Dr. Joe Orsini Receives Legacy of Hope Award

In commemoration of the organization’s twentieth anniversary, the Hunter’s Hope Foundation presented Wadsworth Center’s Dr. Orsini and Duke University School of Medicine’s Dr. Kurtzberg with the Legacy of Hope Award. Co-recipients in the area of science and medicine were recognized for their contributions to newborn screening and the work of the organization during the 2018 Hunter’s Hope Family and Medical Symposium.

Research Opportunities / Tenure Track Faculty Position in Bacteriology

We are seeking an outstanding scientist at the Assistant or Associate Professor level to establish a competitive, grant-funded research program. Research areas of specific interest include studies on basic biological processes in bacteria, and mechanisms of bacterial pathogenesis and antimicrobial resistance. Applicants employing innovative, cutting-edge techniques to these areas are especially encouraged to apply.

$10 million CDC grant establishes the Northeast Center for Excellence in Vector-borne Diseases (NEVBD)

Why A just-released CDC report concluded that disease caused by tick, mosquito and flea bites more than tripled in the US between 2004 and 2016, and that 9 new diseases were either discovered or detected here for the first time during that same period.West Nile virus - just one example

Wadsworth Center Welcomes Two New Fellows to the Antimicrobial Resistance Laboratory Network

2017 marks the first year the Association of Public Health Laboratories (APHL), in collaboration with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), has sponsored fellows in the Antimicrobial Resistance Track.Per the sponsors, “The fellowship’s mission is to introduce scientists to public health laboratory science while building the workforce needed to detect and respond to existing and emerging forms of [antibiotic resistance] AR.”

Nobel Prize in Chemistry Goes to Former Wadsworth Scientist

Groundbreaking work performed in Albany leads to revolution in science and medicine Dr. Rajendra Agrawal has long expected his former Wadsworth Center colleague Dr. Joachim Frank to win the Nobel Prize. This year, it happened. On October 4th, Dr. Frank was named one of three winners of the 2017 Nobel Prize in Chemistry. Dr. Frank shares the prize with Drs. Richard Henderson of the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology in Cambridge, England and Jacques Dubochet from the University of Lausanne in Switzerland.

Wadsworth Center’s Newborn Screening Program Prepares Other States for New Test Implementation

Laboratory and follow-up staff (those who communicate results to the medical community) from six states (MA, OH, TN, TX, VA and WA) attended a two and a half-day workshop in Albany co-sponsored by the Association of Public Health Laboratories (APHL) and the New York State Department of Health. Training was provided by the experts at the Wadsworth Center as well as four expert guest speakers. Participants received hands-on technical training for Pompe disease, X-linked adrenoleukodystrophy (X-ALD) and mucopolysaccharidosis type I (MPS I), including:

Wadsworth Center's Dr. Kirsten St. George - Developing Diagnostic Capabilities for Arboviruses

Dr. Kirsten St. George, Chief of the Laboratory of Viral Diseases at Wadsworth Center, was recently invited to speak at a technical workshop hosted by the Trust for Science Technology and Research of Puerto Rico, the Brain Trust for Tropical Diseases Research & Prevention, and the CDC Dengue Branch.

Wadsworth Center Senior Staff Gets National Recognition for Newborn Screening

For the second year in a row, a Wadsworth Center director has received the Harry Hannon Laboratory Improvement Award in Newborn Screening from the Assocation of Public Health Laboratories (APHL). Joseph Orsini, Ph.D., Deputy Director of the Newborn Screening Program at the New York State Department of Health's Wadsworth Center, received the award at the APHL Newborn Screening and Genetic Testing Symposium in New Orleans. Last year, the award was presented to the Director of the Program, Michele Caggana, Sc.D., FACMG.

2017 Graduates on a Mission

On August 16, 2017 Wadsworth Center’s Master of Science in Laboratory Sciences (MLS) Program graduates its fourth class. One component of Wadsworth Center’s mission is education. The work of this year’s three graduates links the MLS Program to the Center’s primary mission: public health.

Wadsworth Center’s Winning Team

“Yesterday’s home runs don’t win today’s games.” -Babe Ruth As any fan or parent who spends countless hours at the field can tell you, it’s baseball season. Just as the baseball stars we watch on TV have put decades of hard work into becoming the best in their field, so too have the Wadsworth Center staff who received national recognition at the annual Association of Public Health Laboratories (APHL) meeting this June. Their many contributions and exceptional leadership over the years make them all winners.

Wadsworth Center Trains Laboratorians from Seven States to Test for Antimicrobial Resistance

Members of Wadsworth Center’s Bacteriology Laboratory, along with a guest lecturer from the CDC, provided a 2-day classroom and hands-on workshop in culture, susceptibility and DNA detection of antibiotic resistant bacteria for 12 laboratory professionals from 7 state public health laboratories.

FDA accredits Wadsworth Center as a 3rd party reviewer

FDA accredits Wadsworth Center as a 3rd party reviewer for selected premarket notifications or 510(k)s, which allows the Center to review, on FDA’s behalf, certain devices that fall under this classification. This accreditation represents the recognition of the expertise acquired by the Center’s staff from reviewing laboratory developed tests as part of New York’s Clinical Laboratory Reference System.

Wadsworth Center’s Dr. Kirsten St. George receives the 2017 Diagnostic Virology Award

At the recent Clinical Virology Symposium in Savannah, Georgia, Dr. St. George, Chief of the Laboratory of Viral Diseases at the Wadsworth Center, was presented with the 2017 Diagnostic Virology Award. Established in 1985, this international career-achievement award from the Pan American Society for Clinical Virology, acknowledges an individual whose contributions to viral diagnosis have had a major impact on the discipline.

New Test for Cystic Fibrosis Will Reduce Diagnostic Testing by 81%

Wadsworth Center Newborn Screening Program Sequences the Gene Responsible for Cystic Fibrosis Good news for new parents: the Wadsworth Center’s Newborn Screening Program has developed a more precise screening tool for cystic fibrosis (CF), alleviating the anxiety that accompanies a false positive test and the need for additional diagnostic testing.

Wadsworth Center at the Albany March for Science

New York State Department of Health's Wadsworth Center Masters of Laboratory Science students exhibit interactive public health activities during the Albany March for Science at the New York State Capitol on Saturday, April 22, 2017. Celebrated in cities world-wide, the March for Science is a day to promote evidence-based methodology and discovery, and understand the role that science plays in each of our daily lives.