Update
Issue 8
Message from the Director
Although our external funding environment remains challenging, internal pilot
grants for IHII investigators are more plentiful this year than they have been in
a long time. The CBEID recently funded five pilot grants of $50,000 each for one
year, and the IHII awarded seven pilot grants: six of these are $50,000 each for
two years, and one was a $25,000, one-year award. We are grateful to our Provost, Dr. Danny Jacobs, for making these funds available to support IHII faculty.
More information on these awards is listed below.
Planning for this year’s IHII Retreat, scheduled for December 5-6, 2013, is
nearing its final stages. Our keynote speaker will be Dr. Nancy Cox, Director of
the Influenza Division and of the WHO Collaborating Center for Surveillance,
Epidemiology and Control of Influenza at the National Center for Immunization
and Respiratory Diseases, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. With the
recent emergence of H7N9 avian influenza in Asia, the continued threat of H5N1
in the same region, and the constantly changing landscape of influenza genetics,
Dr. Cox’s presentation should be both timely and insightful.
September 2013
IN THIS ISSUE
Message from the Director
1
GSBS News1
IHII Pilot Grants
2
Mouse Core2
ORNcS3
McLaughlin3
SCVD
5
ID Trainee Publication
7
Basic Science II
8
IHII SURP Awards
8
This year we will again have three plenary speakers on Friday morning, but there will be more time for informal discussions of research strategies related to the three research themes:
1. Host defense-pathogen interactions. Leaders: Lynn Soong and Bobo Paessler; Invited speaker pending
2. Novel imaging approaches for the study of microbial pathogenesis. Leaders: Alex Freiberg, Massoud Motamedi
and Fred Murphy; Invited speaker pending
3. Infectious diseases of the central nervous system: opportunities at the intersection of neuroscience and microbiology. Leaders: Barry Rockx, Kathryn Cunningham and Scott Weaver. Invited speaker: Dorian McGavern, PhD,
Chief, Viral Immunology and Intravital Imaging Sections, National Institute of Neurological
Disorders and Stroke, NIH
Please mark your calendar and plan to participate in the retreat again this year.
GSBS Interim Vice President and Dean Announced
The Institute for Human Infections & Immunity wishes to congratulate Dr. David Niesel,
Professor and Chair of the Department of Microbiology and Immunology, on his appointment as Interim Vice President and Dean of the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences
(GSBS). Dr. Niesel succeeds Dr. Cary Cooper, who retired at the end of August. A founding
member of the IHII, Dr. Niesel has been a UTMB faculty member since 1983 and holds the J.
Palmer Saunders Professorship. He has served as Vice Dean of the GSBS for the past 15 years
and as Chair of Microbiology and Immunology since 2000.
Scott Weaver, PhD
Director, IHII
IHII Update
2
IHII Pilot Grants
Since 2010, the Institute for Human Infections and Immunity (IHII) has awarded a number of one- and two-year pilot
grants to UTMB faculty researching infectious diseases and immunology. This year we targeted proposal topics that
build our capacity to compete for major funding initiatives available now or anticipated from the NIH, as well as those
that exploit new technologies available on our campus. The IHII is pleased to announce the following awards for fiscal
year 2014:
Patricia Aguilar, PhD
Lynn Soong, MD, PhD
Peter Melby, MD
Gustavo Valbuena, MD, PhD
Victor Reyes, PhD
Gracie Vargas, PhD
Role of autophagy in tick-borne
phlebovirus infection
In situ imaging to dissect mechanisms of Leishmania dissemination
H. pylori and host interactions
that determine immunity or
immune escape
S-nitrosylation in regulation of Leishmania virulence
Intravital high-resolution imaging of
the microvasculature during infections with Rickettsia
Novel imaging methods for study
of neurotropic virus effects on BBB
permeability
Sanjeev Sahni, PhD
Novel Small Regulatory RNAs of
Rickettsia conorii
Mouse Strains Available from the Transgenic Mouse Core Facility
With the current uncertainty surrounding the federal budget and the increased competition for extramural support,
many investigators have found themselves in the difficult position of not having the financial resources to maintain
colonies of their genetically modified mice. The IHII recognizes the value of retaining these important resources and has
therefore made funds available to the Transgenic Mouse Core Facility to allow investigators to cryogenically preserve
their mouse strains. We are currently supporting cryopreservation of the following genetically modified mouse strains:
• Ifnar1-KO
• Il17a-KO
• Irf3-KO
• Myd88-KO
• Tlr3-KO
• Tlr7-KO
If you have genetically modified mice that are not readily available from commercial sources and would be of value to
the infectious diseases community, please contact Dr. Maki Wakamiya at mawakami@utmb.edu for additional information.
IHII Update
3
ORNcS Offers Free Course on Good Documentation Practices
The Institutional Office of Regulated Nonclinical Studies (ORNcS) will be offering
interactive training courses on Implementing Good Documentation Practices
during the months of September, October, and November. Good Documentation
Practices are essential tools in working in a regulated and non-regulated research
environment. If you didn’t document it, you didn’t do it! Participants will gain
essential knowledge in the areas of proper documentation entries and error
correction procedures via physical copies and electronically. Topics to be covered
include the importance of good documentation practices, how to correct errors
and omissions in data entry, how to sign, date and label data and records, and
how to complete documentation such as data collection forms. This course is
valuable for all professionals in basic research, drug discovery, product development, quality assurance, information technology and regulatory affairs.
Prospective attendees should register for one of the following sessions: Thursday, Sept. 26, 10-11:00a OR Wednesday,
Oct. 30, 2-3:00p OR Thursday, Nov. 14, 2-3:00p. All training classes will be held in the Galveston National Laboratory
first floor conference room (GNL 1.100). A certificate of attendance will be is given to attendees upon completion of the
training course. To register, visit http://my.utmb.edu/PStraining.
This course is offered as part of a series of free classes given by faculty and staff in the ORNcS. The ORNcS partners with
the scientific community to plan and conduct regulated studies for the advancement of medical countermeasures. If
you would like more information, please contact the office at ORNCS@utmb.edu or call 409.747.8138.
McLaughlin Fellowship Fund
New McLaughlin Fellows
Since 1954, the McLaughlin endowment has supported over 700 infectious disease and immunology students and postdoctoral fellows via fellowships formally titled “The James W. McLaughlin Fellowships for the Investigation of Infection
and Immunity”. New McLaughlin Fellows for fiscal year 2014 were announced recently. They are: Predoctoral Fellows
Department
Proposal Title
Mentor(s)
Roberto Cieza Microbiology &
Immunology
Understanding the host response associ- Dr. Alfredo
ated with AIEC invasion
Torres
Heather
Evans-Marin
Microbiology &
Immunology
miR-10a regulation of intestinal immune Dr. Yingzi Cong
responses to microbiota in colitis
Christie Hay
Microbiology &
Immunology
Assessment of Leishmania-induced
immunity by recombinant antigens and
adjuvants
Dr. Lynn Soong
IHII Update
4
Olga
Kolokoltsova
Pathology
Mechanism and role of apoptosis induction in Candid#1 Junin virus attenuation
Dr. Slobodan
Paessler
Rose
Langsjoen
Pathology
Developing host chaperone proteins as
anti-CHIKV drug targets
Dr. Scott
Weaver
Taslima Lina
Microbiology &
Immunology
Helicobacter pylori Type 4 Secretion
System Modulates Host T Cell Response
Dr. Victor
Reyes
Alexander
McAuley
Microbiology &
Immunology
Role of Flaviviral E Glycoproteins in Host
Tissue Tropisms and Cellular Responses
Inaia Phoenix Pathology
Manipulation of the Rift Valley fever
virus Gn/Gc for vaccine development
Krista
Versteeg
Microbiology &
Immunology
Impact of Bundibugyo ebolavirus Proteins on Innate Antiviral Pathways
Dr. David
Beasley /
Dr. Dennis
Bente
Dr. Tetsuro
Ikegami /
Dr. Alan
Barrett
Dr. Thomas
Geisbert
Department
Proposal Title
Mentor(s)
A. Jonathan
Auguste, PhD
Pathology
Evolution of Eastern equine encephalitis
virus’ host association and virulence
Dr. Scott
Weaver
Anthony Cao,
PhD
Microbiology &
Immunology
LPS-TLR4 inhibition of regulatory T cells
during intestinal inflammation
Dr. Yingzi Cong
Postdoctoral Fellows
McLaughlin Reception
The annual McLaughlin Reception was held August 29 in
Levin Hall Dining Room. Along with outgoing McLaughlin
Committee members, Tom Geisbert and Gregg Milligan,
the committee honored Dr. C.J. Peters by presenting
him with an engraved James W. McLaughlin medallion in
recognition of his outstanding contributions to infectious
disease research. Dr. Peters is pictured at right (center)
with Dr. James LeDuc and Dr. Peter Melby after the
presentation of the medallion.
IHII Update
5
2013-2014 McLaughlin Committee
The McLaughlin Committee is comprised of at least seven faculty members of the UTMB School of Medicine as well as
ex officio members representing the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences and the Institute for Human Infections
and Immunity. The Committee would like to thank our outgoing members, Dr. Tom Geisbert and Dr. Gregg Milligan, for
their service over the past two years. Members of the McLaughlin Committee for fiscal year 2014 are:
David Beasley, PhD
Microbiology & Immunology
Nigel Bourne, PhD
Pediatrics / Microbiology & Immunology
Antonella Casola, MD
Pediatric Infectious Diseases
Rolf König, PhD, ex officio
Director, Microbiology & Immunology Graduate Program
Jere McBride, PhD, ex officio
Director, Experimental Pathology Graduate Program
Andrew McNees, PhD, MBA, ex officio
Peter Melby, MD, Committee Chair
Director of Administrative Services, Institute for Human Infections and
Immunity
Internal Medicine/Infectious Diseases
Frederick Murphy, DVM, PhD
Pathology
David Niesel, PhD, ex officio
Chair, Microbiology & Immunology; Interim Vice President and Dean, GSBS
Slobodan Paessler, DVM, PhD
Pathology
Tian Wang, PhD
Microbiology & Immunology
Scott Weaver, PhD, ex officio
Director, Institute for Human Infections and Immunity
Sealy Center for Vaccine Development
New SCVD Fellows
The Sealy Center for Vaccine Development received many applications for graduate student fellowships this year and
the following five were selected.
Charles “Brent” Chesson
Human Pathophysiology and Translational Medicine Student
Third Year
Mentor: Jai Rudra, PhD
Project Title: Enhanced CD8+ CTL Responses from Self-Adjuvanting Peptide Nanofibers
John “Tyler” Manning
Experimental Pathology Student
Second Year
Mentor: Slobodan Paessler, DVM, PhD
Project Title: Expression Plasmid-Driven rescue of rML29 Virus Clones and Genotypic and Phenotypic
Comparison of rML29 to the Lassa Virus Vaccine Candidate ML29
IHII Update
6
Bethany Tiner
Microbiology & Immunology Student
Second Year
Mentor: Ashok Chopra, PhD, CSc
Project Title: Construction and testing of a novel live-attenuated vaccine for Yersinia pestis deleted
for three virulence determinants: Unlinking the virulence and immunogenic domains for one of the
antigens to retain full immunogenicity of the vaccine
Jingya Xia
Microbiology & Immunology Student
Fourth Year
Mentor: Gregg Milligan, PhD
Project Title: Understanding the relationship between PRR signaling and the development of adaptive
immune responses
Guorui Xie
Microbiology & Immunology Student
Fourth Year
Mentor: Tian Wang, PhD
Project Title: MyD88-dependent signaling pathways in protective immunity against an attenuated
West Nile virus infection
SURP Student Award
The Summer Undergraduate Research Program (SURP) is designed to provide stimulating hands-on research experience
for undergraduate students considering graduate education in biomedical sciences. This year, the Sealy Center for
Vaccine Development Award was awarded to Jason Sato, a student from Duke University, Durham, North Carolina.
During his summer at UTMB, he was mentored by Dennis Bente, DVM, PhD. The title of his poster presentation was
“Development of a surrogate for BSL4 Tick-Bourne Hemorrhagic Fever viruses”. We congratulate Jason Sato and wish
him luck in his future studies.
World Health Organization Internship Program
The Sealy Center for Vaccine Development, in conjunction with the World Health Organization (WHO) headquarters,
has developed a new internship program that we are planning to implement during calendar year 2014. The internship
program will support two graduate students per year, with each student spending three months in Geneva, Switzerland.
Successful applicants will be chosen by a combined SCVD and WHO selection committee. If selected, students will live
in Geneva and will be assigned a mentor at WHO and a SCVD member to work on a defined project for a period of
three months (most likely in either the spring or fall of 2014). This project will involve significant contribution to a team
tasked with developing a report on vaccines and a specific infectious disease for the WHO. The SCVD will provide funds
for expenses ($10,000 for three months, including cost of flights) plus stipend while the student is in Geneva. Interns
may be required to take one or two (depending on their background) epidemiology courses prior to the internship. For
academic purposes, it will be treated as a graded graduate course elective with credit.
We believe this program represents an outstanding career development opportunity for UTMB’s graduate students and
will provide the successful interns with first-hand experience of global health planning and policy. SCVD will facilitate
the application process and work with WHO on the project design and implementation.
For more information, please contact Drs. David Beasley (dwbeasle@utmb.edu), Gregg Milligan (gnmillig@utmb.edu),
Bridget Hawkins (behawkin@utmb.edu) or Alan Barrett (abarrett@utmb.edu).
IHII Update
7
SCVD’s Clinical Trials Group Ongoing Clinical Trials
Some of the CTG’s current clinical trials:
H7N9 Bird Flu Vaccine Study for 19-64 Year Olds
PURPOSE: Vaccination is currently the most effective way of controlling flu and preventing its illness and complications.
In March, 2013 a new avian (bird) flu virus, causing severe disease or death in infected patients, was reported in China.
The purpose of this study is to test the safety and effectiveness of a new bird flu vaccine (H7N9 flu shot) as part of
the United States government preparedness in case this virus spreads world-wide. We are recruiting healthy male or
non-pregnant female volunteers, ages 19 to 64 years old, who are able to attend five clinic visits and reply to six phone
calls needed for new avian (bird) flu vaccine study. – Enrolling Now
Dengue Vaccine Study for 18-45 Year Olds
PURPOSE: Dengue fever is caused by infection with the dengue virus. The virus is transmitted from human to human
by mosquitoes. Infection with a dengue virus can result in a range of symptoms, from subclinical disease to debilitating
but transient dengue fever to life-threatening dengue hemorrhagic fever (DHF) to dengue shock syndrome (DSS). An
estimated 36 million cases of dengue fever occur annually, which results in around 2.3 million cases of DHF and an
estimated 20,000 deaths, primarily in children. Dengue is considered the most serious vector-borne disease in children,
especially in countries in Southeast Asia, where more than 50% of all dengue cases and dengue related deaths occur in
children below the age of 15 years. However, adults are also frequently at risk and, in some areas, have a greater incidence of disease than children. Mosquito control efforts in endemic areas have been ineffective in preventing dengue
outbreaks or in preventing further geographical spread of the disease. Since World War II, the four dengue viruses have
spread worldwide and are endemic in Asia, Central and South America including Colombia, the Caribbean, the Pacific
Islands, and parts of Africa and Australia. Clearly, there is a need for a safe and effective vaccine that will protect against
dengue infection. – Enrolling Now
Measles, Mumps Rubella Vaccine Study for 12 to 15 Month Olds
PURPOSE: A phase IIIA, randomized, observer-blind, multinational consistency study to evaluate the immunogenicity
and safety of GSK Biologicals’ MMR vaccine (209762) (Priorix®) compared to Merck & Co., Inc.’s MMR vaccine (M-MR®II), as a first dose, both co-administered with Varivax, Havrix and Prevnar 13 (subset of children) to healthy children
12 to 15 months of age. – Enrolling Now
Herpes Zoster (Shingles) Vaccine Study
PURPOSE: The purpose of this study is to learn about the safety and effectiveness of an inactivated (not live) experimental herpes zoster vaccine in people with certain cancers. Zoster (HZ), or shingles, is a reactivation of the virus
varicella which initially causes chickenpox. Following a chicken pox infection, the virus remains dormant in the nervous
system until it reactivates, producing HZ. HZ is usually characterized by a painful, blistery skin rash. People with a
lowered immune system have a higher chance of HZ, compared to the general population, and are at increased risk
for developing severe and life-threatening complications. The only vaccine right now for shingles is a live vaccine and
people who have lowered immune system should not take this vaccine. – Enrolling Now
If you are interested in volunteering for a vaccine clinical trial, join the
Registry!
The Sealy Center for Vaccine Development (SCVD) Clinical Trials Group (CTG) Registry is a list of people who may be interested in participating in clinical research.
Learn more about it and sign up now at www.utmb.edu/scvd/clintrial. The Clinical Trials
Group can also be contacted at 409.772.5278 or scvd.ctg@utmb.edu.
IHII Update
8
ID Trainee Publication Highlight
Continued evolution of West Nile virus, Houston, Texas, USA, 2002-2012
Brian Mann, Allison McMullen, Daniele Swetnam, Vence Salvato, Martin Reyna, Hilda Guzman, Rudy Bueno, Jr., James
Dennett, Robert Tesh, Alan Barrett. Emerging Infectious Diseases. 2013. 19(9):1418-1427.
In the September edition of Emerging Infectious Diseases, Experimental Pathology pre-doctoral student Brian Mann, BS, and his mentor Alan Barrett, PhD, highlight the continued
evolution of West Nile virus (WNV) in Houston, Texas, during the recent 2012 epidemic. The
emergence of WNV in the Western hemisphere in 1999 poses an ongoing public health threat
in North America as the most common cause of epidemic encephalitis in the United States
with no licensed vaccine or anti-viral therapeutic. Clinical incidence of human WNV infection
in the 2012 Texas outbreak alone accounted for >33% of cases in the United States with
>5,600 human infections reported nation-wide. In this publication, Mann and colleagues coupled in-depth sequence and phylogenetic analysis of fourteen novel WNV isolates collected
from resident birds in Harris County (Houston), Texas to demonstrate the emergence of four
independent genetic groups distinct from historical WNV strains in circulation in the greater
Houston region since 2002. Furthermore, phylogenetic comparison with published 1999-2010 US strains indicates the
close relationship of these isolates with 2006-2009 northeastern US isolates, which supports the potential introduction
of a novel WNV strain in Texas since 2010. The results from their study provide new insights into the role of continued
WNV evolution and molecular epidemiology in transmission dynamics and incidence of clinical WNV disease.
Mr. Mann received his BS in Biochemistry/Molecular Biology from Wittenberg University. He joined Dr. Barrett’s
research group in 2011 as a graduate student to investigate genotypic determinants of West Nile virus evolution and
molecular pathogenesis.
Basic Science II Awards
Basic Science II (BS2), the administrative group that provides administrative and financial support for the Department
of Microbiology and Immunology, Institute for Human Infections and Immunity (IHII), Office of Regulated Nonclinical
Studies (ORNcS), Sealy Center for Vaccine Development (SCVD) and Galveston National Lab (GNL), recently instituted
an employee recognition program and distributed its second group of awards. Awards are presented on a quarterly
basis and are available in four categories: customer service, innovation, leadership and teamwork. This quarter’s award
recipients, as determined by a rotating committee of administrative and financial staff, were:
Cecily Garcia
Administrative Coordinator
Customer Service Award
Leadership Award
Denis Gooding
Biomedical/Clinical Engineering
Specialist III
Team Award
IHII SURP Awards
The Summer Undergraduate Research Program (SURP) of the GSBS is a summer program designed to provide stimulating hands-on research experience for undergraduate students considering graduate education in biomedical sciences.
This year, IHII sponsored awards of $250 each for two visiting students who gave outstanding poster presentations:
Laura Tucker from Georgia Tech, who was mentored during her time at UTMB by Dr. Nisha Garg, and Gregorio Garza of
Texas A&M International University, who was mentored by Dr. Jianli Dong.