Marquam Hill Lectures
Since 1981, the OHSU Marquam Hill Lecture Series has brought together leading members of the OHSU faculty with the public to feature innovative and cutting edge biomedical research and clinical advances that will form the basis of tomorrow's cures and treatments. The Marquam Hill Lecture Series is one of the most popular and long-standing lecture series about science by scientists in Oregon.
The series honors the memory of Mrs. Elizabeth Gray, co-founder of the Marquam Hill Steering Committee. The Marquam Hill Steering Committee is a group of women community leaders who advocate for the public missions of OHSU throughout the state. In addition to oversight of the Marquam Hill Lectures, the Committee also selects and maintains the extensive collection of art in OHSU buildings, and curated Art on the Hill, a book of works from the OHSU collection. The Committee meets regularly with key faculty research leaders, innovators and OHSU leadership to identify engaging speakers for the public lectures series.
Stay tuned for information about the 2013-14 lecture series. Are you on our email list? If not, please contact the School of Medicine Dean's office to sign up. Meanwhile, catch up with past lectures by watching the videos below.
Mark O. Hatfield Lecture
A special presentation by the Marquam Hill Lecture Series
Dr. Chu goes to Washington
Presented by: Steven Chu, Ph.D.
Lecture Summary
Human health and well-being depend on a healthy global environment. Steven Chu, Ph.D., discussed his vision of our energy future and how innovations in technology and public policy can help us/U.S. lead the world to a sustainable future.
Dr. Chu is a distinguished scientist and co-winner of the Nobel Prize for Physics (1997). He served as the United States Secretary of Energy from January 2009 to April 2013.
Prior to this appointment, Dr. Chu was director of the Lawrence Berkeley National Lab where he led the lab in pursuit of alternative and renewable energy technologies; he also taught at the University of California as a professor of physics and molecular and cell biology. He plans to return to Stanford as a member of the Physics and Molecular and Cellular Physiology Departments.
OHSU concurrently welcomed Dr. Chu as a 125th anniversary lecturer. Watch video of Dr. Chu's lecture below or at this website.
March 21 Lecture
Creating a Google Map of Cancer?
Presented by: Joe Gray, Ph.D.
Lecture Summary
Imagine being able to visualize every twist and turn of cancer as it progresses throughout the human body – and know just when and how to stop it in its path. Using powerful advanced imaging technologies that illustrate cells, tissues and structural details across time, OHSU scientists are assembling the "Google map" of cancer and other diseases.
Joe Gray, Ph.D., is chair of the Department of Biomedical Engineering, associate director for translational research in the OHSU Knight Cancer Institute and director of the OHSU Center for Spatial Systems Biomedicine. Dr. Gray demonstrated how he and colleagues are working to catapult us into the 21st century with four-dimensional medicine (three spatial dimensions and time).
February 21 Lecture
Vaccination Nation? Separating Fact from Fiction
Presented by: Mark Slifka, Ph.D.
Lecture Summary
Mark Slifka, Ph.D., professor of molecular microbiology and immunology and senior scientist at the OHSU Vaccine and Gene Therapy Institute and Oregon National Primate Research Center, has been studying vaccines for more than 15 years. Dr. Slifka's research, examining decades of data, suggests people have a physiological ceiling for vaccine immunity, which may argue for a shift in the current revaccination schedule for millions of Americans. It also indicates that the recent media hype about the danger of vaccinations, or their connection to autism and other disorders, is scientifically unfounded.
November 15 Lecture
Thinking Outside the Box to Treat Late-Stage Cancer
Presented by: Melissa Wong, Ph.D.
Lecture Summary
Melissa Wong, Ph.D., is an associate professor of dermatology and cell and developmental biology, a researcher in the Oregon Stem Cell Center and a member of the OHSU Knight Cancer Institute. Dr. Wong's goal is to track down and stop cancer cells before they turn deadly. Her presentation focused on the search for the elusive triggers that spark cancer cells' aggressive behavior and explain how this information may help shape new life-saving treatments for late-stage cancer.
October 18 Lecture
Unraveling Addiction Using Behavioral Genetics
Presented by: Tamara Phillips, Ph.D.
Lecture Summary
Tamara Phillips, Ph.D., is an award-winning researcher, a professor of behavioral neuroscience in the OHSU School of Medicine and a senior research career scientist at the Portland Veterans Affairs Medical Center. She asks: What if we could identify the genes that predispose some people to be attracted to drugs or alcohol? She and colleagues focus on the genetic dissection of behavioral traits thought to influence risk for the development of alcoholism and drug abuse.
2011-2012 Marquam Hill Lecture Series
Exercise and Nutrition: The Best Medicine
Presented by: Kerry Kuehl, M.D., Dr.PH. (April 19, 2012)
Dr. Kuehl is an Associate Professor of Medicine and Co-Director of the Human Performance Laboratory in the Division of Health Promotion & Sports Medicine at OHSU. As a primary care physician with a master’s degree in exercise physiology and a doctorate in nutrition, he specializes in using exercise and nutrition in the treatment and prevention of disease.
Dr. Kuehl discussed the irrefutable body of scientific evidence that links your good health and longevity with being physically active and eating a healthy diet. Watch the video of his talk here. On April 14, Dr. Kuehl was a guest on the OHSU Effect radio show. You can listen to the show or download a podcast.
Mark O. Hatfield Lecture
The Value of Health—The Argument for Strong Investment in Medical and Scientific Research
A special presentation by the Marquam Hill Lecture Series
Presented by: Albert Starr, M.D. (March 15, 2012)
The late Senator Hatfield was a tireless advocate for scientific and medical research and for Oregon’s system of higher education. That advocacy made possible the Oregon Health & Science University we know today. To honor his legacy, OHSU hosts an annual Mark O. Hatfield Lecture, delivered this year by Dr. Albert Starr.
Dr. Starr came to OHSU in 1957 and led OHSU’s heart surgery program. He is best known for co-inventing and implanting the world’s first successful artificial heart valve, the Starr-Edwards Heart Valve, in 1960. Since then, the artificial heart valve technology has saved literally hundreds of thousands of lives.
In his lecture, Dr. Starr discussed the importance of public support in the advancement of his own research – as well as that of OHSU – and examined the social and economic benefits of health and longevity. Watch the video of his talk here.
What do Women (and Men) Want? Next Generation Birth Control and Family Planning
Presented by: Jeffrey Jensen, M.D., M.P.H. (February 16, 2012)
Why are new birth control choices needed? What is the relationship between population growth and environmental problems? In his Feb. 16, 2012 lecture, Dr. Jensen addressed these, and many more, questions. Dr. Jensen talked about next-generation birth control and the race to bring better choices to family planning. Dr. Jensen is the Leon Speroff Professor and Vice Chair for Research in the Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology, Director of the Women's Health Research Unit in the Center for Women's Health, and a collaborating scientist at the Oregon National Primate Research Center.
Watch the video of his talk here. On Feb. 4, Dr. Jensen was a guest on the OHSU Effect radio show. You can listen to the show or download a podcast.
New Windows to Your Heart: Breakthroughs in Cardiovascular Imaging
Presented by: Jonathan Lindner, M.D. (November 17, 2011)
Can you picture the heart at its molecular level? In this talk, Dr. Lindner explained – and showed – images of the heart that bring disease out of hiding, before it becomes deadly. Dr. Lindner is a Professor of Medicine, Cardiovascular Division, with a joint appointment in the Department of Biomedical Engineering in the OHSU School of Medicine. Dr. Lindner is an internationally known leader in cutting edge methods for imaging and treatment of heart disease, and inflammatory diseases. He is also Associate Chief for Education in OHSU’s Cardiovascular Division and directs the training program for cardiologists in training.
Watch the video of Dr. Lindner's lecture here. On Nov. 12, 2011, Dr. Lindner was a guest on the OHSU Effect radio show. You can listen to the show or download a podcast.
The Hunt for Biological Mechanisms in Asthma
Presented by: Allison Fryer, Ph.D., Professor, Department of Medicine, and Associate Dean for Graduate Studies (October 20, 2011)
The number of people diagnosed with asthma grows every year. Yet the biological pathways that cause the airway narrowing and closure characteristic of asthma are poorly understood. Dr. Fryer presented research Oct. 20, 2011 about peripheral nerves – nerves that connect the brain to the lungs – and how they are changed through interactions with cells from the immune system to cause the excessive airway narrowing seen in asthma exacerbations. Dr. Fryer is a Professor of Medicine and the Associate Dean for Graduate Studies in the OHSU School of Medicine.
Watch the video of Dr. Fryer's lecture here. On Oct. 8, 2011, Dr. Fryer was a guest on the OHSU Effect radio show. You can listen to the show or download a podcast.
