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UTHSC Researcher Awarded NIH Grant to Discover How to Prevent Respirator Lung Injury

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            Memphis, Tenn. (December 1, 2006) – Patients depending on respirators for life support often experience further damage to the lungs from the life-saving treatment itself.  The National Institutes of Health (NIH) have awarded a five-year $328,500 grant to Scott. E. Sinclair, MD, assistant professor at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center (UTHSC) to investigate the internal human mechanisms responsible for this lung injury.

“If we can determine the pathways by which lung tissue damage occurs, we can then discover how to use respiratory support to avoid lung injury while keeping the patient alive,” said Dr. Sinclair.  “We should also be able to identify potential drug therapies that could benefit patients with respiratory failure.”

Dr. Sinclair received his medical degree from the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas and pursued a residency in categorical internal medicine from the University of Oklahoma Health Science Center.  He completed a fellowship in pulmonary and critical care medicine and was an assistant professor at the University of Washington School of Medicine (Seattle) before joining the faculty at UTHSC in 2002.

As the flagship statewide academic health system, the University of Tennessee Health Science Center is focused on a four-tier mission of education, research, clinical care and public service, all in support of a single goal: to improve the health of Tennesseans.  Offering a broad range of postgraduate training opportunities, the main campus, which includes six colleges, is located in Memphis.  UTHSC has additional College of Medicine campus locations in Knoxville and Chattanooga.  For more information, visit www.utmem.edu.

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