Spring 2009 The Communicator Harvard Medical School Newsletter of the Harvard Medical School Inside this issue Graduation News Page 2 Alumni Spotlight Page 3 Clinical and Translational Science Awards Funded Page 3 Class of 2010 News Page 7 Program Office News Page 8 Above: Graduate Aoife Brennan (right) with her husband, Alan, at the 2008 Commencement Left: Class valedictorian Orlando Gutiérrez at the 2008 Commencement
This page: From left, Carol Waghorne, Bindu Chamarthi, Elizabeth Sailhamer, Orlando Gutiérrez, Katheryn Nathe, Aoife Brennan, Michael Pistiner Next page, left: Elizabeth Sailhamer (right) with her brother John and his fiancée Kelly Next page, middle: Rhonda Bentley-Lewis, class of 2007 Next page, right: Felipe Fregni, class of 2006 2 Committee on Mentoring Paul R. Conlin, MD, Chair David Borsook, MD PhD Gary Curhan, MD ScD Barry Eisenstein, MD Donald Goff, MD Richard Grand, MD Steven M. Greenberg, MD PhD Steven Grinspoon, MD Igor Koralnik, MD David M. Nathan, MD Alvaro Pascual-Leone, MD PhD Russell Phillips, MD Steven Schachter, MD Caren Solomon, MD MPH Clare Tempany-Afdhal, MD Gordon Williams, MD Graduation News The following Scholars received the Master of Medical Sciences (MMSc) degree from Harvard Medical School in 2008: Aoife Brennan Steven Chin Mary Lucia Gregory Orlando Gutiérrez Mary Hu Michael Pistiner Elizabeth Sailhamer Carol Waghorne Held in the Rotunda of the New Research Building at Harvard Medical School, our 2008 Graduation Ceremony and Dinner in June honored eight (8) new graduates. Keynote speaker was Dr. Thomas J. Moore, Associate Provost and Director of the Office of Clinical Research at Boston University Medical Center and Professor of Medicine at Boston University School of Medicine. Class valedictorian was Dr. Orlando Gutiérrez, a nephrologist at Massachusetts General Hospital whose mentor, Dr. Myles Wolf, was one of the first Scholars graduates. Orlando, recipient of a K23 award, is now at the University of Miami with Dr. Wolf, who recently accepted a tenured position there. from the laboratory of George Whitesides at Harvard, the not-for-profit venture serves as a platform for simple, portable, and inexpensive diagnostic tools for developing countries. The team also won the Social Enterprise Contest Award at the Twelfth Annual Business Plan Contest at HBS the capstone of the School s Entrepreneurship curriculum. For photographs of the 2008 HBS Project Fair, please see pages 7-8. Where Are They Now? Through March of 2009 the Scholars Program has graduated eighty-one (81) students from the program. Over the years we have tracked the progress of our graduates to gain a sense of their career trajectories. Most of our graduates stay in academic medicine, and some have moved to careers in industry, government, and community-based practice. Status of Graduates (n=81) Academic Faculty 64% FDA/ Other 7% Industry 10% Fellows/Residents 19% A student award was given to Dr. Carol Waghorne for submitting regular and valuable feedback on the program and courses. Carol was also a member of a team in the 2007 Harvard Business School (HBS) course, Inventing Breakthroughs and Commercializing Science, which won first prize in the MIT $100K Entrepreneurship Competition for their project entitled Diagnostics-For-All. Based on technology Of faculty, 64% have K23 or equivalent funding.
Ffyona Patel Mateus Saito Alumni Spotlight Since our first graduating class of 2002, our alumni/ae have attained faculty positions at a number of academic medical centers across the United States and beyond. Here we report on some of the accomplishments of a few of our graduates. Dr. Margaret Feeney, who was enrolled in the first class of students and graduated in 2003, is an Assistant Professor of Pediatrics at Children s Hospital. She was awarded an R01 in 2007, entitled The impact of CD8 T cells on viral control and evolution in HIV-infected infants, to study the role of the CDS T cell response in establishing viral containment. Using as a model the mother-to-child transmission of HIV, the overall aim of her research project is to define the correlates of CDS-mediated immune control, or lack thereof, following vertical transmission of HIV. Dr. Feeney conducts her research at Massachusetts General Hospital. Two of our Class of 2006 Scholars were awarded NIH K23 grants in 2008 and 2009. Dr. Amy DiVasta, an Instructor in Pediatrics at Children s Hospital in the Division of Adolescent Medicine, is studying biomechanical stimulation and skeletal health in adolescents with anorexia nervosa. Dr. George Washko, an Instructor in Medicine at Brigham and Women s Hospital in the Pulmonary Division, is using computed tomographic imaging as a biomarker for clinical chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Dr. Rhonda Bentley-Lewis, class valedictorian in 2007 and recipient of a K23 award, received a 2008 award from the Eleanor and Miles Shore 50th Anniversary Fellowship Program for Scholars in Medicine. The Shore Fellowship award, established in 1995 to honor the fiftieth anniversary of the admission of women to HMS, is designed to support junior faculty, in the early stages of their careers, with extra financial support to allow them to complete research projects, prepare manuscripts, and publish papers activities they pursue in conjunction with treating patients and often while caring for families. Other Scholars graduates who have received Shore Fellowships in the past are Dr. Amy DiVasta, Dr. Arin Greene, and Dr. Graham McMahon. Dr. Felipe Fregni, Class of 2006, received a 2008 Australia-Harvard Fellowship given by the Harvard Club of Australia Foundation. The fellowships support learned exchange between Harvard University and Australia through collaboration with senior Australian research organizations. In addition, as the Director of Continuing Education for the SCSP, in spring of 2008 Dr. Fregni launched a pilot course on clinical trials, which he co-directed with Dr. Ajay Singh. This course was offered in partnership with the University of São Paulo (USP) in Brazil and delivered by use of video-conference and WebEx technology to over thirty-five participants in Brazil. This year, again in partnership with USP, Dr. Fregni developed a new course in clinical research Collaborative and continues page 7, column 2 Third Round of Clinical and Translational Science Awards (CTSAs) Funded In May of 2008 the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and National Center for Research Resources (NCRR) announced the recipients of its third round of CTSA funding. Fourteen (14) additional academic health centers received the awards, and Harvard was one of them. Thus far, thirty-eight (38) centers have received CTSA funding. The newest recipients are listed here in alphabetical order: Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University (New York, NY) Boston University (Boston, MA) Harvard University (Cambridge, MA) Indiana University School of Medicine (Indianapolis, IN) Northwestern University (Chicago and Evanston, IL) The Ohio State University (Columbus, OH) The Scripps Research Institute (La Jolla, CA) Stanford University (Palo Alto, CA) Tufts University (Boston, MA) The University of Alabama at Birmingham (Birmingham, AL) University of Colorado Denver (Aurora, CO) The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (Chapel Hill, NC) The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio (San Antonio, TX) The University of Utah (Salt Lake City, UT) The total funding for these new awards is approximately $533 million over a fiveyear period. More detailed descriptions of the 2008 awards can be accessed at www.ncrr.nih.gov/ctsa2008. 3
Images of 2008 Graduation Dinner and Ceremony 4 This page, clockwise from top: Invitation to the 2008 Commencement; Juan Celedón, faculty course director, with Orlando Gutiérrez; Scholars Sherry Chou (left) and Beth Leeman; Graduate Mary Hu (center); Graduate Carol Waghorne accepting her award Next page clockwise from top left: Program advisor Dick Grand (left) with Ofer Levy; Program advisor Steven Schachter; Lauren Dewey Platt with a copy of the book given to mentors of graduating Scholars; Keynote speaker Thomas J. Moore
5 Keynote Address June 2008
This page, clockwise from top left: Paul Conlin, Program Director; Graduate Michael Pistiner (left) with his father at Commencement; 2008 Scholars Graduates, from left Michael Pistiner, Mary Lucia Gregory, Carol Waghorne, Elizabeth Sailhamer, Orlando Gutiérrez, Mary Hu, Aoife Brennan 6 Our Graduates June 2008
This page: Scholar Lynda Vrooman (far right) and project team members at the 2008 Harvard Business School Project Fair Next page, left: Scholars Yvonne Lee (second from right) and Tjörvi Perry (far right) with project team members at 2008 HBS Project Fair Next page, right: Scholar Marie-France Hivert (right) with project team member at 2008 Project Fair 7 Committee on Admissions Gordon H. Williams, MD, Chair Pankaj Agrawal, MD MMSc Paul R. Conlin, MD Felipe Fregni, MD PhD MMSc Shawn Gregory, MD MMSc Munish Gupta, MD MMSc Alexandra Kimball, MD Taru Kinnunen, PhD Constantine Mitsiades, MD PhD MMSc MingMing Ning, MD MMSc Stavroula Osganian, MD ScD MPH Todd Perlstein, MD MMSc Lauren Dewey Platt, PhD Lowell Schnipper, MD Ajay Wasan, MD MMSc Jonathan Williams, MD MMSc continued from page 3 Distance Learning Program in Clinical Research which was approved for CME credit by the Department of Continuing Education at HMS. The course, which runs for seven months beginning in March 2009, includes a distance-learning component and an on-site course in São Paulo in October. At the onset of the course more than one hundred participants, representing five continents, had registered. Please see the course website at www.clinicalresearchlearning.org for more information. Look for regular updates on our continuing medical education program in future issues of this newsletter. Class of 2010 The Scholars Program welcomed twelve (12) first-year students who entered the program in 2008. Their names, affiliated institutions, and mentors are listed below: Maryam Afkarian (MGH, Dr. Ravi Thadhani) Nazem Atassi (MGH, Dr. Merit Cudkowicz) Christina Hermos (CHMC, Dr. Gerald Pier) Alvaro Laga (BWH, Dr. George Murphy) Jessica Lee (CHMC, Dr. Richard Grand) Gang Li (MGH, Dr. Kirkham Wood) Thorvardur Löve (BWH, Dr. Elizabeth Karlson) Serena Masciari (DFCI, Dr. Judy Garber) Annette Mizuguchi (BWH, Dr. Gyorgy Frendl and Dr. Joseph Bonventre) Jochen Danny Muehlschlegel (BWH, Dr. Simon Body) Karine Scheuermaier (BWH, Dr. Jeanne Duffy) Michael Ostacher (MGH, Dr. Andrew Nierenberg) Harvard Business School (HBS) Project Fair This year s Project Fair at HBS the signature event associated with the course Inventing Breakthroughs and Commercializing Science co-directed by Professors Lee Fleming and Vicki Sato was held on 11 December 2008 in the Spangler Building on the HBS campus. Fortunately we didn t have a snowstorm this year, so the event was well attended. A winter follow-on course, Science Based Business Models, was also open to interested Scholars.
Harvard Catalyst K12 Program The Harvard Catalyst accepted six (6) K12 Scholars earlier this year, including three current Scholars Program students: Sherrry Chou, MD (Instructor in Medicine, BWH) Yvonne Lee, MD (Research Fellow in Medicine, BWH) Melanie Pogach, MD (Instructor in Medicine, BIDMC) The scope of the program is broad, and while many of the K12 awardees will be MDs with clinical responsibilities, PhDs pursuing translational research also are encompassed within the K12 mission. Program Office News Gordon H. Williams, MD, Chair of the Committee on Admissions, is the recipient of the 2009 Ahrens Award for Lifetime Achievement from the Association for Patient-Oriented Research. Named after Edward H. Ahrens of The Rockefeller University, this prestigious award honors a patient-oriented investigator who has made substantial and sustained contributions to clinical research. The award was presented to Dr. Williams at the spring clinical research meeting in Washington, DC, in April 2009. Paul R. Conlin, MD, is now serving as the Program Director of the Scholars in Clinical Science Program. In addition, he was recently appointed as Chair of the Department of Medicine at the Veterans Administration (VA) Boston Healthcare System, which encompasses three campuses and six community-based outpatient clinics in Greater Boston. As a result of his increased workload here and at the VA, Dr. Conlin has ceded his leadership of the Longitudinal Clinical Research Seminar to two Scholars graduates, Dr. Jonathan Williams and Dr. Munish Gupta, who also co-lead the summer course. Paul continues to chair the Committee on Mentoring. Paulo mentioned earlier, and she and Dr. Fregni also participated as presenters at AMLAR08 in Punta del Este, Uruguay, in October, organized by the Congress of the Latin American Medical Association of Rehabilitation. 8 In 2008, Lauren Dewey Platt, PhD, co-led a workshop with Dr. Cynthia Morris at the Association for Clinical Research Training (ACRT) annual meeting in Washington, DC, on the topic of leadership and management. She delivered a presentation on the same topic in the pilot course in São
Left: Gordon H. Williams, Chair of Committee on Admissions, speaking at 2008 Commencement 9 The Communicator newsletter of the Harvard Medical School Spring 2009 writing Lauren Dewey Platt photography Commencement photographs are by George Delianides. All other photographs by Lauren Dewey Platt unless separately credited. design and typography Jim Hood, Hood Design www.scsp.med.harvard.edu Harvard Medical School Save the Date! The 2009 Graduation Dinner and Ceremony this year will be on Friday, 5 June. We are excited to report that this year s keynote speaker will be Dr. Lee M. Nadler, the Dean for Clinical and Translational Research at Harvard Medical School and principal leader of Harvard Catalyst. Details and invitations will be arriving by mail soon! In Memoriam Allan Moore, MD Last July Dr. Allan Moore, who had just completed his first year as a Scholar, died from injuries he sustained in a motor vehicle accident. Allan was conducting research into the genetic basis of type 2 diabetes and was instrumental in founding and organizing the MGH Blood Donor Center s annual Medical Service Blood Drive Challenge. In his 31 years Allan used his many talents for the good of his patients and the advancement of clinical care. In February 2009 Allan s mentor, Jose Florez, MD PhD, Assistant Professor of Medicine at MGH, delivered the First Annual Allan Moore Memorial Lecture in the Longitudinal Clinical Research Seminar on the topic of clinical translation of genetic predictors for type 2 diabetes. Since his death Allan has continued to have an impact in the clinical research arena, as several of his manuscripts have been published in the last few months. Allan s cohort, the Class of 2009, will assemble for graduation this June he will be greatly missed and fondly remembered. 260 Longwood Avenue Suite 157 Boston, Massachusetts 02115