own, Rohit Varma, MD, MPH, to become chair of the Department of Ophthalmology and director of the USC Eye Institute as well as to serve as professor of ophthalmology and preventive medicine and hold the Grace and Emery Beardsley Chair in Ophthalmology. Rohit Varma

Varma, who is currently chair of the Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences at the Illinois Eye and Ear Infirmary at the University of Illinois at Chicago College of Medicine, returns to the Keck School of Medicine where he previously served as professor of ophthalmology and director of the glaucoma service, ocular epidemiology center and clinical trials unit.

An accomplished physician/scientist, Varma is recognized worldwide as a visionary leader in the epidemiology of eye diseases. Among his many significant contributions to the field, Varma has been a funded researcher for the past 20 years by the National Eye Institute, part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

He is the principal investigator of the Los Angeles Latino Eye Study (LALES), Multi-Ethnic Pediatric Eye Diseases Study (MEPEDS), African-American Eye Disease Study and the Chinese-American Eye Study in addition to his studies on blindness and vision impairment for the World Health Organization. Varma’s experience with national and international organizations will aid in his additional role as associate dean for strategic planning and community network development with the Keck School of Medicine of USC to expand the eye care network. … Read More »

By Hope Hamashige

Helen Hislop

Helen Hislop, PhD, a pioneering former chair of Biokinesiology and Physical Therapy, a division at the Ostrow School of Dentistry of USC, died on Nov. 15 in North Carolina at the age of 84. Hislop spent 30 years at USC, heading the division from 1975 to 1998.

In a message to colleagues at USC, James Gordon, EdD, current chair of the division, wrote, “More than anyone, she was responsible for the growth of our research programs, the formation of our clinical programs, and the excellence of our education programs. She was a true visionary, and she is recognized as a giant in the physical therapy profession. Every physical therapist, not just those of us at USC, benefits from her legacy.” … Read More »

By Alison Trinidad

For the first time, scientists and engineers have identified a critical cancer-causing component in the virus that causes Kaposi’s sarcoma, the most common cancer among HIV-infected people. The discovery lays the foundation for developing drugs that prevent Kaposi’s sarcoma and other related cancers.

“The mechanism behind the Kaposi’s sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV) that causes healthy cells to become malignant is not well understood despite two decades of intensive studies,” said S. J. Gao, PhD, professor of molecular microbiology and immunology at the Keck School of Medicine of USC and principal investigator of the study. “This is the first time that a viral factor has been shown to be required for KSHV-induced malignant transformation. We have identified a mechanism by which these tiny viral molecules cause the cells to become malignant.”

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By Paul Karon

A public education program that trained and fielded a cadre of health mentors in California significantly boosted Latino residents’ knowledge of everything from cholesterol and diabetes to the importance of nutrition and exercise, a USC study showed.

The study, by the Southern California Clinical and Translational Science Institute (SC CTSI), showed that specially trained “promotoras” — community members who act as health-oriented helpers and liaisons to their neighbors and communities — were effective at communicating key health information. … Read More »

Above, the USC Trojan Marching Band plays at the event, held at the USC Galen Center.
Photo/Leslie Ridgeway

The USC Neighborhood Academic Initiative (NAI) launched its Saturday Academy on Jan. 18, expanding to include nearly 100 sixth graders who live near the Health Sciences Campus.

The NAI is a seven-year enrichment program preparing low-income, minority students living in neighborhoods surrounding USC’s campuses for success at a college or university. The kickoff event gave students and parents a chance to meet with NAI alumni, who spoke to the students about their experiences with the program and described how it helped them succeed in higher education. … Read More »

U.S. News & World Report ranks many of our excellent clinical departments among the top programs in the country. These rankings are an important marker that communicates the high quality of our patient care and medical research to the public.

Each program’s reputation among physicians is a vital component of scoring. In previous years, U.S. News sent its survey to a small group of board-certified specialists across the country. This year, U.S. News has announced it will expand the survey to reach 50,000 board-certified physicians using an online voting process through Doximity, a new online physician network. … Read More »

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By Leslie Ridgeway

Shaul G. Massry (left) presents Keck School of Medicine Dean Carmen A. Puliafito with a check to support the Fifth-Year Research Scholars program.
Photo/Amy Hamaker

With a goal of helping young researchers launch their careers, the Meira and Shaul G. Massry Foundation has provided a $175,000 gift to the Keck School of Medicine of USC Dean’s Fifth-Year Research Scholars program.

With this gift, seven fourth-year medical students have the opportunity to focus on research projects for a year after graduation from medical school.

Fifth-year scholars receive a stipend of $25,000 each to continue their research. The $175,000 gift is $75,000 more than last year’s gift, giving three more students an opportunity for support.

“I believe that a student who has finished four years of medical school and is ready to postpone his or her career is motivated to be a scientist, and that’s critical,” said Shaul Massry, MD, professor emeritus of medicine, physiology and biophysics at the Keck School and president of the Massry Foundation. … Read More »

Paul Macklin, assistant professor of research, will speak at the American Association for the Advancement of Science ann

ual meeting, to be held Feb. 13-17 in Chicago. As part of a discussion on “big data” — data sets so large and complex that they become difficult to process using traditional applications — Macklin will present his talk, “Integrating Next-Generation Computational Models of Cancer Progression and Outcome.”

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