The skin is the largest organ in the human body, and one of the most complex. With such a wide array of functions such as protection, sensation, and excretion, and an integral repair system, our skin can also manifest an equally complicated variety of symptoms and signs from the inconsequential to the life-threatening. This course will feature top scientists and clinicians from pediatric, medical and surgery dermatology. We will explore common skin problems, aesthetics, cancers, cutting-edge advances, and even explore skin diseases seen in antiquity.

Course chair:
Kieron Leslie, MD
Associate Professor of Clinical Dermatology

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March 1
Acne: Facts, Myths, and Controversies
Kanade Shinkai, MD, PhD
Assistant Professor of Clinical Dermatology

March 8
Topics in Pediatric Dermatology
Kelly M. Cordoro, MD
Assistant Professor of Clinical Dermatology and Pediatrics

March 15
Old and New: From Ancient Egypt to the 21st Century; A Dermatologist’s Perspective
Kieron Leslie, MD
Associate Professor of Clinical Dermatology

March 22
We Are Itching to Tell You About “Pruritus”
Timothy G. Berger, MD
Clinical Professor of Dermatology; Chief, Dermatology
Clinic, UCSF Director; Residency Program,
Department of Dermatology

Martin Steinhoff, MD, PhD
Professor of Dermatology and Surgery

March 29
Melanoma and Nonmelanoma Skin Cancer
Erin Huiras Amerson, MD
Assistant Clinical Professor of Dermatology

April 5
Skin Health and Beauty: The Science and Art of Aesthetic Dermatology
Siegrid S. Yu, MD
Assistant Professor, UCSF Dermatologic Surgery & Laser
Center; Director, Procedural Dermatology Fellowship

UCSF has a long history of pioneering biomedical research and a bold vision for advancing health worldwide. But what
does that really mean in the near future and beyond? Hailing from a wide spectrum of disciplines, six UCSF scientists invite you inside their work to learn what the next decade may bring to the world of medicine. Will neurologists someday ‘print’ information directly into the brain? And will regular eye exams enable detection of diseases such as Alzheimer’s?

Special Highlight
This session will also feature 1997 Nobel laureate Stanley B. Prusiner speaking about prions—a new biological principle of infection that he discovered at UCSF—and their implications for Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases. Direct from those who live and breathe it every day, find out what’s NEXT in science!

Course Chair :
Jeffrey A. Tabas, MD, FACEP, FAAEM
Professor of Emergency Medicine; Director of
Outcomes and Innovations; Office of Medical Education at UCSF

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February 29
The Genetics of Organ Development: A Blueprint for Regenerative Medicine
Ophir Klein, MD, PhD
Associate Professor and Director, UCSF Program
in Craniofacial and Mesenchymal Biology

March 7
Rethinking Prostate Cancer: Recognizing the Spectrum of Disease
Matthew R. Cooperberg, MD, MPH
Assistant Professor, Department of Urology

March 14
Why We are Always Learning to Move: The Science and Engineering of Adaptive Brains
Philip N. Sabes, PhD
Associate Professor of Physiology

March 21
Nano-engineered Devices for Drug Delivery
Tajal Desai, PhD
Professor, Department of Bioengineering
and Therapeutic Sciences

March 28
Discovering Ways to Cure and Even Prevent Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s Diseases
Stanley B. Prusiner, MD
Professor of Neurology; Director, Institute for
Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of
California, San Francisco

April 4
Building a Bridge to Nerve Repair
Hubert T. Kim, MD, PhD
Assistant Professor in Residence, Cartilage
Repair and Regeneration Center

Scientific understanding of the brain is increasing at a dramatic rate but how can we use this information to improve our psychological wellness? This course features outstanding speakers and researchers in the field of mental health and psychiatry. We will discuss how to reduce stress, improve mood, and decrease the risk of mental illness. Come gain insight into the biological basis of the brain and behavior and how recent scientific discoveries can help us to take better care of ourselves and our minds.

Course chair:
Descartes Li, MD
Professor Psychiatry; Director of UCSF Bipolar Disorder Program

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February 28
Alternative Treatments for Depression: Do They Work?
Descartes Li, MD
Professor Psychiatry; Director of UCSF Bipolar Disorder Program

March 6
It’s Not All in Your Head: Depression, Health, and Cellular Changes
Owen Wolkowitz, MD
Professor of Psychiatry; Director of the Psychopharmacology
Assessment Clinic

March 13
Psychotherapy is Not What We Think:  An Unfolding Dialogue Between Art and Science
Hui-Qi Tong, PhD
Staff Psychologist, PTSD Clinic/Women’s Clinic

March 20
Motivation to Pursue Dreams and Hopes: Understanding the Brain’s Reward System
Sheri L. Johnson, PhD
Professor, Department of Psychology, University
of California Berkeley

March 27
Applying Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy to Treatment: The Practicing Alternatives to Heal Depression Study
Stuart J. Eisendrath, MD
Professor of Clinical Psychiatry; Director,
The UCSF Depression Center

April 3
Anxiety: Sport Suspension on Life’s Bumpy Road
Tracy Foose, MD
Health Sciences Assistant Clinical Professor,
UCSF School of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry

How we think and feel changes with age. There are damaging myths but also helpful facts, and we might forget them all if we don’t pay attention to our daily life, our aging brains and how to foster neuronal resilience. Could it be that paying attention might even slow our cellular aging? Or that certain emotional interactions can predict relationship happiness decades later? Come hear the new science on the intersection between cognition, emotion, health and aging, as experts discuss their foundational and new research in this exciting frontier.

Course Chairs:
Elissa Epel, PhD
Associate Professor in Residence, Department of Psychiatry

Wendy Berry Mendes, PhD
Sarlo/Ekman Chair in the Study of Human Emotion, Associate Professor, Department of Psychiatry

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October 27
Emotion and Aging: Exploding the Misery Myth
Laura Carstensen, PhD
Fairleigh S. Dickinson Jr. Professor in Public Policy,
Professor of Psychology; Director, Stanford Center on
Longevity

November 3
Exploring the Crossroads of Attention and Memory in the Aging Brain:
Views from the inside
Adam Gazzaley, MD, PhD
Associate Professor of Neurology, Physiology and
Psychiatry; Director, Neuroscience Imaging Center

November 10
Emotions, Stress, and Rate of Telomere Shortening:
Are Our Cells Listening to Us?
Elissa Epel, PhD
Associate Professor in Residence, Department of
Psychiatry; Assistant Director, Center for Health and
Community

November 17
The Aging but Resilient Brain:
Keeping Neurons Happy
Joel Kramer, PsyD
Professor of Neuropsychology

December 1
How Our Emotional Lives Mature:
Changes and New Strengths
Robert Levenson, PhD
Professor, Department of Psychology; Director,
Institute of Personality and Social Research (IPSR);
Director, Clinical Science Program and Psychology
Clinic, University of California, Berkeley

December 8
Emotions, Decisions and Behavior Across the Life
Span: Surprises from Social Psychology
Wendy Berry Mendes, PhD
Sarlo/Ekman Chair in the Study of Human Emotion,
Associate Professor, Department of Psychiatry

Pain is the most common reason for medical visits in the United States. It can be as simple as a stubbed toe or signal a complex, systemic disease. And although many pain sensations resolve quickly, it can also be a devastatingly severe, chronic, lifetime condition. This course will explore pain as it presents across multiple medical disciplines and will bring together experts from a broad range of specialties. We will learn the basic science of pain and some of the most common ways it manifests. Moreover, we will investigate the modern practices of pain management and the cutting-edge advances in treatment currently being developed in the research halls of UCSF.

Course Chairs:
Dean Chou, MD
Associate Professor of Neurosurgery, UCSF Spine Center

Praveen Mummaneni, MD
Associate Professor of Neurosurgery; Co-Director, UCSF Spine Center; Director, Minimally Invasive Spine Surgery

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October 25
The Evidence for Physical Therapy to Address Chronic Pain
Jill Gleason, DPT, Physical Therapist, Department of
Physical Therapy and Rehabilitative Science

November 1
Low Back Pain: Causes, Conservative Treatment & Surgical Interventions
Dean Chou, MD,
Associate Professor of
Neurosurgery, UCSF Spine Center

Praveen Mummaneni, MD. Associate Professor of
Neurosurgery; Co-Director, UCSF Spine Center;
Director, Minimally Invasive Spine Surgery

November 8
Advances in Non- Operative Pain Management: A Spectrum of Options
Melanie M. Henry, MD, MPH,
Assistant Professor,
Department of Anesthesia & Pain Medicine

November 15
Fibromyalgia: It’s Real, It’s Managable, What You Can Do
Andrew J. Gross, MD,
Associate Professor,
Rheumatology Clinic Director

November 29
Pain of the Weekend Warrior
Brian Feeley, MD,
Assistant Professor; UCSF Sports
Medicine and Shoulder Servicer

December 6
The Science of Pain
Allan I. Basbaum, PhD, FRS, Professor and Chair,
Department of Anatomy

Transplantation is accepted as optimal therapy for patients with end stage organ disease. Successful replacement of the heart, lung, liver, kidney, pancreas and small bowel can now be achieved. As a consequence, more and more patients are availing themselves to this therapy. Currently in the United States there are more than 110,000 patients listed with the national registry awaiting transplantation; last year there were just over 28,500 transplants performed underscoring the major disparity between need and supply.

UCSF has one of the world’s largest and most successful transplant programs and its specialists will share with you the whys, hows and what happens of organ failure and transplantation, live donor transplantation, alternative therapies, organ distribution, and organ engineering. In sum, the series will give you an understanding of how spare parts are used to produce miracles.

Course Chair
Nancy L. Ascher, MD, PhD, Professor and Chair, Department of Surgery

Click here to REGISTER!

May 18
Rationing of Healthcare:
Lessons from Organ Transplantation?
John Roberts, MD, Professor of Surgery, Chief, Division of
Transplantation

May 25
What Organ Shortage? Just Make Your
Own! Stem Cells and Organ Engineering
Sang Mo Kang, MD, Associate Professor, Division of
Transplantation

HIV Transplant: The Good, The Bad, The Unexpected
Peter Stock, MD, PhD, Professor of Surgery, Division of
Transplantation

June 1
Who Needs a Kidney Transplant and
How We Do It
Ryutaro Hirose, MD, Associate Professor of Clinical Surgery,
Division of Transplantation

Immunosuppressive Medications for
Transplantation: The Good, The Bad And
The Ugly
Stephen Tomlanovich, MD, Professor of Medicine and Surgery;
Medical Director, Kidney Transplantation

June 8
Liver Transplantation: Prometheus’ Promise
Nancy Ascher, MD, PhD, Professor and Chair, Department of
Surgery, Isis Professor of Transplantation
John Roberts, MD, Professor of Surgery, Chief, Division of
Transplantation

The Liver Cancer Epidemic: A Major Health
Problem Worldwide
Francis Yao, MD, Professor, Gastroenterology & Transplantation;
Medical Director, Liver Transplantation

June 15
You Wanna Piece of Me? Live Donor
Transplant at UCSF
Chris Freise, MD, Professor of Surgery, Division of
Transplantation

Islands in the (Blood) Stream: Update on
Pancreas and Islet Transplantation
Andrew Posselt, MD, PhD, Associate Professor of Surgery,
Division of Transplantation

June 22
Therapeutic Options for the Failing Heart:
Drugs, Devices and Transplantation
Teresa de Marco, MD, Professor of Clinical Medicine, Division of
Cardiology, Medical Director, Heart Transplantation

Lung in a Box
Jeffrey Golden, MD, Professor of Clinical Medicine & Surgery,
Division of Pulmonology, Medical Director of Lung Transplantation
Jasleen Kukreja, MD, Assistant Professor of Surgery, Division
of Adult Cardiothoracic Surgery, Surgical Director of Lung
Transplantation