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News from the Office of the Executive Director:
March, 2021
Dear colleagues and friends of the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute,

It's been one year since the first patient tested positive for COVID-19 in Virginia. Within the first month of lockdown, we established a COVID-19 testing lab, which continues to run daily and just processed its 110,000th test sample for our community. In recognition of the innovation, commitment, and public service needed to establish this world-class testing operation to serve the university and community, the Molecular Diagnostics Laboratory's scientific director, Dr. Carla Finkielstein, was recently awarded Virginia Tech's highest faculty honor - the Ut Prosim Scholar Award. This prestigious award, which has only been given one other time, includes a $250,000 gift to support her cancer research at the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute.  

Earlier this month we celebrated International Brain Awareness Week by presenting our annual Brain School program. More than 275 community members tuned into our virtual lectures, which are available to watch on-demand through our website. Thank you to everyone who participated in Brain School this year, including all of the students from local schools who submitted questions for our neuroscientists. 

Our most recent Maury Strauss Distinguished Public Lecture featured Nobel Laureate Dr. Michael Young, of Rockefeller University, who presented "Genes Regulating Sleep and Circadian Rhythms" on March 25. Young's study of circadian rhythms laid the foundation for research into the understanding of how problems with our internal clocks are associated with health issues, focusing on sleep disorders while also addressing cognitive impairments, psychiatric illness and cancer – research that continues today, including here at the research institute.
 
Our next distinguished public lecture speaker, Dr. Christine Stabell Benn, global health professor and chair of the Danish Institute for Advanced Study at the University of Southern Denmark will discuss, “How Vaccines Train the Immune System in Ways No One Expected,” on April 15 at 5:30 p.m.

In the spirit of Ut Prosim,

Michael J. Friedlander, Ph.D.
Executive Director, Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC
Vice President for Health Sciences and Technology, Virginia Tech
RECENT NEWS 
Carla Finkielstein honored with Ut Prosim Scholar Award

Carla Finkielstein, director of the Molecular Diagnostics Lab at the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute, has been recognized with the Ut Prosim Scholar Award – the university’s top honor for faculty – for her for her work to improve COVID-19 testing efficiency and effectiveness.  Read More
Nobel laureate who decoded genetics of circadian rhythms gave public lecture

Michael Young, the Richard and Jeanne Fisher Professor at The Rockefeller University, used fruit flies as a model organism to discover the genetic basis for the rhythms that guide behaviors across the animal kingdom. Young presented a Maury Strauss Distinguished Public Lecture on March 25 at 5:30 p.m.  Read More
Unified Vision: How Children’s National Hospital, Virginia Tech, JLABS are creating pediatric and healthcare research hub in Washington, D.C.

Virginia Tech Vice President for Health Sciences and Technology Michael Friedlander shared updates on the university's latest research expansion on the Children's National Research & Innovation Campus in Washington, D.C. during a Healthcare Project Delivery Conference panel on Feb. 24.  Read More
Maternal stress may disrupt children’s health, Fralin Biomedical Research Institute, UCLA researchers find

A recent study found stress felt by pregnant mothers can adversely affect their children’s health in later life. Professor Sharon Landesman Ramey emphasized that children affected by maternal stress may face health challenges, but the challenges can be surmounted with proper care and support.  Read More
Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC welcomes four new advisory board members

Virginia “Ginger” Ashton, Mary Baron, Robert Hogan, and Adriana Hogan join 22 accomplished board members, who are responsible for providing dynamic perspectives and recommendations to the research institute’s executive director, Michael Friedlander, and leadership teams.  Read More
UPCOMING PUBLIC EVENTS
Virtual Maury Strauss Distinguished Public Lecture
April 15: How Vaccines Train the Immune System in Ways No One Expected
Speaker: Christine Stabell Benn, M.D., Ph.D., D.M.Sc.
Virtual Maury Strauss Distinguished Public Lecture
May 6: Anesthesia and Consciousness
Speaker: Emery Brown, M.D., Ph.D.
HOW YOU CAN HELP

Making transformative discoveries to build a healthier future for all

Virginia Tech and the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute are providing rapid COVID-19 sample analysis to help control the pandemic in support of our local community, the Commonwealth, and frontline responders. Private support is critical to continue these efforts. Here are some ways that you can support the research institute right now, in light of COVID-19:
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