Junqin Chen, PhD, post-doctoral scholar at Duke University in the lab of Dr. Pei Zhong, studies the mechanism of stone fragmentation in laser lithotripsy. Dr. Zhong is the PI of a prior CAIRIBU P20 Center at Duke University. Recently, Drs. Chen and Zhong published an article together comparing the differences between holmium:YAG and thulium fiber …
Indira Mysorekar, PhD was appointed vice dean for research, basic science and graduate studies at Penn State College of Medicine. She will also be the Dorothy Foehr Huck and J. Lloyd Huck Chair in Medicine and professor of medicine and cell and biological systems. Her 18-year research career has focused on host- pathogen interactions in …
What began as a conversation between investigators during a CAIRIBU K12 Scholar Seminar evolved into a collaborative center addressing one of benign urology research’s biggest challenges: understanding how different experimental models can better represent benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) and lower urinary tract dysfunction. Since its inception, the P20 FORWARD Center at Endeavor Health has exemplified …
Alison Huang, MD, MAS, PI of the University of California San Francisco KUroEpi program, has been appointed Editor in Chief of JAMA+ Trials, a new online platform that highlights the vision, innovation, and resilience of clinical trial research. Dr. Huang shares her vision for the new journal: “JAMA+ Trials celebrates every trial across the JAMA …
Maria Hadjifrangiskou, PhD, PI of the prior P20 Exploratory Center at Vanderbilt University, recently published an exciting new article about uropathogen evolution in spina bifida patients. The article, titled, “Unmasking pathogen traits for chronic colonization in neurogenic bladder,” discusses how small genomic changes over time lead to pathogen persistence and, ultimately, chronic colonization of the …
Kristina Penniston, PhD, RD, PI of the CAIRIBU Interactions Core, is co-directing a symposium for the Society for Basic Urologic Research (SBUR) to be held at the American Urological Association’s (AUA) annual meeting in Washington, D.C. The symposium will take place on Friday, May 15th, 2026, from 7:30 AM to 3:00 PM. It will highlight foundational and …
Pei Zhong, PhD, PI of the Duke University FORWARD Urology Center, has spent his career researching how to optimize laser lithotripsy treatment. The following excerpt from a recently published article highlights Dr. Zhong’s groundbreaking work. “Zhong first encountered kidney stone treatment, or lithotripsy, while attending graduate school at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center …
Seth Reasoner recently completed his MD-PhD at Vanderbilt University. Since then, he has continued his engagement with CAIRIBU and credits his CAIRIBU Community engagement as a transformative experience that strengthened his collaborative network and contributed to his professional development.
A recent article in Knowable Magazine featured several CAIRIBU-affiliated investigators, including Indira Mysorekar, PhD (Baylor College of Medicine), Hanneke Verstegen, PhD (Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Harvard Medical School), and Aaron Mickle, PhD (Medical College of Wisconsin). The article in Knowable Magazine (available HERE) explores emerging insights into how the bladder functions and what happens when these complex functions break down. For …
Kymora Scotland, MD, PhD, member of the CAIRIBU Urobiome Research Interest Group, led a team that discovered bacteria are present in the most common type of kidney stone – calcium oxalate kidney stones. Previously, only struvite stones have been shown to contain bacteria, while calcium oxalate stones have been considered “noninfectious” and not associated with a bacterial presence.
