Researchers uncovered nine elements that have significant effects on a whether a patient may develop pneumonia, with nearly 20% of patients moving into a higher risk category based on what occurred during or following the surgery.

M&I Teresa O'Meara is a recipient of of the Investigators in the Pathogenesis of Infectious Disease (PATH) program of the Burroughs Wellcome Fund. Her lab will further study the mechanisms of attachment and virulence for C. auris, with a focus on how the novel adhesin contributes to pathogenesis. On a practical level, their work will suggest strategies for developing vaccine candidates and therapeutics to limit disease caused by this emerging pathogen.

On May 16, 2024, the Regents of the University of Michigan promoted Melanie Pearson, Ph.D., to Associate Professor on the Research Track, effective September 1, 2024.

Faith Anderson, Jaime Fuentes, and Andrés Rivera Ruiz, M&I Ph.D. candidates, have been awarded prestigious fellowships from Rackham Graduate School, in recognition of their academic excellence. Congratulations, we’re so proud of you!

In emergency rooms and intensive care units across the country, clinicians make split-second decisions about which antibiotics to give a patient when a life threatening infection is suspected. Now, a study reveals that these decisions may have unintended consequences for patient outcomes.

A study builds on previous work that found depriving T cells of iron prevented cells from proliferating. The current study, published in PNAS, found that excess iron is just as problematic.

On today’s The Fundamentals is Dr. Brummett, Professor at the University of Michigan where he serves as the Senior Associate Chair for Research in the Department of Anesthesiology. He has more than 280 publications, including articles in top journals such as JAMA, JAMA Surgery, Anesthesiology, and Annals of Surgery. He is the Co-Director of the Opioid Prescribing Engagement Network or OPEN at the University of Michigan, which aims to apply a preventative approach to the opioid epidemic in the US through appropriate prescribing after surgery, dentistry and emergency medicine. Moreover, he is the Co-Director of the cross-campus Opioid Research Institute, which was launched in the spring of 2023. He leads multiple NIH grants studying these concepts and receives funding from the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, SAMHSA, CDC, and multiple foundations. You can learn more about Dr. Brummett here, and you can follow Dr. Brummett @drchadb and the department of anesthesiology @UMichAnesthesia on X.

A JAMA viewpoint outlines the tragic story of Shandra Eisenga, a patient who received spine surgery for back pain only to inexplicably contract tuberculosis.

Four Graduate Program in Immunology alumni participated in a panel discussion about their career paths.

This M&I award recognizes outstanding dissertations.

M&I grant administration team attends and presents at the National Council for University Research Administrators (NCURA) conferences

There are many intriguing aspects to the honor of a faculty member holding a named professorship in the University of Michigan Medical School: the excitement of receiving one of the highest honors the U-M can bestow on a faculty member; an understanding of the rich history of the person(s) for whom their professorship is named; and the flexibility of what the professorship allows the holders to do during their career. On April 1, the Medical School hosted a celebration of faculty who were appointed to named professorships in 2023.

Support the Microbiology and Immunology Annual Fund on Giving Blue Day.

In December 2023, Jona Kalaj and Angela Kelly received a 2023 Department of Microbiology and Immunology AdMIration award for their dedication to the department’s DEI goals

Elective surgery study shows older adults have concerns about what it will cost them, how much work they’ll miss and whether they’ll catch COVID-19.