A proposal by Professor Emeritus of Biochemistry and Microbiology & Molecular Genetics Scott Morrical, Ph.D., has been selected for funding by the UVM Retired Scholars Award Program.

Morrical, known for his significant contributions in advancing the understanding of genome replication, has titled this project "Expression, purification & characterization of cyanobacteriophage-encoded glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase enzyme.”

Cyanobacteriophages are viruses that infect cyanobacteria (blue-green algae). This project investigates how the properties of a key metabolic enzyme allow a cyanobacteriophage to optimize production of DNA precursors needed for its own DNA replication and reproduction at the expense of host-cell energy and carbon metabolism. 

The work is significant because cyanobacteria are responsible for a significant fraction of primary production (carbon and nitrogen fixation, oxygen generation, nutrient cycling) in the world’s oceans. Virus infection regulates the populations of cyanobacteria in the marine environment, and by extension regulates global carbon cycling and climate. Therefore, understanding the replication and survival strategies of cyanobacteriophages is critical for understanding the dynamics and evolution of marine cyanobacteria, and how their productivity may be altered by climate change.

The funding received from the UVM Retired Scholars Award Program will support the publication of a journal article based on previously researched and collected data on the virus, which is not yet publicly available. Facilitated by the UVM Association of Retired Faculty and Administrative Officers (RFAO), the UVM Retired Scholars Award Program aims to support retired faculty members in pursuing research or scholarly projects post-retirement. With financial backing from the UVM Office of the President and the Office of the Provost, the program offers $8,000 annually, with individual awards of up to $2,000. This funding can be utilized for various purposes, including travel, accommodation, and per diem for conference attendance, manuscript publication, artistic and performing arts projects, research material acquisition, and other project-related expenses. The program underscores UVM's commitment to continued academic engagement and recognizes the invaluable contributions of retired faculty members to scholarly pursuits.

In a new report published in Nature Medicine, James Gerson, M.D., assistant professor of medicine and director of the UVM Cancer Center’s CAR T-Cell Program, and colleagues address questions about the possible development of T-cell lymphomas, including CAR-positive lymphoma, in patients treated with CAR T-cell therapy.

The researchers analyzed nearly 500 patients treated with CAR T-cell therapy to determine the prevalence of T-cell lymphomas after CAR T-cell therapy and found that the risk of T-cell lymphomas following CAR T-cell therapy is minute. This work suggests that the risk benefit analysis for this potentially lifesaving therapy overwhelmingly favors the positive benefit it can have on patients’ lives, supporting continued use of the treatment. 

Read the more about the report. 

Assistant Professor of Psychiatry Elias Klemperer, Ph.D., was recently awarded his first R01 grant—a combined award from the Food and Drug Administration Center for Tobacco Products and the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA)—to further study nicotine-limiting standards for cigarettes and e-cigarettes among adults in Rhode Island, Vermont, and Northern New York State.

In recent years, the prevalence of using multiple tobacco products, notably cigarettes and e-cigarettes, has been on the rise in the United States. Klemperer, along with Professor of Psychiatry and Vermont Center for Behavior and Health Director Stephen Higgins, Ph.D., and colleagues from the Larner College of Medicine and Brown University, will be conducting a 12-week, double-blind randomized controlled trial that aims to explore how the FDA’s proposed nicotine-limiting standard for cigarettes influences smoking behavior among adult dual users—people who use both cigarettes and e-cigarettes—and whether any changes are influenced by corresponding limitations on e-cigarette nicotine content.

Nearly 90 percent of people with opioid use disorder (OUD) have experienced trauma, and about a third have posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Those dealing with both PTSD and OUD face more challenges with their mental health and substance use compared to those with just OUD. Prolonged Exposure (PE) therapy is commonly used to treat PTSD, but it’s often hindered by poor attendance.

Last year, Kelly Peck, Ph.D., assistant professor of psychiatry and psychological science, alongside colleagues from the Larner College of Medicine, published a study demonstrating that a novel PE therapy approach could help people with OUD demonstrating that a novel PE therapy approach could help people with OUD attend therapy more regularly and improve PTSD symptoms. Their promising results earned them a prestigious R01 grant from the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA).

With this grant, Peck plans to further test the effectiveness of this new PE therapy; use a telemedicine platform to reach rural patients who might not have easy access to traditional therapy settings; and explore how PE therapy might also help reduce illicit drug use.

His team aims to share their findings widely to help improve clinical practices across the country. This study is the first of its kind to investigate the effectiveness of PE therapy delivered through telemedicine for people with OUD.

Congratulations to these new appointees to the leadership board of the Larner chapter of the Latino Medical Student Association (LMSA): Joselvin Galeas ’27, co-president; Estefania Obando ʼ27, co-president; Camila Salcedo ʼ27, vice president; Francisco Cordero ʼ27, treasurer; and Jaime Rodriguez ʼ27, secretary. The LMSA exists to unite and empower current and future physicians through service, mentorship, and education to advocate for the improved health of the Hispanic and Latina/o/x community in the United States.