Alumni News by Rachel Komeshak

New Faculty 2009 Gregory P. Van Stavern, M.D. Associate Professor, Ophthalmology & Visual Sciences Specialty Areas Neuro-Ophthalmology Areas of Clinical Interest MS, myasthenia gravis, mitchondrial diseases Areas of Research Interest MS, neuroimmunology, idiopathic intracranial hypertension Board Certification American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology Medical Education B.A.: Psychology, LaSalle Univ., Philadelphia, PA, 1989 Medical Degree: Pennsylvania State Univ. College of Medicine, Hershey, PA, 1993 Residency: Opthalmology, Univ. of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, 1996 Residency: Neurology, Univ. of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, 1999 Fellowship: Neuro-Ophthalmology, Emory Univ., Atlanta, GA, 2000 Didier Hodzic, Ph.D. Research Area Research Interests

Assistant Professor, Ophthalmology & Visual Sciences Retina My laboratory focuses on LINC complexes (Linkers of the Nucleoskeleton to the Cytoskeleton), a family of macromolecular assemblies of the nuclear envelope that physically connects the nucleus to the surrounding cytoskeleton.

Education B.S. Biochemistry, Univ. of Liege, Belgium, 1991 Ph.D., Molecular Oncology, Univ. of Liege, Belgium, 1999 Fellow, Cell Biology, Washington Univ. School of Medicine, 2000 Research Assistant Professor, Cell Biology, Washington Univ. School of Medicine 2006 Daniel Kerschensteiner, M.D. Research Area: Research Interests:

Assistant Professor, Ophthalmology & Visual Sciences Assistant Professor, Anatomy & Neurobiology Retina We would like to understand the principles that guide the assembly of neural circuits and to decipher the way they process information.

Medical Education M.D. Georg-August Univ. Göttingen, Germany, 2003 Residency in Neurology Georg-August Univ. Göttingen, Germany, 2002 Fellow, Neuroscience, Univ. College London, UK, 2004 Fellow, Biological Structure, Univ. of Washington, Seattle, WA, 2005 Florentina Soto, Ph.D. Research Area Research Interests

Assistant Professor, Ophthalmology & Visual Sciences ATP-mediated (purinergic) neurotransmission in the mammalian retina We are studying the function of ATP-mediated neurotransmission in the establishment and maintenance of retinal circuits during development and its involvement in retinal diseases. To this end, we use gene delivery in combination with imaging to follow circuit development. In addition, we use electrophysiological methods to determine the contribution of purinergic receptors to retinal function.

Education B.S. Biochemistry, Univ. of Murcia, Spain, 1982 Ph.D., Neurosciences, Institue of Neuroscience and Medical School, Univ. of Alicante, Spain, 1988 Fellow, Center for Molecular Neurobiology, Hamburg, Germany, 1992 and Max-Planck Institute for experimental Medicine, Goettingen, Germany, 1995 Carrie L. Morris, M.D. Specialty Areas Areas of Clinical Interest

Areas of Research Interest

Assistant Professor, Ophthalmology & Visual Sciences Oculoplastics Adult and pediatric eyelid and eyebrow ptosis, removal of eyelid and orbital tumors, tear duct disorders, eye socket and eyelid reconstruction, eyelid and orbital trauma and Graves disease, BOTOX and soft tissue filler injections, endoscopic brow lifts and midface lifts Adult and childhood ptosis, aging changes of the face, anophthalmic sockets and eyelash enhancement American Board of Ophthalmology

Board Certification Medical Education B.S.: Biomedical Sciences, Univ. of South Alabama, Mobile, AL, 1995 Medical Degree: Univ. of Alabama School of Medicine, Birmingham, AL, 1999 Residency: Transitional, Univ. of Tennessee, Chattanooga, TN, 2003 Residency: Ophthalmology, Duke Univ. Eye Center, Durham, NC, 2004 Fellowship: Oculoplastic Reconstruction Surgery, Univ. of Tennessee-Memphis, and Vanderbilt Univ., 2007 (shared program)

Alumn

News Volume: I

Upcoming Events Annual Alumni Reception at AAO Sunday, October 25, 2009 6-8 pm, Birch Room Atrium Level - South Tower Grand Hyatt Hotel San Francisco

Ophthalmology Update 2009 Friday, September 11, 2009 David and Mary Seslen Lecturer: Philip J. Rosenfeld, MD, PhD Saturday, September 12, 2009 Distinguished Alumnus: Joel Sugar, MD Invited Speaker: James C. Tsai, MD, FACS About our Distinguished Alumnus. . . Professor of Ophthalmology at the University of Illinois at Chicago, Dr. Joel Sugar has been selected to receive the 2009 Distinguished Alumnus Award. Joel has a long association with the Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences at Washington University School of Medicine where he completed his ophthalmology residency. After doing his fellowship in Cornea and External Disease with Dr. Herbert E. Kaufman at the University of Florida, he returned to Washington University for a fellowship with Dr. Bernard Becker and then took the helm of Chief Resident. Following his year as Chief Resident, he went to the University of Illinois at Chicago to head their Cornea Service where he has carved out a stellar career as an ophthalmologist and cornea specialist, as well as deservedly earning an international reputation for being an outstanding teacher. As a clinician scientist, Joel has been at the forefront of research on herpetic eye disease. He has published hundreds of articles in peer-reviewed journals, has served on the editorial boards and as a reviewer for the top ophthalmology journals. Joel has always been an outstanding citizen of and contributor to ophthalmology. It is a great pleasure for us to add to his many accolades by making him the 2009 Distinguished Alumnus.

Number: 1

From the Chairman, Michael A. Kass, MD Hello Alumni and Friends, It is a great pleasure to greet my fellow alums. The Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences had an outstanding year. We continue to attract talented faculty, residents and fellows. In this newsletter, we highlight the new additions to the Department, as well as the next career stop for residents and fellows completing training. A highlight of this year’s Academy meeting will be the recognition of Bernard Becker as the 2009 American Academy of Ophthalmology Laureate. The Laureate Award is the highest honor given by the American Academy of Ophthalmology and is presented to Bernard Becker for his distinguished career and contributions to ophthalmology. The presentation to Dr. Becker will be on October 25, 2009, at this year ’s joint meeting with the Pan American Association of Ophthalmology in San Francisco. An additional highlight of the annual AAO meeting will be the presentation of the Lorenz Zimmerman Lecture by Morton Smith, M.D. Dr. Smith’s lecture entitled “Ophthalmic Pathology: Past, Present, and Future“, will be given Monday, Oct. 26 at 8:30 am. I hope that many of you will attend the annual meeting. One of the highlights of the annual meeting every year is the Washington University reception. I hope to see you all this year in San Francisco. Sincerely,

Michael A. Kass, MD For the complete news release, please go to the following: http://www.aao.org/newsroom/release/20090827.cfm

Congratulations Bernard Becker, MD 2009 American Academy of Ophthalmology Laureate

. . . for his distinguished career and contributions to ophthalmology as a world expert on treatment of intraocular pressure regulation and neuroprotection of optic nerve

Resident and F ello w Awar ds Cer emon y and R ece ption 2009 Fello ellow ards Ceremon emony Rece eception The annual celebration in honor of senior resident, fellows and faculty was held Friday, June 12 in the Farrell Learning and Teaching Center, the newest medical campus building. Distinguished Service Awards were given to full-, part-time and emeritus faculty in recognition of their dedication to ophthalmology education. Completion certificates were given to all the graduating residents and fellows. A complete list of honorees is printed below and on the next page: 5 years of service: Nicholas E. Engelbrecht Sharon L. Jick Jeffrey R. Padousis

Academic Teacher of the Year: Morton E. Smith, MD

10 years of service: Kevin J. Blinder Gaurav K. Shah Shilpa A. Thornton

Research Teacher of the Year: Shiming Chen, PhD

20 years of service: Matthew A. Thomas 30 years of service: M. Gilbert Grand Michael J. Isserman Barry D. Milder 35 years of service: Ronald C. Bilchik Harry L.S. Knopf 40 years of service: George M. Bohigian F. Thomas Ott (Emeritus) 50 years of service: Stanley C. Becker

Clinical Teacher of the Year: Robert M. Feibel, MD

Mat Guirgis Pediatric Ophthalmology & Strabismus Award: Rajiv R. Rathod, MD, MBA Best Fellow Teacher “Golden Apple”: Raymond Wee, MD Ron Burde Award “Good Egg”: Michael D. Straiko, MD Rajiv R. Rathod, MD, MBA

Say Hello to Your New Colleagues . . . Graduating Residents 2009 Daivd J. Diaz Vermont Eye Associates Burlington, VT

Sangeeta Khanna St. Louis ConnectCare St. Louis, MO

Kamalesh J. Ramaiya

Sincerely,

Rajiv R. Rathod

Susan Culican Residency Program Director

Chief Resident Director of University Eye Service Washington University School of Medicine St. Louis, MO

Michael D. Straiko Cornea, External Disease, Refractive Fellowship Devers Eye Institute Portland, OR

The Rosenbaum Research Award: Andrew Schimel, MD - Second Year Resident

Graduating Fellows 2009

The Doctor William Ellis Research Prize in Ophthalmology: Aaron Y. Lee - WU Medical Student, 2009 WU Ophthalmology Resident

e.g. promotions, publications, research, family additions, new practice, societal membership/committee, community leadership, old photos (with labels). . . How would you like to receive the newsletter? - home address; work address; email Please email your updates to Mary Carnoali - carnoali@vision.wustl.edu

Cornea, External Disease, Refractive Surgery Fellowship Rush University Medical Center Assistant Profesor, Cornea & External Disease Chicago, IL Glaucoma Fellowship Gundersen Lutheran Hospital Ophthalmology Department La Crosse, WI

George Bohigian (res. ‘66-69) President, Cogan Ophthalmic History Society Roy S. Chuck (res. ’94-97; cornea fellow ’97-98) Chair, Albert Einstein School of Medicine, Bronx NY William M. Hart, Jr. (res. 73-76; neuro-ophthalmology fellow ‘76-77; faculty ‘78-09) Retired, after 31 years with the Department of Ophthalmology & Visual Sciences, Washington University, St. Louis MO Shalesh Kaushal (retina fellow ’97-99) Chair, University of Massachusetts, Worcester MA

DOVS is looking for “Examiners” to assist with a Mock Oral Board Review on Saturday, May 15, 2010. Active examiners are not eligible. If interested, contact Mary Hitt, hitt@vision.wustl.edu.

SecondYear Residents: (front row) Priya Shetty, Amy Fang, Fatema Ghasia (back row) Collin McClelland, Rithwick Rajagopal

Anthony J. Panarelli Pediatric Ophthalmology Fellowship Pediatric Ophthalmology of New York New York, NY

Shu-Hong (Holly) Chang

Class Notes

First YearResidents (l-r):Jennifer Bogucki, Eric Nudleman, Arsham Sheybani, Ian Pitha, Tiffany Kent

Vanee V. Virasch

Suzanne M. Falkenberry

Do you have news you want to share with fellows alums?

We have had a great year for resident education. Our program received a commendation from the ACGME for our recent program evaluation and site visit. The new first year residents have been excited and motivated and hit the ground running on July 1st. Our graduates have all found great opportunities to pursue their training and to practice ophthalmology. I hope that you will have a chance to meet some of them at the Annual Alumni Reception and hear first hand about their experiences at Washington University.

Vitreoretinal Fellowship Washington University School of Medicine St. Louis, MO

The Pepose Young Investigator ARVO Research Award: Rithwick Rajagopal, MD, PhD - First Year Resident

The Max & Evelyn Grand Prize: Courtney L. Kraus - WU Medical Student, 2009 WU Ophthalmology Resident

A message from the Residency Director . . .

Third Year Residents (front row):Beti Belachew, Azad Mansouri (back row): David Vollman, Whitney Lomazow, Andrew Schimel

Ophthalmic Pathology & Chief Resident Ophthalmic Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery Fellowship Jules Stein/UCLA Los Angeles, CA

Chief Resident Raj Rathod

John B. Davies Vitreoretinal Fellowship VitreoRetinal Surgery Minneapolis, MN

David R. Fintak Vitreoretinal Fellowship Kaiser Permanente Denver, CO

Current Fellows Cornea:

Matthew Albright, Matthew Council

Glaucoma:

Sidney Chang

Oculoplastics: Adam Buchanan Peds:

Tara Missoi

Retina:

Arghavan Almony, Jon Jonisch, Kam Ramaiya, Ray Wee