Graduate School in the News

Featuring the most current news and information about UT Southwestern’s Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences and its alumni, postdoctoral scholars, faculty, and graduate students.

U.S. News and World Report: 
2011 Best Graduate Schools

UT Southwestern Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences: 
#20 in Biological Sciences

Specialty Rankings:

• # 9 in Immunology
• #10 in Genetics & Development / Cancer Biology
• #11 in Biological Chemistry / Molecular Biophysics

Eric Olson, PhD, Receives Beering Award

April 2, 2012 - Known for his work at the interface of developmental biology of the heart and medicine, Dr. Eric Olson, chairman of the the molecular biology department at UT Southwestern and member of the Genetics & Development and Integrative Biology graduate programs, has won the 2012 Beering Award for outstanding advancements in biomedical or clinical science. Read more

Helen Hobbs, MD, awarded inaugural Antonio M. Gotto Jr. Prize

March 26, 2012 - Dr. Helen Hobbs, director of the Eugene McDermott Center for Human Growth and Development, a Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator, and member of the Genetics and Development graduate program, received the inaugural Antonio M. Gotto Jr. Prize in Atherosclerosis Research from the International Atherosclerosis Society. Dr. Hobbs leads the Dallas Heart Study and her research focuses on identifying genetic factors that contribute to variations in level of cholesterol in the blood. Read more.

March 1, 2012 - Microbiology graduate student Robert Orchard and colleagues reported a new molecular circuit in mammalian cells critical in establishment of the cell's sense of direction and in the ability of a bacterial cell to disrupt the circuit and cause disease in the mammal. His findings were published in the February 17th issue of Cell. Robert works in the laboratory of Dr. Neal Alto, member of the Microbiology and Cell Regulation graduate programs and senior author on the study. Read more

Feb. 6, 2012 - Available online in Cell, Paul Dutchak, former graduate student in the Integrative Biology graduate program, with mentor Dr. Steve Kliewer, professor of molecular biology and pharmacology and member of the Cell Regulation graduate program, and colleagues at UTSW were able to show that fibroblast growth factor 21 (FGF21) alters metabolism in mice in response to starvation by mobilizing the fat in adipose tissue back to the liver to burn it. When the mice are refed, it immediately turns back to restoring the fat. Read more

Dec. 15, 2012 - Ashlee Stiles, graduate student in the Genetics and Development graduate program, has been selected to participate in the University of Texas Archer Graduate Program in Public Policy in Washington, D.C. during the summer of 2012. The Archer Graduate Program in Public Policy is a competitive and prestigious 12-week academic course and working internship on Capitol Hill, Executive Branch agency, or other governmental or non-governmental agency in D.C. Ms. Stiles works in the laboratory of David Russell, PhD, Vice Provost and Dean or Basic Sciences and Professor of Molecular Genetics.

Faculty in the News

Feb. 8, 2012 - Dr. Zhijian "James" Chen, professor of molecular biology, Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator at UT Southwestern, and member of the Genetics & Development and Immunology graduate programs, will receive the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) Award in Molecular Biology for 2012 at the NAS' Annual Meeting on April 30th. Read more

Jan. 12, 2012 - Dr. Philipp Scherer, member of the Cell Regulation and Integrative Biology graduate programs, received the 2012 Edith and Peter O'Donnell Award for outstanding achievements by early-career investigators in science, medicine, engineering and technology innovation. The award recognizes his pioneering research in diabetes, obesity and fat cells. Dr. Scherer is one of four recipients of these awards presented by The Academy of Medicine, Engineering and Science of Texas (TAMEST) in January. Read more

Postdocs in the News

April 26, 2012 - In the April 27th issue of Cell, Dr. Chad Grueter (pictured, left), a postdoctoral scholar working in the laboratory of Eric Olson, PhD (pictured, right), and colleagues at UT Southwestern and miRagen Therapeutics, show that a heart-specific genetic pathway controls energy balance throughout the body. This study identifies the role of miR-208a and its target, MED13, in systemic metabolism by genetic manipulation or drug treatment of mice who were fed a high fat diet. These findings open up potential new pathways for treating diseases such as obesity and diabetes. Read more

Mar.1, 2012 - Dr. Pavan Battiprolu, postdoctoral scholar in the laboratory of Dr. Joseph Hill, and colleagues published a study in the March 1st issue of the Journal of Clinical Investigation in which the hearts of mice were protected from the deteriorating effects of diabetes by the selective deactivation of a single protein called FoxO1. Dr. Hill is a member of the Integrative Biology graduate program. Read more

Feb. 6, 2012 - In Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Dr. Wei Wei (pictured, center), postdoctoral scholar working in the laboratory of Dr. Yihong Wan (pictured, left), assistant professor of pharmacology and member of the Cancer Biology and Integrative Biology graduate programs, presents findings of significant and rapid bone loss in mice given FGF21, an anti-obesity and anti-diabetes drug that is currently in clinical trials. Also pictured is Dr. David Mangelsdorf, chairman of pharmacology and a corresponding author on the study. Read more

Former neuroscience graduate student Dr. Yun Li and colleagues at UT Southwestern published a study in the Journal of Neuroscience demonstrating that deletion of the Nf1 gene only in the brains of mice resulted in increased neurogenesis in the brain and in a lowering of the required dose of antidepressants needed to counteract the effects of stress in these mice. As a graduate student, Dr. Li worked in the laboratory of Dr. Luis Parada, senior author on the study and member of the Cancer Biology and Neuroscience graduate programs. Dr. Li is currently a postdoctoral researcher at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Read more

In a Cell paper last month, former Molecular Biophysics and Computational and Systems Biology graduate student Juan Mendoza and colleagues at UTSW were able to restore function to a defective form of cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) using a combination of mutations whose potential was identified using evolutionary analysis. Most cystic fibrosis patients suffer from the disease due to the misfolding of CFTR. Dr. Mendoza worked in the lab of Dr. Philip Thomas, senior author on the paper, and is currently a postdoctoral researcher at Stanford. Read more: Cell. 2012 Jan 20;148(1-2):164-74