College News

After a heart attack, the body rapidly floods the injured heart with neutrophils — white blood cells that help repair damage but can also make it worse when too many arrive too quickly. New research from the University of Oklahoma shows that these early-arriving cells come not from the bone marrow, as long believed, but from a hidden reserve along blood vessel walls. The discovery also identifies a potential way to limit their harmful surge.

Although often considered a disease of the past, leprosy remains a global health issue, causing preventable disability due to delayed diagnosis and gaps in care. In a paper published in The Lancet, a professor of infectious diseases from the University of Oklahoma College of Medicine calls for stronger awareness, earlier detection and improved long-term management.

A study published today in PLOS Medicine has identified two new genetic pathways that contribute to cardiometabolic disease, which includes heart disease, obesity and diabetes. The research, led by Dharambir Sanghera, Ph.D., of the University of Oklahoma, represents a step toward targeting the diseases more precisely.

Reagan Amason and Lily Robistow, two medical students with the University of Oklahoma’s College of Medicine, have each been honored with the Oklahoma State Medical Association’s (OSMA) inaugural Medical Student of the Year Award for the State of Oklahoma. OSMA’s Board of Trustees has established the award to “honor an outstanding medical student for exemplary leadership, advocacy, service, and professional excellence from the four medical schools in the state.”

University of Oklahoma College of Medicine Associate Professor Lee Jennings, M.D., chief of the Division of Geriatrics and Palliative Medicine in the Department of Internal Medicine, has been selected for the Hedwig van Ameringen Executive Leadership in Academic Medicine® (ELAM) program, one of the nation’s top leadership fellowships in academic health care.