HJAR Sep/Oct 2020

HEALTHCARE JOURNAL OF ARKANSAS I  SEP / OCT 2020 61 For weekly eNews updates and to read the journal online, visit HealthcareJournalAR.com pediatrics and neurology at the University of Texas Dell Medical School. He is a graduate of the Uni- versity of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston and did a residency training at the University of Texas at Houston. He then completed a fellowship in clinical neurophysiology/epilepsy at the University of Texas at Houston and went on to be program director at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center at Memphis Pediatric Neurology Residency Program. Perkins joined Dell Children’s Medical Center in 2013 and has been practicing there since. Surgeon Jumin Sunde, MD, Joins Head and Neck Team Fellowship-trained surgeon Jumin Sunde, MD, has joined the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) as part of the head and neck surgery team, which treats head and neck can- cers, benign tumors, traumatic injuries, and other conditions. Sunde sees patients in the Head and Neck Can- cer Clinic in the Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute. He joins fellowship-trained head and neck surgeons Mauricio A. Moreno, MD; Emre Vural, MD; James Y. Suen, MD; and Ozlem E. Tulunay Ugur, MD. They treat squamous cell car- cinoma, thyroid cancer, parathyroid tumors, vas- cular malformations, salivary gland tumors, skull base tumors, traumatic injuries, and other com- plex issues involving the head and neck, providing reconstructive surgeries where necessary. Specifically, Sunde will complement the team’s work in advanced tumor removal and recon- struction by using newer techniques like robot- ics as well as traditional surgical approaches and microvascular reconstruction of complex head and neck defects. “Dr. Sunde is a welcome addition to the pro- gram, where we have a long history of outstand- ing patient outcomes using modern treatment paradigms and innovative patient care protocols. We have excellent cancer outcomes for patients combined with short inpatient stays and low com- plication rates,” said Moreno, who is director of the Head and Neck Surgery Division. “Dr. Sunde completed his residency at UAMS, so he knows our team well and is committed to building upon – and expanding with his unique skills – this leg- acy of excellence.” Sunde is also an assistant professor in the Department of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery. Sunde comes to UAMS from the University of Mississippi, where he was an assistant professor. He earned a medical degree from the University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Medicine. He completed a residency and internship in head and neck surgery at UAMS and a fellowship in head and neck oncologic and microvascular surgery at the University of Michigan. NIHAwards $1.2Million toArkan- sas Children’s Research Institute Pediatric researchers at Arkansas Children’s Research Institute (ACRI) have received more than $1.2 million from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) for a five-year study that looks at the impacts of exposure to trichloroethylene (TCE), an indus- trial solvent and common environmental pollutant. TCE has contaminated many of the water sys- tems in the U.S. and is among the most frequently detected U.S. EPA-regulated drinking water con- taminant found in groundwater and surface water sources as well as Superfund sites, which are con- taminated by hazardous materials. When TCE enters the body, it takes the form of its major metabolite (TCAH). The study will use this metab- olite to test how TCE may alter immune cells asso- ciated with autoimmune disorders in humans.  Sarah Blossom, PhD, an associate professor of pediatrics at the University of Arkansas for Medi- cal Sciences (UAMS) College of Medicine, is the principal investigator for the project, which will continue through December of 2024. She aims to uncover how TCE alters novel gene or epigenetic patterns in CD4 cells that may be responsible for these immune disorders. “Exposure to environmental pollutants in our environment is common and can have significant health impacts on both children and adults. Our ultimate goal would be to use the findings to iden- tify pathways for targeted therapy that would nor- malize immune responses in TCE-exposed indi- viduals,” said Blossom. Blossom’s past work has shown that the CD4+ T cell is central to autoimmune pathology. CD4+ T cells can become pro-inflammatory effector cells, which, once activated by TCAH, lead to autoim- munity and possibly other hypersensitivity disor- ders such as allergy. Blossom and her team will study how TCAH alters CD4 cells. This study will use both in vitro (testing in tubes) and in vivo (testing on living organisms) methods to determine if TCAH pro- motes either the differentiation of pathogenic effector cells or decreases the expansion of effec- tor cells that are associated with the suppression of autoimmunity. By comparing CD4s in both autoimmune-prone and -resistant strains of mice, Blossom hopes to better understand the contribution of genetic sus- ceptibility factors in autoimmune and inflamma- tory disorders. Blossom, an expert in the immunotoxicity of TCE, is the principal investigator on an NIH career development award and is working to define the role of the TCE on the CD4+ T cell in how it may promote oxidative stress and epigenetic altera- tions. She has also served as the principal investi- gator on studies funded by NIH and the Arkansas Biosciences Institute. Blossom is a scientific tech- nical advisor for the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry-Camp LeJeune Community Assistance Panel at the Centers for Disease Con- trol and Prevention in Atlanta. Blossom is also working with investigators from epidemiology in the UAMS College of Public Health and from the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology in the UAMS College of Med- icine assessing how maternal inflammation may alter infant outcome in diabetic pregnancy. In 2019, Arkansas Children’s Research Institute scientists received $7.3 million in funding from NIH, and total federal support for their projects reached $16.7 million. Jumin Sunde, MD