A third-year resident in the University of Florida College of Medicine’s obstetrics and gynecology department took top prize for her research presentation at the Florida Obstetric and Gynecologic Society’s recent annual meeting in Orlando. Amanda Murchison, M.D., won the first-place prize of $1,000 for a scientific presentation by a resident. In her research she examined [...]

The Christopher Columbus Fellowship Foundation has awarded University of Florida medical researcher Ian Phillips, M.D., D.Sc., a $50,000 Frank Annunzio Award in the science/technology field for his three decades of research on cardiovascular disease. The award was presented to Phillips Oct. 14 at a ceremony in Washington, D.C. following the 90th annual celebration in honor [...]

A new University of Florida study may settle once and for all the baffling question of whether common strep infections are linked to obsessive-compulsive disorder or tics in some children. Anecdotal reports about a possible link between strep and obsessive-compulsive disorder, or OCD, have prompted many parents to seek unproven treatments for children whose OCD [...]

Twelve University of Florida College of Medicine students, one resident and two faculty members have been elected to Alpha Omega Alpha, the national medical honor society. Current society members select inductees on the basis of academic standing, personal and professional character, service to the medical and local community, and potential for future contributions to medicine. [...]

Jeffrey Hughes, Ph.D., an associate professor of pharmaceutics at the University of Florida College of Pharmacy, has received a $125,000 award through the Center for Biological Defense at the University of South Florida. Hughes will investigate a novel therapeutic agent for anthrax exposure using naturally occurring antibiotic peptides called defensins, which have a broad range [...]

Doctors’ efforts to stop widespread abuse of oxycodone by prescribing an alternate painkiller may have backfired, University of Florida medical experts warn. Methadone, an opiate used to help recovering heroin addicts avoid withdrawal symptoms, is now commonly prescribed for chronic pain instead of oxycodone, a narcotic popular in the illegal drug trade since the late [...]

Three doctoral students at the University of Florida College of Medicine have been recognized for outstanding progress in their graduate training and thesis research. Jason Coleman, Keith Nykamp and Yi Tang, who are enrolled in the Interdisciplinary Program in Biomedical Science, were awarded Graduate Fellowships for Outstanding Research at the program’s annual welcome reception Aug. [...]

As thousands flock to research studies aimed at ferreting out the hereditary bases for a vast array of diseases, University of Florida researchers are using a mouthwash method of collecting DNA that’s as simple as swish and spit. Minty-fresh breath aside, the painless approach means patients can avoid rolling up their sleeves for blood draws, [...]

University of Florida surgeons have simplified the way they identify which lymph node is reached first by breast cancer cells that escape from a tumor. The refined approach improves the accuracy of sentinel node biopsy, an increasingly popular method of gauging whether the disease has spread. Physicians using the technique, which involves injecting a radioactive [...]

Advances in genetics are increasing at such a rapid pace that new diagnostic tests, treatment options and educational advances make it difficult for many health professionals to keep pace. Led by Rose Nealis, Ph.D., A.R.N.P., a College of Nursing clinical associate professor, a group from the UF Health Science Center was chosen as one of [...]