The Clinical Microbiology Lab has recently developed and launched 3 new clinical tests. These tests target recent outbreaks of emerging infections and organisms that are very difficult to perform susceptibility testing.

• In response to the recent mpox outbreak, the UCLA Clinical Microbiology lab developed and launched an mpox PCR for clinical diagnosis. We were one of the first UC labs to have the test available in-house. This test helped support the quick response to this new emerging disease.
• Klebsiella pneumoniae (a gram-negative enteric bacteria) can cause devastating systemic infection if they exhibit a "hypervirulent" phenotype. Early recognition of hypervirulence can allow for a change in clinical care and better outcomes for patients. There are very few reliable tests in the clinical lab that can recognize hypervirulence in Klebsiella pneumoniae isolates. We have developed and launched a whole genome sequencing assay that can reliably identify the hypervirulence phenotype by looking for the presence of bacterial genes associated with hypervirulence. The test has already identified numerous hypervirulent klebsiella strains from patients and had a positive impact on their care.
• Susceptibility testing for Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB) is important because multi-drug resistant strains are becoming more prevalent in the United States. Phenotypic susceptibility testing can take 3-5 weeks after organism identification, causing delays in appropriate therapy. We have developed and launched an MTB whole genome sequencing anti-microbial resistance test that is able to provide results in 1 week after organism identification. This test represents a new gold-standard in TB testing.

Congratulations to UCLA Pathology's Dr. Dipti Sajed on being selected for the Association of American Medical College's Early Career Women Faculty Leadership Development Seminar!

On Friday, April 14, we celebrated Pathologists’ Assistant Day (PA) Day! We appreciate each of our Pathologists’ Assistants for the critical role they play in supporting pathologists, residents, and fellows in providing high quality patient care.

From left to right:

Back row: Justin Sheedy, Irving Casamalhuapa, Zhongyi Zhang

Front row: Crystal Chau, Maria Nieves Rabina, Jessica Jones, Lenny Pazhavila

Base Chicago, a non-profit that reimages pathways for success for urban youth, partnered with the Blood & Platelet Center during their visit to UCLA. The students learned about the blood donations, sickle cell disease, & careers in Pathology and Lab Medicine. A special thank you to Dr. Dawn Ward and Tom King for hosting on behalf of the UCLA Blood & Platelet Center!

Congratulations to Dr. Cristina Ghiani and Dr. James Lister on being selected to serve as the next Core Educators for the Scientific Foundations of Medicine (SFM) Neurosciences Theme at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA! Working closely with the Director of SFM, the Neurosciences Core Educators will provide oversight of educational content covering both the peripheral and central nervous systems for first-year medical students at DGSOM. The SFM team is responsible for basic science education (including anatomy, pathophysiology and pharmacology) for first-year medical students.

Congratulations to our April 2023 Employee of the Month Recipients!