The latest in local research will be presented during the University of North Texas Health Science Center’s 12th annual Research Appreciation Day Friday, April 2.

Close to 150 student and faculty research projects will be presented, including research on Alzheimer’s disease, vision disorders, cancer, public health, physical medicine and heart disease. The investigators will be on hand to share their research findings. The day-long event is free and open to the public. For more information, contact the health science center at 817-735-5400.

The keynote speaker is David I. Kaufman, DO, professor and chair of the department of neurology and ophthalmology at the College Osteopathic Medicine and College of Human Medicine at Michigan State University. His presentation on “Clinical Research: A View from the Trenches” will take place at noon in Luibel Hall in the Education and Administration Building.

Dr. Kaufman is also the director of the Neurology Osteopathic Residency Organization and the Consortium of Osteopathic Residencies in Ophthalmology. In addition to his work at MSU, Dr. Kaufman also serves as the medical director of neurology for Sparrow Health Systems in Lansing, Mich.

He received his medical degree from Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine and earned his bachelor of science degree from the University of Wisconsin, where he also completed a residency in neurology. Dr. Kaufman did a fellowship in neurophysiology at UW, and he was a Harvard Research Fellow in clinical neuro-ophthalmology at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston.

Research Appreciation Day is an annual opportunity for health science center faculty, staff and students to share research results, explore potential joint research projects and enhance the community's awareness of the research conducted at the health science center.

Cash awards will be presented to the top student entries in both the poster and oral competitions. Clinical, basic science and public health entries will be judged separately.

Among the variety of work being presented April 2 are:

• Investigating methods to diagnose Alzheimer’s disease in its early stages

• Developing new methods to deliver the drugs that fight cancer

• Examining the role of progesterone in protecting nerve cells in the brain

• Testing the ability of a natural carbohydrate compound to protect the brain during cardiac arrest

• Investigating the causes of and potential treatments for glaucoma

• Identifying and assessing risk factors for type 2 diabetes in Fort Worth’s Hispanic population

• Studying the role of estrogen in reducing the effects of alcohol withdrawal

UNT Health Science Center is located at 3500 Camp Bowie Blvd in Fort Worth’s Cultural District. Free parking is available in the health science center’s parking garage on Clifton Road, off Camp Bowie Boulevard. For more information, visit www.hsc.unt.edu/rad.

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If you are with the media and need additional information or would like to arrange an interview, please contact the Office of Marketing and Communications at 817-735-2446.