Duke University Professional News, June 18, 2004

Randy Jirtle, professor of radiation oncology, will present a talk on "Biological Consequences of the Divergent Evolution of M6P/IGF2R" Saturday in Stockholm, Sweden, as part of the 2004 Nobel Symposium. This annual invitation-only forum is sponsored by the Nobel Foundation to bring attention to a vibrant area of study. This year's forum explores the field of epigenetics -- the study of heritable information that regulates gene function without actually changing the DNA sequence. Researchers are beginning to understand how epigenetic information plays a key role in gene expression, cell development and disease, such as cancer and obesity.

In his talk, Jirtle will present new findings about his study of how specific mutations in a gene affect human cognitive ability.

Earlier this week, Jirtle also spoke on "Imprinted Genes and Transposons: Epigenetic Targets Linking Prenatal Nutrition with Adult Disease Susceptibility" at the European Society of Human Genetics in Munich, Germany.

Four Duke scholars have been named National Humanities Center fellows for the 2004-2005 year. The 40 fellows will work on research projects during their stay at the center in Research Triangle Park.

The fellows and their projects are: Michael Gillespie, political science, "The Unity and Disunity of Modernity;" Margaret Humphreys, history, "The Civil War and American Medicine;" Richard Jaffe, religion, "Seeking Shakyamuni: World Travel and the Reconstruction of Japanese Buddhism, 1868-1945;" and Joe Marcus, religion, "The Passion Narrative in the Gospel of Mark."

Duke was the only institution to have four scholars named as NHC fellows. No other university had more than two scholars.

Two scientists from Duke Medical Center have been elected to fellowship in the American Academy of Microbiology. They are Joseph Heitman, M.D., Ph.D., Director, Center for Microbial Pathogenesis; and John R. Perfect, M.D., professor of Medicine and associate professor of Microbiology.

Heitman, who is also an associate investigator for the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, is honored for his landmark research using yeasts such as Saccharomyces cerevisiae as models to study the immune system.

Perfect, who also directs the Mycology Interdisciplnary Research Unit, is recognized by the academy for his record of basic and clinical research in medical mycology, with important discoveries in fungal pathogenesis as well as achievements in developing new treatments for patients.

Pascal J. Goldschmidt, the chairman of the Department of Medicine, and Vann Bennett, James B. Duke Professor of biology, biochemistry and neuroscience, have been elected to The Johns Hopkins University Society of Scholars. Goldschmidt and 14 other scientists and clinicians were honored during the society's 35th induction ceremony on May 19.

The Society of Scholars -- the first of its kind in the nation -- inducts former postdoctoral fellows and junior or visiting faculty at Johns Hopkins who have gained marked distinction in their fields of physical, biological, medical, social, or engineering sciences or in the humanities.

Kesav Mohan, who graduated from Duke in May, has won the George J. Mitchell Scholarship. Established in 2000 by the U.S.-Ireland Alliance, the George J. Mitchell scholarships are intended to connect the next generation of American leadership with the island of Ireland. The scholarships support one year of graduate study in any discipline offered at an institution of higher learning in Ireland or Northern Ireland.

Kesav, whose Program II major was designed around the question of global justice, is the first Duke student to win this award. He will attend Dublin-City University for an M.A. in international relations

Christopher D. Lascola, M.D., Ph.D., assistant professor of radiology and neurobiology, was one of two recipients to be awarded a 2004 American Roentgen Ray Society Scholarship. According to Lascola, he plans to use the scholarship to build a research program for developing new functional MR and molecular imaging approaches for studying activity-dependent changes in brain structure and function.

Tutor.com has presented its Virtual Reference June Innovator Award to Duke for the marketing plan developed by the library's reference team to promote its virtual reference program and connect with its users. The announcement mentioned specifically the "Who's On Chat" link at the Duke virtual reference Web site and the "Virtually Yours-Adopt a Librarian" program that took place in 2004.

The "Who's on Chat" link was created in response to feedback from students who were using the Chat Reference service and wanted to know something about the librarian with whom they were working. The "Virtually Yours-Adopt a Librarian" program, offered in February, was designed to attract new users to the Chat Reference service.

A team of Fuqua School students working with the North Carolina Justice and Community Development Center has won the school's Sax/Baldridge Award, given annually to the Small Business Consulting Teams in the management communications course that performed the most outstanding work for their clients.

"Collectively as a group, this was probably the strongest set of teams that I have had the pleasure of working with in the 17 years since I have been directing this program," said Bill Sax, executive-in-residence.

The winning team consisting of all first-year students included Pali Bhat, Tim Lessek, Samira Madhany, Nick Palmisciano, Tahseen Tajuddin and Mike Walsh. A team whose client was Affinergy received the second place. Two teams tied for the third place: a team working with Huntington Learning Center and the one working with Atlantic Spa & Billiards.