Latest News
Five new faculty members joined the UAB Department of Surgery in August: Dr. Peter Abraham, Dr. Samantha Lloy, Dr. Jennifer Pappalardo, Dr. Anji Wall, and Dr. Taylor Wallen. We invite you to learn more about them and help us extend a warm UAB welcome!
The Department of Pathology at UAB makes thousands of diagnoses for patients each year. Of an estimated 150,000 annual visits to UAB Hospital, 90% of patients require some form of pathology service. Timely and accurate diagnoses are critical to determine the best treatment options, and yet reaching those diagnoses can be a very delicate and complex process. Cristina Magi-Galluzzi, M.D., Ph.D., Robert and Ruth Anderson Endowed Chair in Pathology, alongside skilled clinicians in the Department of Pathology, showcases the journey of a pathology specimen to reach diagnosis.
The Asian American Scholar Forum (AASF) awarded the 2026 Asian American Pioneer Medal to Louise Chow, Ph.D., Professor Emeritus in the UAB Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics. Presented during the annual forum on the Stanford University campus from Aug. 7–9, the Pioneer Medal honors scientists who have advanced groundbreaking research and inspired future generations of Asian Americans to pursue STEM endeavors.
Five Heersink faculty members have been named recipients of UAB’s Faculty Development Grants. These grants, funded through the UAB Faculty Senate in collaboration with the UAB Office of the Provost, offer support to early-career instructors, assistant professors, and mid-career associate professors to aid in the development of manuscripts, publications, presentations, grant applications, future research initiatives, creative works, scholarly activity, and more. The Faculty Development Grant Program is designed to provide funding for new projects that typically lack other sources of support.
Between grant applications, manuscript revisions, and managing a research team, working as a scientist can be demanding. On top of these commitments, many researchers are also caring for young children, aging parents, partners, or family members with health challenges. These competing demands can jeopardize years of progress, interrupting research during a narrow and consequential period for publishing, generating preliminary data, and competing for independent funding. The UAB Heersink School of Medicine Caregiving Affected Early-Career Research Scientists (CARES) Intramural Funding Program is helping early-career researchers stay on track by providing “extra hands.”
After suffering a fractured radius during the 2025 season, Birmingham Legion FC midfielder Sebastian Tregarthen turned to UAB Sports & Exercise Medicine for treatment and a personalized rehabilitation plan. Now back on the pitch, Tregarthen reflects on his journey, the team that helped him return, and what he learned about trusting the recovery process.
Saulat Sajjad Sheikh, M.B.B.S., assistant professor and surgical director of the liver transplant program in the UAB Division of Transplantation, has been selected to serve as a member of the core small group faculty for the 2026-2027 Harvard Macy Institute Program for Educators in Health Professions.
The UAB Department of Urology has recently expanded its comprehensive urologic and fertility care services at UAB Medicine Hoover Primary & Specialty Care, offering patients evaluation and treatment for a wide range of conditions, including men’s health, prostate and urinary concerns, cancer, and family planning. The location also brings male and female infertility services together, giving couples access to coordinated fertility care in one setting.
Behind every biomedical breakthrough that reaches a patient is a story of translation done right. The communications team sat down with Palaniappan Sethu, Ph.D., professor in the Department of Biomedical Engineering, to discuss the new Undergraduate Certificate in Translation of Biomedical Innovation to Clinical Practice and how it will give students the tools to carry ideas the full distance, from unmet need to patient impact.
In the basement of the Shelby Biomedical Research Building, one technology is helping UAB researchers understand the structures of proteins and other biological molecules and, in doing so, giving them insight into how to make unprecedented advancements in disease treatment.
UAB Department of Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation residency program announces the class of 2030 residents including Ernesto Barquet, M.D., Jake Doiron, M.D., Ph.D., Jonah Maggard, M.D., and Emmanuel Ofosu, M.D.
J. Victor Garcia-Martinez, Ph.D., professor and chair, Charles H. McCauley Endowed Chair in the UAB Department of Microbiology, presented the 2026 State of the Department on Monday, Aug. 10. The annual address highlighted departmental accomplishments across research, education, service, and faculty development, while outlining a vision for continued growth and innovation.
UAB Department of Surgery residents swept the awards for residency competitions at the annual Alabama/Mississippi Chapters of the American College of Surgeons Annual Meeting, held July 30 - August 1, 2026, at The Lodge at Gulf State Park in Gulf Shores, Alabama.
Scientists have long known that the brain and immune system communicate, but a new UAB-led study reveals an unexpected messenger connecting the two: tiny particles circulating in the bloodstream. The findings, recently published in Nature Communications, demonstrate that these particles can influence brain function and improve social behavior in multiple mouse models with social impairments.
The UAB Department of Pathology recently funded a travel award to Mahima Reddy who will present her research at a national meeting this year.
The UAB Comprehensive Diabetes Center (UCDC) is proud to announce leading diabetes researcher Ralph A. DeFronzo, M.D., and precision medicine expert Matthew Might, Ph.D., as keynote speakers at the UAB Diabetes Research Day on Nov. 17, 2026, at the Heersink Conference Center.
This month we meet Mahima Reddy, a Ph.D. candidate in the Wende Lab in the UAB Department of Pathology Division of Molecular and Cellular Pathology. Reddy’s research focuses on O-GlcNAc-driven cardiac remodeling, which is similar to the cardiac pathology seen in diabetes-related heart failure.
The University of Alabama at Birmingham Department of Neurosurgery welcomes Steffanie Lucas as an administrative office associate I.
The University of Alabama at Birmingham Department of Neurosurgery welcomes Kimberly Stecher as an administrative office associate IV.
The University of Alabama at Birmingham Department of Neurosurgery welcomes Gracia Patterson as a financial officer I.
Taylor Wallen, M.D., an assistant professor in the UAB Department of Surgery, and Krystal Rivera, a Ph.D. candidate, published “Plasma Regulates Homeostatic Pulmonary Endothelial Signaling to Mitigate Vascular Leak Following Polytrauma and Hemorrhagic Shock” as co-first authors in the journal Shock last month.
Fourteen members of UAB’s Class of 2026 who opted to stay in Alabama received the 2026 Primary Care/Family Medicine Match Scholarship award, sponsored by the Department of Family and Community Medicine's Comprehensive Urban Underserved and Rural Experience (CU2RE) Program.
Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) is a powerful research tool helping scientists answer important questions about how the body works, how diseases develop, and how new treatments can improve lives. From understanding how the brain and body function and develop to studying diseases affecting the brain, lungs, heart, liver, kidneys, and muscles, the UAB Research MRI Core helps researchers visualize the human body in remarkable detail without surgery or radiation.
The UAB Medicine Leadership Development Office (LDO) recently welcomed 19 individuals in its 13th cohort of Institute for Leadership for fall 2026.
In the Department of Cell, Developmental, and Integrative Biology, Zhiyong Liu, Ph.D., assistant professor, is investigating one of the molecular control systems that keeps this cellular cleanup running.
John Chatham, Ph.D., a professor in the Division of Molecular and Cellular Pathology, will retire at the end of the month, August 31, 2026, after 15 years of service in the Department of Pathology and more than 26 years at UAB.
James J. Cimino, M.D., Distinguished Professor of Medicine and chair of the Department of Biomedical Informatics and Data Science, served as a keynote speaker at the 14th International Conference on Intelligent Biology and Medicine (ICIBM 2026).
Researchers at UAB have discovered a surprising modification that could make an emerging therapy for frontotemporal dementia (FTD) more effective, potentially helping guide the next generation of treatments for a devastating disease that currently has no cure.
Cristina Magi-Galluzzi, M.D., Ph.D., Robert and Ruth Anderson Endowed Chair in Pathology, presented the 2026 State of the Department on Wednesday, August 19.
Eight research teams have been selected as the inaugural recipients of the Heersink School of Medicine’s Team Science Grant Program. The funded teams will tackle a wide range of health challenges while laying the groundwork for future large-scale research initiatives.