Awards & Recognitions – January 2024

AZ Big Media Business to Watch

AZ Big Media named Barrow Neurological Institute one of 50 Arizona businesses to watch in 2024, specifically mentioning the Institute’s $16.7 million National Institutes of Health award to help create and lead a national ALS clinical research consortium. The AZ Business magazine editorial board met with Arizona industry leaders to identify the 50 companies and 50 people expected to shape the state’s business landscape this year, culminating in the “AZ Big 100” list. The Barrow researchers leading this project are Chief Scientific Officer Robert Bowser, PhD, and Chief Medical Officer of Clinical Research Jeremy Shefner, MD, PhD.

Chair of Neuroimaging Innovation

Richard Dortch, PhD, was presented with the Ellen and Howard Katz Chair for Neuroimaging Innovation on Dec. 8. Dr. Dortch, the director of the Neuroimaging Innovation Center at Barrow, is committed to developing innovative brain, spinal cord, and nerve imaging technologies that are strategically designed to guide surgery, improve diagnostics, expand our understanding of disease progression, and serve as biomarkers of therapeutic response.

Clinical Research Training Scholarship in Parkinson’s

The Parkinson’s Foundation and American Brain Foundation, in collaboration with the American Academy of Neurology, awarded Brittany Krzyzanowski, PhD, a research assistant professor at Barrow, with the competitive 2024 Clinical Research Training Scholarship in Parkinson’s Disease. The two-year, $150,000 award will support Dr. Krzyzanowski’s work in leveraging big data and spatial methods to investigate modifiable environmental Parkinson’s disease risk factors.

Brain Aneurysm Foundation Grant

Hiroki Uchikawa, MD, PhD, a postdoctoral research fellow at Barrow, received the Marc Marotta and Christopher C. Getch Chair of Research for $40,000 from the Brain Aneurysm Foundation. Under the leadership of Tomoki Hashimoto, MD, in the Barrow Aneurysm and AVM Research Center, Dr. Uchikawa is working to establish a causal relationship between clonal hematopoiesis of indeterminate potential (CHIP) and the rupture of intracranial aneurysms.

Journal of Neurosurgery: Spine Cover

An illustration from Neuroscience Publications at Barrow was selected for the January cover of the Journal of Neurosurgery: Spine. Created by Joshua Lai, the illustration depicts the surgical management of type II odontoid fractures. The upper left image shows cervicomedullary compression, a consequence of an untreated type II odontoid fracture. The upper right image demonstrates odontoid screw reduction and stabilization. The lower image shows a C1–2 Harms construct. Either option optimizes the canal diameter (red ring). The illustration accompanies an article titled: “Nonoperative versus operative management of type II odontoid fracture in older adults: a systematic review and meta-analysis.” Barrow neurosurgeon Luis Tumialán, MD, and neurosurgery residents Harrison Farber, MD, and Nicholas Rabah, MD, are among the authors on the paper.