St. Jude Insider-2014-03-26

continued on back cover

Switchcontinued from front cover

insider

insiderWednesday, March 26, 2014

St. Jude

A l s o i n t h i s i s s u e

A biweekly internal publication for St. Jude employees

6 Celebrating nurses

The hospital recognizes certified nurses.

2 On the Horizon

Pam Dotson, RN, discusses why hand-washing is important to patient care.

1 L.I.F.T. presentation

Swimmer Diana Nyad shares her story of inspiration and hope.

7 Grizzly visit Memphis Grizzly

Marc Gasol visits with patients and families.

Please recycle after reading.

insider is published for employees of St. Jude Chil-

dren’s Research Hospital biweekly by the Communications

department. Any use of these stories by other parties or for

other purposes requires authorization by hospital Communi-

cations. Email story ideas to [email protected], or contact

Mike O’Kelly, 595-4047. Submissions such as achieve-

ments, births, in memoriam and wedding announcements

are welcomed. Communications reserves the right to edit or

hold any submissions. If you prefer to obtain St. Jude In-

sider online, visit http://home.stjude.org/communications/

Pages/stjude-insider.aspx . To change the number of paper

copies your department receives, email [email protected].

Photography and design by the department of Biomedical

Communications. The mission of St. Jude is to advance

cures, and means of prevention, for pediatric catastrophic

diseases through research and treatment. St. Jude is an Equal

Opportunity Employer.

A possible new ‘off’ switch for a pathway that can lead to cancer

A St. Jude biochemist and a structural

biologist recently reported progress

in efforts to design a new ‘off’ switch for

a developmentally important signaling

pathway that can also drive certain cancers,

including the pediatric brain tumor

medulloblastoma.

Their work focused on a signaling

protein called smoothened. Smoothened

sits on the cell surface and, given the right

stimulus, can switch on the hedgehog

pathway. The pathway controls a variety

of cell functions and is essential for early

growth and development. Inappropriately

activated later in life, however, the

hedgehog pathway can lead to cancer.

Smoothened is already targeted

by the drug vismodegib for treatment

of advanced basal cell carcinoma, the

most common skin cancer. The efficacy

of vismodegib is also being studied in

a Phase II clinical trial for treatment of

certain medulloblastoma patients. Amar Gajjar, MD, Oncology, is principal

investigator of that national study.

The latest research details how

another drug cripples the pathway

by targeting a different part of the

smoothened protein.

Stacey Ogden, PhD, Biochemistry,

and Jie Zheng, PhD, Structural

Biology, directed the work, which was

published recently in the journal Nature

Communications. The results close an

important gap in determining the structure

of smoothened. The findings also led

investigators to propose a new model of

how smoothened regulates the hedgehog

pathway.

“We have identified a new direction

for drug development against the

hedgehog pathway,” Zheng said. That is

important because some tumors develop

resistance to vismodegib.

The scientists used a technology

called nuclear magnetic resonance to

determine the structure of a part of the

smoothened protein called the cysteine

rich domain (CRD). The CRD extends

outside the cell surface and is required for

smoothened to function normally. Until

now, however, the CRD’s structure was

unknown.

“Understanding how a protein works

is often hard without a picture, and until

now we didn’t have the whole picture of

smoothened. This marks a significant step

in understanding how smoothened works,”

Ogden said.

Researchers showed that the anti-

inflammatory drug binds to both human and

fly CRDs. The fly is a widely used model of

hedgehog signaling in humans. In the fruit

fly Drosophila melanogaster, budesonide

was associated with as much as a 40

percent reduction in the activity of genes

regulated by the hedgehog pathway.

Investigators are now screening other

approved drugs for any that do an even

better job of silencing hedgehog signaling

by binding the CRD. “Knowing the

structure, we can also carry out structure-

based drug design to target smoothened,”

Zheng said. “That study is currently

underway.”

Added Ogden: “This could lead to new

options for patients who develop resistance

to the current smoothened inhibitor or the

possibility of combination therapies with

smoothened inhibitors in the future.”

Meanwhile, the search for the molecule

Researchers recently reported progress in efforts to design a new “off” switch for an important

signaling pathway that can drive certain cancers. Stacey Ogden, PhD, Biochemistry (at left), and

Jie Zheng, PhD, Structural Biology (at right), directed the work, which was published recently in

Nature Communications. Rajashree Rana, Structural Biology (center), is the study’s first author.

that normally binds with and activates the

smoothened CRD continues. Researchers

in this study propose this unknown

molecule serves as the bridge that brings

different parts of smoothened together,

altering the protein’s shape and serving

as the on switch for hedgehog signaling.

The study’s first author is Rajashree

Rana, Structural Biology. The other

authors are Ho-Jin Lee, PhD, Ju Bao, PhD, Grace Royappa, PhD, and

Cristina Guibao, all of Structural

Biology; Suresh Marada, PhD,

Biochemistry, and Candace Carroll, formerly of St. Jude.

continued on back cover

Switchcontinued from front cover

insider

insiderWednesday, March 26, 2014

St. Jude



6 Celebrating nurses

The hospital recognizes certified nurses.

2 On the Horizon

Pam Dotson, RN, discusses why hand-washing is important to patient care.

1 L.I.F.T. presentation

Swimmer Diana Nyad shares her story of inspiration and hope.

7 Grizzly visit Memphis Grizzly

Marc Gasol visits with patients and families.


insider is published for employees of St. Jude Chil-

dren’s Research Hospital biweekly by the Communications

department. Any use of these stories by other parties or for

other purposes requires authorization by hospital Communi-

cations. Email story ideas to [email protected], or contact

Mike O’Kelly, 595-4047. Submissions such as achieve-

ments, births, in memoriam and wedding announcements

are welcomed. Communications reserves the right to edit or

hold any submissions. If you prefer to obtain St. Jude In-

sider online, visit http://home.stjude.org/communications/

Pages/stjude-insider.aspx . To change the number of paper

copies your department receives, email [email protected].


Communications. The mission of St. Jude is to advance

cures, and means of prevention, for pediatric catastrophic

diseases through research and treatment. St. Jude is an Equal

Opportunity Employer.

A possible new ‘off’ switch for a pathway that can lead to cancer

A St. Jude biochemist and a structural

biologist recently reported progress

in efforts to design a new ‘off’ switch for

a developmentally important signaling

pathway that can also drive certain cancers,

including the pediatric brain tumor

medulloblastoma.

Their work focused on a signaling

protein called smoothened. Smoothened

sits on the cell surface and, given the right

stimulus, can switch on the hedgehog

pathway. The pathway controls a variety

of cell functions and is essential for early

growth and development. Inappropriately

activated later in life, however, the

hedgehog pathway can lead to cancer.

Smoothened is already targeted

by the drug vismodegib for treatment

of advanced basal cell carcinoma, the

most common skin cancer. The efficacy

of vismodegib is also being studied in

a Phase II clinical trial for treatment of

certain medulloblastoma patients. Amar Gajjar, MD, Oncology, is principal

investigator of that national study.

The latest research details how

another drug cripples the pathway

by targeting a different part of the

smoothened protein.

Stacey Ogden, PhD, Biochemistry,

and Jie Zheng, PhD, Structural

Biology, directed the work, which was

published recently in the journal Nature

Communications. The results close an

important gap in determining the structure

of smoothened. The findings also led

investigators to propose a new model of

how smoothened regulates the hedgehog

pathway.

“We have identified a new direction

for drug development against the

hedgehog pathway,” Zheng said. That is

important because some tumors develop

resistance to vismodegib.

The scientists used a technology

called nuclear magnetic resonance to

determine the structure of a part of the

smoothened protein called the cysteine

rich domain (CRD). The CRD extends

outside the cell surface and is required for

smoothened to function normally. Until

now, however, the CRD’s structure was

unknown.

“Understanding how a protein works

is often hard without a picture, and until

now we didn’t have the whole picture of

smoothened. This marks a significant step

in understanding how smoothened works,”

Ogden said.

Researchers showed that the anti-

inflammatory drug binds to both human and

fly CRDs. The fly is a widely used model of

hedgehog signaling in humans. In the fruit

fly Drosophila melanogaster, budesonide

was associated with as much as a 40

percent reduction in the activity of genes

regulated by the hedgehog pathway.

Investigators are now screening other

approved drugs for any that do an even

better job of silencing hedgehog signaling

by binding the CRD. “Knowing the

structure, we can also carry out structure-

based drug design to target smoothened,”

Zheng said. “That study is currently

underway.”

Added Ogden: “This could lead to new

options for patients who develop resistance

to the current smoothened inhibitor or the

possibility of combination therapies with

smoothened inhibitors in the future.”

Meanwhile, the search for the molecule

Researchers recently reported progress in efforts to design a new “off” switch for an important

signaling pathway that can drive certain cancers. Stacey Ogden, PhD, Biochemistry (at left), and

Jie Zheng, PhD, Structural Biology (at right), directed the work, which was published recently in

Nature Communications. Rajashree Rana, Structural Biology (center), is the study’s first author.

that normally binds with and activates the

smoothened CRD continues. Researchers

in this study propose this unknown

molecule serves as the bridge that brings

different parts of smoothened together,

altering the protein’s shape and serving

as the on switch for hedgehog signaling.

The study’s first author is Rajashree

Rana, Structural Biology. The other

authors are Ho-Jin Lee, PhD, Ju Bao, PhD, Grace Royappa, PhD, and

Cristina Guibao, all of Structural

Biology; Suresh Marada, PhD,

Biochemistry, and Candace Carroll, formerly of St. Jude.

home.stjude.org/insider Wednesday, March 26, 2014 insider

1

L.I.F.T. presentation: Nyad shares story of inspirational swim from Cuba to Florida

World-class swimmer Diana Nyad shared her inspirational

story of persistence, age-defying feats and goal-setting with

employees March 6 as part of the L.I.F.T. (Learning. Inspiration. Focus.

Transformation.) presentation in the St. Jude Auditorium.

Nyad, 64, made history last September when she successfully swam

from Havana, Cuba, to Key West, Florida, becoming the first person ever

to do so without a shark cage. The 100-mile journey was rife with potential

obstacles—predatory sharks, deadly jellyfish, severe thunderstorms

and strong ocean currents that could push her off course if not carefully

calculated.

Her swim was not a solitary effort. Nyad credited a team of 44

experts—swimmers, physicians, oceanographers, marine biologists, sports

scientists and navigators—for helping her complete the 53-hour journey.

“We should never, ever give up. You are never too old to chase your

dreams,” Nyad told reporters just minutes after she reached the shores of

Key West.

Nyad had attempted the swim four previous times unsuccessfully,

beginning in 1978 at the age of 29. In her mid-20s, she was introduced to

the extreme sport of marathon swimming and traversed the waters of Lake

Ontario and the perimeter of the island of Manhattan.

After swimming competitively since age 7 and nearly qualifying for

the Olympics in 1968, Nyad retired from swimming at age 30. At the

time, she said she would never swim another stroke. Nyad then began a

successful career in sports journalism, working for ABC Sports, National

Public Radio and authoring three books.

But at age 60, she again set her sights on the swim from Cuba to

Florida. She came up short in two attempts in 2011 and once in 2012,

veering off course due to the powerful currents of the Gulf Stream.

After Nyad’s fourth attempt, members of the marathon swimming

community were declaring the swim impossible. They were joined in

this claim by sports scientists, sports psychologists and journalists. Even

members of Nyad’s team were unsure if she should pursue a fifth attempt.

“I was filled with trepidation, and it was going to be tough not to make

it again,” Nyad said. “I said, ‘I’d rather not make it again than to be at home

wondering if we ever would have made it.’ I wanted to be the bold one.”

Nyad, who is a contestant on the current season of Dancing with the

Stars, said since jumping back in the water at age 60, she now tries to

live each day to the fullest and revealed why she was so passionate about

marathon swimming and reaching her goals.

“It’s like a microcosm of life. You have lows, and you have highs,”

Nyad said. “You’ve got to believe that if you are in a low, that you have the

will to find your way through it.”

Diana Nyad speaks to St. Jude employees as part of the L.I.F.T. (Learning. Inspiration. Focus. Transformation.) presentation this month. Nyad discussed her early career

as an Olympic hopeful and how she became involved in marathon swimming. Last fall, Nyad became the first person to successfully swim from Cuba to Florida without

the aid of a shark cage.

insiderSt. Jude

Wednesday, March 26, 2014A biweekly internal publication for St. Jude employees

insider Wednesday, March 26, 2014 home.stjude.org/insider 2

with St. Jude Leadership — Pam Dotson, RNon the horizon

W e’ve all been taught the importance of washing our hands

since childhood, but do we understand how important

hand-washing really is, especially for the safety of our patients?

Consider this: The Centers for Disease Control and

Prevention (CDC) has estimated that roughly 1.7 million

hospital-associated infections cause or contribute to 99,000

deaths each year. That is a staggering number, and a frightening

risk to anyone who goes into a hospital for care. So what’s the

connection to hand-washing? The simple act of washing your

hands is the single most important step to preventing a hospital-associated

infection.

Our patients are at high risk for infection due to the nature of their

primary diseases. In addition, because they spend so much of their time

inside the hospital setting, whether outpatient or inpatient, they have an even

higher risk. We have to make sure we do all we can to protect our patients.

Hand contact is the most frequent and effective means for transmitting

organisms from one person to another.

To properly prevent transmission of diseases, employees should wash

their hands according to the guidelines below:

1. When beginning your work day.

2. When the hands are obviously soiled (soap and water only).

3. Immediately before and after contact with a patient.

4. When leaving an isolation area or after handling articles from an

isolation area.

5. Before wearing gloves and after removing gloves.

6. After personal use of the toilet (soap and water).

7. After blowing or wiping the nose.

8. Before handling or preparing food.

9. Before eating.

10. On completion of duty.

Do you wash your hands correctly? A recent Michigan State University

study revealed that only 5 percent of people studied washed their hands

correctly. The CDC recommends that you wash your hands vigorously with

soap for 15 to 20 seconds. On average, people washed their hands for about

six seconds. Shocking findings from the study showed that 33

percent of people did not use soap, and 10 percent did not wash

their hands at all.

Every St. Jude employee must take the proper precautions

to prevent exposing our patients to potentially life-threatening

infections. You may be reading this and thinking it doesn’t

apply to you because you don’t care directly for patients, but

here’s another fact to consider: 50 percent of foodborne illness

outbreaks are linked to lack of or improper hand-washing.

Many viruses and bacteria can live several hours on hard surfaces like

cafeteria tables, telephone receivers and computer keyboards. Listed below

are the suggested methods for washing your hands with soap and water and

with an alcohol-based gel. Preventing infection is important to all of us, and

hand-washing is the key. Please do it correctly and frequently.

When washing hands with soap and water:• Wet hands with water

• Apply enough soap necessary to cover all surfaces

• Vigorously perform rotational hand rubbing for at least 15 seconds on

both the palms and back of hand, interlace and interlock fingers to

cover all surfaces

• Rinse hands with water and dry thoroughly with a single-use towels

When using an alcohol-based hand gel:• Apply a dispensed amount of alcohol gel (5 grams)

• Spread thoroughly to cover all surfaces of the hands

• Rub hands until dry; do not dry with towels

Pam Dotson, RN

Senior Vice President and Chief Nursing Officer

Xinwei Cao, PhD,

Developmental

Neurobiology, is the

principal investigator

of a $1,914,065 grant

from the National

Institute of Neurological

Diseases and Stroke of

the National Institutes of

Health titled “Function

and Regulation of Hippo

Pathway Effectors

YAP/TAZ During Brain

Development.” The

grant is funded from

2014 to 2019.

Hongbo Chi, PhD,

Immunology, is the


of a $1,968,750 grant

from the National

Institute of Allergy and

Infectious Diseases of


Health titled “Metabolic

Checkpoint in TH17

Cell Differentiation.”

The grant is funded

from 2014 to 2019.

Wilson Clements,

PhD, Hematology, is the


of a $150,000 grant

from the March of

Dimes Birth Defects

Foundation titled “ID of

Novel Somite-derived

Hematopoietic Stem Cell

Specification Signals.”

The grant is funded

from 2014 to 2016.

Patricia Flynn, MD,

Infectious Diseases, is

the principal investigator

of a $3,247,748 grant

from the National




Health titled “HIV CURE

CTU.” The grant is funded

from 2013 to 2020.

Aditya Gaur, MD,



of a $141,174 grant from

Gilead Sciences Inc. titled

“Gilead GS 216-0128.”

The grant is funded

from 2013 to 2019.

Douglas Green, PhD,

Immunology chair, is the


of a $2,143,750, grant

from the National



the National Institutes

of Health titled “LC3-

Associated Phagocytosis

Resubmission.” The


2013 to 2018.

Hans Haecker, MD, PhD,



of a $300,000 grant

from the Lupus Research

Institute titled “Innate

Immune Mechanisms

Controlling Inflammation

in Systemic Lupus

Erythematosus.” The


2014 to 2017.

Scott Howard, MD,

International Outreach, is


of a $250,000 grant

from World Child Cancer

titled “Alliance for

Outcome Evaluation

in Central America.”

The grant is funded

from 2013 to 2018.

Hiroto Inaba, MD,

PhD, Oncology, is the


of a $100,000 grant

from Cookies for Kids’

Cancer titled “Genetic

Characterization and

Therapeutic Targeting

of Pediatric MPAL.”

The grant is funded

from 2014 to 2015.

Wanda Layman,

PhD, Developmental


principal investigator of

a $161,802 grant from

the National Institute

on Deafness and

Other Communication

Disorders of the National

Institutes of Health titled

“Epigenetic Regulation

in the Postnatal

Mammalian Inner Ear.”

The grant is funded

from 2014 to 2016.

Wing-Hang Leung,

MD, PhD, Bone Marrow

Transplantation and

Cellular Therapy chair, is


of a $450,000 grant

from the Cure Childhood

Cancer Foundation

titled “Hematopoietic

Cell Trans and NK Cell

Therapy Neuroblastoma.”

The grant is funded

from 2014 to 2016.

Charles Mullighan,

MBBS (Hons), MSc,

MD, Pathology, is the


of a $2.1 million grant

from the National

Cancer Institute of the

National Institutes of

Health titled “Verification,

Validation and Discovery

of Findings in TARGET’s

Acute Lymphoblastic

Leukemia.” The


2013 to 2014.

Peter Murray, PhD,



of a $100,000 grant

from Alex’s Lemonade

Stand Foundation

titled “Inflammatory

Signaling in the Tumor

Microenvironment.”

The grant is funded

from 2013 to 2014.

Ching-Hon Pui, MD,

Oncology chair, is the


of a $188,912 grant

from Give2Asia titled

“St. Jude IOP China

Program.” The grant is

funded through 2014.

Mary Relling, PharmD,

Pharmaceutical Sciences

chair, is the principal

investigator of an

$863,936 grant from

the National Cancer

Institute of the National

Institutes of Health

titled “Comprehensive

Approach to Improve

Medication Adherence

in Pediatric Leukemia.”

The grant is funded

from 2014 to 2018.

Jian Zuo, PhD,

Developmental


principal investigator of

a $100,260 grant from

Quark Pharmaceuticals

titled “Notch shRNAs

in Hearing Restoration

in Mice.” The grant is

funded through 2014.

Major new grant awardsThe following major new grants were awarded to St. Jude between December 1, 2013, and February 28, 2014.


3

Research Matters…The importance of communication and documentation in research

Communication between

investigators and research participants

is essential to ensure participant

understanding of the risks and potential

benefits of the research, to distinguish

standard of care procedures and

treatments from those that are for

research purposes only, and to prevent

misunderstandings regarding the

intent of the research. Communication

failures and lack of teamwork are

common causes of medical mishaps and

inadvertent patient harm.

Everyone has heard these

statements: “If it isn’t written, it doesn’t

exist,” and “If it isn’t documented,

it didn’t happen.” These statements

also apply to research conduct.

Documentation is necessary to protect

the research participant, the integrity of

the research data and the researchers.

Effective communication, teamwork

and accurate documentation support the

fundamental principle of protecting the

subject’s rights, safety and well-being.

Documentation is necessary to meet

both legal and regulatory requirements,

to show and prove what work has been

done, to show what activities have

occurred, what information has been

shared or discussed, and what decisions

have been made. Documentation is

essential to recreate the history and

events of the patient while participating

in the research and when re-visiting the

research activity. The best proactive

step against a professional negligence

claim is thorough, precise and timely

documentation.

Key attributes for good

documentation were first described

by the Food and Drug Administration

(FDA) in the form of ALCOA-

attributable, legible, contemporaneous,

original and accurate. These are

also adapted by the World Health

Organization.

The second most commonly cited

deficiency in FDA inspections of

clinical investigator sites is inadequate/

inaccurate case histories as defined

in FDA 21 CFR 312.62(b) (b) and

FDA 21 CFR 812.140(a)(3). There are

many methods for documentation, as

no one size fits all. However, there are

basic elements, which are described

in “Guidance for Industry E6 Good

Clinical Practice: Consolidated

Guidance” located fda.gov/downloads/

Drugs/Guidances/ucm073122.pdf.

This information is provided as part

of the hospital’s efforts to continually

enhance the protection of research

participants and to assist researchers

in conducting and documenting their

research to the highest standards.

New SOP info for “Unblinding St. Jude Initiated Trials”

The new Central Protocol and Data

Monitoring Office (CPDMO) Standard

Operating Procedure can be found on

the CTA Policies and Procedures/SOPs

page at home.stjude.org/clinical-trials-

administration/Policies/sop-36.pdf.

New process map for Limited English Proficiency procedures

There is a new process map

detailing the procedures for consenting

Limited English Proficiency parents

and participants to research or clinical

procedures. The map is available

at home.stjude.org/clinical-trials-

administration/Documents/guidance-

obtaining-documenting-lep-consent.pdf.

The research portion of the process

map will be provided to study teams

when they request a short-form consent

through CPDMO.

Revised policy posted The revision for policy 30.004

“Procedure for Single Patient Expanded

Access Use of an Investigational

Drug/Biologic or Unapproved Device

(Including Emergency Use)” has been

posted to the intranet’s policy and

procedures page.

CITI certification completion reports

Did you know? Collaborative

Institutional Training Initiative Human

Subject’s Protection training completion

reports can be printed off at any time by

registered users.

To print a completion report, log

in to citiprogram.org and you will be

directed to your Main Menu page.

Select “PRINT REPORT” located

to the side of each completed course in

the menu grid. For more information,

email the Office of Clinical Research

Education at [email protected]

or call 595-4773 or 595-3938.

Upcoming SoCRA examThe spring examination for the

Society of Clinical Research Associates

is scheduled for Friday, May 16.

Researchers discover immune signature that predicts poor outcome in influenza patients

St. Jude scientists have identified

a signature immune response that

might help doctors identify which

newly diagnosed influenza patients

are most likely to develop severe

symptoms and suffer poor outcomes.

The findings also help explain why

infants and toddlers are at elevated risk

for flu complications. The research was

published recently in the American

Journal of Respiratory and Critical

Care Medicine.

The discovery came after

investigators tracked flu infections

for 28 days in 84 individuals with

community-acquired influenza. This

report focused on the 2009–2010 and

2010–2011 flu seasons. Participants

were recruited by collaborators at

Le Bonheur Children’s Medical Center.

Researchers found that patients

with elevated levels of three particular

immune system regulators, or cytokines,

early in the infection were more likely

to develop severe flu symptoms and to

be hospitalized than patients with lower

levels of the same regulators. Study

participants ranged in age from 3 weeks

to 71 years old.

The cytokine levels early in

the infection predicted flu-related

complications regardless of patient

age, flu strain, the ability of the virus to

replicate or other factors. The cytokines

involved—MCP-3, interferon alpha 2

and interleukin 10—help to regulate

inflammation driven by the innate

immune response. The innate immune

system serves as the frontline of the

body’s defense against flu.

“Patients in this study could

handle the flu virus and clear it from

their lungs in a week to 10 days. The

problem for patients with this immune

signature is likely the inflammatory

environment in their airways created by

the innate immune system in response

to the virus,” said corresponding author

Paul Thomas, PhD, Immunology.

“Clinically, we need to explore targeted

therapies to address this problem

separately from efforts to clear the

virus.”

Flu remains a leading cause of

illness and death worldwide. Nineteen

patients in this study were hospitalized,

including four who were admitted to an

intensive care unit.

For this study, researchers tracked

both the flu infection and the resulting

immune response through blood, nasal

swabs and nasal wash samples collected

from patients with laboratory-confirmed

flu. Along with measuring levels

of flu virus in the nose and sinuses,

researchers measured 42 cytokines

and antibodies against circulating

flu viruses. Similar sampling was

conducted on 126 volunteers recruited

from the households of flu patients.

The testing showed children

and adults were equally successful

at eliminating the virus regardless of

the subtype. “Previous studies using

different measures reported that

children mounted a weaker immune

response,” said first author Christine

Oshansky, PhD, a St. Jude postdoctoral

fellow. In this study, the hyperactive

immune response diminished with age,

but Thomas said it may help explain

why toddlers and infants are more likely

to develop severe flu symptoms.

The other St. Jude authors are

Sook-San Wong, PhD, Trushar Jeevan, Miguela Caniza, MD, and

Richard Webby, PhD, all of Infectious

Diseases, and David Wang, formerly of

St. Jude.

Christine Oshansky, PhD

Immunology

Paul Thomas, PhD

Immunology


The 17th annual Bettye Arnold Seminar will provide ways for

employees to keep their cool in difficult situations and how to address issues

with creative solutions.

Offered by the Patient Care Services Professional Excellence Council,

the half-day seminar is scheduled for Tuesday, April 1, in the St. Jude

Auditorium, and will feature author and humorist Christine Cashen speaking

on the topic “Why Can’t Everyone Just Get Along?”

Cashen is the author of The Good Stuff: Quips and Tips on Life, Love,

Work and Happiness, which was named motivational book of the year by the

Next Generation Indie Book Awards.

The seminar is targeted at staff members who have direct patient care,

but all employees are welcome to register for either the morning or afternoon

session. The cost is $20 for students and St. Jude and affiliate employees and

$40 for others.

To learn more about the event or to register, visit www.stjude.org/

bettyearnold, or contact Michael Hans, RN, Nursing Education, 595-5283.

Find out more about St. Jude Toastmasters

The St. Jude Toastmasters Club is open to all St. Jude, Children’s

GMP, LLC, and ALSAC employees who are looking to improve their

public speaking and leadership skills.

The club offers staff members an opportunity to become exposed to

public speaking in a warm, friendly and nurturing environment as they

develop and improve their communication skills in front of an audience.

The Toastmaster journey is traveled on your own path, at your own

speed—regardless of your current public speaking skills. Fellowship and

friendships grow out of the weekly meetings, which are held

each Thursday at 11 a.m. in the IRC, Room E-1004.

For more information on the St. Jude Toastmasters Club,

visit their next meeting or contact Maricarmen Windisch,

Professional Services Office, 595-4202.

The first ether anesthetic for surgery was administered March 30, 1842, by Crawford Long, MD, of Jefferson, Georgia. Long delivered the anesthesia and then operated to remove a tumor from a patient’s neck. Later, the patient said that he felt nothing during the surgery and wasn’t aware the surgery was over until he awoke.

That date, March 30, is now celebrated each year as Doctors’ Day. The first observance of Doctors’ Day was March 30, 1933, in Winder, Georgia, when Eudora Almond, the wife of physician Charles Almond, decided to

Celebrate Doctors’ Day with a cool treat

More about Bettye Arnold

The Bettye Arnold Nursing Seminar is an annual educational event open to all hospital employees. Each year an outside speaker is invited to do a presentation that is timely and meaningful for everyone.

Bettye Arnold was a registered nurse at St. Jude for 30 years. She practiced in a variety of RN roles, and she was honored in 1991 as Employee of the Year. Arnold died in July 1994.

During her tenure at St. Jude, Arnold was continually impressed by the family involvement, as parents were actively involved with their children’s care. Arnold once learned from a young patient that “you don’t have to live a long life to live life to its fullest.” Arnold served in several roles in both ambulatory and inpatient care areas. Her last role was as a clinical research nurse coordinator.

Regardless of the department she served in, Arnold’s colleagues always praised her selflessness, dependability, caring attitude and professionalism.

Upcoming Bettye Arnold Seminar focuses on keeping your cool

set aside a day to honor doctors. This first observance included the mailing of greeting cards and placing flowers on graves of deceased doctors.

A resolution commemorating Doctors’ Day was adopted March 30, 1958, by the United States House of Representatives. In 1990, legislation was introduced in the House and Senate to establish a national Doctors’ Day. Following overwhelming approval by the Senate and the House, on October 30, 1990, President George Bush signed S.J. RES. No. 366 (which became Public Law 101-473) designating March 30, 1991, as the first National Doctors’ Day.

Employees are invited to attend an ice cream party during this year’s Doctors’ Day celebration Thursday, March 27, from 2 to 4 p.m. in front of Kay Kafe. Stop by the event any time for a cool treat as the hospital shows its appreciation for the work done by St. Jude physicians.

Did you know?

It pays to work with Technology Licensing

Did you know that disclosing your new ideas to the Office of

Technology Licensing (OTL) can pay off for you as well as St. Jude?

To encourage disclosure and comply with federal regulations,

St. Jude shares about one-third of the net license income generated

from inventions made here with individual inventors. Last year the

inventors’ portion of license income totaled more than $1 million

shared among 75 individuals. The remaining license income retained

by St. Jude is used to further the research mission.

While there is no guarantee that your idea will be pursued and

developed into a successful product, the only way to know is to contact

the OTL. Any employee can fill out and submit the disclosure form on

the OTL intranet site at home.stjude.org/ technology-licensing/Pages/

forms.aspx to have an idea considered for patenting and licensing.

OTL can also meet with you if you are unsure the idea qualifies as an

invention or if you need help with the form.

If you are interested in learning about some of the past inventions

that have been developed into products and contributed to the

institution’s licensing success, click the “Success Stories” link at

stjude.org/technology-licensing. These stories may help you envision

what is possible when you work with the OTL to turn your idea into a

product that can benefit the public and perhaps St. Jude patients.


5

All nurses and nursing staff members may nominate a nursing staff colleague for the 2014 Nursing Peer Excellence Awards. The awards recognize outstanding nurses, nursing care assistants, patient care associates, patient representatives and utility aids for their contributions to the hospital, their colleagues and to patients and families. With nurses working in a variety of areas at St. Jude, keep in mind that anyone with an RN or LPN degree is eligible for nomination.

The awards will be presented during Nursing Care Team Week, May 10 through 16. Nominees will also be considered for the 2015 edition of the Memphis area’s annual Celebrate Nursing Awards, at the nominator’s discretion.

To nominate a nursing staff colleague, complete the form provided in St. Jude Today by Friday, March 28, at 5 p.m. For more information, contact Angela Alexander, 595-3531.

Getting social with SharePoint 2013Have you tried the new social

features of SharePoint 2013 yet, or

are you a little intimidated by those

hashtags (#), at symbols (@) and

followers? These new social tools can

help you collaborate and connect to

enhance your productivity.

If you’re unsure of where to

get started or maybe a little timid,

Information Sciences recommends

that you first visit the SharePoint 2013

Help Center located on the St. Jude

Intranet. A link to the Help Center is

provided in the footer on every page of

the intranet.

There you’ll learn where to get

started through the enhanced My

Site social capabilities: Newsfeed,

SkyDrive, Sites, About Me, Blog,

Apps and Tasks. When you click any

of these links for the first time, you

will be prompted to “Get the most out

of SharePoint” by getting social. Click

OK, and within a few minutes, your

My Site will be ready to use.

For information on the proper way

to use social media at St. Jude, read

the Social Media policy located under

Institutional Policies on the intranet.

SITESThe Sites tab lets you see all the

sites you currently follow and also

suggests sites you may be interested in

following. Sites you can follow include

specific sites on the intranet or in

Workspaces. Think of these as personal

bookmarks for sites that you work with

or visit the most. You can start or stop

following a site at any time.

FOLLOWKeep tabs on important

Workspaces documents, view updates

to a project you are working on,

or track the activities of your team

members all using the Follow feature.

You will receive these updates in your

Newsfeed.

NEWSFEEDNewsfeed serves as a central

location for updates about all of the

people, sites, documents, hashtags and

conversations you are following.

#TAGWhen posting to a Newsfeed,

add #Tags to your posts both to make

them easier to locate in the future,

and to ensure they are seen by others

searching for or following that tag.

(Example: #SharepointTip)

BLOGEveryone has the ability to create

a Blog within their My Site area.

You can share thoughts, pictures,

videos and links to other sites from

your blog. You can edit or delete your

blog postings. Blog postings can be

categorized and archived.

People who are following your

blog have the ability to write a

comment, like or email a link to your

blog.

Everyone in the institution can see

your blog posting, but only those who

are following you will receive an email

alert when you create a new post.

SHAREDo you need to collaborate on a

document? Share allows you to give

someone permission to view or edit

a document that is stored in your

SkyDrive. Using the Share button, you

can enter names and email addresses

to issue invitations to other users at

St. Jude. You can include a personal

message along with the invitation.

Need to share documents,

calendars, tasks and conversations with

a group?

Email sharepointadministrators@

stjude.org about having a SharePoint

site built for the team.

TASKSSee all your assignments in one

place with the Task roll-up on the

My Tasks screen. To get there, go to

your Newsfeed and click the Tasks

link on the left side of the page. If

you are assigned a task in any of your

Workspace sites, you can see the entire

combined list here.

You can mark tasks as Important

and Upcoming, view on a Timeline,

see which tasks are Active or

Completed, find a task using Search, or

add new tasks. Only you can see your

task roll-up.

SKYDRIVESkyDrive is your personal

document library. You can create,

upload and store files for private access

or share with others. Documents

remain private until you allow access

to others by using the Share function.

SkyDrive offers version control and

is best used for temporary storage of

documents that require collaboration

with others.

You can also sync documents

between SharePoint 2013 and your

local workstation. Work on your

document offline and then synchronize

when you are online again. The Sync

function only works on St. Jude-issued

Windows-based devices. For the best

Sync experience, call the Help Desk,

595-2000, for installation of the

SkyDrive Pro Client. SkyDrive Pro

Client provides quick access to your

synced documents through Windows

Explorer.

You and the people you have

shared with can see the documents you

have posted to SkyDrive.

CONVERSATIONSConversations include those

conversations you start from

your Newsfeed page, replies to

conversations you are following,

postings that contain #Tags you are

following or postings that mention you,

whether you are following the person

or not.

Everyone in the institution can

see postings from a conversation

you start. If you would like to be

able to have private conversations

with specific groups, email

sharepointadministrators@stjude.

org. Your Newsfeed is filtered to show

conversations from people you are

following.

LIKEYou can Like comments and reply

to comments in Conversations and

Blogs. You can Unlike at any time.

On your Newsfeed page, you can

click the ellipsis to the right of the

Mentions link, then select Likes to see

items you previously liked.

MENTIONIf you want to draw attention

to someone in your organization in

a Newsfeed post, you can mention

them by typing an @ symbol and

then picking a person’s name from

the People Directory. The person

mentioned and everyone who follows

you will see the mention.

SEARCHOn sites filled with data, updates

and documents, Search is your key to

finding information quickly. Whether

it’s a document or a link posted by a

colleague, Search helps you find it fast.

You can choose to search Everything,

People, Conversations, and This Site.

This Site includes the site you are

currently on and every sub-site below

it. You can also search the content on

your U:// drive.

See the Help Center for more

information and keep an eye on the

FAQs page for tips and tricks to

customize your SharePoint experience.

Want to learn more about the

many ways you can use SharePoint to

help your team work more efficiently?

Sign up for a SharePoint class in

LearnCenter.

Make a Peer Excellence Award nomination


NEWS ROUNDUP

Celebrating certified nursesThe St. Jude Professional Excellence Council honored the work of certified

nurses at an event at the ABC Wall on Certified Nurses Day, March 19. Certified

nurses received treats and newly certified nurses received T-shirts. Pictured (from

left): patient schedulers Kristy Rodgers, MeLissa Clayton and Amy Wade, all

of Nursing Administration.

A musical dayALSAC recently hosted country musician and

actress Jana Kramer, who took a break from

her tour to visit with patients and families.

During the visit, Kramer played games,

participated in a puppet show and sang

songs. Pictured, Kramer shares a moment

with Bailey Parker.

Schwartz Center RoundsThe inaugural session of Schwartz Center

Rounds at St. Jude featured the topic

“What Keeps You Up at Night?” The rounds

program is a multidisciplinary forum where

caregivers gather to discuss emotional and

social issues that arise in caring for patients.

The forum’s panelists included (from left):

Guillermo Umbria, Interpreter Services; Ray

Morrison, MD, Critical Care chief; Valerie

Groben, Oncology; and Ross Goshorn, MD,

Oncology.

Joining the funMembers of the boy band Mindless Behavior visit with patients and siblings

at Target House. The band members performed their songs and were joined in

the fun by some of their fans. Pictured, Gabriel Toma (at right) performs with

Chresanto August, also known as Roc Royal (at left), and Jacob Emmanuel

Perez, also known as Princeton (center). ALSAC hosted the event.


7

As you read the

St. Jude Insider, let us

know how we can help

tell your stories. Forward

your feedback, comments

or questions to

[email protected].


insiderMonday, January 23, 2012

St. Jude


2 On the Horizon Mike Canarios writes

about the roll-out of a new online effort

reporting system.

3 Great Places to Work

St. Jude again makes

the list of FORTUNE’s

Top 100 Companies to

Work For.


insider is a publication intended for employees of

St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. It is published bi-

weekly by the Communications department. Any use of

these stories by other parties or for other purposes requires

authorization by hospital Communications. E-mail story ideas

to [email protected], or contact Mike O’Kelly, 595-4047.

Submissions such as achievements, births, in memoriam and

wedding announcements are welcomed. Communications re-

serves the right to edit or hold any submissions. If you prefer

to obtain St. Jude Insider online, visit http://home.web.stjude.

org/pr/stjudeinsider.shtml. To change the number of paper

copies your department receives, e-mail [email protected].


Communications. The mission of St. Jude is to advance cures,

and means of prevention, for pediatric catastrophic diseases

through research and treatment. St. Jude is an Equal Oppor-

tunity Employer. cont’d on back cover

cont’d on page 3

1 Honoring Danny Thomas

Founder Danny

Thomas is honored with postage stamp,

birthday celebrations.

The new studies include research on retinoblastoma, with Michael Dyer,

PhD, Developmental Neurobiology, as the

corresponding author, and a finding in early

T-cell precursor ALL that features Charles

Mullighan, MD, PhD, Pathology, as the

corresponding author.

Gene identified as new retinoblastoma target

“The dogma has been that once RB1

is mutated, the genome of the affected cell

becomes unstable and mutations quickly

develop in the pathways that are essential

for cancer progression,” said Michael

Dyer, PhD, Developmental Neurobiology.

When sequencing the complete

normal and cancer genomes of four

St. Jude patients with retinoblastoma,

researchers found that the tumors

contained very few alterations. The

human genome is the complete set of

instructions needed to assemble and

sustain an individual. The findings prompted Dyer to

integrate the whole-genome sequencing

results with additional tests that looked at

differences in the patterns of gene activity

in tumor and normal tissue. “To our surprise and excitement,

what we found was that instead of cancer

genes having genetic mutations, they were

being epigenetically regulated differently

than normal cells,” Dyer said.

The affected genes included SYK.

When researchers checked SYK protein

levels in normal and retinoblastoma

tissue, they found high levels of the

protein just in tumor samples.

Drugs targeting the SYK protein are

already in clinical trials in adults with

other diseases. This study suggests one

of the drugs might be effective against

retinoblastoma. Researchers are working

Project sheds new light on ETP-ALLR esearchers have discovered that a

subtype of leukemia characterized by

a poor prognosis is fueled by mutations in

pathways distinctly different from a seem-

ingly similar leukemia associated with a

much better outcome. The findings from

the St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital

– Washington University Pediatric Cancer

Genome Project (PCGP) highlight a

N ew findings from the St. Jude

Children’s Research Hospital –

Washington University Pediatric Cancer

Genome Project (PCGP) have helped

identify the mechanism that makes the

childhood eye tumor retinoblastoma so

aggressive. The discovery explains why the

tumor develops rapidly while other cancers

can take years or even decades to form.

The finding also led investigators to a

new treatment target and possible therapy

for the rare childhood tumor. The study

appeared in the January 11 advance online

edition of Nature.Researchers have known for decades

that loss of a tumor suppressor gene named

RB1 launches retinoblastoma during

fetal development. But other steps in the

rapid transformation from a normal to a

malignant tumor cell were unknown.

New evidence suggests that epigenetic

factors, including reversible chemical

changes that influence how genes are

switched on and off, are altered when RB1

is mutated.

Pediatric Cancer Genome Project

studies provide new insights

Pediatric Cancer Genomecont’d from front cover

Gene ident i f ied

Michael Dyer, PhD,Developmental Neurobiology

toward a Phase I trial of one drug in

retinoblastoma patients.The first authors are Jinghui Zhang,

PhD, Computational Biology; Claudia

Benavente, PhD, Justina McEvoy,

PhD, and Jacqueline Flores-Otero,

PhD, all postdoctoral fellows in Dyer’s

laboratory. The corresponding authors are

Dyer, James Downing, MD, scientific

director, and Richard Wilson, PhD,

Washington University in St. Louis.

The other authors are Xiang Chen, PhD,

Gang Wu, PhD, and Michael Rusch,

all of Computational Biology; Matthew

Wilson, MD, adjunct St. Jude faculty;

Jianmin Wang, PhD, Jing Ma, PhD,

David Zhao, Suraj Mukatira, PhD,

and Pankaj Gupta, all of Information

Sciences; Rachel Brennan, MD,

Oncology; John Easton, PhD, Pediatric

Cancer Genome Project; Sheila

Shurtleff, PhD, Charles Mullighan,

MD, PhD, and Armita Bahrami, MD,

all of Pathology, Stanley Pounds,

PhD, Biostatistics; Geoff Neale, PhD,

Hartwell Center; Clayton Naeve, PhD,

chief information officer; David Ellison,

MD, PhD, Pathology chair; and Anatoly

Ulyanov, PhD, formerly of St. Jude.

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Have we heard from YOU?

AchievementsSt. Jude has received a rating of Full Accreditation from the Association for the

Accreditation of Human Research Protection Programs Inc. (AAHRPP).

Teddy Huerta, Rhodes College student in the laboratory of Stacey Schultz-Cherry, PhD, Infectious Diseases, received the American Society for Microbiology

(ASM) Capstone Award to present his research at the annual ASM meeting in

Boston in May. His presentation is titled “The H5 Hemagglutinin Protein Confers

the Ability of Highly Pathogenic H5N1 Influenza Viruses to Replicate Productively

in Macrophages.”

The Memphis Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics selected Karen Smith,

Clinical Nutrition, as the Outstanding Dietetic Educator for the Memphis Academy

of Nutrition and Dietetics for 2014. In addition, Jennifer Presson, Food Services,

was named the Outstanding Dietetic Technician and student Perrin Tamblin,

Clinical Nutrition, was named Tennessee’s Outstanding Dietetic Graduate Student.

Ranjit Thirumaran, PhD, Pharmaceutical Sciences, was one of five finalists

in the professional category for the NRI (Non-Resident of India) of the Year

from the United States. The award is for achievers who have made their mark

internationally.

Welcome St. Jude baby

Congratulations to Jennifer Pauley, PharmD, Pharmacy, and Shawn Beyer

on the birth of their son, Hudson Andrew, March 7.

e-St. Jude Insider poll question results

Do you count calories throughout the day?

I never do. I don’t think twice about counting calories.

41.8%I have a general idea of how many calories I take in daily.

26.9%I monitor my calories from time to time.

22.3%I keep track of the calories in everything I eat.

9%

Hoop DreamsMemphis Grizzlies center Marc Gasol (pictured

with patients) visits St. Jude this month to

celebrate the success of Hoops for St. Jude

Week. During the visit coordinated by ALSAC,

Gasol visited with patients and families in the

Kay Kafe and then helped distribute popcorn

to employees and family members at a special

celebratory party at the ABC Wall. Each year,

the NBA dedicates a week to the hospital,

encouraging fans and players to get involved

in helping save the lives of children with cancer

and other life-threatening diseases.