Med.E.Mail
Weekly Information from the Dean’s Offices
Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto
June 28, 2004
Volume 12, Number 40
IN
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THIS ISSUE:
FAST FACULTY FACT
CANADA RESEARCH CHAIRS
CIHR OPERATING GRANTS
HONOURS AND AWARDS
APPOINTMENTS
DEPARTMENT OF OBSTETRICS AND GYNAECOLOGY AWARDS
CYSTIC FIBROSIS FOUNDATION GRANTS
EVENTS AND LINKS TO EVENT WEBSITES
LINKS TO OTHER NEWSLETTERS/WEBSITES
FAST FACULTY FACT
For the 2004-2005 academic year, over 500 applications were received for
postgraduate medical residency and fellowship positions for candidates pre-selected
and funded by their foreign sponsoring agencies/governments. Based on previous
years' experience, our acceptance rate is estimated at ten percent of total
applications. Thus we have assured ourselves of excellent candidates and have
fulfilled the University's mission of being "an internationally significant research
university, with undergraduate, graduate and professional programs of excellent
quality.
CANADA RESEARCH CHAIRS
The results of the latest Canada Research Chairs (CRC) Program competition were
announced in April. The aim of the CRCs Program is to help Canadian universities
attract and retain the best researchers and achieve research excellence in health,
natural sciences, technology, social sciences and humanities. The following Faculty of
Medicine faculty received either Tier I or Tier II Canada Research Chairs in this
announcement:
Tier I
Tier one CRCs are awarded to faculty who hold full Professor appointments or
Associate Professor appointments with the expectation that they will be promoted to
Professor within one or two years. The term of each CRC is seven years, renewable.
 James Dennis (Department of Medical Genetics and Microbiology)
 Daniel Drucker (Department of Medicine)
 Lori Frappier (Department of Medical Genetics and Microbiology)
 Mitsuhiko Ikura Department of Medical Biophysics)
 Amira Klip (Department of Paediatrics)
 Freda Miller (Department of Medical Genetics and Microbiology)
 Daniela Rotin (Department of Biochemistry)
 Michael Salter (Department of Physiology)
Tier II
Tier 2 CRCs are awarded to faculty holding the academic rank of Assistant or
Associate Professor. The terms of their CRCs are five years, renewable once.
 Tom Chau (Institute of Biomaterials and Biomedical Engineering)
 Paul Frankland (Department of Physiology)
 Sheena Josselyn (Department of Physiology)
 Pascal van Lieshout (Department of Speech-Language Pathology)
CIHR OPERATING GRANTS
The results of the March 2004 Canadian Institutes of Health Research operating
grants competition were announced on June 25/04. In this competition, grants
totaling $187M over five years were awarded. The UofT and the UofT-affiliated
research institutes garnered $39.6M of the total or 21.2%. For the UofT, 89 of the
257 grants submitted were approved - an overall 35% success rate. The national
success rate was 31%. Comparative market shares are shown below. Percentage of
funding received: Toronto 21.2, McGill 12.2, UBC 9.9, Montreal 9.3, Alberta 6.7,
Ottawa 5.0, Calgary 4.1, Western 3.7, MacMaster 3.5, Queens 3.4, and Dalhousie
2.1.
HONOURS AND AWARDS
Mary Jane Ashley (Department of Public Health Sciences) has received the
inaugural Lifetime Achievement Award, established by the partners in the Ontario
Tobacco Strategy. Prof. Ashley received the Award at the Ontario Tobacco Control
Conference held in Toronto in May. The citation for her Award read 'in recognition of
outstanding research, exemplary leadership and unflagging commitment to tobacco
control'. Henceforth, the award will be known as the Dr. Mary Jane Ashley Lifetime
Achievement Award. Also, at the same conference, the Ontario Tobacco Research
Unit announced the renaming of its studentship awards. They will be known as the
Ashley Studentships for Research in Tobacco Control. The renamed awards were
presented at the conference.
Karen Cross (Postgraduate Medical Trainee, supervisor - Joel Fish, Department of
Surgery) received the Wound Healing Society’s Young Investigator Award for her
research project, "Determination of burn depth using Near Infrared Spectroscopy".
She received the Award at the Society’s annual meeting in Atlanta, Georgia in May.
Anthony Lang (Department of Medicine) received the American Academy of
Neurology Movement Disorders Research Award at the Academy’s meeting in San
Francisco in April.
Roderick McInnes (Department of Paediatrics) has been selected as the winner of
the 2004 UofT Dales Award in Medical Research. With the support of the Helen A.C.
Dales bequest, the UofT Life Sciences Committee created this award to encourage
investigators of outstanding calibre to pursue research in the area of general
medicine. This cash award will support the direct costs of Dr. McInnes’ research in
the evaluation of health interventions and the measurement of patient outcomes.
Morris (Mickey) Milner (Department of Occupational Therapy) received an
Honorary Doctorate of Science from Queen's University (Kingston, Ontario) in May.
In receiving the degree, Dr. Milner was cited for “his lifetime devotion to the services
of young people with physical disabilities around the world”.
Jim Rutka (Department of Surgery) received the Senior Society’s 2004 Grass Prize
Award for lifetime research achievement at their meeting in New Orleans, Louisiana
in May. The Senior Society is the oldest neurosurgical society in North America and
is, essentially, comprised of North American program directors. At the meeting, Dr.
Rutka gave a presentation summarizing his research and participated in a major
panel. He is currently the Scientific Chairman for the upcoming meeting of the North
American Neurosurgical Academy in Berlin. He is also the Scientific Chair for the
meeting of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons - the biggest
neurosurgical meeting in the world.
Shia Salem (Department of Medical Imaging) is the recipient of the 2004 Ontario
Association of Radiologists’ (OAR) Lifetime Achievement Award for his lifetime
commitment to the practice of radiology. The OAR’s Lifetime Achievement Award is
awarded annually to an Ontario radiologist who has a distinguished record of
excellence through outstanding contributions to the practice of radiology in the areas
of radiology excellence in teaching, academics, research, radiology professionalism
and patient care advocacy. The Award was presented at the OAR Spring Meeting in
May.
Kunjumon Vadakkan (M.Sc. student, supervisor – Umberto De Boni, Department
of Physiology) received the Gerard T. Simon Award in the Biological Science Section
for his oral presentation at the Annual Meeting at the Microscopical Society of
Canada.
APPOINTMENTS
Arlene Bierman (Faculty of Nursing and Department of Medicine) will be a Deputy
Editor of the Journal of General Internal Medicine, effective for a five-year term
starting July 1, 2004.
Paul Fraser (Department of Medical Biophysics) has been appointed Academic
Director of the Faculty of Medicine’s Microscopy Imaging Laboratory (MIL), effective
July 1, 2004. Dr. Fraser succeeds Umberto DeBoni (Department of Physiology) who
has served in this role for the past 12 years. The MIL is located in MSB 1239. A
description of the equipment, services and rates can be found at
http://www.medresearch.utoronto.ca/c_home.html.
Walter Kucharczyk (Department of Medical Imagining) became President of the
International Society of Magnetic Resonance in Medicine (ISMRM) at the Annual
Meeting of the Society in Kyoto, Japan in May. He is the first Canadian to hold this
position. He had served the previous two years as Vice-President and President-Elect
of the ISMRM. The International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine is an
international, nonprofit, scientific association whose purpose is to promote
communication, research, development, and applications in the field of magnetic
resonance in medicine and biology and other related topics and to develop and
provide channels and facilities for continuing education in the field. It has a
multidisciplinary membership of over 5,000 clinicians, physicists, engineers and
biochemists, from over 40 different countries. The ISMRM is the largest scientific
association concerned with magnetic resonance in medicine in the world.
Peter Selby (Departments of Family and Community Medicine, Psychiatry and Public
Health Sciences) was appointed Clinical Director of the Addictions Program at the
Centre for Addiction and Mental Health for a five-year term, effective April 1, 2004.
DEPARTMENT OF OBSTETRICS AND GYNAECOLOGY AWARDS
The Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology awarded its 2004 Chair’s Awards and
Berlex Undergraduate Teaching Awards in May.
Chair’s Awards
 Adrian Brown – For Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching
 Rory Windrim – For Excellence in Postgraduate Teaching
 Andrea Jurisicova – For Outstanding Research Potential
 Allan Covens – For Sustained Excellence in Research
 Nicholas Leyland – For Research Facilitation
Berlex Undergraduate Teaching Awards
 Jennifer Cram – Toronto East General Hospital
 Nan Okun – Mount Sinai Hospital
 Elyse Levinsky – St. Michael’s Hospital
 Mary Melchior – St. Joseph’s Health Centre
 Barry Rosen – Princess Margaret Hospital
 Jeremy Wong – North York General Hospital
 Grace Liu – Sunnybrook and Women’s College Health Sciences Centre
CYSTIC FIBROSIS FOUNDATION GRANTS
The Cystic Fibrosis Foundation announced the results of their most recent grants
competition in April. The following faculty received grants in this announcement:
 Christine Bear (Department of Biochemistry) and co-investigators Lori
Burrows (Department of Surgery), Charles Deber (Department of
Biochemistry), Peter Durie (Department of Paediatrics), Clifford Lingwood
(Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathobiology), Daniela Rotin
(Department of Biochemistry), Herman Yeger (Department of Laboratory
Medicine and Pathobiology) – a three-year BREATHE (Basic REsearch and
THErapy) grant for their project, “Targeted small molecule therapies for cystic
fibrosis”.
 Christine Bear (Department of Biochemistry) – a three-year grant for her
project, “Structural basis of CFTR activity”.
 Jim Hu (Department of Paediatrics) – a three-year grant for his project,
“Molecular basis of CF airway inflammation”.
 Gergely Lukacs (Department of Surgery) – a three-year grant for his project,
“Structural defects of CF mutations with impaired trafficking”.
 Lap-Chee Tsui (Department of Medical Genetics and Microbiology) and J.
Zielenski – a three-year grant for their project, “Identification and analysis of
intragenic and extragenic determinants of clinical severity in CF”.
EVENTS AND LINKS TO EVENT WEBSITES
Med.E.Mail lists event websites with URL addresses. If you have an event that you
would like hyperlinked to Med.E.Mail, send the details to Leslie Bush at
leslie.bush@utoronto.ca
Week of June 28, 2004
 Samuel Lunenfeld Research Institute Seminar Series – Global analysis of
genomes and proteomes – Michael Snyder (Yale University, New Haven, U.S.A.)
– Wednesday, June 30, 2004, noon to 1:00 p.m. - Samuel Lunenfeld Research
Institute, Mount Sinai Hospital, Room 968, 600 University Avenue:
kramkowski@mshri.on.ca
Week of July 5, 2004
 Samuel Lunenfeld Research Institute Seminar Series – Mesoangioblasts,
vessel associated stem cells – Giulio Cossu (Stem Cell Research Institute, Dibit,
H. San Raffaele, Milan, Italy) –Monday, July 5, 2004, 2:00 to 3:00 p.m. - Samuel
Lunenfeld Research Institute, Mount Sinai Hospital, room 968, 600 University
Avenue: kramkowski@mshri.on.ca
 Faculty of Pharmacy, UofT - First MDTI symposium series on Molecular
Design in Drug Discovery and Development - Biomolecular Design and Drug
Discovery and Delivery of Macromolecules Into Cells Using Non-Viral Vectorsregistration required - poster competition – July 8 to 10, 2004 - 89 Chestnut
Street, Toronto: http://www.phm.utoronto.ca/~iubmb
Week of July 12, 2004
 Dr. Guo-Jaw Wang, President of Kaohsiung Medical University of Taiwan
will lecture on the pathogenesis and treatment of avascular necrosis-Friday July
16, 2004 at 7:30 a.m. in the Ground Floor Lecture Theatre at St. Michael’s
Hospital, 30 Bond Street: waddellj@smh.toronto.on.ca
September 2004
 South East Toronto Regional Stroke Network - Hypertension Guidelines
Workshop - interactive workshop on hypertension guidelines developed by the
Heart and Stroke Foundation of Ontario for Family Physicians - speakers: M.
Goldstein / W. Watson - Wednesday September 22, 7:30 to 10:00 a.m., 89
Chestnut Street, Terrace Room – to register: Hollie Mullins at
mullinsh@smh.toronto.on.ca or 416-864-6060 x2815
 4th Princess Margaret Hospital Conference on New Developments in
Cancer Management – Chair: Ronald Feld – September 22 to 24, 2004 – The
Marriott Eaton Centre, Toronto: c.chase@imedex.com or
www.imedex.com/calendars/oncology.htm
 Hospital for Sick Children - 1st Annual Conference on Paediatric
Emergency Medicine - International panel in paediatric emergency medicine Advanced Paediatric Life Support (APLS) course on Sept 29/30, Emergency
Nursing Paediatric Course (ENPC) Sept 29/30, Conference on Oct 1/2, 2004:
nicole.winters@sickkids.ca (brochure available May/June).
 Saturday at the University 2004/2005, Office of Continuing Education,
Faculty of Medicine - for general practitioners, family physicians, general
internists, and nurse practitioners - September 18, 2004, November 6, 2004,
December 4, 2004, January 29, 2005, February 26, 2005, April 2, 2005: 416978-2719/1-888-512-8173 (voice), 416-971-2200 (fax), ce.med@utoronto.ca (email), http://www.cme.utoronto.ca
October 2004
 Faculty of Medicine Continuing Education course - Current Issues in Child
Maltreatment 2004 – Topics: neglect, emotional abuse, medical updates, forensic
interviewing, sexualized behaviour, prevention – study credits - October 1 and 2,
2004 - 89 Chestnut Street, Toronto: http://www.cme.utoronto.ca or
ce.med@utoronto.ca
 Hospital for Sick Children - 4th Annual Conference on Children and Youth
New to Ontario - October 13, 2004, Hospital for Sick Children - brochure
available in July: brenda.rau@sickkids.ca or 416-813-8122
November 2004
 Hospital for Sick Children and Bloorview MacMillan Children's Centre Child Development Update - National and International Speakers in the field of
Child Development and Brain and Behaviour - November 18 and 19, 2004, Sutton
Place Hotel, Toronto - brochure available in July: brenda.rau@sickkids.ca or 416813-8122
LINKS TO OTHER NEWSLETTERS/WEBSITES
Links to other newsletters and websites are now posted on the Faculty of Medicine
website at: http://www.library.utoronto.ca/medicine/other.html. If you have a
newsletter/bulletin/website that you would like hyperlinked at this location, send the
details to Leslie Bush at leslie.bush@utoronto.ca
Med.E.Mail
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