ORBIT Overview
The Office of Research, Biomedicine, Innovation and Technology—ORBIT—supports and promotes research, innovation and global surgical activities in the Department of Surgery at VCU School of Medicine. Through coordinated avenues of basic science research and translational research/clinical trials, ORBIT supports the development of true surgeon-scientists.
ORBIT facilitates multidisciplinary research by matching surgeons with like-minded scientists in fields such as engineering, biochemistry, pharmacology, arts, and outcomes research. These collaborations support academic surgeons to develop their ideas into testable hypotheses, experimental models, and tangible outcomes resulting in market-based discoveries.
In addition, ORBIT contributes to improving opportunities and partnerships in the areas of global surgery education, mentorship, research, skills training, and clinical care. We feel this infrastructure will enable us to recruit the best researchers in the field of surgery, as well as support our current faculty to secure research funding.
As an emerging leader in surgical collaborations, ORBIT provides:
- Support and mentorship to junior faculty and researchers who are interested in pursuing external funding; connecting them with research mentors.
- Resources to assist with notification and distribution of internal and external funding opportunities and supplement competitive projects.
- "Start-to-finish" administrative support to improve communication and reduce duplication of tasks.
- Financial incentives such as our Internal Grant Program, Housestaff Research Award, or Faculty NIH Grant Submission Award.
Christine B. & David E. Cottrell Surgical Innovation Laboratory
In gratitude for and acknowledgement of the generous gift from Christine and David Cottrell, VCU School of Medicine announces the new surgical innovation laboratory will be named in their honor.
About the Christine B. & David Cottrell Surgical Innovation Laboratory
Meet the Co-Chairs of ORBIT
ORBIT: Where team-based science can flourish.
Adam P. Klausner, M.D.
Associate Chair, Clinical and Translational Research
Eminent Scholar and Warren Koontz, M.D., III, Professor of Urology Research
Director, Neuro-Urology & Voiding Dysfunction
Program Director, Urology Residency
adam.klausner@vcuhealth.org
Martin J. Mangino, Ph.D.
Associate Chair, Basic Science Research
Professor, Departments of Surgery; Emergency Medicine; Physiology and Biophysics (joint appointments)
martin.mangino@vcuhealth.org
2019 VETAR and PeRQ Grant Award Recipients
Congratulations to the following surgery faculty named among the recipients for 2019 internal grant awards: “Collectively, these awards represent an increased and broader commitment to the research careers of our faculty. They also demonstrate the high quality of science at VCU.” Peter F. Buckley, MD, Dean, VCU School of Medicine
Value and Efficiency Teaching and Research (VETAR) is a result from VCUHS Vision by Design, and is a new funding source and methodology to support academic activities in research. Each year, proposals are reviewed carefully by two experts and discussed at one of seven expert review panel meetings before the VETAR Executive Committee makes final funding announcements.
Sudha Jayaraman, Tilahun Adera – “Evaluation of Trauma Care Using a Multi-Institutional Trauma Registry in Rwanda”
Stefan Leichtle, Vishal Yajnik, Dennis J. Rivet – “Ascorbic Acid Concentrations in Traumatic Brain Injury Patients: A Potential Target for Intervention”
Nicholas D. Thomson – “The Impact of Endogenous Omega-3 Levels on the Development of PTSD, Aggression and Drug Use in Victims of Violence”
To learn more about this funding opportunity:
https://medschool.vcu.edu/news/som-dean/pride-in-our-accomplishments-impressive-growth-in-research-also-new-funding-opportunities/
The Presidential Research Quest Fund (PeRQ) awards up to $30,000 each in University funding plus matching funds, usually up to $20,000, from the school or college in which the principal investigator resides.”
Adam Klausner – “Novel Hemodynamic Metrics to Differentiate Brain and Bladder Influences in Overactive Bladder”
Learn more about PeRQ funding: https://research.vcu.edu/vpr/research_fund/index.htm
VCU News
VCU researchers’ solution for stabilizing trauma patients ‘buys you time’
Surgery Research Day 2019 was held on April 4 at the George Ben Johnston Auditorium
This year's visiting professor and guest judge was Timothy Pawlik, MD, PhD, MPH, Professor and Chair, Department of Surgery, Ohio State University College of Medicine and the Urban Meyer III and Shelly Meyer Chair of Cancer Research. Presentations were limited to 7 minutes, followed by 3–4 minute Q&A.
Nina Wickramaratne: "Low Volume Resuscitation with Polyethylene Glycol-20k Confers Survival after Severe Hemorrhagic Shock"
Ria Fyffe-Freil: "Mechanisms of Hepatocyte Preservation Injury: Spingosine-1-phosphate Signaling"
Jad Khoraki: "Low Volume Resuscitation with Polyethylene Glycol-20k for Uncontrolled Severe Hemorrhagic Shock"
Nina Wickramaratne: "Molecular mechanism of Ischemic Cholangiopathy in cadaveric donor livers"
Naveen Nandanan: "Quantification of Acute Dynamic Elasticity In An Ex Vivo Isolated Pig Bladder Model"
Uzoma Anele: "Urinary dysfunction in transgenic sickle cell mice: model of idiopathic overactive bladder syndrome"
Ashley Rosenberg: "Innovative mobile solutions for ambulances in low resource settings"
Ben Rothstein: "Predictive hemodynamic monitoring in cardiac surgery; an observational validation study of the Hypotension Prediction Index"
Wayne Tse: "Post-Operative Urinary Retention (POUR): A Common and Costly Complication in Hernia Repair"
Jonathan DeAntonio: "Providing Care to Children from Low and Middle-Income Countries with Complex Surgical Problems: An 18 Year Review"
Bernardo Pessoa: "Endoscopic Assisted Laparoscopic Repair of Distal Esophageal Perforation in Boerhaave’s Syndrome"
Jeffrey Stern: "Pre-transplant Recipient Blood Lipid Signature Predicts Rejection In First Year Post Kidney Transplant"
Christine Bierema: "Evaluation of Inhalation Injury: Is Higher Level of Care Always Beneficial?"
Natalie Swavely: "Multi-channel Urodynamics in Healthy Volunteers: Challenges in Defining 'Normal'"
Closing Remarks and Acknowledgement of Judges by Department of Surgery Chair, Vigneshwar Kasirajan, M.D.
Yahya Alwatari: Racial Disparity in Access to Healthcare for Patients with Lung Cancer Observed in a Large National Database
Isaiah Brown: Unresolved hyperparathyroidism due to mediastinal parathyroid adenoma
Daniel Lima Galvez: Case Report: Unusual cause of a rapidly growing thyroid mass compressing the airway
Ashley Rosenberg: Management of Traumatic Brain Injuries in the Prehospital Setting in Kigali, Rwanda
Wayne Tse: Application of the Risk Analysis Index in Endovascular Aortic Aneurysm Repair Procedures
Naveen Nandanan: Surgical Delay for Radical Prostatectomy May Be Associated with Higher Positive Surgical Margin Rates and Increased Biochemical
Jeffrey Stern: Pseudocyst of Pancreas Transplant Allograft, a Rare Complication
Timothy Pawlik, MD, PhD, MPH (Visiting Professor and 2019 Guest Judge)
Professor and Chair, Department of Surgery, Ohio State University College of Medicine
Martin Mangino, Ph.D.
Associate Chair, Basic Science Research, VCU Surgery; Professor of Surgery
Kirsty Dixon, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, VCU Surgery; Division of Transplant Surgery
Stefano Toldo, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Cardiology, VCU Internal Medicine, Division of Cardiology
