In his new position, Dr. Flores-Saaib is assisting LA BioMed investigators in developing intellectual property, evaluating its potential and focusing on promoting licensing agreements with start-up and existing companies.

LA BioMed has spawned several spinoffs and has licenses, industry partnerships and agreements for research funding support in the areas of infectious diseases, molecular medicine, endocrinology, medical genetics and medical devices. Its investigators also hold numerous patents in pediatrics, medicine and surgery for which it is seeking commercial partners.

“Rubén brings substantial expertise in the many aspects of worldwide product development, approvals, clinical trials and licensing that is essential to the growth of the research enterprise at LA BioMed,” said David I. Meyer, PhD, LA BioMed president and CEO. “One of LA BioMed’s strengths is its entrepreneurial spirit, and Rubén will make it possible for the enterprise to maximize the potential of the intellectual property that is generated by our investigators.”

Dr. Flores-Saaib received his PhD from the UCLA Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry in 2000. Soon after graduation, he began his professional career in the San Diego biotechnology industry at BD Biosciences Pharmigen in Torrey Pines. He then moved to Biosite (now Alere) in Sorrento Valley and to Chemicon in 2005 (acquired by Millipore in 2006).

In 2007, he founded the Scientific Collaborations and Business Development group at the Biosciences division of Millipore (acquired by Merck KGaA in 2009). Most recently, Dr. Flores-Saaib was the vice president of the Custom and Catalog Business at GenWay Biotech.

He also is active in the scientific community, serving as a member of the Scientific Advisory Board of UC Riverside’s Department of Bioengineering, the Keystone Symposia and the Coulter Foundation for translational research at the University of Washington. Previously, he served as a member of BIOCOM’s Food and Drug Administration committee and as an advisor for graduate programs in biotechnology at California State University, San Marcos.

The new members are Alex Popa, a vice president at The Capital Group in Los Angeles; Sussan Sharifian,a Rolling Hills resident who is president of Packair Airfreight, Inc. and Packair Customs Brokers, Inc., and H. Michael Smith, an Atlanta resident who is the national science and technology practice leader for the architectural firm, HKS, Inc.

In their new capacity, Popa, Smith and Sharifian will assist in LA BioMed’s fundraising initiatives and in raising awareness of the institute’s mission among the public and the research community at large.

“We’re delighted to welcome Alex, Michael and Sussan to the board,” said David I. Meyer, PhD, LA BioMed’s president and CEO. “Each one of them brings to the organization a strong record of success in business and finance that will enhance the advice and counsel the board provides to move LA BioMed forward.”

Alex Popa joined The Capital Group in 2007, after earning a master’s degree in business administration at Harvard Business School. Today, he manages a $4 billion portfolio of investments in the financial and transportation industries. Popa received his undergraduate degree from Stanford University, where he was a Henry Ford II Scholar and the valedictorian of Stanford’s School of Engineering.  He graduated in 2002, and for the next three years worked for the Romanian government, first as the prime minister’s advisor for economic affairs, and then as secretary of state for foreign investments.

Sussan Sharifian has been president of Packair since 2006. She is responsible for the strategy and operations of a company that facilitates the international movement of goods for major U.S. manufacturers like Boeing, Lockheed Martin, the Jet Propulsion Laboratory and Lorel Optical Systems. Sharifian joined Packair as an accounting manager in 1986. She became its chief financial officer in 2000 and served in that capacity until being named president six years later.

H. Michael Smith has held senior leadership positions at some of the nation’s largest architectural firms, and he is responsible for the development of many notable science buildings.  They include the Wallis Annenberg Research Center at the House Research Institute in Los Angeles; the Arnold and Mabel Beckman Cancer Immunotherapeutics and Tumor Immunology Building at the City of Hope National Medical Center; the Donald P. Shiley Center for Science and Technology at the University of San Diego, and the Dana & David Dornsife Cognitive Neuroscience Imaging Center at the University of Southern California.

The study, conducted at Los Angeles Biomedical Research Institute (LA BioMed) and five other sites, suggests more frequent monitoring of patients with coronary artery calcium accumulations could help determine the risk of heart attacks and give those patients time to make changes to reduce the risk.

For the study, researchers measured the coronary artery calcium in a diverse group of 6,778 persons aged 45 to 84 years from the MESA (Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis) study. The participants had no history of coronary heart disease prior to enrolling the MESA study.

Researchers found that nearly half (49.9%) of the participants had coronary artery calcium in their initial scans – and most of them (84.8%) continued to accumulate coronary artery calcium, as measured in subsequent CT (computed tomography) scans approximately 2.5 years later. For those with the greatest increase in coronary artery calcium buildup (300 units or more), the study found a more than six-fold increase in coronary heart disease incidents independent of other risk factors for heart disease.

“We have known that coronary artery calcium can be related to heart disease, but this study shows the progression of the accumulation of the calcium in the arteries can be a significant factor in evaluating the risk that a patient may suffer a heart attack in the future,” said Matthew Budoff, MD, the primary author of the study and an LA BioMed principal investigator and director of Cardiac CT. “By conducting serial CT scans, we may be able to identify people at high risk of a heart attack and intervene to prevent that heart attack through new therapies, lifestyle changes and other modifications. Further study is needed to determine if more frequent CT scans would be a cost-effective approach to reducing coronary heart disease, the No. 1 cause of death for both men and women in the U.S.”

About 600,000 people in the U.S. die of heart disease every year, and coronary heart disease costs the country nearly $109 billion annually, according the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

CT scans can look for specks of calcium, or calcifications, in the walls of the coronary arteries to detect early signs of coronary heart disease, which is caused by the buildup of plaque, a waxy substance in the coronary arteries. Coronary heart disease can lead to heart attacks, heart failure and arrhythmias, which are problems with the rate or rhythm of the heart.

Guests at the 10^th Annual Legends event at Palos Verdes Golf Club celebrated the lives and legacies of David Heber, MD, PhD, and Ronald J. Nelson, MD, both of whom remembered fondly their early years at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center.

Guests also attended a reception to commemorate the 10^th anniversary of the government’s approval of Aldurazyme^® (laronidase), an enzyme replacement therapy developed at LA BioMed. Aldurazyme has saved the lives of hundreds of children born with a devastating genetic disorder, mucopolysaccharidosis 1, or MPS 1. The reception celebrated the role of Biomarin and Genzyme LLC in bringing Aldurazyme to market, as well as the contributions of the MPS I patients and families, laboratory staff and clinicians.

“This year’s Legends event was a very special one with the tributes to the extraordinary achievements of Drs. Heber and Nelson and to LA BioMed scientists, as well as honoring Biomarin and Genzyme for their contributions to a therapy that has saved the lives of young people born with MPS1,” said David I. Meyer, PhD, LA BioMed president and CEO. “We were privileged to have some of those young people join us Wednesday night, and it is thrilling to see the difference LA BioMed research has made in their lives.”

Colleagues shared their admiration for Dr. Heber, the founding director of the UCLA Center for Human Nutrition and founding chief of the Division of Clinical Nutrition in the Department of Medicine, and for Dr. Nelson, who retired in 1998 from his position as the director of cardiac surgery at Saint John’s Hospital in Santa Monica.

Dr. Heber has conducted extensive research into obesity treatment and nutrition for cancer prevention and treatment. He has written more than 225 peer-reviewed scientific articles and more than 80 book chapters. He’s also authored six books. Dr. Nelson had previously served as the chief of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center, where he participated in many pioneering surgical procedures, including the first heart transplant in Southern California.

LA BioMed also honored two of its faculty members: Brad J. Spellberg, MD, an infectious disease specialist, and Harry B. Rossiter, PhD. Dr. Spellberg received the Richard E. Weitzman Memorial Prize for Meritorious Research in the Biomedical Sciences. He was recognized for his research into vaccines and immunotherapies to treat and prevent highly drug-resistant bacterial infections.

Harry B. Rossiter, PhD, received the LA BioMed Young Investigator award for his scholarship and research, which is seeking a better understanding of the control and limitation of oxygen transport and utilization during exercise.

The organization dedicated to the study of male reproduction presented the award to Dr. Wang during its annual meeting April 13 in San Antonio, TX.

In notifying Dr. Wang of the award, the ASA said she has been on the “front line of andrology in both national and international circles for many years” and had “demonstrated outstanding skills as physician caring for patients with reproductive diseases.”

It also noted that Dr. Wang has served as “a role model and mentor for a generation of students, residents and fellows,” exhibited leadership by serving in key roles in many professional organizations and led basic and clinical research studies on androgen replacement therapy, hormonal male contraceptive development, diet and androgen metabolism, aging in men and environmental effects on sperm quality that are considered milestone investigations.
ASA, which was founded in 1975 to promote scientific interchange and knowledge of the male reproductive system, said Dr. Wang’s research made her a “world leader” in the field.
“Congratulations to Dr. Wang for another well-deserved honor in her stellar career as a tireless researcher, physician, mentor, advocate and administrator,” said David I. Meyer, PhD, LA BioMed president and CEO. “She has been incredibly productive, publishing more than 280 peer-reviewed articles and 67 book chapters. LA BioMed is a very proud beneficiary of her energy and her dedication.”

Dr. Wang joined LA BioMed in 1993 and currently serves as the associate director of the UCLA-Clinical and Translational Science Institute. She also is a professor of medicine and assistant dean of clinical and translational sciences at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA.

She has served as the World Health Organization’s (WHO) chairperson of the Task Force on Methods for the Regulation of Male Fertility and as chair and member of the expert group that edited the last three editions of the WHO Laboratory Manual on semen analyses. She also served as special consultant for the United Nations (UN) for the UN Family Planning Association to review candidate centers, foster high quality research and monitor progress in developing countries.

Dr. Wang has served in various capacities in ASA since 1992, including vice president and president. She also served in various capacities in the International Society of Andrology, including as president from 2009-2013.

In addition, she has served as associate editor of the International Journal of Andrology and on the editorial board of the Journal of Andrology and the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism. She has been invited to give more than 100 lectures worldwide and she has been recognized by her colleagues and institutions with numerous awards, including the ASA Distinguished Service award in 2011

Previous studies of estrogen’s influence on joint symptoms had produced mixed results, so researchers examined the findings of the WHI, the largest-ever study of the use of hormonal therapy in post-menopausal women. They examined the findings of the women enrolled in the Estrogen-Alone program, in which women who had undergone a hysterectomy received either estrogen or a placebo.

“We found that post-menopausal women who received estrogen-only medication reported significantly lower frequency of joint pain than women who received a placebo,” said Rowan T. Chlebowski, MD, PhD, corresponding author of the study and a Los Angeles Biomedical Research Institute lead researcher. “Three to five percent more of the women receiving estrogen reported less joint pain than the women receiving a placebo.”

Among the 10,739 post-menopausal women enrolled in the Estrogen-alone program, 77% reported they had joint pain and 40% experienced swelling of their joints. After one year of treatment, joint pain frequency was lower among women receiving estrogen-only medication when compared with the placebo group (76.3% vs. 79.2%).

After three years, in a subset of the women in the study, the participants who received estrogen continued to have joint pain less frequently than women who received a placebo (74.2% vs. 79.8%).

“These findings suggest estrogen may provide modest but sustained relief for post-menopausal women who suffer from joint pain,” said Dr. Chlebowski. “Women should consult their physicians and balance the potential therapeutic value of estrogen against the available information on risks and benefits of menopausal hormone therapy, including the admonition to use the lowest dose for the shortest duration. Recent follow-up studies from the WHI found the benefits of taking estrogen-only medication could outweigh the risks for about five years.”

Funding/support: The WHI program was funded by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, National Institutes of Health, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, through contracts N01WH22110, 24152, 32100-2, 32105-6, 32108-9, 32111-13, 32115, 32118-32119, 32122, 42107-26, 42129-32, and 44221. 

The American Society for Investigative Pathology, a society of biomedical scientists investigating mechanisms of disease, presents the Gold-Headed Cane Award to recognize long-term contributions to pathology, including meritorious research, outstanding teaching, general excellence in the field and leadership in pathology.

“Congratulations to Dr. French for this well-deserved recognition for his distinguished career in pathology,” said David I. Meyer, PhD, president and CEO of LA BioMed. “Dr. French is an outstanding representative of the highly skilled researchers and physicians whose dedication is advancing the pace of discovery at LA BioMed. He is a leader in training the next generation of medical professionals, and we are proud to have him on our faculty.”

Dr. French has been affiliated with LA BioMed and Harbor-UCLA Medical Center for more than two decades and received many honors throughout his career, including a Lifetime Achievement award from the Los Angeles Society of Pathologists, Inc., seven “Best Teacher” awards from senior pathology residents at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center and the Distinguished Teaching Award from Harbor-UCLA’s Clinical Faculty in the Department of Medicine.

Dr. French has authored or co-authored more than 800 research papers, books and book chapters, case studies and abstracts in his field. His publications have been cited more than 13,500 times. He has been Harbor-UCLA Medical Center’s chief of the Division of Anatomic Pathology since 1990 and is a distinguished professor of pathology in the Department of Pathology at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA.

LOS ANGELES – (March. 13, 2013) – Los Angeles Biomedical Research Institute at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center (LA BioMed) announced today that 33 of its physician-researchers rank among America’s Top Doctors and/or among Southern California Super Doctors. The two honors are presented annually, and they are based on recommendations from other physicians and health care professions.

“We are proud of all of our researchers, and we are especially pleased to see our physician-researchers receive this well-deserved recognition,” said David I. Meyer, PhD, LA BioMed president and CEO. “At LA BioMed, our physician-researchers inform and enrich our work with their clinical expertise and their ability to take discoveries from the lab to the patient. Every year, our physician-researchers achieve these standards of excellence, and they are honored as some of the best doctors in America and in Southern California.”

Each year, the publisher, Castle Connolly, surveys thousands of physicians and other health care professionals to identify excellent doctors in every specialty in their region and throughout the nation to determine which physicians will rank among America’s Top Doctors. In addition to mail and online surveys, Castle Connolly reported that its physician-led research team makes thousands of phone calls each year, talking with leading specialists, chairs of clinical departments and vice presidents of medical affairs, seeking to identify top specialists for most diseases and procedures.

The Southern California Super Doctors report recognizes approximately the top 5 percent of active doctors in Los Angeles and Orange counties. The selection process relies on peer review, surveying more than 30,000 physicians in Southern California to ensure that the physicians named are the most respected and talented in their fields.

To choose the Southern California Super Doctors, Key Professional Media, Inc., an independent firm, sends thousands of ballots to California physicians. Those ballots ask: “If you needed medical care, which doctor would you choose?” Several safeguards prevent against doctors nominating themselves and ballot manipulation. An expert Blue Ribbon Panel groups the nominees into medical practice areas and assigns point totals based on individual reviews. Each doctor’s professional information is verified to ensure it is accurate and up-to-date.

Among the LA BioMed physician-researchers named to the two lists are specialists in endocrinology, cardiology, gastroenterology, neurology, internal medicine, nephrology, oncology, obstetrics/gynecology, ophthalmology, surgery, pediatrics, psychiatry, pulmonary medicine, immunology and many other specialties.

Following is a list of the physician-researchers who were honored. (A * means the physician ranks among Southern California Super Doctors list published in 2013. A + means the physician ranks among America’s Top Doctors 12^th edition.)

Sharon G. Adler, MD *
Thomas L. Anderson, Jr., MD *
Arnold S. Bayer, M.D +
Marie H. Beall, MD*
Carol D. Berkowitz, MD+
Matthew J. Budoff, MD *+
Richard Casaburi, PhD, MD *
Rowan T. Chlebowski, MD +

Noah Craft, MD, PhD*

Eric S. Daar, MD *+

Christian M. de Virgilio, MD *
John E. Edwards, Jr., MD *+
William J. French, MD *+
Charles S. Grob, MD*

Eli Ipp, MD *+
Sherwin J. Isenberg, MD *+
Adam J. Jonas, MD* +
Margaret A. Keller, MD *

Iraj E. Khalkhali, MD*

Stanley R. Klein, MD*
Wai-Nang Paul Lee, MD *
Ira M. Lesser, MD *
Gregory R. Mason, MD *
Richard Mink, MD *
Anita L. Nelson, MD *
Ronald J. Oudiz, MD, FACC *

Brant A. Putnam, MD*

Michael G. Ross, MD, MPH *
Ronald S. Swerdloff, MD *
Christina Wang, MD *
Rodney A. White, MD* +
Sylvia Yeh, MD *
Kenneth M. Zangwill, MD*

The researchers, John S. Torday, PhD, and Virender K. Rehan, MD, wrote an editorial citing recent studies by Dr. Rehan that found pregnant rats given nicotine produced asthmatic pups that went on to produce their own asthmatic pups, despite the absence of nicotine exposure in the third generation.  The findings suggest nicotine can leave heritable epigenetic marks on the genome, which make future offspring more susceptible to respiratory conditions.

The researchers also cited the Children’s Health Study from Southern California, which reported that grandmaternal smoking during pregnancy increases the risk of asthma in grandchildren regardless of whether the mother smoked or not.

Based on those findings, the researchers conclude that environmental factors experienced during pregnancy will affect not only the child in utero but also future generations of the same family. They say this multi-generational transmission could explain why 98% of inherited human diseases are unaccounted for by the prevailing view of genetic trait transmission, known as Mendelian genetics.

The researchers concluded that the cause of the second generation’s asthma was epigenetic modification (an environmental factor causing a genetic change). Nicotine was affecting both the lung cells and the sex cells in ways that caused the lungs that developed from those cells to develop abnormally, causing asthma.

“These studies break new ground in validating and further explaining the mechanisms involved in the transmission of epigenetic human diseases,” Dr. Torday said. “The transmission of the asthma to the second generation and its prevention by a specifically-targeted molecular intervention are the first unequivocal demonstrations of multi-generational transmission of an epigenetically-mediated effect on the offspring.”

Dr. Rehan, who has conducted multiple studies on nicotine’s effects, noted that asthma rates are growing in the U.S. and around the world. World-wide, approximately 250,000,000 women smoke daily. Twelve percent of women in the U.S. continue to smoke during pregnancy, resulting in the birth of at least 400,000 smoke-exposed infants per year in the U.S. alone

“Asthma is the most common chronic disease of childhood, resulting in a significant impact on the lives of children and driving up medical costs for all,” Dr. Rehan said. “While many factors contribute to asthma, smoking during pregnancy is a well-established one and one that can be avoided. Eliminating smoking during pregnancy would significantly reduce the prevalence of childhood asthma for this generation and for future generations.”

The article may be viewed at http://www.expert-reviews.com/doi/full/10.1586/eog.12.79

“Excessive uterine bleeding is a common problem we see in gynecological practices and emergency rooms. It can interfere with women’s daily activities and put them at risk for anemia and other more serious health consequences caused by blood loss,” said Anita L. Nelson, MD, a LA BioMed lead investigator and corresponding author of the study. “Until now, there has been no Food and Drug Administration-approved products for short-term treatment of this condition. Based on our study, we conclude that this new progestogen-only treatment is effective in stopping acute abnormal uterine bleeding.”

Within five days of receiving the therapy, bleeding had ceased in 44 of the 48 women in the study, and the other four were only experiencing spotting. The mean time to bleeding cessation was 2.6 days, leading the researchers to conclude the progestogen-only treatment was an effective short-term therapy for acute abnormal uterine bleeding.

In the pilot study, the patients received a 150-milligram injection of Depomedroxyprogesterone acetate (DMPA) and then were given medroxyprogesterone acetate (MPA) 20 milligram pills that were to be taken orally every eight hours for three days.

“This is the largest prospective study to date to measure the effectiveness of a proposed hormonal treatment for excessive uterine bleeding,” said Dr. Nelson. “The women in the study experienced excellent success with this relatively low dose progestogen-only therapy. This therapy also has the potential for offering longer-term protection than prior therapies.”

The therapy was shown to halt bleeding rapidly while appropriate testing could identify the underlying causes of the excessive bleeding. As such, Dr. Nelson said the therapy provides a “temporary bridge to long-term targeted therapies.” She also said the regimen had “good compliance, few side effects and high patient satisfaction.” In addition, she said it was an attractive treatment option for women with contraindications to estrogen, those who need more prolonged therapy and those who may have difficulty with daily pill administration.