Links to Division Research

Allergy/Immunology Cardiology Clinical Pharmacology Endocrinology/Metabolism Gastroenterology General Internal Medicine Geriatrics Hematology/Oncology

Hospital Medicine Infectious Diseases Nephrology Positive Health Prevention Science Pulmonary & Critical Care Rheumatology

Division Research Activities Overview

Allergy and Immunology

The division's research is related to the body's reactivity to substances, situations, or physical states as well the related antibody response.  This division houses The Asthma Clinical Research Network Center.

Examples of research focus: rhinoviruses, epithelial cells and airway functions;  the ability of chemicals released during allergic reactions to regulate immune defense mechanisms;  lipids and peptides that control immune responses.

Cardiology

The division researches means by which to eradicate heart disease and investigates new methods of diagnosis and treatment. The division is an integral part of the UCSF Medical Center's Heart and Vascular Center, which develops and provides advanced and effective treatment for cardiac patients.

Examples of research focus: diagnosis of heart disease in high risk patients; atrial arrythmias and sudden cardiac death; the effects of smoking on the heart; and novel treatments, such as gene and stem cell therapies.

Endocrinology and Metabolism

The division researches the mechanisms of and finds and implements novel treatments for diabetes, osteoporosis, and thyroid and pituitary diseases.

Examples of research focus: how genes control autoimmune diseases; insulin resistance; the relation of vitamin D to bone mineral density; new drug therapies for type II diabetes; the role of nutrition and environmental factors in bone health.

Gastroenterology

The division's research goal is to cure, prevent, or reduce the burden of diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, including organs associated with digestion, such as the liver and gallbladder. Physicians use highly specialized diagnostic tools, such as endoscopy, and treatments, such as laser surgery and transplantation.

Examples of research focus: diseases of the biliary system; liver transplantation; diseases caused by obesity; bowel motility disorders.

General Internal Medicine

The division's research is focused on the diagnosis and nonsurgical treatment of diseases and includes the examination of socioeconomic, ethnic, and linguistic factors that affect health.

Examples of research focus: nationwide study of hospitalist and physician practices; the effect of ethnicity on cancer screening; the safety of medical care; risk reduction; cognition in aging.

Geriatrics

The division researches the problems and diseases of old age and aging and is involved in interdisciplinary education surrounding these issues. It investigates, defines, and uses epidemiological and biostatistical methods to understand disease causes and outcomes in the elderly and seeks to improve the care and health of aging patients.

Examples of research focus: the course and outcomes of dementia; drug therapy and polypharmacy; health disparities in the care of older persons; the biology of aging.

Hematology & Oncology

The division studies and creates novel treatments for blood disorders, diseases of the blood-forming organs, and cancer. Its goal is to reduce the risk of these disorders around the world and to improve the life of each patient through it's basic, clinical, and translational research.

Examples of research focus: Renal cell carcinoma; breast oncology; hemostasis and thrombosis; Kaposi's sarcoma.

Hospital Medicine

The division's faculty are general internists who focus their research, teaching, and clinical care on inpatients at UCSF Medical Center, the general medicine consult service, and the palliative care service. The division's goal is to improve the standard of inpatient care, to provide efficient and excellent care, and to convey the principles of evidence-based medicine.

Examples of research focus: excellence in teaching; improving systems of care; end-of-life care; medical errors and patient safety; national trends in medication use.

Infectious Diseases

The division studies the causes and treatments of contagious diseases and pathogens and treats patients. It is partnered with other centers of excellence in infectious disease research locally and around the world, including the UC Berkeley School of Public Health and the Training in Malarial Research in Uganda program.

Examples of research focus: drug development; host-pathogen interactions; mechanisms of autoimmunity; AIDS education and training.

Medical Genetics

The division provides inpatient and outpatient care to adults with complex genetic diseases and their families. Its researchers form partnerships with other divisions of medicine to study and discover more effective treatments for diseases that can be genetically based, including heart disease and cancer.

Examples of research focus: genetic basis for Parkinson disease; human disorders of metal meatabolism; developmental genetics; genetic epidemiological studies in obesity and longevity.

Nephrology

Faculty members in the division care for patients with kidney disease and conduct research on all aspects of kidney disease.

Examples of research focus: water and electrolyte transport; novel immunosuppressive medications for kidney transplantation; mechanisms for kidney disease progression; epidemiology of acute, chronic and end-stage renal disease; biomarkers in kidney disease; hypertension and salt sensitivity; novel acute and chronic dialysis modalities; nutrition in renal failure.

Occupational and Environmental Medicine

The division studies the health effects and diseases resulting from the exposure to physical, chemical, and/or biotic factors in the workplace and/or surrounding conditions, objects and instances.

Examples of research focus: occupational health gradients in hospital workers; medical surveillance of former Department of Energy workers at the Nevada test site.

Prevention Science

The division evaluates, develops, and implements HIV/AIDS prevention, education, and intervention strategies locally and throughout the world. Our researchers look for ways to help people avoid acquiring HIV/AIDS and to improve health outcomes for those who already are infected with the virus.

Examples of research focus: risk behavior and reduction; epidemiology of the virus; evaluation of testing procedures; demographic variables and sexual self-identification; training for providers who care for HIV/AIDS patients.

Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine

Research, patient care, and education in this division is multidimensional and cross-specialty, with faculty working with peers in many centers of research and care across the University.

Examples of research focus: HIV-related pulmonary disease; ethnicity-specific genetic risk factors for asthma; tuberculosis; lung transplantation; cystic fibrosis.

Rheumatology/Arthritis

Faculty study the diseases and treatments for inflammation and pain in muscles or joints, including inflammations resulting from infections, metabolic, or constitutional causes.

Examples of research focus: genetic determinants of ankylosing spondylitis; disease analysis of lupus; disability in valued life activities in patients with rheumatoid arthritis.