Inside... - University of Pittsburgh :: MSTP

Student Accolades
Congratulations to our newly funded F30 Awards!
Amin Afrazi, Regulation of TLR4 Signaling in Enterocytes in Necrotizing Enterocolitis (Mentor:
David Hackam, MD, PhD)
Agnieszka Kalinowski, Molecular Determinants of Lamin A Accumulation in Human Aging and
Disease (Mentor: Kris Noel Dahl, PhD)
Gerald Nora, Processing of Alternative Structures in Telomeric DNA (Mentor: Patricia Opresko,
PhD)
Daniel Roh, Homeostatic Roles of Connexin43 in response to DNA Damage (Mentor: James
Funderburgh, PhD)
Deepak Soneji, Sensitization of Intact Nociceptors Following Contralateral Nerve Injury (Mentor:
Richard Koerber, PhD)
Jeremy Tilstra, The Role of NF-kB Signaling in Aging (Mentor: Paul Robbins, PhD)
Congratulations, Doctor! Recently Awarded PhDs
Mehret Birru The Associations of Ethnicity, Cardiovascular Risk Factors, and Socioeconomic
Status with Subclinical Cardiovascular Disease, Advisor: Karen Matthews, PhD (Epidemiology; Pitt)
Christopher Crowe Critical Role of Interleukin-17 Receptor Signaling in the Immunopathology
of Influenza Infection, Advisor: Jay Kolls, MD (Immunology; Pitt)
Sherrie Divito Recipient Dendritic Cells Dictate Allograft Fate, Advisor: Adrian Morelli, MD,
PhD (Immunology; Pitt)
Corrine Kliment Extracellular Superoxide Dismutase, Oxidative Stress and Extracellular Matrix
Syndecans in Pulmonary and Cardiac Fibrosis, Advisor: Tim Oury, MD, PhD (Cellular and
Molecular Pathology; Pitt)
Cyrus Raji The Role of Hypertensive Vascular Disease in Brain Aging and Neurodegeneration,
Advisor: William Klunk, MD, PhD (Cellular & Molecular Pathology; Pitt)
Peter Vosler Critical Role of Eukaryotic Translation Initiation Factor 4G Degradation in Mediating
Ischemia-induced Neuronal Death, Advisor: Jun Chen, MD, PhD (Neuroscience; Pitt)
Genevieve Woodard Evaluating Novel Risk Factor Associations for Subclinical Cardiovascular
Disease, Advisor: Kim Sutton-Tyrrell, M.P.H., Dr.P.H. (Epidemiology; Pitt)
6
Pezzone, from page 2
for the second year Digestion and
Nutrition course, rounds with residents
and works with fellows in the clinic, all
of which allow him many opportunities
to teach medical trainees. Dr. Pezzone
emphasizes that “an advantage of
being an MD/PhD is having the ability to
work on clinical trials and make clinical
observations that can then be studied
in animal models of disease. It’s great
being able to work on both sides of the
equation.”
In addition to the progress made
with his work on gastrointestinal pain
research, Dr. Pezzone has also received
the honor of being named one of
Pittsburgh Magazine’s Top Doctors for
the past two years. He enjoys being
invited to conferences for patient
organizations as well as speaking to the
public about new therapies and clinical
trials that have the potential to help a
great many of his patients that suffer
from pain with no identifiable source.
Over the course of the 22 years Dr.
Pezzone has spent here at the University
of Pittsburgh, he has found that what
he values most are the connections
and collaborations he has established
with other faculty. He believes that
this would certainly not be the case
had he gone elsewhere for residency
or for fellowship. Dr. Pezzone’s pearls
of wisdom for current students in our
program, whether they be starting out
in their pre-clinical medical school years
or are thinking about residency program
applications is “to find good mentors
and keep working hard. Your persistence
will pay off.”
by Lolita Nidadavolu, G1
Dr. Pezzone can be contacted at
pezzone@pitt.edu.