In the News

Featuring the most current honors, awards, and publications featuring or authored by UT Southwestern’s Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences and its faculty, graduate students, postdocs, and alumni.

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, Eric Olson, PhD, Chairman of the the Department of Molecular Biology 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 - Helen Hobbs, MD, 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 17 issue of Cell. Robert works in the laboratory of Neal Alto, PhD, 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 Steve Kliewer, PhD, 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

Faculty in the News

May 31, 2012 - In the May 31st issue of Nature, Chengcheng "Alex" Zhang, PhD, Assistant Professor of Physiology and member of the Immunology and Integrative Biology graduate programs, and colleagues identified a protein receptor on cancer cells in mice and humans that plays an unexpected role in helping blood cancer cells grow by preventing them from differentiating. Read more

Feb. 8, 2012 - Zhijian "James" Chen, PhD, 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 30. Read more

Postdocs in the News

June 4, 2012 - Nian Huang, PhD, (not pictured), postdoctoral researcher working in the lab of Hong Zhang, PhD, (pictured, left) in the Department of Biochemistry, co-published with Yogarany Chelliah (pictured, right), HHMI research specialist in the laboratory of Joseph Takahashi, PhD, (right center), the first ever crystal structure of the heterodimeric CLOCK:BMAL1 transcriptional activator complex in the on May 31 issue of Science Express, the online version of Science. Read more

April 26, 2012 - In the April 27 issue of Cell, Chad Grueter, PhD, (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 - Pavan Battiprolu, PhD, postdoctoral scholar in the laboratory of Joseph Hill, MD, PhD, 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

Aug. 1, 2012 - In Nature online today, Dr. Jian Chen (lead author), a former postdoctoral researcher with Dr. Luis Parada (senior author), and colleagues published results that show the existence of a subset of brain tumor cells in mice that are slower growing or remain at rest and appear to be the source of recurrence after standard therapy. According to the researchers, these can be identified as cancer stem-like cells. Dr. Chen is currently a senior scientist at OriGene Technologies in China. Read more

Former neuroscience graduate student Yun Li, PhD, 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 Luis Parada, PhD, 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