Four UNMC researchers will receive the 2004 Internal Medicine Research Awards for exceptional achievements in research. The researchers and their awards include:
- Stephen Rennard, M.D. – Career Excellence Award, given to an established faculty member for excellence in their research career.
- Robert Bennett, Ph.D. – Basic Science Research Award, given to a faculty member for excellence in a basic science (bench) program.
- Wilson Ginete, M.D. – Fellowship Research Award, given to a fellow who has demonstrated excellence in his/her research project.
- Kara Petersen, M.D. – Resident Research Award, given to a resident who has demonstrated excellence in a specific research project.
The awards will be presented at the internal medicine ground rounds on Friday, June 11, in the Eppley Science Hall Ampitheater. At 11:30 a.m., poster presentations from the award recipients will be on display in the lobby. The awards will be presented at noon in the amphitheater, after which Dr. Rennard will present the grand rounds. His presentation is titled, “COPD, From the Barcalounger to Stem Cells.”
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Stephen Rennard, M.D., left, with Ron Ertl.
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Dr. Rennard, Larson Professor of Medicine in the pulmonary and critical care section, works in the field of cell biology of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and is an internationally recognized leader in the field of smoking related airway disease and the associated mechanisms of airway injury and repair. Dr. Rennard has written and published more than 300 articles. He has served on the Board of Directors of the American Lung Association, Governor for the American College of Chest Physicians and was on the committee that prepared the recent GOLD guidelines for COPD. His research has been prominently featured in the Institute of Medicine Report “Clearing the Smoke.” Currently he is the director of the Nebraska Office for Tobacco Control and Research. Dr. Rennard came to UNMC in 1984.
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Robert Bennett, Ph.D.
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Dr. Bennett, assistant professor in the Departments of Internal Medicine and Pharmacology, was named an associate investigator in the Department of Veterans Affairs Research Service in 1999. Since 2002, he has been the principal investigator on a VA Merit Review Entry Program (MREP) grant titled “Relaxin as a Hepatic Antifibrotic Agent.” At UNMC since 1998, Dr. Bennett has published more than 45 articles and abstracts and has given 17 presentations at national and international meetings, including the American Diabetes Association, the Endocrine Society and the American Society for the Study of Liver Disease.
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Wilson Ginete, M.D.
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Dr. Ginete, a third-year fellow in the division of cardiology, presented two abstracts at the Eighth Annual Cardiovascular Research Symposium at UNMC on Feb. 7. The two abstracts were titled “Effects of Simvastatin Treatment on Matrix Metalloproteinase-2 Activity in Rabbit Heart Failure Models” and “Effects of Diabetes on Matrix Metalloproteinase-2 Activity in Different Vascular Tissues in Severe Coronary Artery Disease.” At UNMC since 2000, Dr. Ginete is currently working on projects involving the role of dual-isotope myocardial SPECT Imaging in detecting instent retenosis and detecting bypass graft failure.
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Kara Petersen, M.D.
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Dr. Petersen, resident of Internal Medicine with focus in the section of rheumatology and immunology, contributed to an abstract on experience with etanercept in combination with other disease-modifying drugs. Dr. Petersen put together an abstract that was presented at the American College of Rheumatology Annual Meeting in Orlando, Fla., in October 2003. The abstract was a study of 120 rheumatoid arthritis patients that had etanercept added to their medication and the patients’ safety, toxicity and efficacy were monitored. The abstract has been submitted for publication. Dr. Petersen began her residency in 2001 and will graduate from the program at the end of this month.