Summary of Progress - WAISMAN CENTER UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN-MADISON
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WAISMAN CENTER UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN-MADISON The above image is from Robert Krencik, a doctoral student in the stem cell laboratory of Su-Chun Zhang, MD, PhD. Summary of Progress
Contents
Message from the director ........................................................................................ 1
New honor wall will acknowledge cumulative gifts .............................................. 2
Art collection to be exhibited at the Dane County Regional Airport .................. 3
Autism spectrum disorders studied widely at Waisman Center ........................... 4
Waisman Early Childhood Program serves 100 each year ..................................... 5
New Center for Investigating Healthy Minds to open in 2010.............................. 6
Waisman Clinical Biomanufacturing Facility provides specialized
services for Waisman Center and UW Campus ................................................... 7
Infant Learning Labratory investigates how infants learn language ................. 8
Friends of the Waisman Center increases support ................................................. 9
Specialized services and research focus on cerebral palsy .................................. 10
Waisman Stem Cell Research Program utilizes innovative approaches .............. 11
Waisman Center clinics have provided comprehensive care for 35 years ........... 12
Waisman Center participates in National Children’s Study .................................. 13
About the Waisman Center .........................................................................back cover
The Biggest House My
Great-Grandfather Built
©2006, Phil Porter
This artwork, along with ten
others by Phil, were acquired
under the Wisconsin Arts
Board’s Percent for Art Program,
in conjunction with a
remodelling project of the 6th
and 7th floors of the Waisman
Center.
Inspiration for Phil’s vibrantly
colored paintings comes from
his travels, local field trips,
movies, work experiences, and
his life in Madison—as well as
from the work of his great-
grandfather, an architect who
designed the State Capitol, the
Red Gym/Old Armory, Science
Hall, and other prominent
buildings in Madison.
There are two suns in many of
his paintings: one for him, and
one in honor of his great-
grandfather.
Message from the director:
Dear Reader:
This annual progress report highlights many of our recent accomplishments at the
Waisman Center—from research discoveries to the new ways we are assisting
people who have developmental disabilities or neurodegenerative diseases. In
addition, there are details about upcoming ventures, such as the creation of an
honor wall to acknowledge our generous donors, as well as the establishment of a
new center within the Waisman Center—the Center for Investigating Healthy
Minds.
These pages also feature several striking works of art by people with disabilities,
part of an international collection maintained by our Friends organization. Almost
fifty pieces from the collection, including the one at left, will be featured in a six-
month exhibit at the Dane County Regional Airport, beginning in July 2010 (see
page 3).
This report began as a 2010 calendar, progress report, and vehicle for recognizing
our donors. As we have done in previous years, once our supply of calendars is
depleted, we preserv the text in a revised format in order to communicate recent
accomplishments. If you did not receive the calendar, but would like a copy of
the 2011 version, please write to us at the address on the back of this report.
Sincerely,
Marsha Mailick Seltzer, PhD
Director, Waisman Center
Vaughan Bascom Professor
1.
Teresa Palumbo
New honor wall will acknowledge cumulative gifts.
Throughout the Waisman Center, there are plaques of various sizes honoring gifts that
have been made for individual projects. Until now, however, there hasn’t been a central
area where cumulative gifts are recognized. That will change this year, when a new
honor wall will be installed in the Center’s main lobby. The initial display will include
gifts through March 2010.
• An expansive maple wall area of the main
lobby (at right) will serve as a home for a
series of tempered glass panels honoring
donors to the Waisman Center. Donors at the
highest levels will be acknowledged with
individual plaques.
• “We are so pleased to finally honor—in a public and prominent area of the
Waisman Center—the generosity of the many individuals, families, businesses,
and foundations that have been such a crucial part of our progress.”
Marsha Mailick Seltzer, PhD
Vaughan Bascom Professor
Waisman Center Director
2.
Art collection to be exhibited at the Dane Country Regional
Airport.
The Harvey A. Stevens International Collection of Art by People with Disabilities will
travel to the airport in July 2010 for a six-month stay. The exhibit, in the airport’s main
concourse, will showcase an extensive selection of artworks from the 150-piece collection
representing 15 countries.
Cityscape, by Ejner (Denmark), from the Harvey A. Stevens International Collection of Art by People
with Disabilities, sponsored by the Friends of the Waisman Center.
• People of many ages and abilities created the artwork in the collection. Subject matter is varied
and artistic media include oils, tempera, pen and ink, prints, crayon rubbings, felt pen stitchery,
brush painting, and collage.
• Formally named and dedicated in 1979, the Stevens Collection was the inspiration of Harvey A.
Stevens, PhD, a long-time champion of people with disabilities. Over a period of 25 years, he
was superintendent of several state residential facilities, including Central Wisconsin Center, later
becoming program administrator for the Waisman Center, a position he held for a decade.
• Tandem Press coordinates the exhibits at the Dane County Regional Airport. Tandem Press is a
self- supporting press affiliated with the Department of Art in the School of Education at UW-
Madison. It shares the university mission by teaching, undertaking research into new and old
printmaking techniques, and by conducting outreach programs to help educate the public about
art in general and printmaking in particular.
3.
Andrew Alexander/Kim Dalton
Autism spectrum disorders (ASD), currently estimated to
affect as many as 1 in every 100 children, impact social
interaction, communication, and behavior. The Waisman
Center provides an integrated approach to research on the
causes and consequences of ASD and develops ways to
effectively support individuals with autism and their families.
A sampling of Waisman Center projects focused on autism:
• A recent study led by Marsha Mailick Seltzer, PhD, • Andrew Alexander, PhD, associate
Vaughan Bascom Professor of Social Work and professor of medical physics and
director of the Waisman Center, Leann Smith, PhD, psychiatry, is using brain imaging
assistant scientist, and Jan Greenberg, PhD, professor modalities (image at left represents one
and director of the School of Social Work, evaluated of these modalities) to conduct a
the physiological and psychological toll on mothers of comparative study of white matter in the
adolescents and adults with autism. Measurements of brains of individuals with and without
the stress hormone cortisol indicated that mothers of autism. Researchers are looking at how
individuals with autism have patterns of cortisol that and where differences occur in white
are characteristic of chronic stress, and that cortisol matter—the neurological conduits
dysregulation varies as a function of the behavior throughout the brain. Results from this
problems of the son or daughter. Research results research have the potential to provide
point to the need to develop programs and networks insights for the development of
of support for people with autism as well as their treatments and specialized therapies for
families across the life course. individuals with autism.
4.
The Waisman Early Childhood Program serves 100 children
each year.
The WECP is a model early education program that serves children from birth to age
five, reserving one third of its enrollment for children with disabilities. No other early
childhood program in Dane County provides a fully inclusive program for so many
children with special needs.
• The WECP continues to be a
valuable partner and resource
for Waisman investigators
conducting research in early
childhood development and
education. With parental
consent, children in the WECP
are participating in current
Waisman research projects
ranging from the exploration of
speech intelligibility in noisy
environments to projects on
bilingual and early language
development.
• The WECP collaborates on a
regular basis with university and
community initiatives that educate
and advocate for young children.
This year, the WECP has a
partnership with the Madison
Metropolitan School District by
becoming a four-year-old kinder-
garten site, part of the MMSD’s
new effort to provide a kindergar-
Cheri Sanders
ten experience for all four-year-
olds.
5.
A new center within the Waisman Center will focus on
contemplative practices and neuroplasticity—the ability of
the brain to change throughout the life course.
Jeff Miller, University Communications, UW-Madison
Richard Davidson, PhD, greeting the Dalai Lama.
Richard J. Davidson, PhD, William James and Vilas Professor of Psychology and
Psychiatry, will direct the new Center for Investigating Healthy Minds (CIHM) at the
Waisman Center. The CIHM will foster a better understanding of how healthy qualities of
mind develop, measure the neural mechanisms that support these healthy attributes, and
translate how these healthy attributes can impact mental and physical health. Through
this research, Davidson and his colleagues hope to identify interventions that will help
regulate emotion and promote well-being for children and adults—especially those with
developmental and learning disorders. Scientists at the CIHM represent an integrated
team with a broad array of research methodologies from behavioral to neuroscientific.
In May 2010, several events will celebrate the establishment of the new center:
• a public dialogue (May 16) with Richard J. Davidson, PhD and the Dalai Lama—an avid
supporter and advocate for research on the cultivation of healthy qualities of mind. This event
will be moderated by Daniel Goleman, PhD, the author of Emotional Intelligence and Ecologi-
cal Intelligence.
• a special presentation by Jon Kabat-Zinn, PhD, founder, Center for Mindfulness in Medicine,
Health Care and Society, University of Massachusetts Medical School.
• a scientific forum with the Dalai Lama to discuss the latest research findings in the field of
contemplative neuroscience
6.
The Waisman Clinical Biomanufacturing Facility (WCBF) is at
the crossroads of discovery and technology as a specialized
resource to both Waisman and University researchers and
private industry partners.
The WCBF, under the direction of Derek Hei, PhD, provides manufacturing and
testing services for a broad range of pharmaceuticals and biotherapeutics for early
stage (phase I and phase II) human clinical trials. The WCBF’s cleanroom facility
occupies approximately 10,000 square feet on the fourth floor of the Waisman Center.
• In 2009, the WCBF partnered with the WiCell Research Institute to establish the first publicly
available human embryonic stem cell line that is compliant with current “Good Manufacturing
Practices” (cGMP). The WCBF provides the cGMP environment—with its specialized facility,
resources, and staff—to produce these cells and other biotherapeutics that are approved for use in
human studies and clinical trials.
• The WCBF is a vital partner in the newly established Waisman Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell
(iPS) Core. The WCBF assists the core by producing tools used to reprogram skin cells into an
embryonic stem cell-like state. The WCBF also stores the various iPS cell lines for investigators,
making them readily accessible.
Robert Krencik, Zhang Lab
The WCBF assists stem cell researchers in advancing their findings from the laboratory to clinical settings. The
above image is from Robert Krencik, a doctoral student in the stem cell laboratory of Su-Chun Zhang, MD, PhD.
Krencik recently completed a study in which functional astrocytes were created from both human embryonic stem
cells and iPS cells. Astrocytes—along with neurons—play a number of active and important roles in the function
of the brain and spinal cord. This research finding holds great promise as a tool for the development of treatments
and therapies for spinal cord injuries and neurodegenerative diseases like ALS and Parkinson’s Disease.
7.
Waisman Center laboratory studies “infant learners” to
discover how they acquire language.
The first months of a child’s life are rich with developmental milestones, including first
smiles, first tentative steps, and of particular interest to researchers in the Waisman Infant
Learning Lab—first words. A research team led by Jenny Saffran, PhD, distinguished
professor of psychology, is investigating how infants learn language. Each year, approximately
1,500 infants between the ages of 6 and 24 months participate in several different research
projects aimed at discovering the strategies infants use to distinguish words in speech,
develop word and object associations, as well as learn language patterns. Understanding the
extraordinary learning abilities of infants helps researchers and clinicians to diagnose and
treat children who have difficulty learning language or who have language impairments.
Greg Anderson
Luci and her mom get ready for Research staff monitor Luci’s progress from an
the start of a research session in adjacent viewing area.
an Infant Learning Lab study to
determine how much infants know
about word sounds and patterns.
Testing sessions in the Infant Learning Lab are
designed to be brief in order to optimize the limited
attention spans of its young participants.
In the photo at right, Luci begins her testing
session, which evaluates whether she pays atten-
tion to different sounds of fictional words paired
with novel objects.
8.The Friends of the Waisman Center supports many
Waisman Center programs.
Incorporated in 1976, the Friends of the Waisman Center is a non-profit 501(c)(3)
organization, with a mission of enhancing Waisman Center activities through fund
raising, volunteer efforts, and community outreach.
Spaceship by Ralf (Germany). From the Harvey A. Stevens International Collection of Art by People
with Developmental Disabilities, sponsored by the Friends of the Waisman Center.
In 2008–2009, the Friends made its final gift of $30,000 towards the reorganization/revitalization of
Waisman Center clinical space. Other gifts included the following—
• “Mini-grants” to faculty and staff totalling $10,000. • Six outstanding achievement awards
Examples of the awarded grants: a specialized pediatric presented to students and staff at the
seating system for the Communication Aids and Sys- Friends’ annual meeting. Each
tems Clinic; gifts for research participants; books for award consists of a framed certifi-
parents who have babies with Down syndrome; and cate and a check for $500.
travel funds for graduate students to attend conferences
and for families to come to the Waisman Center to • Support for the John D. Wiley
participate in educational or research projects. Seminar Series, which features
internationally renowned experts
• A total of $15,000 for the Waisman Early Childhood who address research related to
Program Scholarship Fund, which benefits families in human development, developmental
financial need whose children might not otherwise be disabilities, and neurodegenerative
able to attend the Center’s model preschool. diseases.
9.Researchers and
clinicians at the Waisman
Center work
collaboratively to better
understand and serve
individuals with cerebral
palsy (CP) and their
families.
Cerebral palsy refers to a group of
motor disorders that affect individuals
in multiple and significant ways,
including movement and motor
control, speech and language, and
intellectual and developmental
disabilities. Individuals with CP
receive specialized care and services
in several Waisman Center Clinics—
Cerebral Palsy Clinic, the
Communication Aids and Systems
Clinic (CASC), and the Spasticity and
Greg Anderson
Movement Disorders Clinic—and
participate in research that will help
us better understand this disorder.
• A longitudinal study led by Katie Hustad, PhD, associate professor of communicative
disorders, investigates communication development in children with CP. More than 60%
of children with CP have communication challenges, yet little is known about the specific
nature of the challenges and how they change over time. The project began with a pilot
study, funded by NIH, which followed 40 children with CP over a four year period, from
toddlerhood into elementary school. With a new grant from NIH, Hustad’s lab will
continue to follow this group of children, along with an additional 80 children with CP
who are toddlers and preschoolers. Results of this research will advance the development
of interventions to address specific communication deficits faced by individuals with CP.
• The Communication Aids and Systems Clinic (CASC) provides specialized augmentative
communication services for individuals with developmental disabilities and
neurodegenerative diseases. Above, Jenna, who has CP, uses her “Tango!” device to
communicate with Kristin Kraak, MS, CF-SLP.
10.Investigators in the
Waisman Stem Cell
Research Program
continue to take the
lead in advancing
knowledge about
developmental
disorders and
neurodegenerative
diseases through
innovative research
using embryonic
stem cells and
induced pluripotent
stem cells (iPS),
which are stem cells
derived from skin
cells.
Jason Meyer, Gamm Lab
• Su-Chun Zhang, MD, PhD, professor of • Qiang Chang, PhD, assistant professor of
anatomy and neurology, directs the new genetics and neurology, focuses on Rett
induced Pluripotent Stem Cell (iPS) Core at syndrome—a devastating developmental
the Waisman Center. The Core’s streamlined disorder that is the second most common
production of iPS cells allows investigators to cause of developmental disabilities in females,
focus their time and resources on the actual affecting 1 in 10,000-15,000 girls. Rett syn-
application and use of iPS cells in their drome is caused by a mutation on the X
research. chromosome of the MECP2 gene. Using iPS
cell technology, Chang has been able to
• David Gamm, MD, PhD, assistant professor establish disease-specific stem cell lines by
of ophthalmology and visual sciences, and reprogramming skin cells from individuals
assistant scientist Jason Meyer, PhD, success- with Rett syndrome.
fully used iPS cells to create several types of
retinal cells in early stage development (image • Jason Weick, PhD, an assistant scientist and
at left). Through discoveries such as this, post-doctoral fellow in Su-Chun Zhang’s lab,
The WECP in 1979 (top) and today (above).
Gamm and Meyer hope to use stem cells to is developing a tool to control and measure
better understand eye development and to the functionality and effects of transplanted
create treatments, therapies, and even cell stem cells within recipient brains. His tech-
replacement procedures for vision disorders nique utilizes a light-activated protein that
and retinal diseases such as macular degen- stimulates human embryonic stem cell-derived
eration. neurons in response to pulses of blue light.
11.For more than 35 years, the Waisman Center has provided
comprehensive services and supports to people with disabilities
and their families through a number of specialty clinics. The
Waisman Center’s 10 multidisciplinary clinics are operated in
collaboration with UW Hospital and Clinics, the Department of
Pediatrics, and several other UW-Madison Departments.
When most children come to Waisman
Center clinics, they are seen by multiple
professionals, sometimes over several
days.
These photos document part of a visit by
Alec, who was first seen by medical
director Lawrence Kaplan, MD, ScM,
FAAP (photo at left). As part of his visit,
he was tested by audiologist Jon Douglas,
AuD, CCC-A (photo below), as well as
other specialists.
Greg Anderson
• A new clinic was established in 2009 to address the specialized needs of children with fragile X syn-
drome—a developmental disorder that results from a mutation on the X chromosome of the FMR1
gene. Fragile X is the leading inherited cause of developmental disabilities, as well as the source of
many cases of learning disabilities and autism. The multidisciplinary team strives to improve functional
outcomes and quality of life for children with fragile X syndrome and their families.
• In 2009, the Waisman Center Genetics Clinic, under the direction of David Wargowski, MD, associate
professor of pediatrics and medical genetics, received a “Star Clinic Award” from Press Ganey, an
independent research company that surveys patients at clinics across the United States. This honor
reflects superior ratings by patients for the Genetic’s Clinic—six percentage points higher than all but
one other clinical program throughout the University of Wisconsin Hospitals and Clinics system.
12.The Waisman Center is participating in the National Children’s
Study, a decades-long study that will examine the effects of
environmental and genetic factors on the health and
development of 100,000 children across the United States,
following them from before birth until age 21. It is envisioned
as the first, major, long-term investigation of the health of
American children since the 1960s.
Reindeer by Johan (Norway). From the Harvey A. Stevens International Collection of Art by
People with Developmental Disabilities, sponsored by the Friends of the Waisman Center.
• In Wisconsin, the study is being conducted in Waukesha County by the University of Wisconsin-
Madison and the Medical College of Wisconsin, in collaboration with the Children’s Service Society
of Wisconsin, the UW-Milwaukee, and the National Opinion Research Center.
Co-principal investigators are Maureen Durkin, PhD, DrPH, professor of population health sciences
and pediatrics, Waisman Center, and Steven Leuthner, MD, professor of pediatrics and bioethics,
Medical College of Wisconsin.
The Wisconsin team hopes to follow 1,250 children. Data collection began in spring 2009, with the
first birth in October. Results from this study have the potential to transform our understanding of
children’s health and our ability to prevent and manage childhood disorders and diseases.
13.WAISMAN CENTER
UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN-MADISON
Director: Marsha Mailick Seltzer, PhD
Associate Director, Biological Sciences: James Malter, MD
Associate Director, Behavioral Sciences: Leonard Abbeduto, PhD
Associate Director, Administration/Finance: Teresa Egan, MBA, MS
Director, University Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities: Leonard Abbeduto, PhD
Associate Director, University Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities: Dan Bier, MPA, MSW
Assistant Director, Communications: Patricia Mitchell
Development Consultant for the Waisman Center, UW Foundation: Dave Sugar
Assistant to the Director: Kathryn Smith
The Waisman Center is dedicated to the advancement of knowledge about human
development, developmental disabilities, and neurodegenerative diseases. One of only 14
centers of its kind in the United States, the Waisman Center encompasses more than 80
research projects in the biological and behavioral sciences, a brain imaging center, a clinical
biomanufacturing facility, specialty clinics for people with developmental disabilities and their
families, numerous early intervention and outreach programs, and a model preschool that
includes both typically-developing children and children with developmental disabilities.
The Waisman Center is supported by core grants from the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National
Institute of Child Health and Human Development (P30HD03352-43), the Administration on
Developmental Disabilities (90DD0660), and the Maternal and Child Health Bureau’s
Leadership in Neurodevelopmental Disabilities (LEND; T37MC00044) Program.
Waisman Center, UW-Madison • Director’s Office, Rm T201 • 1500 Highland Avenue
Madison, WI 53705-2280
(608) 263-5940
www.waisman.wisc.edu
Calendar Designer/Editor–Patricia Mitchell; Writer–Teresa PalumboYou can also read
