Dear Medical College of Georgia Friends,

MCG experiment exploring vision loss in astronauts is headed into space

It’s a great source of pride for me to see the work you all do, on behalf of this medical school and the people we serve, being recognized on a national and international stage. Case in point – a research idea conceived right here at MCG will actually head into space when SpaceX’s Polaris Dawn mission launches. Dr. Matt Lyon, director of our Center for Telehealth and an expert in the use of portable ultrasound technology, helped design an experiment aimed at explaining the visual changes many astronauts experience during spaceflight that can leave them with a wide range of symptoms once they return to Earth. About 70% of astronauts experience this so-called Spaceflight Associated Neuro-Ocular Syndrome (SANS), which happens when cerebrospinal fluid shifts because there is no gravity in space to keep it down. They think these vision changes are because fluid shifts in the optic nerve sheath, floating up and pressing against the optic nerve and retina. The team hopes to not only figure out the mechanism behind the changes, but also be able to predict which astronauts will most likely experience them.

3-D ultrasound can help predict which astronauts are more susceptible

Here’s how. MCG already patented the concept of using portable ultrasound to rapidly visualize damage from pressure and fluid changes in the optic nerve sheath. Now they are investigating how this part of the brain is affected by elevated intracranial pressure and mild traumatic brain injuries, something that is useful in space, but just as useful on the football field. Working with Pennsylvania-based URSUS Medical Designs LLC, they built a 3-D ultrasound machine to screen astronauts and determine who among them may already have these incompetent or damaged optic nerve sheaths, due to previous concussions or mild TBIs. They suspect they are also the ones who will be more susceptible to the vision changes associated with SANS. The MCG experiment is part of an extensive suite of science and research that will be performed throughout the mission and we were one of 23 institutions selected to participate. As an interesting side note, this launch is the first of the Polaris Program’s three human spaceflight missions and will also feature the first commercial spacewalk.

Dr. Qin Wang and research team working to better understand link between prostate cancer and Alzheimer’s

Here’s another great example of the impact of the research happening right here at MCG. Dr. Qin Wang,  inaugural director of the Program for Alzheimer’s Therapeutic Discovery is seeking a way to better understand why many men with prostate cancer end up with Alzheimer’s disease, and whether it’s the standard hormone therapy treatment they receive or an overactive immune response that actually contributes to the problem. Androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) reduces testosterone, which the cancer needs to grow. But we also know that androgen is a key regulator of amyloid metabolism and when it’s removed from the equation, more amyloid is left to potentially form the plaques that are a hallmark of Alzheimer’s. Add to that the horrible irony that prostate cancer also largely affects men over age 65, which is the same population already at higher risk of Alzheimer’s.

Surprising findings show inflammation, not an increase in amyloid, may be the contributing factor

Wang and her team studied animal models of Alzheimer’s disease and cancer and treated them with the standard ADT. To their surprise, after 8 weeks, there was no increase in amyloid plaques. There was, however, an increase in the amount of immune cells in their blood – a response to both the cancer and the treatment – damage to the blood-brain barrier and an increase in inflammatory markers. Complex story short, they believe the ADT treatment makes the blood-brain barrier more permeable, allowing immune cells to infiltrate the brain and cause inflammation, which is associated with cognitive decline. They recently reported their findings in Science Advances.

The good news is there’s an intervention already used for treatment of multiple sclerosis and Crohn’s disease – natalizumab – that works by attaching to immune cells and preventing them from moving across the blood-brain barrier and entering the central nervous system. Treating the mice who had cancer and those with Alzheimer’s and cancer with a combination of ADT and natalizumab not only reduced the infiltration but subsequently improved the integrity of the blood-brain barrier. It also reduced the pro-inflammatory cycle and improved cognitive function. Since the drug is already on the market, next steps could include a clinical trial. Truly impactful and relevant work.

Dr. Shruti Sharma receives NIH grant to search for new treatment target for diabetic retinopathy

And here’s another example of great research. You no doubt know that diabetic retinopathy is a serious eye disease and a leading cause of blindness. Current standard anti-VEGF treatments, which work by slowing the growth of abnormal blood vessels in the eye, do not work for everyone. With $1.5 million in new funding from the National Eye Institute, Dr. Shruti Sharma and a team from our Center for Biotechnology and Genomic Medicine are searching for a new treatment target. They suspect that may be a protein called Interleukin-6 (IL-6), a versatile protein involved in both immunity and inflammation throughout the body. IL-6 can signal, or initiate physiological changes, through two different pathways: “cis-signaling” (using a receptor on the cell surface) and “trans-signaling” (using a soluble receptor). It appears that the harmful inflammatory effects of IL-6 are accomplished mainly through trans-signaling, while beneficial regenerative effects are accomplished through cis-signaling.

In preliminary studies, Dr. Sharma and her team already found that blocking the pro-inflammatory IL-6 trans-signaling helped balance levels of two important proteins in the retina, VEGFA, which can damage the blood-retina barrier and increase oxidative stress, and VEGFB, which is believed to be protective. They believe that disruption to that balance is what ultimately leads to the development of diabetic retinopathy. This new grant will allow them to explore that further.

A recent global analysis estimated that about 103 million people worldwide have diabetic retinopathy, and that number could rise to 161 million by 2045. We must find new and better treatments. I know Dr. Sharma and her team are passionate and up to that challenge.

Dr. Betty Pace, Wellstar MCG Health partnership to be recognized by Georgia Bio

There truly is life-changing work going on at your medical school and here is another example of people taking notice. We recently learned that Dr. Betty Pace, a pediatric hematologist/oncologist who has made it her mission to find better treatments for sickle cell disease; and the Wellstar MCG Health partnership will be recognized with 2024 Golden Helix Awards from Georgia Bio. This group conducts programs, provides leadership and advocates for life science companies across Georgia that are critical to improving patient care, improving health globally, and to the economic growth of our state. Dr. Pace will receive a Community Award, which is presented to a small number of individuals, companies or institutions “whose contributions to the life sciences community are worthy of special recognition.” The Wellstar MCG Health partnership will receive the group’s Phoenix Award which “celebrates the best industry and academic collaborations, outstanding health care professionals and systems.” Another point of pride here is that Rep. Mark Newton, an emergency medicine physician, a 1988 graduate of MCG and a great champion for his medical school, will also receive the group’s Legislator of the Year Award. The awards will be handed out Oct. 21 in Atlanta. Congratulations to you all.

First-year students in Savannah helping with St. Joseph’s Candler with community needs assessment

A passion for supporting the communities we live in and the people we are privileged to serve is something I know our students have in common with our faculty. Here is a great example of that. Our first class of 40 students at our new four-year campus in Savannah are taking an active role in helping our great teaching partner down that way, St. Joseph’s Candler, conduct its Community Health Needs Assessment. Every three years, SJCHS asks local residents to identify the most pressing needs in the community, especially those related to health. The goal is to identify gaps that people living in that area need filled, from food and housing security to transportation needs to access to health care and education. One of the most important goals of our statewide campus model is to get our students invested in learning about the communities we hope they will one day live and practice in. I’d say our inaugural class at MCG Savannah is off to a good start.

Congressman Rick Allen’s staff visits campus

Keeping with the theme of support we have going this week, one of our medical school and university’s great supporters in Washington is Congressman Rick Allen. This past week, we were privileged to welcome a group of 10 of his congressional staff who were here to learn more about our university. The group included Lauren Hodge, chief of staff; Heath Wheat, deputy chief of staff; Carlton Norwood, communications director; Legislative Assistants Tre Lind, who is also a 2019 AU alum, and Elizabeth Goines; Brinsley Thigpen, district director; Paul Lynch, director of constituent services and military liaison; Constituent Service Representatives Megan Abbott and Christine Rhodes; and Eli Daniell, regional representative. For MCG’s part, I updated them on our statewide presence and mission growth. They also toured the Interdisciplinary Simulation Center with MCG Educational Simulation team members Drs. Lyon and AJ Kleinheksel. The group also visited with our colleagues from the College of Science and Math; the Georgia Cancer Center; the College of Education and Human Development; the Georgia Cyber Innovation and Training Center; and the School of Computer and Cyber Sciences. My thanks to our government relations staff, including Margie Miller, vice president of government relations; and Monty Philpot Brock, director of federal relations; for the opportunity to update Congressman Allen’s staff on progress at MCG.

My best to you all,

David C. Hess, MD

Dean, Medical College of Georgia

Upcoming Events

September 20 – MCG Faculty Senate Meeting, noon, Natalie and Lansing B. Lee Jr. Auditorium

October 26 – MCG White Coat Ceremony, 2pm, William B. Bell Auditorium

November 15 – Annual Body Donor Memorial Service, 1pm, Natalie and Lansing B. Lee Jr. Auditorium