IN THE NEWS

Director’s Message 2 LASER Patient Turns Her Life Around 3 Eggs Aid Research 4 BECKMAN LASER INSTITUTE W i n t e r 1998

UCI faculty recently submitted a biomedical nanoscale systems, and bio- Biomedical proposal to the Whitaker Foundation to medical computational technologies. establish a biomedical engineering pro- Much of this work currently occurs at gram. BLI, the School of Engineering, the Col- Program The $3 million proposal, if funded, lege of Medicine, the Department of In- will accelerate the development of a bio- formation and Computer Science, and medical engineering center and, ulti- at the Schools of Biological and Physi- Moves Forward mately, a full department. The new, in- cal Sciences. terdisciplinary center will span many “The Whitaker proposal would con- existing departments and programs. solidate and amplify these efforts,” ex- Research will focus on biophotonics, plains Institute Director Michael Berns, Ph.D. He and Assistant Engineering Professor Steve George, M.D., Ph.D., initially would head the program. The department would include un- dergraduate and graduate degree pro- grams and 12 new tenure track faculty positions. An undergraduate minor could be available by fall 1999. Dr. Berns says the proposal builds on Whitaker-funded research taking place campuswide. In fact, BLI’s own Drs. Nelson, Tromberg and Chen, along with Dr. George, are Whitaker recipients. Whether the foundation funds it or not, Dr. Berns is upbeat about the bio- medical program’s prospects. “We hope Whitaker will approve our proposal,” he says, “but the campus will move forward regardless. Simply pre- paring the proposal has brought faculty members together and has helped to de- fine the program,” he notes. Foundation representatives have Dr. Yona Tadir’s article recently was featured scheduled a peer-reviewed site visit on on the cover of Contemporary OB/GYN. campus for mid-December. ■

SCIENTIST MERITS COVER STORY Tadir discussed the on-going impact of Newsbriefs An article by BLI faculty member laser technology on assisted reproduc- Yona Tadir, M.D., professor of gynecol- tion. ogy at UCI, recently was featured on the He noted how reproductive special- cover of Contemporary OB/GYN. ists employ lasers to trap and manipu- In “Ten Years of Laser-assisted Ga- late sperm. They even use lasers to drill mete and Embryo Manipulation,” Dr. holes in the zona pellucida of the em- (Continued on pg. 8) F R O M T H E D I R E C T O R

Since the Beginning by Michael W. Berns, Ph.D. sented to him Arnold and Mabel Beckman Professor in February 1982. aving recently assembled an This docu- Haccount of the founding of the ment was the Beckman Laser Institute for the new first written UCI Chancellor, , I plan that de- thought our history would be of in- scribed an in- terest to others. terdiscipli- nary laser re- The BLIMC’s Inception search medi- The idea of an interdisciplinary re- cal clinic that search and clinical program under one would pro- roof and focused around the use of vide: “(1) the light (photons generated from laser best state-of- systems) germinated as a result of the-art laser three things that occurred in 1980 and and accessory early 1981. instrumenta- Arnold Beckman and Michael Berns in 1991. First, an award was received from tion, (2) a the National Institutes of Health team of laser technological and medi- ing discussed between the community (NIH) to establish the Laser Micro- cal experts second to none, and (3) and the university. beam Program (LAMP) as a national basic and applied clinical laser re- biotechnology resource center at UC search to support and augment the A Non-profit Formed Irvine. delivery of laser therapy.” After numerous meetings and dis- Second, Arnold O. Beckman, then The proposal was purposely vague cussions with UCI officials, Arnold CEO and Chairman of Beckman In- with respect to the general organiza- Beckman decided to fund the estab- struments, visited an open house at tion framework. At that time, it was lishment of the Beckman Laser Insti- UCI to see the LAMP facility in op- not clear where the money would tute and Medical Clinic (BLIMC). It eration. come from to fund the facility, and was envisioned as a separate Califor- Third, the LAMP program was ex- whether the facility would be a not- nia 501(c)3 non-profit corporation panded to include translational and for-profit, a for-profit, or a combina- with its own board of directors. The clinical components in collaboration tion of both. In fact, one prominent Board’s primary, though not exclu- with the UCI Department of Surgery local businessman wrote to Chancel- sive, purposes were: (1) to raise on the use of lasers and light-activated lor : “One option is to money, (2) to manage the money with drugs for the treatment and diagno- develop such a clinic in association respect to investment and program- sis of cancer (photodynamic therapy: with the . I matic allocation, and (3) to provide PDT). This new clinical-based pro- would like to know what incentives advice to the university on operation gram was funded by the NIH as a the University could provide if I were of the program. A “Statement of Prin- combined basic science and clinical to raise the capital funds for such a ciples,” signed on August 29, 1984, by study. clinic.” Arnold Beckman and Chancellor A formal letter and draft prospec- Aldrich, was the BLIMC’s culminat- A Proposal to Arnold Beckman tus was sent to Arnold Beckman on ing, seminal document. Construction As a result of the above three oc- June 30, 1981, requesting $2.5 million of the BLIMC started in 1984. Our currences, Brian Demsey, my friend for the establishment of a $5 million doors opened in June 1986. and an original BLIMC board mem- laser research clinic at UCI as an ex- Since that time, almost 40,000 pa- ber, and I developed a business and tension of the LAMP program. His re- tients have been seen at the BLIMC, programmatic plan to show to Arnold ply on July 7, 1981, was to postpone $32 million has been raised in private Beckman that proposed a “Laser Re- the decision while a variety of issues donations, and over $30 million of search Clinic.” concerning the future of the medical federal research funding has been The 19-page proposal was pre- school and hospital facilities were be- awarded to the BLIMC faculty. ■ 2 C O M M U N I T Y U P D A T E

Tattoo Removal Can Change Lives

ngela* joined the Monrovia gang Aat 12. She was tattooed for the first time at 15. By 18, six amateur and pro- fessional tattoos marked her wrist, fin- ger, chest, ankle and back. The largest is almost seven inches wide; the small- est, three black dots, means “my crazy life” to other gang members. Angela tattooed the name of her boyfriend, a fellow gangbanger, on the inside edge of her finger. She said peer pressure kept her in the gang. After her boyfriend held a gun to her head and beat her repeatedly, Angela wanted out. “I feared for my life everyday,” she says. “I was going nowhere.” Almost two years ago, Angela be- came an informant for the Monrovia Police Department and turned in her boyfriend. The police have him in cus- tody for three shootings. Dr. Nelson treats Angela’s tattoos with the YAG laser. “Turning in her boyfriend was her way of saying she was done with the Angela says. “Now, they’re embar- and rehabilitating kids like Angela,” gang,”says Officer William R. Couch, rassing.” he explains. Monrovia Youth Services Officer. But aesthetics, Officer Couch Help, hopefully, will be forthcom- The 18-year veteran remembers points out, aren’t why he is helping ing from the David and Lucile Pack- meeting 10-year-old Angela for the her. “Members of her former gang or ard Foundation. The Institute’s recent first time in a D.A.R.E. class. a rival gang will attack her if they see proposal to the Foundation would “Maybe D.A.R.E. didn’t keep her those tattoos,” he says. partially fund tattoo removal and out of the gang,” he says, “but when He contacted Institute Associate counseling. she wanted to change her life, she Director J. Stuart Nelson, M.D., Ph.D. “We want to attend to the psycho- knew our program was there for her.” Dr. Nelson, along with other BLI phy- logical and social needs of these While “mending lives” is his goal, sicians, currently volunteers his time youths, along with removing their tat- the youth services officer is selective removing the tattoos of juveniles from toos,” says Dr. Berns. about whom he will help. the Orange County Probation Depart- “Many former gang members “First, they have to convince us ment. aren’t as fortunate as Angela,” he they want out of the gang,” he ex- To date, Dr. Nelson has treated adds. “They may not have access to plains. A personal essay and school Angela’s tattoos three times. The ones the rehabilitation necessary to help records also are required. on her finger and wrist are almost in- them get back on their feet.” Angela wrote to Officer Couch de- visible. Dr. Nelson says more sessions The program, as Dr. Berns de- scribing how she had changed her life. are needed, especially for the black scribes it, would rely on a network of She was living in a domestic violence tattoo on her back. community activists like Officer shelter and seeking counseling. She Under normal circumstances, Couch. Reformed gang members was working, planned to enroll in Angela’s laser therapy would cost would be referred to the Institute’s community college, and dreamed of thousands. “Few physicians,” notes Surgery Laser Clinic for treatment. becoming a police officer like him. Institute Director Michael Berns, For Officer Couch, the thought of She asked for help removing the Ph.D., “are as giving of their time as such a program elicits a mixture of re- marks of her former life—her tattoos. Dr. Nelson. We truly need outside lief and chagrin. “I too easily can fill “I used to think they were cool,” support in order to continue treating the waiting room,” he says. ■ * Not her real name 3 R E S E A R C H U P D A T E

Eggs Prove A Model Research Tool

an eggs make more than a good sensitizer creates free radicals that C omelette? At the Institute, eggs counteract the NO, thereby constrict- provide an ideal in vivo model for laser ing the vessels. research. Scientists hope the CAM will pro- vide key information on the amount of The CAM and PDT light and photosensitizer needed to Sol Kimel, Ph.D., a visiting chemist “kill” the vessels—and the tumor. from the Technion Institute of Technol- “In the future,” Kimel notes, “it may ogy in Israel, introduced the egg—chick be possible to harvest a few tumor cells chorioallantoic membrane (CAM) to be from a patient and grow those cells on precise—to BLI researchers a few years the CAM.” Researchers then would use ago. Since then, he and BLI scientists the CAM tumor to develop the best A human tumor growing on the CAM. have grown tumors on it to test photo- treatment protocol for the patient. dynamic therapy (PDT). “Ultimately, this model could help PDT, a combination of photosensi- determine PDT parameters for each pa- An imaging method, PPTR uses la- tizing drug and laser light, selectively tient,” Kimel explains. ser light to induce a temperature in- destroys tumor tissue. It works, in part, crease in vessels. As soon as the laser is by destroying the blood vessels that An Imaging Model removed, heat diffuses out of the ves- feed the tumor. Research by the 1998 PDT aside, the CAM also is aiding sels and up to the CAM’s surface. By Nobel Prize winners in medicine sheds imaging research. measuring the surface temperature as light on the PDT process. For Wim Verkruysse, Ph.D., a a function of time, researchers can de- The Nobel recipients discovered that postdoctoral fellow from the Nether- termine the position of subsurface ves- nitric oxide (NO) signals the endothe- lands, the CAM serves as an in vivo sels. lium inside vessels to dilate, thereby in- model to test pulsed-photothermal ra- “If the surface temperature rapidly creasing blood flow. In PDT, the photo- diometry (PPTR). increases, we know it’s a shallow ves- sel,” Verkruysse explains. “If it increases slowly, the vessel is deep.” Beckman Laser Institute and Medical Clinic University of California, Irvine The CAM’s clear membrane also al- 1002 Health Sciences Road East lows researchers to see the vessels, Irvine, CA 92612 something human epidermis obscures. (949) 824-4713 (Administration) “With PPTR, our goal is to improve (949) 824-7997 (Clinic) the treatment of port wine stain birth- Board of Directors marks,” explains Associate Director and Richard P. Kratz, M.D., Chairman collaborator J. Stuart Nelson, M.D., Arnold O. Beckman, Ph.D., Chairman Emeritus Michael W. Berns, Ph.D., President and CEO Ph.D. “Knowing the temperature Linda Cahill, Vice Chair within the target vessel and its depth George E. Hewitt, Secretary/Treasurer should help accomplish that goal.” Included in the PPTR study are George L. Argyros Brian M. Demsey Richard A. Nesbit., Ph.D. Patricia Beckman Harry Gray, Ph.D. Robert L. Stoy, Ph.D. postdoctoral fellows Boris Majaron, Thomas C. Cesario, M.D. Gavin S. Herbert David S. Tappan, Jr. Ph.D., and Sergey Telenkov, Ph.D.

Administration Model Originators Michael W. Berns, Ph.D., President and CEO J. Stuart Nelson, M.D., Ph.D., Associate Director Institute Director Michael Berns, Ruth Bundy, Ph.D., R.N., Clinic Administrative Director Ph.D., says a debt of gratitude is owed George M. Peavy, D.V.M., Veterinary Director the developers of the CAM. Rachel Schreiman, C.P.A., M.B.A., Director of Finance “We have to thank Sol, who brought Joyce Zeiler, R.N., Nurse Director the CAM to our attention, and BLI sci- Beckman Laser Institute News entists Chung-Ho Sun, Lih-Huei Liaw, Nicole Knight and Marie Wilson who refined it,” he notes. ■ 4 T E C H N O L O G Y U P D A T E

Candela Offers BLI Technology to the Public

mong the Institute’s many corpo- The DCD™ relies on cryogen to se- The cooling device originally was in- Arate partners, laser manufacturer lectively and dynamically cool the sur- vented to improve the treatment of vas- Candela Corporation of Wayland, Mas- face of the skin during laser treatment. cular birthmarks in infants and chil- sachusetts, stands out as the first to li- The device minimizes the pain and ther- dren. Three BLI scientists, J. Stuart cense a technology developed at BLI. mal injury that the laser can sometimes Nelson, M.D., Ph.D., Thomas E. Milner, Under a recent licensing agreement be- cause without compromising treatment Ph.D., and Lars O. Svaasand, Ph.D., in- tween UC Irvine, BLI and Candela, effectiveness. Patients have reported vented the technology with funding companies interested in using the novel significant reductions in laser therapy from the National Institutes of Health, dynamic cooling device™ (DCD) now discomfort. the Office of Naval Research MFEL pro- negotiate with Candela for sublicensing Candela already has incorporated gram, the Department of Energy, the rights. the DCD™ into its GentleLASE™ sys- Whitaker Foundation and the David Candela’s President and CEO tem for hair removal. It also is offered and Lucile Packard Foundation. It was Gerard E. Puorro says the company is in conjunction with the ScleroPLUS™ patented this year. pleased to be licensing such an exciting and SPTL-1b™ lasers used to treat leg Candela develops, manufactures invention. “It is rapidly becoming the veins, red birthmarks, scars and warts. and distributes laser and cryosurgical industry standard,” he says. The laser-cooling combination will technologies. Since its 1970 beginning, Institute Director Michael Berns, be used primarily by dermatologists Candela has established markets in the Ph.D., agrees. “The cooling device and plastic surgeons. Candela also will U.S., Europe and Asia, and currently should have a significant impact on the begin offering the cooling technology to sells its products in over 40 countries. safety and efficacy of a large number of other laser manufacturers for use with For more information about the com- laser procedures,” he says. their laser systems. pany, visit http://www.clzr.com. ■

Institute Contributors and Partners SUPPORT GROUP Richard McCleary and Ileen Frankel INCUBATOR CORPORATE PARTNERS Dr. and Mrs. Jay Applebaum Frank and Linda Meyskens Newport Corporation The Argyros Foundation Mrs. Warren S. Myers & Family Dr. Arnold O. Beckman Dr. and Mrs. Eric L. Nelson CORPORATE AFFILIATES Dr. and Mrs. Michael W. Berns Tricia and Al Nichols Allergan, Inc. Mr. and Mrs. Nathaniel Brenner Richard and Hinda Rosenthal Baxter Health Care Marilyn Burton James N. and Janice G. Rosse Beckman Instruments, Inc. Chiron IntraOptics Cheng-Jen Chang, M.D. Mrs. Audrey M. Schneiderman Coherent, Inc. Mr. John Chao Mr. and Mrs. Robert W. Scholler Johnson & Johnson, Inc. Dr. and Mrs. W. Andrew Cies Nancy and Paul Silverman Newport Corporation Dr. Howard and Rita Conn Mr. and Mrs. Donald Sodaro New Star Lasers Inc. Mr. and Mrs. Duke Cooper Mr. and Mrs. John Stahr Sharplan Lasers, Inc. Mr. and Mrs. Brian Demsey Mr. and Mrs. Robert Sterman SmithKline Beecham(ESC) Dr. and Mrs. Norman Frankel Thomas T. and Elizabeth C. Tierney Mrs. Frederick Garry Mr. Willard S. Voit INDUSTRIAL ASSOCIATES Mr. and Mrs. Walter Gerken Mr. and Mrs. Marvin Weiss Bio-Safe America Marilyn Hester Gianulias Dr. and Mrs. Richard A. Weiss Carl Zeiss, Inc. Dr. and Mrs. Frederick Grazer W. Graham Wood, M.D. Cell Robotics Mr. and Mrs. Gavin Herbert D.E.L.T.A. Rescue Continuum Biomedical, Inc. Nora Hester Orange Coast Rhodesian Ridgeback Club DUSA Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Mr. and Mrs. George Hewitt Paul, Hastings, Janofsky and Walker Hewlett Packard L’Oreal Mr. and Mrs. Clement Hirsch Premier Laser Systems, Inc. Medical Optics, Inc. Robert L. Jones, M.D. Shoreline Dog Fanciers Association NeXstar Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Dr. and Mrs. Richard Kasper Orange County Chapter, Olympus Mr. and Mrs. Robert Kleist S. California Veterinary Medical Pharmacylics, Inc. Dr. and Mrs. Richard Kratz Association Physical Optics Corporation Wallace Landholm, M.D. Saddleback-Capistrano Valley Chapter, Polytec PI, Inc. Mrs. Irving Leopold S. California Veterinary Medical Association QLT Phototherapeutics, Inc.

5 V E T E R I N A R Y U P D A T E

Laser Cures Rajah’s Limp

nternational Champion Goldleaves hamartoma twice: July and October IBu’s Regal Rajah will have to rest on 1997. It regrew both times. his laurels. His show days ended when That’s when amputation was sug- a hamartoma—an abnormal mix of pro- gested, Goldblatt says. Then she heard liferative tissue—grew between the about the Beckman Laser Institute and tendons of his left foreleg. Veterinary Director George Peavy, Now, happy that the growth is gone, D.V.M. Through the Veterinary Out- owner Bea Goldblatt doesn’t mind the reach Program, Dr. Peavy has helped three-year-old retriever’s retirement. cats, dogs, even iguanas.

“I’m pleased that Dr. Peavy was able to Using the CO2 laser, Dr. Peavy treated save Rajah’s leg,” she says. “Some vet- Rajah in September 1998. “I vaporized erinarians had suggested amputation.” the abnormal tissue more completely Goldblatt, an honorary life member and precisely than surgical instruments of the Golden Retrievers Club of Los are able to do,” he says. Angeles, first noticed Rajah’s limp dur- So far he is pleased with the canine’s ing field training. Doctors said the vas- progress. cular growth was compressing the As is Rajah’s owner. “His limp is retriever’s leg joints and leaking blood barely noticeable now,” says Goldblatt. between his tendons. “He riles up the St. Bernards next door Veterinarians surgically removed the just like he used to,” she laughs. ■ Rajah two months after laser surgery.

Bruce Tromberg: Renaissance Researcher

hether it’s optics, chemistry, bas- like to measure W ketball, or the works of Primo things. The key, I Levi, the interests of Associate Profes- learned, is to mea- sor Bruce Tromberg, Ph.D., are as sure chemistry in multidisciplinary as the Institute’s re- its native environ- search. ment—the body. Some call him a Renaissance man, BLI offered that.” but the Washington, D.C., native says With a Ph.D. in he’s just a product of the 1970s. chemistry from “It was a time when scientists began the University of developing rapid, quantitative methods Tennessee at for understanding brain chemistry,” he Knoxville and ex- says. perience as a De- Advances in this emerging field in- partment of Ener- spired Tromberg to pursue chemistry gy Predoctoral (left to right) Daniel, Joshua and Matthew help their father, and psychology degrees at Vanderbilt Fellow at the Oak Associate Professor Bruce Tromberg, with photon migration. University. Upon graduation, he Ridge National worked as a lab technician by day and Lab, Tromberg joined BLI as the Hewitt gram (LAMMP) director in 1996. a middle school counselor by night. Af- Fellow in 1988. He was promoted to As- Tromberg notes that his diverse ter a year, he drifted away from coun- sistant Professor in 1990 and Associate background comes in handy. seling. Professor in 1995. Institute Director “Visiting researchers are pleasantly “I thought I could do more in quan- Michael Berns, Ph.D., named Tromberg surprised that I can converse in German titative science,” Tromberg explains. “I the Laser Microbeam and Medical Pro- or Hebrew,” he says. ■ 6 tics Express. He published “Determina- Spring Harbor Symposium. PUBLICATIONS tion of the Depth Resolved Stokes Pa- rameters of Light Backscattered from John Chen, M.D., presented “Survival Turbid Media using Polarization Sensi- Following Unilateral Versus Bilateral Yona Tadir, M.D., published “Laser Ma- tive Optical Coherence Tomography” in LVRS for Emphysema” at CHEST. nipulation for ART” on the cover of Optics Letters. Contemporary OB/GYN. Ledford Powell, M.D., presented re- Marie J. Hammer-Wilson, M.S., pub- search on LVRS to the American Col- Hong Liang, Ph.D., published “Subcel- lished “In vitro and in vivo Comparison lege of Surgeons meeting in Orlando, lular Phototoxicity of Photofrin-II and of Argon-pumped and Diode Lasers for Fla., at the CHEST Conference, and at Lutetium Texaphyrin in Cells in vitro” Photodynamic Therapy using Second the National Nicotine Dependency in Lasers in Medical Science. Generation Photosensitizers” in Lasers Conference in Marina del Rey, Calif. in Surgery and Medicine. Petra Wilder-Smith, Ph.D., D.D.S., Dan Serna, M.D., presented a poster on published “Thermal, Microstructural LVRS to the American Heart Associa- and Physicochemical Effects of Nano- PRESENTATIONS tion in Dallas, Tx. second Pulsed Nd:YAG Laser Irradia- tion” in Lasers in the Life Sciences, and Shyam Srinivas, M.D./Ph.D. student, m “Effects of 9.3 m CO2 Laser on Human Matt Brenner, M.D., presented “Sur- presented “Determination of Burn Dentin: A Morphological Study Using vival Following Bilateral Staple Lung Depth by Polarization Sensitive Opti- SEM and CLSM” in Scanning Micros- Volume Reduction Surgery (LVRS) for cal Coherence Tomography” at the OSA copy. Emphysema” at CHEST in Toronto. Annual Meeting in Baltimore, Md.

Matt Brenner, M.D., published “The Ef- Zhongping Chen, Ph.D., presented Xunbin Wei, Ph.D. candidate, pre- fect of Lung Volume Reduction Surgery “Monte Carlo Simulation of Optical Co- sented “Antigen Recognition by T-lym- in a Rabbit Model of Bullous Lung Dis- herence Tomography and Optical Dop- phocytes Studied with an Optical Trap ease” in Journal of Investigative Surgery. pler Tomography” at the Third Interna- and Calcium Imaging” at Wellman

He also published “Rate of FEV1 tional Conference on Monte Carlo and Labs, Harvard Medical School. He pre- Change Following Lung Volume Re- Quasi-Monte Carlo Methods in Scien- sented the poster “Mapping the Polar- duction Surgery” in Chest. tific Computing in Claremont, Calif. ity and Stimulus Requirements for T- cell Activation” to the 52nd Annual Zhongping Chen, Ph.D., published Vickie LaMorte, Ph.D., presented “The Meeting of the Society of General Physi- “Accuracy and Noise in Optical Dop- PML-containing Nuclear Body A ologists. pler Tomography Studied by Monte New Twist to Understanding Mecha- Carlo Simulation” in Physics in Medicine nisms of Disease” at the Symposium on Natasha Shah presented “Multi-Wave- and Biology. Dynamic Organization of Nuclear length in vivo Measurements of Human Function in Cold Spring Harbor, N.Y. Breast Optical Properties Reveal Meno- Brian Wong, M.D., published “Stress pausal-dependent Absorption and Scat- Relaxation of Porcine Septal Cartilage Vasan Venugopalan, Sc.D., co-chaired tering Variations” at the Bios Europe ‘98 During Nd:YAG (l = 1.32 mm) Laser Ir- the session “Laser-Induced Transport in Conference in Stockholm. radiation: Mechanical, Optical, and Diagnostic and Therapeutic Laser Ap- Thermal Responses” in Journal of Bio- plications” and presented “An Im- medical Optics. proved Diffusion Model for Radiative NOTABLES Transport in Turbid Media” at the In- John Chen, M.D., published “Effect of ternational Mechanical Engineering Vickie LaMorte, Ph.D., was awarded Lung Volume Reduction on Diffusing Congress and Exhibition in Anaheim, grants from the Chao Family Compre- Capacity in an Animal Model of Em- Calif. hensive Cancer Center and the Ameri- physema” in Journal of Surgical Research. can Cancer Society. Brian Wong, M.D., presented “Feed- Ledford Powell, M.D., published back Controlled Laser Mediated Carti- Brian Wong, M.D., received the Sir “Changes in Pulmonary Physiology af- lage Reshaping” at the Lasers and Harold Delf Gillies Research Prize from ter Lung Volume Reduction Surgery in Electro-optics Society Meeting in Or- the American Academy of Facial Plas- Rabbits with Moderate and Severe Em- lando, Fla. He also hosted the seminar tic and Reconstructive Surgery. physema” in Surgical Forum. “Laser Mediated Cartilage Reshaping” at the USC School of Engineering. Shyam Srinivas, M.D./Ph.D. student, Johannes de Boer, Ph.D., published was awarded a Medical Student Re- “Imaging Thermally Damaged Tissue Tatiana Krasieva, Ph.D., presented the search Fellowship from the American by Polarization Sensitive Optical Coher- poster “Modern Microscopy: New Tools Heart Association and an SPIE Educa- ence Tomography” on the cover of Op- for a Single Cell Assay” at the Cold tional Scholarship. 7 tor Michael Berns, Ph.D., Wang is de- Zhongping Chen, Ph.D., on developing NEWSBRIEFS veloping new microscopy systems. optical Doppler and optical coherence Other visiting scientists—Wim technology. (continued from pg. 1) Verkruysse, Ph.D., from the University On the clinic side, operating room of Amsterdam, and Boris Majaron, technician Sandra Johnson is the latest bryo, assisting its implantation on the Ph.D., from the Jozef Stefan Institute in arrival. uterine wall. And finally, the administrative de- In the article, he said that laser tech- partment welcomes two employees. nology will remain an important tool in Diane Wilson takes on the duties of as- assisted reproduction. sistant accounting analyst; Ciria Dr. Tadir currently leads an interna- Ventura assumes the role of purchasing tional study sponsored by Cell Robot- assistant. ics Inc. of Albuquerque, New Mexico. “One of our goals,” he explains, “is de- SUPPORT GROUP ADDS MEMBER fining the laser’s role in improving the Marilyn Burton of Newport Beach pregnancy rates of patients 39 and older recently joined the Institute’s Support following in vitro fertilization.” Group. Slovenia—are investigating pulsed- “Marilyn is a welcome addition to NEW EMPLOYEES WELCOMED photothermal radiometry. our Support Group,” says Erin Miller, Whether it’s in the research, clinic or New postdoctoral researcher Shao- Director of Support Group Relations. administrative areas, new faces abound Hua “Sean” Xiang, D.Sc., Ph.D., comes A philanthropic organization of over at the Institute. to BLI from the Hong Kong University 50 members, the Support Group funds Scientist Zifu Wang, Ph.D., joins the of Science and Technology. Newcomer the treatment of indigent children’s Institute after postdoctoral study at the Qimin Shen, Ph.D., also a researcher, birthmarks, among others. California Institute of Technology in hails from Texas A&M University. Both Call (949) 824-4111 for more informa- Pasadena. Working with Institute Direc- are working with Assistant Professor tion. ■

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