Pathology
News
Department Highlights
Page 1
Concussion Movie
Page 2-3
Faculty Highlights
Page 4-5
Grant Administration
Page 6
SURP and CMP Graduate
Program
Page 7
Residency Fellowship
Page 8-9
Medical School
Page 10
Publications
Page 11-15
Presentations
OCTOBER
28,
2015
D E PA R T M E N T H I G H L I G H T S
Dear Colleagues:
Our Department of Pathology is successfully adjusting its methods and parameters within the spirit of changes occurring in UPMC and the School of Medicine. UPMC is transforming itself gradually but steadily towards an IDFS
(Integrated Delivery and Finance System). This is a system that attempts to
encompass both the clinical delivery service and a financial insurance arm. The
objective is to create motivations for synergy, which aim to contain the cost of
diagnostic and therapeutic care. As with other clinical services, our department
is now supervising in an integrated administrative manner the diagnostic clinical services of all UPMC sites under the rubric of a Pathology Service Line
(PSL). The mission of PSL is to streamline and integrate laboratory and histopathology activities. Both our anatomic and lab medicine faculty and staff had
already accomplished most of the PSL goals, making this task easier. Through
its strong central components of anatomic, genomic and clinical pathology and
the highly capable similar services in the peripheral hospitals, our department is
justified to feel proud for the clinical services it provides to the UPMC system
In the School of Medicine, our special lectures, electives and the first year
pathobiology course continue to be very popular. The special autopsy elective is
breaking records of popularity with the medical students. A few new grants
were added to our portfolio of funded research and the department is committed
to provide support by whatever means possible to all our faculty and trainees.
I am taking this opportunity to express my thanks to our administrative and
technical staff who so ably manage to carry us through the complex navigation
channels that we traverse, as we try to meet due diligence, high performance
and steady aim throughout the academic year.
Page 16-17
Keep your
eyes open
to your
mercies.
The man
who forgets
to be
thankful
has
fallen asleep
in life.
Best regards,
ECU Tracking
Page 17
Seminars
Page 18
Administrative
Updates
Page 19
Robert Louis
Stevenson
George Michalopoulos, M.D., Ph.D.
Maud Menten Professor and Chair
1850-1894
Holiday Reminders
The University of Pittsburgh will be Thursday November 26-27 for the Thanksgiving
Recess. UPMC will be closed Thursday, November 27.
The University of Pittsburgh will be closed Wednesday, December 24 through
Monday,January 3, 2016. The Administrative Offices will be minimally staff and open
during this time. University and Hospital offices will reopen Monday, January 3.
PAGE
PITTSBURGH PATHOLOGY DEPARTMENT PLAYS
BIG ROLE IN UPCOMING BLOCKBUSTER MOVIE
Dr. Ronald Hamilton from our Neuropathology Division is being portrayed by Stephen Moyer (from
True Blood, an HBO series) in CONCUSSION a major motion picture starring Will Smith. The movie,
which is set to be released nationwide on Christmas Day, focuses on the amazing story of Dr. Bennet
Omalu, a Nigerian immigrant, who discovered a progressive neurodegenerative disease he called Chronic
Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE) in a former NFL football player (Mike Webster). Bennet, a forensic
pathologist working with Dr. Cyril Wecht at the Allegheny County Medical Examiner’s Office, had just
finished his Neuropathology Fellowship at UPMC, where he had been taught about neurodegenerative diseases by Ron. He brought the case to Ron for confirmation and what happened to Bennet next was described in a 2007 article in GQ called “Game Brain” (Jeanne Marie Laskas), which was the inspiration for
the movie. Ron’s role in the discovery of CTE was detailed in the book “League of Denial” (October,
2013); but how he will be portrayed in the movie is not known.
During the filming in Pittsburgh, Ron served as an informal advisor meeting with writer-director Peter
Landesman several times and he also supplied numerous props for the movie. During one of these visits,
Ron showed Peter the elaborate process required to simply get a slide ready to view under the microscope.
Peter was especially impressed with Jonette Werley, who has been with the Neuropathology Division for
30 years. Because of her expertise in Neurohistology, Bennet had brought the case to her for processing. A
crew spent a day filming Jonette for a short sequence that will be in the film. She’s a star!! Probably
the first histologist to make it to the big screen.
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Ron was able to get to the set twice and visit with Will Smith.
On set, he was interviewed by a film crew who were apparently gathering behind-the-scenes footage for
a bonus feature on the CONCUSSION DVD.
August 31, 2015: Just before the beginning of the NFL season, Sony pictures released a trailer for CONCUSSION. Stephen Moyer (as Ron) can be seen in one scene in the trailer (0:55 sec) with his back
turned and his beard partly visible. This can be found on YouTube.
It was recently announced that CONCUSSION will be the Centerpiece of the American Film Institute
(AFI) festival November 11, 2015. The AFI is also awarding Will Smith the Hollywood Actor Award
for his role as Bennet Omalu.
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Faculty Highlights
Marshall Austin, M.D., Biosketch citation in the Journal of American Of Cytopathology , Volume LII,
Number 5, September 2015.
Rohit Bhargava, M.D. Simplified and Illustrated Breast pathology: A book for All Breast Care Providers.
Published May 2015. Jaypee Medical Brothers and Publishers. Editor/Sole Author: Rohit Bhargava
John Ozolek, M.D.
Elected Chair of the Practice Committee of the Society for Pediatric Pathology (2016-2018).
Liron Pantanowitz, M.D.
Two pathology images won the competition held by UPCI called “Images of Fighting Cancer”. They will
be on display at this year’s Science 2015-Unleashed! Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, 7–9 October, at
Alumni Hall. After the exhibit the Images will be hung in the Hillman Cancer Center for all to see.
Chengquan Zhao , M.D. was honored as guest professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology Hospital of Fudan
University, the largest OB/Gyn hospital in China on September 17, 2015.
Ralph Nauman, Retired after 41 years of service
at the Clinical Laboratories.
Dr. Donald Kelley, retired after 13
years at the Institute of Transfusion
Medicine.
Best Wishes for a Happy Retirement
4
PAGE
5
Faculty Highlights
Parmjeet Randhawa, M.D.

Served on the Distinguished Faculty Poster Review Panel, American Society of Transplantation, Cutting
Edge in Organ Transplantation Meeting, Chandler, Arizona, February 5-7, 2015.

Chaired the Business Meeting of the American Society of Transplantation, Transplant Diagnostics Community of Practice, American Transplant Congress, Philadelphia, PA, May 3, 2015.

Chaired the Concurrent Oral Abstract Sessions on “BK virus Infection after Kidney Transplantation” at
American Transplant Congress, Philadelphia, PA, May 4, 2015

Participated in World Health Organization ( WHO) and National Institute for Biological Standards and
Control (NIBSC) Collaborative Study to Validate an International Standard for BK virus nucleic acid
technology based assays, January 2015.
Award winning abstracts presented by Transplant Pathology Trainees at National Meetings
Gang Zeng, a post-doctoral fellow working with Dr. Randhawa, was the recipient of Best Trainee Abstract
Travel Award from The American Transplant Society of Transplantation Infectious Disease Community of
Practice. The title of the poster was “ Prospects of differentiating T-cell mediated rejection from BKV
nephropathy using next generation sequencing of the T-cell receptor”. This poster was presented at
the American Transplant Congress, Philadelphia, PA, on May 2, 2015. Related work was presented at
the Annual Felllows Conference on Advances in Organ Transplantation, Cambridge, MA, on. April 16,
2015, where it was conferred with the Most Innovative Abstract Award in the Basic Science Category.
Gang Huang, a Visiting Research Scholar from Guangzhou, China, visiting Dr. Randhawa’s laboratory, was
recipient of a Poster of Distinction Award from the American Transplant Congress. The titlel of the poster
was “ Evaluation of the gastrointestinal tract as a potential router of primary polyomavirus infection”. It was
presented at the American Transplant Congress, Philadelphia, PA, May 2, 2015 (Recipient of Poster of Distinction Award).
Sarah Voss, Clinical Fellow in Transplantation Pathology was the recipient of Recipient of The CEOT
Young Innovator Award. This work was presentated at the American Society of Transplantation Cutting
Edge of Organ Transplantation (CEOT) Meeting, Chandler, Arizona, Feburary 5-7, 2015. The title of the
abstract was“ Glomerulitis in non-antibody mediated glomerular injury”.
PAGE
6
Grant Administration
Character cannot be
developed in ease
and quiet. Only
through experience
of trial and suffering
can the soul be
strengthened,
ambition inspired,
and success
achieved.
VISAS
The number of visa applications in the Department of Pathology has grown
considerably over the past several years; in addition, Federal and University
requirements concerning the applications have become more involved. The
once paper process is now an electronic submission to the Office of International Services. Time is still of the essence and if you plan to bring on a
foreign national Visiting Scholar or Post Doc, please allow at least three (3)
months for the internal approval process, exchange of visitor information,
submission and flow of paperwork through OIS.
If you have specific questions concerning visas, the application process or
policies for the department, please contact Mary Lou Benedetti
(benedettim@upmc.edu) or April Lehman (lehmanad@upmc.edu).
CONFLICT OF INTEREST
REMINDER: The Office of Research will not submit any proposal that
involves faculty who are non-compliant. Continuing projects will not be
processed as well, until the required compliance modules and forms are
complete.
Helen Keller
(1880-1968)
KARI NEJAK-BOWEN, Ph.D. received her first R01 (funding started
July 1, 2015); project title is "Role and regulation of beta-catenin in
cholestatic liver disease" (Project Period: 07/01/2015 – 04/30/2020).
$1,125,000 Directs; $607,500 Indirects; $1,732,500 Total award
CARY WU, PH.D. GRANTS RECEIVED
Cary Wu, Ph.D. NIH RO1; Grant title: Signaling Mechanisms of Focal
Adhesion Protein Kindlin-2 in Chondrogenesis; Source: NIH/NIAMS;
Term 6/1/2015-5/31/2020; Amount: $2,159,850
Cary Wu, Ph.D. NIH R21; Grant title: A novel kindlin-2 regulatory
pathway in bone remodeling; Source: NIH/NIAMS; Term 4/1/20153/31/2017; Amount: $383,350
Nahed Ismail, M.D., Ph.D., USDA funding for a project focused
on “comparative genomics of multi-drug resistant
Acinetobacter baumanii in different geographic regions”, 200K/two years ; period 9/1/2015-8/30/2017
PAGE
SURP AND CMP GRADUATE PROGRAM
From the desk of Dr. Wendy M. Mars ….
I am happy to report that our program continues to do quite well. During the course of the past academic
school year, seven students graduated; however, we also matriculated eight new students (five from IBGP
and three from MSTP), presently putting us at 28 students so that we continue to remain one of the largest
of the six Interdisciplinary Program affiliates. Despite losing some faculty members through career
changes, overall our faculty numbers have been growing. This past academic year we added six new faculty members to CMP: Kari Nejak-Bowen, Stephen Chan, Elena Gonchorova, and Cynthia St. Hilaire
(primary), as well as Sarah Berman and Bryan Brown, (secondary) making our current total 71, up three
from last year at this time. Please remember to tell interested faculty about joining CMP. We are always
willing to add qualified SOM faculty to our graduate program if their interests match with ours.
SAVE THE DATES
On May 25, 2016 we will hold our annual Pathology Retreat, combining our basic and clinical researchers for an afternoon of stimulating talks, once again followed by a poster session at the University Club.
This year our keynote speaker will be Charles A Parkos, MD/PhD, the Chairman of Pathology at the
University of Michigan.
The Summer Undergraduate Research Program (SURP) will begin early next year, on May 23, 2016. For
SURP, we are once again actively seeking interested faculty willing to host college undergraduates in their laboratories for a 10-week scientific research experience. SURP is a highly competitive outreach program, specifically designed to recruit high quality students into applying for graduate degrees through the University of
Pittsburgh School of Medicine (UPSOM) programs such as the Interdisciplinary Biomedical Graduate Program
and the Medical School.
The specifics of SURP are as follows:
The cost to the individual investigator is $3500.00. In some cases, there may be supplemental funding
from UPSOM. Please contact me at 412-648-9690 or wmars@pitt.edu if you are interested in learning
more about these funding opportunities.
The program will run from May 23-July 29. Students are expected to have a specific project that they
work on full time. They are also expected to attend supplemental programming 1-2 hours a week. At the
end of the experience they must write an abstract and do a 10-minute power point presentation of their
work. Student housing and travel will generously be provided by UPSOM.
The success of this program relies on quality mentors well as quality students. Part of our past success has
been due to participation of interested faculty such as you. In addition, we have implemented several techniques designed to attract the highest quality students to our program such as a shared online application
process. I would venture that many of you who have participated as SURP mentors in the past can attest
to the quality of the students that we are attracting. You need not be graduate faculty to take on a student.
If you have any questions or are willing to be a mentor this year, please contact me at 412-648-9690, or via email at wmars@pitt.edu. The application process has already begun. Also, remember that if you are interested in
having issues brought before the CMP steering committee, please share them with either our CMP administrator,
Tara Rohall (rohallta@upmc.edu), or with me (wmars@pitt.edu). Thanks so much!
Wendy M. Mars, Ph.D.
Director, Pathology SURP and CMP graduate program
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RESIDENCY AND FELLOWSHIP
From the desk of Dr. Trevor Macpherson…..
Residency Program
Appointment of Associate Director
Marie DeFrances has been appointed Associate Director of the Residency Program
effective September 1, 2015. She will report to the Program Director Dr Macpherson
and continues her role in being responsible for the pathology medical school curriculum and activities.
Recruitment for Class starting July 1, 2016
On October 16th the first of 11 interview days was held. Six candidates are invited for
each Friday interview day through January 15, 2016. Candidates are given the opportunity to request meeting with faculty of their interest. Such meetings will be scheduled as per faculty interest and availability Thursday afternoon or late Friday afternoon. Thank you to those who have already agreed to meet with candidates.
Program Updates
Russ Silowash and Humberto Trejo Bittar have developed an Access based tool called
‘Report Formatting Reference Library’. It enables residents to review deidentified anatomic pathology reports searchable by organ system, case type or attending. This is significantly enhancing the preview process for residents prior to sign out
with the attending.
Dr. Pantanowitz has launched a ‘Sandbox Server’ for use by residents to develop informatics software tools as part of their research and education enhancements. An early user will be Tom Pearce who is developing a robust on line tool to support and enhance the anatomic pathology unknown slide conference.
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Graduation date is Saturday May 14, 2016. Graduating residents, fellows and clinical instructors will be recognized.
Fellowship Program
Dr. Somak Roy has been appointed Associate Director of the MGP Fellowship
Dr. Humberto Trejo Bittar is our Chief Fellow.
Recruitment for fellows for start date July 1, 2017 has commenced.
All ACGME accredited fellowships are required effective July 1, 2016 to implement
their Clinical Competency Committee and Program Evaluation Committee
Congratulations to Sara Wheeler and Dan Rhoads whose young investigator presentations were two of the three presentations selected as ‘Young Investigator Award with
Distinction at ACLPS meeting.
Heather Metz - CMP Graduate Student
Neutrophil Elastase Promotes Myofibroblast Differentiation in Lung Fibrosis.
Alyssa Gregory, Corrine Kliment, Heather Metz, Kyoung-Hee Kim, Julia Kargl, Brittani Agostini, Lauren Crum, Elizabeth Oczypok, Tim Oury, A. McGarry Houghton.

Presentation:
Heather E. Metz, Stephanie E. Busch, Mark L. Hanke, Julia Kargl, Kyoung-Hee Kim, A.
McGarry HoughtonInsulin Receptor Substrate-1 Regulates Immune Cell Content in
Lung Adenocarcinoma. American Association for Cancer Research International Conference 2015, Pittsburgh, PA.
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10
MEDICAL SCHOOL
From the desk of Dr. Marie DeFrances…..
Jackie Birkness, a fourth year medical student and an officer of the Pathology Medical
Student Interest Group, and Alex Kikuchi, an MSTP student performing his dissertation
studies in the lab of Dr. Paul Monga, were recently notified that they were chosen to receive
the "Academic Excellence and Achievement in Pathology Award" from the American Society
of Clinical Pathology (ASCP). The ASCP states that many highly qualified candidates made
the selection process difficult. Congratulations, Jackie and Alex!
In other news, three Klionsky Summer Research Fellows (Tani Pollock, Erica Johnson, and
Peter Wu) participated in a new pathology initiative called STEPS (Summer Training
Experiences in Pathology for Medical Students). STEPS was designed to provide second year
medical students with opportunities to observe the clinical practice of Pathology one morning
a week while carrying out summer research in our department. Eight activities were planned
in different subspecialities of pathology such as autopsy, clinical chemistry, blood banking,
and genomic pathology. Thanks to all who helped make STEPS a success!
The School of Medicine held a “Scholarly Research Project Speed Dating” event on October
19 from 5-7 pm to match medical students with research mentors. Faculty who would like to
mentor a medical student Scholarly Research Project should send a brief statement about their
research interest to Suzann Beardsley (suzann@medschool.pitt.edu) .
Please send newsworthy items as they happen to:
szalkuskict@upmc.edu.
Thank you.
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11
RESIDENT PUBLICATIONS
Pradhan D, Roy S, Quiroga-Garza G, Cieply K, Mahaffey AL, Bastacky S, Dhir R, Parwani AV. Validation and Utilization of a TFE3 Break-apart FISH Assay for Xp11.2 Translocation Renal Cell Carcinoma and
Alveolar Soft Part Sarcoma. Diagnostic Pathology. 2015 Sep 29;10(1):179. PMID: 26415891
Pradhan D, Amin RM, Jones MW, Surti U, Parwani AV. Giant-Cell Arteritis of the Female Genital Tract
with Occult Temporal Arteritis and Marginal Zone Lymphoma Harboring Unusual 20q Deletion – A Case
Report and Literature Review. International Journal of Surgical Pathology. 2015 Sep 9. PMID: 26353853
Pradhan D, Sharma A, Mohanty SK. Cribriform-Morular Variant of Papillary Thyroid Carcinoma – a review. Pathology – Research and Practice. 2015 Oct;211(10):712-6. PMID: 26293799.
Pradhan D, Pattnaik N, Silowash R, Mohanty SK. IgG4- related kidney disease – a review. Pathology –
Research and Practice. 2015 Oct;211(10):707-11. PMID: 26341570
Pradhan D, Arora P, Gami A, Kaur N. Immunoglobin G Kappa Biclonal Gammopathy associated with
Multiple Myeloma, Plasmacytoma and Cast Nephropathy. Journal of cancer research and therapeutics. 2015
Jul-Sep;11(3):660. PMID: 26458669.
Diwaker P, Pradhan D, Garg G, Bisaria D, Gogoi K, Mohanty SK. Uterine Angioleiomyoma: A Rare Variant of Uterine Leiomyoma - A Case Report and Literature Review. Journal of cancer research and therapeutics. 2015 Jul-Sep;11(3):649. PMID: 26458617
Mohanty SK, Gordon OK, Bose S, Pradhan D, Dadmanesh F. Expression of IMP, CK8/18 and CK 14 in
BRCA-related invasive Breast Carcinomas. The Breast Journal. 2015 Sep 22.PMID: 26390986
PRESENTATIONS
Platform :
Pradhan D, Patadji S, Zhao C. Clinical Significance of Atypical Glandular Cells on Pap Test: Analysis of
Over 3000 Cases of AGC Pap in a Large Academic Hospital. 104th USCAP Annual meeting, March
2015, Boston, MA. (Abstracts of the 104th USCAP (United States and Canadian Academy of Pathology)
Annual Meeting, March 21-27, 2015, Boston, MA. Lab Invest. 2015 Feb;95 Suppl 1:4-530. PMID:
26005736)
Pradhan D, Monaco SE, Parwani AV, Ahmed I, Pantanowitz L. Evaluation of Panoramic Digital Images
using Panoptiq for Frozen Section Diagnosis. Pathology Informatics Summit, May 2015, Pittsburgh, PA.
Posters:
Patadji S, Pradhan D, Zhao C. Significance of HR-HPV Detection in Women with AGC on Pap Test:
Analysis of 1857 Cases From One institute. 104th USCAP Annual meeting, March 2015, Boston, MA.
(Abstracts of the 104th USCAP (United States and Canadian Academy of Pathology) Annual Meeting,
March 21-27, 2015, Boston, MA. Lab Invest. 2015 Feb;95 Suppl 1:4-530. PMID: 26005736)
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PUBLICATIONS
P. Randhawa, G. Zeng, M. Bueno-Fernandez, A. Salgarkar, A. Lesniak, MS, K. Isse, K. Seyb, A. Perry,
I. Charles, C.Hustus, M. Huang, M.Smith, M. Glicksman. Inhibtion of large T antigen ATPase activity a
potential strategy to develop anti-JCV drugs. Antiviral Research, 2014: 112: 113-119.
P. Randhawa, Diana V. Pastrana, Gang Zeng, Yuchen Huang, Ron Shapiro, Puneet Sood, Chethan Putttarappa, Mel Berger, Sundaram Hariharan, Christopher B. Buck. Commercially available immunoglobulins contain virus neutralizing antibodies against all major genotypes of polyomavirus BK. Am J Transplantation, 2015: 15: 1014-1020.
P. Sood, P. Randhawa, Mehta R, Hariharan H, Tevar A. Donor kidney microthrombi and outcomes of
kidney transplant: a single center experience. Clin Transplant 2015, Mar 4. doi: 10.1111/ctr.12539. [Epub
ahead of print].
Randhawa PS: Immunohistochemistry in kidney disease: a cautionary tale. http://
ajkdblog.org/2014/10/30/immunohistochemistry-in-kidney-disease-a-cautionary-tale/h
Good M, Sodhi CP, Egan CE, Afrazi A, Jia H, Yamaguchi Y, Lu P, Branca MF, Ma C, Prindle T Jr, Mielo S, Pompa A, Hodzic Z, Ozolek JA, Hackam DJ. Breast milk protects against the development of necrotizing enterocolitis through inhibition of Toll-like receptor 4 in the intestinal epithelium via activation
of the epidermal growth factor receptor. Mucosal Immunol. 2015 Apr 22. doi: 10.1038/mi.2015.30.
[Epub ahead of print].
Ozolek JA, Cohen DE, Kool M, Pfister SM, Korshunov A, Bukowinski AJ, Davis AW. Medulloepithelioma with peculiar clinical presentation, stem cell phenotype and aberrant DNA methylation profile. CNS
Oncol. 2015 Jun 29:1-10. [Epub ahead of print].
Niehaus JZ, Good M, Jackson LE, Ozolek JA, Silverman GA, Luke CJ. Human SERPINB12 Is an
Abundant Intracellular Serpin Expressed in Most Surface and Glandular Epithelia. J Histochem Cytochem. 2015 Jul 28. Epub ahead of print] PMID: 26220980.
Hu D*, Gur M*, Zhou Z, Gamper A, Hung MC, Fujita N, Lan L, Bahar I, Wan Y. Interplay between
arginine methylation and ubiquitylation regulates KLF4-mediated genome stability and carcinogenesis.
Nat. Commun. 6:8419 doi: 10.1038/ncomms9419 (2015) (* co-first author).
Picarsic J, Buryk MA, Ozolek JA, Ranganathan S, Monaco SE, Simons JP, Witchel S, Gurtunca N, Joyce
J, Zhong S, Nikiforova MN, Nikiforov Y. Molecular characterization of sporadic pediatric thyroid carcinoma with the DNA/RNA ThyroSeq v2 next-generation sequencing assay. Pediatr Dev Pathol. 2015 Sep
14. [Epub ahead of print].
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PUBLICATIONS
Li Z, and Zhao C. Clinicopathological and immunohistochemical characterization of dedifferentiated endometrial carcinoma. Appl Immunohistochem Mol Morphol. 2015 Sep 14. [Epub ahead of print].
Crothers BA, Darragh TM, Tambouret RH, Nayar R, Barkan GA, Zhao C, Booth CN, Padmanabhan V,
Tabatabai ZL, Souers RJ, Thomas N, Wilbur DC, Moriarty AT. Trends in Cervical Cytology Screening
and Reporting Practices: Results From the College of American Pathologists 2011 PAP Education Supplemental Questionnaire. Arch Pathol Lab Med. 2015 Jun 5. [Epub ahead of print]
Stoler MH, Austin RM, Zhao C. Point-Counterpoint: Cervical Cancer Screening Should Be Done by Primary Human Papillomavirus Testing with Genotyping and Reflex Cytology for Women over the Age of
25 Years. J Clin Microbiol. 2015 Sep;53(9):2798-804.
Li Z, Ranade A, Zhao C. Pathologic findings of follow-up surgical excision for radial scar on breast core
biopsy. Human Pathol accepted May 2015
Serdy K, Yildiz-Aktas I, Li Z, Zhao C. The value of Papanicolaou tests in the diagnosis of endometrial
carcinoma: a large cohort from an academic medical center. Am J Clin Pathol. Accepted July 2015
Wang H, Li H, Xing X, Zhao C, Luo B. Genotypic analysis and latent membrane protein 1 expression of
Epstein-Barr virus in extranodal NK/T-cell lymphoma from Northern Chinese patients. Arch Virol. 2015
Aug;160(8):2071-4.
Liang H, Griffith CC, Ma L, Ling B, Feng D, Li Z, Zhao C. The sensitivity of Pap cytology and HPV testing to detect cervical cancer: prior testing results in 178 patients with invasive cervical cancer at a large
general hospital in China. JASC online May 2015
Zheng B, Griffith CC, Yan S, Chen C, Ding X, Yang H, Zhao C. Prior high risk HPV testing and Pap test
results of 427 invasive cervical cancers in China’s largest CAP certified laboratory. Cancer Cytopathol.
2015 Jul;123(7):428-34.
Tao X, Griffith CC, Zhou X, Wang Z, Yan Y, Li Z, Zhao C. History of high risk HPV and Pap test results
in a large cohort of patients with invasive cervical carcinoma: experience from the largest women’s hospital in China. Cancer Cytopathol. 2015 Jul;123(7):421-7.
Woodard A, Austin MR, Li Z, Beere J, Zhao C (corresponding). Prevalence of HPV16/18 genotypes and
histopathologic follow-up outcomes in women with negative cytology and positive high risk HPV test results. JASC 2015;4:261-2661.
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PUBLICATIONS
Ningappa M, Min J, Higgs BW, Ashokkumar C, Ranganathan S, Sindhi R. Genome-wide association
studies in biliary atresia. Wiley Interdiscip Rev Syst Biol Med. 2015 May 11. doi: 10.1002/wsbm.1303.
[Epub ahead of print] PubMed PMID: 25963027.
Harmon CM, Azzuqa AA, Ranganathan S, Mahmood B, Good M. Mid-Aortic Syndrome in a Preterm
Infant: A Rare Cause of Hypertension. J Pediatr. 2015 May 30. pii: S0022-3476(15)00475-8. doi:
10.1016/j.jpeds.2015.05.007. [Epub ahead of print] PubMed PMID: 26037732.
Ranganathan S, Celik N, Mazariegos G, Sindhi R. Liver allograft fibrosis and minimization of immunosuppression. Pediatr Transplant. 2015 Sep 3. doi: 10.1111/petr.12590. [Epub ahead of print] PubMed
PMID: 26333572.
Picarsic J, Buryk MA, Ozolek JA, Ranganathan S, Monaco SE, Simons JP, Witchel S, Gurtunca N, Joyce
J, Zhong S, Nikiforova MN, Nikiforov Y. Molecular characterization of sporadic pediatric thyroid carcinoma with the DNA/RNA ThyroSeq v2 next-generation sequencing assay. Pediatr Dev Pathol. 2015 Sep
14. [Epub ahead of print] PubMed PMID: 26367451.
Ningappa M, So J, Glessner J, Ashokkumar C, Ranganathan S, Min J, Higgs BW, Sun Q, Haberman K,
Schmitt L, Vilarinho S, Mistry PK, Vockley G, Dhawan A, Gittes GK, Hakonarson H, Jaffe R, Subramaniam S, Shin D, Sindhi R. The Role of ARF6 in Biliary Atresia. PLoS One. 2015 Sep 17;10(9):e0138381.
doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0138381. eCollection 2015. PubMed PMID: 26379158.
R. Marshall Austin, Agnieszka Onisko. Increased Cervical Cancer Risk Associated with Extended
Screening Intervals after Negative Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) Test Results: Bayesian Risk Estimates
using the Pittsburgh Cervical Cancer Screening Model. Journal of American Society of Cytopathology,
In Press, Available online 21 May 2015.
Agnieszka Onisko and R. Marshall Austin. Dynamic Bayesian Network for Cervical Cancer Screening,
In Peter J.F. Lucas and Arjen Hommersom(eds), Foundations of Biomedical Knowledge Representations,
Springer, pages 223-235, 2015.
Agnieszka Onisko, Allan Trucker, and Marek J. Druzdzel. Prediction
and Prognosis of Health and Disease, In Peter J.F. Lucas and Arjen
Hommersom(eds), Foundations of Biomedical Knowledge Representations, Springer, pages 193-201, 2015.
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15
PUBLICATIONS
Picarsic J, Jaffe R. Nosology and Pathology of Langerhans Cell Histiocytosis. Hematol Oncol Clin North
Am. 2015 Oct;29(5):799-823.
Rollins BJ, Allen CE, Collin M, Jaffe R, Picarsic JL, Rodriguez-Galindo C. Dedication. Hematol Oncol Clin
North Am. 2015 Oct;29(5):xi-xii. d. Epub 2015 Aug 25. PubMed PMID: 26461160.
Johnson WT, Patel P, Hernandez A, Grandinetti LM, Huen AC, Marks S, Ho J, Monaco SE, Jaffe R, Picarsic J. Langerhans Cell Histiocytosis and Erdheim-Chester Disease, both with cutaneous presentations, and
papillary thyroid carcinoma all harboring the BRAF(V600E) Mutation. J Cutan Pathol. 2015 Oct 10.. [Epub
ahead of print] PubMed PMID: 26454140.
Picarsic J, Buryk MA, Ozolek JA, Ranganathan S, Monaco SE, Simons JP, Witchel S, Gurtunca N, Joyce J,
Zhong S, Nikiforova MN, Nikiforov Y. Molecular characterization of sporadic pediatric thyroid carcinoma
with the DNA/RNA ThyroSeq v2 next-generation sequencing assay. Pediatr Dev Pathol. 2015 Sep 14.
[Epub ahead of print] PubMed PMID: 26367451
AK Au, Y Chen, L Du, CM Smith, MD Manole, SA Baltagi, CT Chu, RK Aneja, H Bayır, PM Kochanek
& RSB Clark. (2015) Ischemia-induced autophagy contributes to neurodegeneration in cerebellar Purkinje
cells in the developing brain and in primary cortical neurons in vitro. Biochim. Biophys. Acta (Molecular
Basis of Disease) 1852: 1902-1911. doi:10.1016/j.bbadis.2015.06.007
M Kostic, MHR Ludtmann, H Bading, M Hershfinkel, E Steer, CT Chu, AY Abramov & I Sekler. (2015)
PKA phosphorylation of NCLX reverses mitochondrial calcium overload and depolarization, promoting
survival of PINK1-deficient dopaminergic neurons. Cell Reports 13: 376-386.
Book Chapter
EK Steer, MK Dail & CT Chu. (2016) PINK1 as a sensor for mitochondrial function: Dual roles. In The
Functions, Disease-Related Dysfunctions and Therapeutic Targeting of Neuronal Mitochondria. (VK
Gribkoff, EA Jonas, JM Hardwick, Editors). John Wiley and Sons, Inc., New Jersey, pp. 240-253.
Thursday, November 26, 2015
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16
PRESENTATIONS
Charleen Chu, M.D., Ph.D.
 Dendritic mitochondrial homeostasis: A-kinase story, July 1, 2015, Gordon Conference on Parkinson’s
Disease, New London, NH.

Parkinson’s disease genes in dendrite maintenance, August 11, 2015, Academia Sinica, Taipei, Taiwan.

Mitophagy in Parkinson’s disease: Brakes & Accelerators, August 24, 2015, 25th Biennial Meeting of
the International Society for Neurochemistry, Cairns, Australia

SOS: Mitochondrial Distress in Parkinson’s Disease, October 1, 2015, Department of Anesthesiology
and Critical Care, University of Pennsylvania.
Nahed Ismail, M.D., Ph.D.
Plenary Presentation: Type I interferon: Master regulator of inflammasome activation in ehrlichiosis. 27th
anuual meeting of the American Society for Rickettsiology (ASR), June 2015
George K. Michalopoulos, M.D., Ph.D. “Liver Regeneration: Signaling Pathways for Initiation and Termination”, 3rd Alcohol and Cancer Conference, Crete, Greece, May 29-June 2, 2015.
Jennifer Picarsic, M.D.
Histiocyte Society 31st Annual Meeting, Athens, Greece. 9/28/15 Guest speaker, LCH Symposium: Langerhans
cell histiocytosis of the central nervous system: Challenges in pathologic diagnosis.
Parmjeet Randhawa, M.D.
 Next generation sequencing of the T-cell receptor of differentiation of T-cell mediated rejection from BKV
induced inflammation in the kidney. US and Canadian Academy of Patholgy Meeting, Boston, MA.

A Whirlwind Tour of Kidney Transplant Pathology, Temple University School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA, April 17, 2015.

BKV nephropathy: are we making any progress with therapy. American Transplant Congress,
Philadelphia, PA, May 2, 2015.
Novel Approaches to the Pathologic and Virologic Diagnosis of BKV infection. American Transplant
Congress, Phliadelphia, PA, May 5, 2015.

Sarangarajan Ranganathan, M.D.
 Ranganathan S . Teratoid Hepatoblastoma—A Clinicopathologic and Immunohistochemical Analysis
with Description of Unusual Variants. 2015 Society for Pediatric Pathology Meeting , March 2015.
Pediatr. Dev Pathol 18; e21, 2015.

McFadden K, Ranganathan S. Clinicopathologic Features of angiomatoid fibrous histiocytoma – a single Institutional experience. SPP 2015 Fall Meeting, Toronto, Oct 2015.
PAGE
PRESENTATIONS
Chengquan Zhao, M.D.

Frozen of ovarian epithelial tumor: diagnostic challenge and pitfall. National Advanced Pathology
Meeting by Beijing 301 Hospital, September 10-13, 2015, Beijing, China

A Practical Approach to Intraoperative Consultation in Breast Lesions. National Advanced Pathology
Meeting by Beijing 301 Hospital, September 10-13, 2015, Beijing, China

Cervical cancer screening hot points: Is negative cervical cancer present? The 2015 Red House Forum.
Shanghai, China, June 20-21, 2015

The introduction of current cervical cancer screening status in the USA. 2015 Chinese Annual Cytopathology Meeting. Hefei, China, June 12-14, 2015.
FOR ACCESS TO WEB PAGE FOR ECU LOG-ON
ECU data for the academic year July 1, 2015 to June 30, 2016 for collection now. Please be sure your info
is entered via our Department’s web page link.
For faculty with a UPMC network ID, please use this link. Accessing this link off of the UPMC network will
bring up a login prompt: https://epssecure.upmc.com/ECUAdmin/auth/index.cfm
For faculty without a UPMC ID, please use this link: https://epssecure.upmc.com/ECUTrack/index.cfm
These links are also available on the Department of Pathology webpage under links
at:http://path.upmc.edu/links.htm.
From the home page select which ECU activity is to be logged, and whether the activity is for medical or
graduate students. Then fill in all fields on the form with an option for a free-text note at the end. Confirmaation will be given and the activity will be entered into the database for submission at the end of the academic
term.
Erroneous and duplicate entries may now be deleted by faculty. From the View Entries page, select entries to
remove via the checkbox, then click the Delete Selected Entries button at the bottom. Those entries will not
appear in reports.
For questions or feedback, please contact Thomas Harper at ISD (harperth@upmc.edu).
Thank you.
17
PAGE
Wednesday, November 4, 2015 - 12:00 - 1:00 p.m.
1105AB Scaife Hall
"Small Blue Round Cell Tumors Applying the Advances
Of Molecular Diagnosis in Routine Practice"
Cristina Antonescu, M.D.
Director, Bone and Soft Tissue Pathology
Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center
New York, NY
_____________________________________
ANNUAL TOTTEN LECTURE
Wednesday, November 18, 2015 - 12:00 - 1:00 p.m.
1104 Scaife Hall
ANNUAL MARTINEZ MEMORIAL LECTURE
Wednesday, December 16, 2015 - 12:00 - 1:00 p.m.
1104 Scaife Hall
"The Clinicopathologic Spectrum of Neurodegenerative
Tauopathies"
Dennis W. Dickson, M.D.
Robert E. Jacoby Professor of Alzheimer's Research
Mayo Clinic
Jacksonville, FL
________________________________________________
ANNUAL MENTEN LECTURE
Wednesday, January 6, 2016—12:00—1:00 p.m.
1104 Scaife Hall
"Evolving Classifications of Soft Tissue Tumors"
“Liver Regeneration”
Christopher Fletcher, M.D.
Vice Chair, Anatomic Pathology
Brigham and Women's Hospital
Professor, Harvard Medical School
Boston, MA
_________________________________________
Wednesday, December 2, 2015 - 12:00 - 1:00 p.m.
1104 Scaife Hall
George K Michalopoulos, M.D., Ph.D.
Menten Professor and Chair
Department of Pathology
University of Pittsburgh
_________________________________________________
Wednesday, January 13, 2016—12:00-1:00 p.m.
1104 Scaife Hall
"Analyzing the Role of Wnt Signaling in Skeletal Development and Homeostasis"
“The Role of Focal Adhesion Kinase in
Hepatocarcinogenesis”
Bart O. Williams, Ph.D.
Professor and Director
Center for Cancer and Cell Biology
Van Andel Research Institute
Grand Rapids, MI
_________________________________________
Wednesday, December 9, 2015 - 12:00 - 1:00 p.m.
1104 Scaife Hall
Wei Qiu, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
Loyola University
Chicago, IL
__________________________________________________
Wednesday, January 20, 2016—12:00—1:00 p.m.
1104 Scaife Hall
"Transcriptional Control of Bladder Tumor Progression"
David J. DeGraff, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Pathology
Division of Experimental Pathology
Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center
Hershey, PA
“How Hepatocytes Polarize and What Happens When They
Don’t”
Irwin Arias, M.D.
Professor of Physiology Emeritus
Senior Scientist Emeritus, NIH
Bethesda, MD
18
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19
CME Credit Update
The University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Center for Continuing Education for the Health Sciences
CME transcripts can be obtained via the Internet at ccehs.upmc.edu. Click on link “Credit Transcripts” enter the required information (last name, last five digits of social security number). The transcript reflects
the American Medical Association Category 1 credits or the Continuing Education Units (CEUs) which have
been entered into the Center’s database. Credits from other institutions can be entered using the option
“add/modify” credit information. For questions about the Continuing Medical Education Credits, please
contact 412.647.8232.
Educational Credit Unit Update
Just a reminder that the Educational Credit Units (ECUs) are being collected from every faculty member
who has been involved with teaching activities of the medical or graduate school programs from July 1,
2015 to June 30, 2016. We have initiated a web-page (see directions for access to page on Page 17) to
collect teaching as it happens. Please be sure to update your teaching data. The School of Medicine will
be asking for the information in July. If you have any questions please contact Chris Szalkuski at
szalkuskict@upmc.edu.
Publication Notification Process Update
This is a reminder the Dean has requested a Notification of Publication form for each manuscript accepted for publication in a peer-reviewed journal. The notification ensures compliance with human and animal
research policies, technology transfer/patent guidelines and the requirements for citation of grant support.
It also allows for newsworthy publications to be passed onto the University media. Please submit preprint
information via the website at: https://pnf.hs.pitt.edu . If you have any questions, please contact Chris
Szalkuski at szalkuskict@upmc.edu.
Veteran's Day National Remembrance Day Roll Call
November 11, 2015— 1:00pm
The University of Pittsburgh Office of Veterans Services (OVS) celebrates those
who have served and are serving, and remember with gratitude those who gave
all, both within Pitt's student body and throughout the region.
All Pennsylvania service members who have died while serving our country in Iraq and
Afghanistan, will be honored. Visit the Heinz Chapel Website to learn more.