The Connector
Spring 2007
newsletter for graduates, students, faculty and friends of the Harvard-MIT Division of Health Sciences and Technology
Five researchers join HST faculty HST recently added two new faculty members and three affiliated faculty members to its list of distinguished scientists. There are presently more than 60 faculty members, which means that they hold a primary or secondary/joint appointment in HST and in another department at MIT or Harvard. They commit a significant level of effort to defining and executing HST’s multifaceted mission of education, research and innovation. The affiliated faculty, numbering about 150, have critical roles in training HST students by directing and/or teaching courses and by mentoring students in research laboratories.
HST Joint Faculty Kamran Badizadegan, MD ’93, is Assistant Professor of Pathology and Health Sciences & Technology, HMS, MGH. He is coordinator of the pathology curriculum in HST 120: Gastrointestinal Pathophysiology, and lecturer in HST 030: Human Pathology. He is the founding course director of HST 035: Principles and Practices of Human Pathology. Badizadegan’s scientific research focuses on the study of cellular structure and function in living cells. He investigates “lipid rafts,” tiny structures found in cell membranes that may play a variety of roles in cellular behavior. Badizadegan studies the roles these lipid rafts play in cellular signaling and vesicular trafficking by using known
Thursday, March 8 starting at 3:00 pm Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging 149 Thirteenth Street Charlestown, MA 02129 hst.mit.edu/forum
H S T F O RUM 2007
Image is Everything Keynote Address HST Faculty and Alumnus Bruce R. Rosen, MD, PhD ’84 Director, Martinos Center
Kamran Badizadegan
models of lipid-associated signaling, such as cholera toxin. He also collaborates with the Spectroscopy Laboratory at MIT to study cells and cellular functions in vitro. Badizadegan’s clinical studies focus on the form and function of living cells.
Utkan Demirci, PhD, is Instructor in Medicine and Health Sciences and Technology, HMS. He will be based at the new HST regenerative medicine center at the BWH building on Landsdowne Street in Cambridge. Demirci was named one of Technology Review’s top 35 innovators under age 35 in 2006, for his convenient, low-cost and disposable test that measures the number of CD4+ T lymphocyte cells in the blood. Healthcare providers use Utkan Demirci
that number to monitor HIV infection. His research interests include healthcare in developing countries; biological applications of microelectromechanical systems; acoustic picoliter droplets for cell-by-cell 3D tissue generation and semiconductor applications; and capacitive micromachined ultrasonic arrays for medical imaging applications.
HST Affiliated Faculty Ruth Anne Eatock, PhD, is Associate Professor of Otology and Laryngology at HMS and MEEI, and Associate Professor of Neurobiology at HMS. She teaches HST 721: The Peripheral Auditory System. Her research is focused on the ion channel in hair cells of the inner ear. Matthew P. Frosch, MD, PhD ’87, Associate Professor of Pathology at HMS and MGH, teaches HST 130: Introduction to Neuroscience. He studies human tissue and animal models of neurodegenerative diseases, particularly Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s. Anthony N. Hollenberg, MD, is Associate Professor of Medicine at HMS and BIDMC. He co-directs HST’s Clinical Investigation Training Program. His clinical interests include thyroid disease and neuroendocrinology. He also researches the molecular mechanisms by which thyroid hormones are produced and act on target tissues.
Six MIT PhDs in GEMS program Some of the most complex and interesting problems in science and engineering today are in the medical sciences, but many MIT doctoral students find it difficult to tackle these problems. Sometimes the biggest challenge is getting close enough to real medical problems to get started. HST recognized this barrier and designed the Graduate Education in Medical Sciences (GEMS) program, which will give a select set of MIT engineering and science graduate students exposure to clinical medicine through coursework, seminars and an individualized clinical experience. The certificate program, lasting three semesters, will give them insights that are critical for connecting their science to real health problems. The first class of six GEMS students joined HST this February. These students come from a (continues on page 2)
2006 GEMS Scholars Hansen Bow Electrical Engineering and Computer Science
Thaddeus Fulford-Jones Aeronautics and Astronautics
Michael Goldberg Chemistry
Sarah Johnstone Biology
Show Ming Kwok Brain and Cognitive Sciences
Conor Walsh Mechanical Engineering,
hst news A look at HST via a faculty meeting
the ethnology of an academic program
On January 25, HST’s monthly faculty meeting had as special guests Nancy Andrews, HMS Dean for Basic Sciences and Graduate Studies, and Claude Canizares, MIT Associate Provost and Vice President of Research, to whom HST reports directly. Jules Dienstag, HMS Dean for Medical Education, also attended. Andrews and Dienstag are co-chairs of the HST Director Search Committee for a successor to Joseph Bonventre. One of the purposes of this meeting was to give the faculty an opportunity to identify—for the guests—the attributes they believe the next Director should have. Faculty also discussed an
HST Director Martha L. Gray introduced the guests and set the tone of the meeting, inviting the audience to provide input and convey concerns to the panelists. The introduction was followed by comments from senior as well as junior HMS and MIT primary, joint and affiliated faculty members. It was good to hear so many confirmations of HST’ programs’ strength, cohesiveness and meaningfulness from the members of its faculty. These attributes had long been taken for granted and therefore were rarely expressed. Again and again, evidence was given that faculty at the medical school and affiliated hospitals greatly value their
It was good to hear so many confirmations of HST programs’ strengths, cohesiveness and meaningfulness from the members of its faculty. organized research mission for HST and the concerns the HMS administration had raised concerning primary and joint faculty appointments in HST (new appointments had been held up). In the past, Andrews repeatedly described HST as an “educational program” only. The Connector attended this meeting along with 80 others, 73 of whom were members of the HST Faculty. Many present were also HST alumni/ae.
GEMS program (continued from page 1)
wide range of MIT doctoral programs and will surely add variety and perspective to all of the courses and seminars they attend. GEMS Scholars will study with HST for three semesters. Throughout the program the class will attend Biomedical Engineering Seminars (HST 590) and Translational Seminars (HST 594 ). This semester the students are enrolled in HST 035: Principles and Practices of Human Pathology. In the fall, they will attend HST 547: Medical Pathophysiology. They will complete their clinical preceptorship the following spring. For more information, go to http://hst.mit. edu/gems. The deadline for the next GEMS class will be in November. — Elizabeth Dougherty 2
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contacts with HST students, including teaching, mentoring and supervision of research, as well as their collegiate relations with fellow faculty and service on committees. A strong community spirit was evident. Speakers from the audience emphasized that HST was set up as an institutional collaboration with the objective of educating unique professionals and establishing strong collaborative research activities joining the two institutions. They em-
The Connector Editor Walter H. Abelmann, MD Managing Editor/Designer Becky Sun Editorial Assistant Ryan Hayman Contact Information Harvard-MIT Division of Health Sciences and Technology 77 Massachusetts Ave., E25-519 Cambridge, MA 02139-4307 P: (617) 253-4418 F: (617) 253-7498 E: hst@mit.edu http://hst.mit.edu
phasized that it was critical that the co-directors got along and had no differences with regard to the objectives of HST. Both must take responsibility for both sides of the leadership role. The new director must feel that he or she is director of both parts of HST and must be the advocate for research as well as education. Multidisciplinary efforts must be brought to bear upon research problems. The new director must have strong scholarly, clinical and diplomatic attributes as well as top-notch research credentials. While research, engineering and medicine tend to be discussed as separate entities, in HST they must all come together. HST is about working together in the community, at the bench and at the bedside. Both institutions must accept the candidate. It is the responsibility of HST to create a research environment that focuses on students’ becoming physician scientists and biomedical scientists. The audience emphasized the value of a culture of collegiality and cohesiveness, especially between colleagues in different departments and hospitals. HST appointments are considered very valuable and helpful to the faculty with regards to issues in education and research. The panel listened carefully to the audience’s comments and responded to their questions. Andrews answered concerns about HST appointments, saying she expects these appointments to go through. She also acknowledged that the search committee needs to take the recommendations conveyed at this meeting seriously. This animated discussion reflected the unique culture of HST, and the deans and provost were receptive to the faculty’s concerns. — WHA
Volume 21 • Number 2 Editorial Board
Patricia A. Cunningham Elizabeth Dougherty Lisa E. Freed, MD, PhD ’88 Sang Kim (MD ’07) Steven M. Stufflebeam, MD ’94 Pamela McGill Catherine Modica Konstantina Stankovic, PhD ’98, MD ’99 James C. Weaver, PhD Peter I-Kung Wu (MEMP)
Ex officio
Joseph V. Bonventre, MD ’76, PhD Martha L. Gray, PhD ’86
The Connector is a quarterly publication of the Harvard-MIT Division of Health Sciences and Technology. The staff and board of The Connector would like to thank the HST alumni, faculty, staff, and students who contributed to this issue. Please send reports of your recent activities and personal news to the above address or email. Previous issues of The Connector can be found at http://hst.mit.edu.
hst news Sengupta Named as Hope Scholar Shiladitya Sengupta, PhD, Assistant Professor of Medicine at HST, HMS and BWH, is one of three winners of the 2006 Era of Hope Scholar Award from the Department of Defense Breast Cancer Research Program. The award recognizes exceptionally talented, early-career scientists who have demonstrated that they are the best and brightest in their field and have shown a strong potential for leadership in breast cancer research. Sengupta created an anti-cancer drug delivery device, dubbed the nanocell (S Sengupta et al., Nature 2005; 436:568-72). This five-year award will allow him to continue to apply inventive solutions to breast cancer research and to further the efforts of the HST-BWH Center for Biomedical Engineering, which is committed to using novel technologies to improve medical diagnostics and therapeutics, especially focusing on global health.
Tabin Chairs Genetics Department Clifford Tabin, PhD, HST affiliated faculty and Professor of Genetics at HMS, is the new chair of that department. Tabin succeeds Phil Leder, who founded the department in 1980.
Tetrapod Find is Top Ten Breakthrough Farish A Jenkins, Jr.’s discovery of Tiktaalik rosea (Winter 2006-07, p. 12) is number four in the Top 10 Breakthroughs of 2006 as listed in a special section of the December 22 issue of Science. Jenkins is Professor of Biology at Harvard and a member of the HST affiliated faculty.
New Bioastronautics Program Has First Graduate Kathleen H. Sienko, PhD ’07, is the first graduate of the new HST Bioastronautics Program, having received her degree in February. Her thesis dealt with “Perturbation-based detection and prosthetic correction of vestibulopathic gait.” Sienko has accepted a position as Assistant Professor of Mechanical Engineering and Bioengineering at the University of Michigan.
Long-time Mount Auburn Physician Honored with Named Professorship Charles J. Hatem, MD, HST affiliated faculty and the Harold Amos Academy Professor, at HMS and BIDMC, has been honored by the establishment of the Hatem Visiting Professorship at Mount Auburn Hospital in Cambridge, Mass. Established by a grant from an anonymous foundation, the Hatem Visiting Professorship will provide support for a “nationally prominent visiting faculty member to spend time with residents and staff at Mount Auburn Hospital.” Having established and led the medical residency and student teaching program at Mount Auburn, Hatem also was instrumental in developing the MEMP clinical training program at that hospital.
Chen receives Grand Prize for Science essay The journal Science has awarded Irene A. Chen, PhD, (MD ’07), the prestigious 2006 GE & Science Grand Prize for Young Life Scientists for her essay, “The Emergence of Cells During the Origin of Life,” which was published in journal’s December 8th issue. Chen received her prize and $25,000 in Stockholm, Sweden, during an award ceremony with Nobel Prize winners Andrew Fire and Craig Mello in attendance. Her Science essay reviews the work she has done over several years in the laboratory of Jack W. Szostak, Professor of Genetics at HMS/MGH, investigating the biophysics of the origin of life. Using protocells engineered by encapsulating RNA inside vesicles, she studied how interactions between the RNA and the membrane led to the emergence of cellular behavior. Irene A. Chen As a high school senior, Chen won the Westinghouse Science Talent Search Award, and in 2005 was recognized with a Harold M. Weintraub Graduate Student Award.
Rauch Promoted to Professor HST affiliated faculty Steven D. Rauch, MD, has been promoted to Professor of Otology and Laryngology at HMS and MEEI. His recent research dealt with vestibular evoked myogenic potentials.
Grant Supports Nanotechnology in Cancer Treatment Sangeeta N. Bhatia, PhD ’97, MD ’99, Associate Professor of HST and of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at MIT, received a $4.3 million grant over five years to support her work on engineering multifunctional nanoparticles for medical science and cancer treatment. The National Cancer Institute (NCI) has made the transformation of new nanomaterials into medical applications a key clinical goal. Bhatia’s plan focuses on creating nanoparticles with multiple functions, such as the ability to target a particular tissue type, self-assemble and then to carry out a specific purpose. These nanoparticles, which will use natural biological processes and systems as guides, will be used to treat tumors in mouse models of cancer. One particular focus is on the assembly of nanoparticles into nanomaterials to improve imaging and drug delivery. Bhatia will collaborate with chemist and materials scientist Michael J. Sailor at the University of California–San Diego, and tumor biologist Erkki Ruoslahti at the Burnham Institute for Medical Research.
HST to Administer Information Research Training Grant The recent $75 million award by the National Library of Medicine for Information Research Training to 18 universities includes a five-year renewal grant to Harvard’s Biomedical Informatics Research Training Program (BIRT), which offers predoctoral and postdoctoral train-
ing. The grant is administered through HST in cooperation with MIT, Tufts University, Boston University, and affiliated teaching hospitals. The program provides three different PhD tracks—two at MIT and one at Harvard—and an HST-based postdoctoral research MS degree track at MIT for physicians and other health professionals. Support is provided for 24 trainees per year. The program is directed by Robert A. Greenes, MD, PhD, Professor of Health Sciences and Technology, as well as Professor of Radiology at HMS and BWH and Professor of Health Policy and Management at HSPH. It is the goal of the program to increase the focus on cross-cutting informatics challenges relating to the growing role of informatics in biomedical and health care research and practice.
Kettyle Gets Grant from Insurers William M. Kettyle, MD, HST affiliated faculty and Medical Director and Head of the MIT Medical Department, received a $50,000 grant for research on patient safety from the medical malpractice insurer CRICO/RMF.
New Editorial Board Member Comes On Board The Connector welcomes Steven M. Stufflebeam, MD ’94, to its Editorial Board. He succeeds Leann Lesperance, PhD ’93, MD ’95, as Vice President of Communications of the HST Alumni Association. Stufflebeam is Director of Clinical MEG at the Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging. He is also Instructor in Radiology at HMS and Assistant Radiologist at MGH. Stufflebeam uses MEG/EEG, fMRI, and optical imaging to understand how the brain processes neural information. His research focuses on epilepsy, schizophrenia and brain tumor patients with an emphasis on clinical applications. The Connector
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hst news HST and India develop more links India, the largest democracy in the world, is also the second fastest emerging market after China. With the annual GDP growing at a rate of more than eight percent, and more than 16 percent in certain sectors, India now appears on every corporate to-do list. Flush with funds, the government is investing heavily in infrastructure, with funding in research and development projected to increase at over 100 percent a year. Budgetary allocations are also being set aside for establishing new national institutes on the lines of the Indian Institute of Technology or Science. With science and technology being viewed as the drivers of economy in the future, the government is also allocating significant investments in strategic areas such as nanotechnology, regenerative medicine, energy, and clinical informatics. This has attracted overseas faculty members, and most institutions have seen an increasing number of overseas faculty applicants. The government is also actively promoting international science and technology collaborations. For example, it has established a specific organization called the Indo-US Science & Technology Forum (http://www.indousstf.org) with the mandate to foster bilateral scientific linkages between India and US through seed funding for different S&T initiatives. Despite its strong economy, there still exists a dichotomy in India. The situation is like that of an iceberg with a shining tip but with its greater part submerged. There are still more than 260 million people who live on less than $1 a day, and most of the economic revolution has bypassed over 70
WRITERS WANTED HST Students are invited to submit articles on educational, research or travel experiences for consideration for publication in The Connector. Please submit to the Editor: walter_abelmann@ hms.harvard.edu
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percent of the population that live in rural areas. This specifically has led the scientific leadership in India to recognize the need for creative solutions to poverty, such as adapting technology for optimizing healthcare. In a visit to HST in October 2005, Dr. R. Mashelkar (FRS, members NAS and NAE), the current director general of CSIR (a conglomerate of National Labs in India), and Prof. V.S. Ramamurthy, Secretary of the Department of Science and Technology for the government of India, expressed the desire to establish an India Institute of HST. In August 2006, a delegation led by HST Director Martha L. Gray, PhD, engaged the Indian side, led by Prof. M.K. Bhan, Secretary of the Department of Biotechnology for the government of India, to develop a white paper that has been submitted to the government for establishing the new institute. The US delegation also comprised Dr. Vinay Kumar, Vice Dean of the University of Chicago School of Medicine; Dr. Richard Mitchell of HST, HMS and BWH; Dr. Roderick Pettigrew, Director of the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering; Dr. Vijay Kuchroo of HMS; and Dr. Shiladitya Sengupta of HST and BWH. In parallel to these discussions, leaders in science and technology have also started engaging top Indian research institutions as potential future strategic partners for HST, with the long-term goal of setting up an agreement on the lines of the agreement with the UC system on thematic areas. The advantage of such partnerships is that it allows us to operate in the global arena, where the problems are unique and of a different scale. Learning
from such challenges allows the flexibility to adapt engineering solutions across boundaries, and to develop healthcare that is affordable and accessible for all; this will attain strategic importance in a stretched Medicare scenario. One of the immediate tangible results from these discussions has been the agreement by the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), the country’s top super-speciality medical institution, to host four HST students each year for a six-week clinical training program. The first students who went last year (see the Winter 2006-07 issue of The Connector) were initially exposed to a private hospital where patients pay for their own treatment. They then spent five weeks in AIIMS and in a rural hospital managing the poorest of the poor. The long-term goal of this initiative is to develop tomorrow’s engineering leaders who are also global thinkers. We increasingly recognize that there is an immediate and unmet need for biomedical technology that enables accessible and affordable therapeutics, and the opportunity to address that need has never been greater. Accordingly, while HST continues to build on its strengths in advanced translational medical research, it should also envision pioneering research which will globally transform medicine by making it accessible—through the use of technology—to the most disadvantaged. Partnering with countries like India is just the start. Shiladitya Sengupta, PhD, is Assistant Professor of Medicine and Health Sciences and Technology at HMS and BWH. He received bachelor’s and master’s degrees from AIIMS.
MD student is 2007 Soros Fellow Gaurav Singal (MD ’09) was awarded one of 31 Paul and Daisy Soros Fellowships for 2007. This charitable trust supports graduate study of new Americans: immigrants and children of immigrants. Soros Fellows were chosen from over 800 applicants from 257 undergraduate and 150 graduate institutions. Fellows receive half-tuition payments for two years of graduate study and a maintenence grant of $20,000 for two years. Singal, who was born in Pittsburgh and whose family immigrated from India, holds a BS degree summa cum laude from Columbia University. He has focused his life-long interest in artificial intelligence on the neuroscience of vision, and uses computational eye-tracking techniques to study autistic individuals and diagnose treatable aspects of blindness. This winter, he operated several vision Gaurav Singal camps in India to address the problem of congenital blindness. He plans to pursue an academic career in ophthalmology. While he intends to be involved clinically, he has continuing interests in developing biomedical technologies. Gilbert Chu, MD ’80, PhD, Professor of Medicine and Biochemistry at Stanford University, was one of 41 panelists who selected the Soros Fellows.
alumna profile Rebecca Richards-Kortum has
S P E C I A L
POWERS courtesy Rebecca Richards-Kortum
She chairs a bioengineering department, gets huge grants and designs a t-shirt seen on national television
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year and a half ago, this 1990 MEMP PhD was named the Stanley C. Moore Professor and Chair of the Department of Bioengineering at Rice University. She holds an $8 million grant from the National Cancer Institute to develop miniature microscopes used in non-invasive diagnosis of several cancers. She has won awards for excellence in undergraduate teaching. And, in a “special powers” section of her CV, it is noted that she “has extensive experience saying ‘no’ to people who throw temper tantrums, can construct a Clara Barton hand puppet in less than 10 minutes using a hot glue gun and common household items,” and “designed the EE302 class t-shirt featured in Warner Brothers’ TV show ‘Beauty and the Geek.’” Clearly, this is no ordinary, mild-mannered medical physicist/professor/department head. Rebecca Richards-Kortum joined the bioengineering department at Rice after 15 years at the University of Texas in Austin, where she was a faculty member in electrical and computer
engineering beginning in 1990 and where she became one of the founding faculty members of the Department of Biomedical Engineering in 2001. In 2002 she was named a Howard Hughes Medical Institute Professor. As the PI of the Optical Spectroscopy and Imaging Laboratory at Rice, Richards-Kortum’s goal is to design imaging systems, both micro- and macroscopically-based, which will enable physicians to visualize molecular and cellular targets to aid in earlier cancer detection and treatment. Optical imaging can be used not only to provide noninvasive diagnoses, but to monitor patient response to targeted therapies. As she pointed out, “the sooner you know the response, the more time you have to try a second- or third-line drug if necessary.” Her multiyear grant from the NCI, a collaboration with molecular biologists from a number of institutions, aims to identify the biomarkers for a variety of tumor types. Richards-Kortum was quick to credit HST with showing her the value of translational re-
search and giving her a “road map” of how it can and should be done. First at UT–Austin, and now at Rice, a major focus for her is implementing a culture of translational research at both the graduate and undergraduate levels. She finds great satisfaction in finding ways to build bridges between engineering and medicine as well as between science and engineering, and her publications include articles on translational bioengineering published in such journals as PNAS and Prism. Richards-Kortum also works on point-ofcare diagnostics in low-resource areas, a study topic that is now a focus of Rice’s undergraduate bioengineering program. A recently developed undergraduate curriculum in Global Health Technologies (see http://beyondtraditionalborders.rice. edu) has become “almost a minor on real-world problems in developing countries,” she said. As a part of this program, Richards-Kortum teaches Introduction to Global Health Issues, a new course for Rice freshmen and sophomores to design solutions to real-world health challenges facing (continues on page 11)
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research news Low Cost Audience Response System Frank J. Rybicki, MD, PhD ’96, is senior author of “A novel standard-compliant audience response system for medical education.” He presents a simple, cost-effective audience response system which relies on standard networking technology that can easily be embedded in a PowerPoint presentation. Members of the audience then submit their responses to the lecturer’s slide questions via laptop computer or cell phone. (JL Streeter & FJ Rybicki, Radiographics 2006; 26:1243-9.) Rybicki is Assistant Professor of Radiology at HMS and BWH.
First Step toward an Implantable Transdermal Glucose Sensor Joseph T. Walsh, PhD ’88, is co-author of “In vivo glucose measurement by surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy.” This paper reports the first in vivo application of surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) spectroscopy to the measurement of glucose concentration in interstitial fluid in rats. The SERS spectra were acquired through an optical window using a Ti:sapphire laser. Glucose was varied by means of intravenous infusions and measured in a drop of blood using the One Touch II glucometer. Both types of measurement effectively traced the changes in glucose concentration. The sensors had an acceptably low error rate. It was concluded that “the SERS-based glucose sensor has the potential to replace conventional personal and point-of-care assays.” (DA Stuart et al., Anal Chem 2006; 78:7211-5.) Walsh is Professor of Biomedical Engineering at Northwestern University in Evanston, Ill.
Prognosis of Elderly Burn Patients Dennis P. Orgill, PhD ’83, MD ’85, Associate Professor of Surgery at HMS and BWH, is senior author of “Predictors of survival and length of stay in burn patients older than 80 years of age: does age really matter?” Survival and length of hospitalization were studied in 45 consecutive patients older than 80 years, who were treated for burns during a period of 10 years. The overall mortality was 29 percent. No patient survived a burn of more than 60 percent of total body surface area (TBSA). Percent TBSA burn was the strongest predictor of survival. The authors concluded that the survival rate in this age group of patients with burns less than 60% TBSA—under modern burn care—is better than generally reported. (B. Pomahac, et al. J Burn Care Res 2006; 27:265-9.)
New Mediator of Hepatic Regeneration Raghu Kalluri, PhD, HST affiliated faculty and Associate Professor of Medicine at HMS and BIDMC, is senior author of “BMP-7 functions as a novel hormone to facilitate liver regeneration.” BMP-7 is a multifunctional cytokine which mediates growth and differentiation of many different cell types. This study explored the potential role of this cytokine in liver regeneration after partial hepatectomy in CD1 mice. The authors found that 6
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neutralization of endogenous BMP-7 by means of anti-BMP-7 antibody impaired regeneration of the liver, whereas the administration of human recombinant BMP-7 significantly enhanced liver regeneration and function. The authors propose that BMP-7 serves as a liver hormone. (H Sugimoto et al., FASEB J 2007;21:256-64.)
Prostheses That Restore Limb Function Hugh M. Herr, PhD, Associate Professor in Media Arts and Sciences and Health Sciences and Technology at MIT, is co-author of “Horizons in Prosthesis Development for the Restoration of Limb Function.” This report gives an overview of inter-institutional developments of biometric prostheses with optimized control systems and optimized human-prosthesis interfaces using both limb-lengthening and osseo-integration techniques. (RK Aaron et al., J Am Acad Orthop Surg 2006; 14: S198-S204.)
Imaging of Thrombus Formation John V. Frangioni, MD, PhD ’94, is senior author, and Roger J. Hajjar, MD ’90, is co-author of “Localization and Quantification of Platelet-Rich Thrombi in Large Blood Vessels with Near-Infrared Fluorescence Imaging.” This report describes a new method for visualizing—in real time—thrombi in thick-walled coronary, carotid and femoral blood vessels. Platelets were labeled with near-infrared fluorophore IR-786 and then tested for their ability to detect thrombus formation in a large animal model. Platelet rich, actively growing thrombi could be monitored and quantified after various interventions. Application to cardiac, transplant and vascular surgery, as well as to the elucidation of the pathophysiology of clot formation, are discussed. (R Flaumenhaft et al., Circulation 2007;115:84-93.) Frangioni is Associate Professor of Medicine and Radiology at HMS and BIDMC. Hajjar is Associate Professor of Medicine at HMS and MGH.
Stem Cells from Unfertilized Eggs HST affiliated faculty George Q. Daley, MD ’91, PhD, is senior author of “Histocompatible Embryonic Stem Cells by Parthenogenesis.” This study successfully explored parthenogenesis in mice as a method for creating pluripotent stem cells that might serve as a source of histocompatible cells and tissues for transplantation. After parthenogenetic activation of murine oocytes and interruption of meiosis I or II, it was possible to isolate and genotype parthenogenetic cells that carry the full complement of major histocompatibility complex antigens of the oocyte donor. Differentiated tissues grown from these cells were found to engraft as long as the major histocompatibility complex genotype of the donor was matched to the recipient mouse. The applicability of this approach to transplantation in humans remains to be explored. This method would eliminate tissue matching and problems
of rejection; however, it would be limited to women, who would need to donate their own ova to generate the stem cells. (K Kim et al., Science 2007 315:482-6.) Daley is Associate Professor of Biological Chemistry and Molecular Pharmacology at HMS, and Associate Professor of Pediatrics at HMS and CHB.
Mechanism of Beneficial Effect of Post Operative Passive Motion of Knee Joint Robert Lie-Yuan Sah, ScD ’90, MD ’91, is senior author of “Continuous passive motion applied to whole joints stimulates chrondrocyte biosynthesis of PRG-4.” This study tested the effects of continuous passive motion (CPM) on the metabolism of cartilage by analyzing the variation in the secretion of intrinsic cartilage proteoglycan 4 (PRG4). Application of CPM EC bovine stifle joints in vitro revealed that chondrocyte PRG4 synthesis was higher with CPM than without it, specifically in regions of the femoral condyle that were sliding against the meniscus and tibial cartilage during CPM. Thus, one mechanism of the effectiveness of CPM in post-operative rehabilitation has been identified. (BE Nugent-Derfus et al., Osteoarthritis Cartilage 2006; Dec 6; [Epub ahead of print].) Sah is Professor of Bioengineering and Vice Chair of the Department of Bioengineering at the University of California–San Diego.
Increasing Capacity for Physical Activity Zoltan Arany, MD ’98, Instructor in Medicine at HMS and BWH, is first author of “The transcriptional coactivator PGC-1beta drives the formation of oxidative type IIX fibers in skeletal muscle.” The transcriptional coactivator PGC-1alpha drives the formation of type I and IIA muscle fibers, which are “slow-twitch” and highly oxidative. The authors show that PGC-1beta, a functionally similar but distinct coactivator, increases the formation of IIX fibers, which are oxidative but “fast-twitch.” Consequently, transgenic mice with PGC-1beta can run for longer and at higher work loads than wild-type animals. Together, these data indicate that PGC-1beta drives the formation of highly oxidative fibers containing type IIX MHC. This work may have implications for the therapy of some muscular and neuromuscular diseases. (Cell Metab 2007; 5: 35-46.)
Cardiac Examination Skills May Decline after Years in Practice W. Hallowell Churchill, MD, Associate Professor of Medicine at HST, HMS and BWH, is co-author of a multicenter study of cardiac examination skills in medical students, trainees, physicians, and faculty. A 50-question computerbased test assessed knowledge of cardiac physiology, auditory and visual skills, and the integration of these skills using graphic animations and virtual examinations based upon bedside films of patients. The participants comprised 318 medical students,
research news 289 residents, 85 cardiology fellows and 212 physicians (62 of whom were faculty members). As expected, the authors found that first- and second-year students scored the lowest and cardiologists scored the highest. However, there was no significant difference among third-year students, fourth-year students, residents, faculty, and private practitioners. It must be noted that this was a cross-sectional and not a longitudinal study. Nonetheless, the conclusion that continuing education in cardiac examination is indicated and should include faculty members is valid. (JM Vukanovic-Criley et al., Arch Intern Med 2006; 166: 610-616.)
Simplified Approach to Cardiac Imaging Daniel K. Sodickson, PhD ’94, MD ’96, is senior author of “Toward single breath-hold whole-heart coverage coronary MRA using highly accelerated parallel imaging with a 32-channel MR system.” This work addressed the limitations of current methods of coronary magnetic resonance angiography (CMRA), which require balancing signal-to-noise ratios, spatial and temporal resolution, scan time, visual contrast, and immunity to physiologic motion. This report presents a 32-channel coil array and receiver system for highly accelerated volumetric breathhold CMRA, permitting whole-heart coverage in a single breath-hold. This system permits visualization of coronary arteries as well as assessment of cardiac function and myocardial perfusion and viability. (T Niendorf et al., Magn Reson Med 2006; 56:167-76.) Sodickson, previously Assistant Professor of Radiology and Medicine at HMS and BIDMC, is now the Director of The Center for Biomedical Imaging at New York University School of Medicine.
Fractures Do Not Heal in Absence of Bone Morphogenetic Protein Clifford J Tabin, PhD, HST affiliated faculty and Professor of Genetics at HMS, is co-author of “BMP2 activity, although dispensable for bone formation, is required for the initiation of fracture healing.” Studies of BMP2-generating transgenic mice, in which BMP2 was inactivated before the onset of skeletal development, revealed no interference with prenatal bone formation, but delayed postnatal unification and formation of cartilage, resulting in spontaneous fractures which do not heal. Thus, BMP2 has been identified as an endogenous mediator essential for repair of fractures. (K Tsuji et al., Nat Genet 2006; 38:1424-9.)
Insulin-Like Growth Factor Lengthens Corticospinal Neurons Jeffrey D. Macklis, MD ’88, is senior author of “IGF-I specifically enhances axon outgrowth of corticospinal motor neurons.” Corticospinal motor neurons (CSMN) control voluntary motor function. Their long axons also affect the voluntary control of bladder and intestinal func-
tion. Working with purified, cultured marine corticospinal motor neurons, the authors report that insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-I) enhances the extent and rate of growth of CSMN axons. It might thus be possible to control the outgrowth of axons of CSMN derived from neural precursors. This may have clinical implications inasmuch as CSMN degenerate progressively in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, as well as in hereditary spastic paraplegia and in primary lateral sclerosis. Damage to CSMN also plays a role in spinal cord injuries. (PH Ozdinler & JD Macklis, Nat Neurosci 2006; 9:1371-81.) Macklis is a member of the HST affiliated faculty and Associate Professor of Surgery at HMS and MGH. This work was done at the HMS Center for Nervous System Repair at MGH.
Using Magnets to Improve the Efficiency of Oral Delivery of Protein Drugs Robert S. Langer, Jr., ScD, Professor of Health Sciences and Technology and an Institute Professor at MIT, and Ali Khademhosseini, PhD, Assistant Professor of Medicine and Health Sciences and Technology, are authors of a demonstration that magnetic force can be used to improve the efficiency of orally delivered protein therapeutics. Notwithstanding the fact that oral delivery of drugs is more comfortable and associated with higher compliance, the majority of protein drugs are still administered parenterally. This study evaluated the effect of prolonged gastro-intestinal transit on the bio-availability of insulin carried by magnetically responsive microparticles in the presence of an external magnetic field. A single administration of 100 U/kg of insulin-magnetitepolylactide-co-glycolide microparticles to fasted mice, in the presence of an extended magnetic field for 20 hours, effected a significant reduction of blood glucose levels. This approach may be applicable to enhance the oral delivery of other protein drugs. (J Cheng et al., Pharm Res 2006, 23(3):557-64.)
Mechanism of Neurofibrillatory Tangles MEMP student Austin V. Huang and Collin M. Stultz, MD, PhD, Assistant Professor of Health Science and Technology and of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at MIT, address the question: what makes a protein form aggregates under physiologic conditions? This question is relevant to the pathophysiology of Alzheimer’s disease, characterized by intracellular protein aggregates—also known as neurofibrillary tangles—which play a role in neurodegeneration. Since the tau protein is flexible, experimental studies like x-ray crystallography are not applicable. Therefore, the authors used computer modeling to determine what structures tau samples during its biological lifetime. This paper presents the first step towards this goal. It tested an algorithm for obtaining and evaluating a large number of potential conformations on a small, but crucial, region of tau protein that is essential for the formation of
tau aggregates. Extensive conformational sampling under a variety of different conditions revealed that this region has an inherent propensity for extended, solvent-exposed conformations. The findings provide a biophysical model explaining how this region acts as a nucleation site for tau aggregation and suggests potential avenues for the design of new therapies for Alzheimer’s disease. (A Huang & CM Stultz, Biophys J 2007; 92: 34-45.)
Nanoparticles Target Tumors MEMP student Todd J. Harris is first author, and Sangeeta N. Bhatia, PhD ’97, MD ’99, Associate Professor of Health Sciences and Technology and of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at MIT, is senior author, of “Proteolytic Actuation of Nanoparticle Self-Assembly.” This work demonstrated that assembly initiated by matrix metalloproteinase-2 amplifies the transverse relaxation of nanoparticle solutions in MRI, enables magnetic manipulation with external fields, and allows MRI detection of tumor-derived cells that produce the protease. It is the hope that this work will lead to the use of nanoparticles in the early detection of neoplasms. (Angew Chem Int Ed Engl 2006; 45: 3161-65.)
Potential Health Cost Savings of Personalized Medicine Stan N. Finkelstein, MD ’75, Senior Research Scientist at MIT, and Anthony J. Sinskey, ScD, Professor of Health Sciences and Technology and of Biology at MIT, are co-authors of “A framework to evaluate the economic impact of pharmacogenomics.” This paper presents a general tool for predicting the impact of pharmacogenomics tests on healthcare cost. A retrospective health claims database of asthma patients was used to estimate the likely cost impact of a potential cost offset: testing all patients for a nonresponse genotype versus testing none. The cost savings per patient using the testing strategy ranged from $200 to $767. The authors concluded that upfront testing costs are likely to be offset by the avoided costs of nonresponse. (SC Stallings et al., Pharmacogenomics 2006; 7; 853-62.)
Better Protein Sorting with Microchip MD-PhD student Anna L. Stevens is coauthor of “A patterned anisotropic nanofluidic sieving structure for continuous-flow separation of DNA and proteins.” A new microchip system is reported, which has several advantages over the standard porous gel networks for the separation and sorting of biomelecules such as proteins. This microfabricated anisotropic sieving structure consists of a two-dimensional periodic nanofluidic filter array, which accomplishes a faster and more effective separation of smaller, physiologically relevant macromolecules such as proteins. This work may lead to improved detection of molecules associated with specific diseases. (J. Fu et al., Nature Nanotechnology 2006; 2: 121-128.) The Connector
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alumnus profile
Physician-scientist finds meaning in caring for his young patients
N
ai-Kong V. Cheung, MD ’78, PhD, found his life’s meaning in working with patients. Or, as he said, “looking at the patient, not just the test tube, for answers to cancer treatment.” A pediatric oncologist and Director of the Neuroblastoma Program at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York City, Cheung reported taking a long detour to arrive at this
simple understanding. Growing up in Hong Kong and while attending a Catholic high school, he began questioning what he wanted to do with his life. At the time, medicine seemed to be the way to help people, although he admitted to having been quite naive about how to become a doctor or what that really meant. At that time, in the late sixties, he was also interested in America and read about the issues
in the news: women’s rights, civil rights and the history of slavery. It all sounded intriguing to Cheung, so he came to America to have a firsthand look. In 1968, Cheung was accepted to Vanderbilt University, where he was one of the very few Asian students at the time. The South came as a culture shock after living in bilingual, cosmopolitan Hong Kong. Not long before, in the spring of that year, Martin Luther King, Jr., was assassinated in Memphis, not too far from Nashville, where Vanderbilt is located and where garbage collectors went on strike and riots erupted. Thinking he would be more comfortable back in an urban environment, Cheung transferred to the University of Chicago in 1969, the year after the Democratic National Convention was held there with its attendant riots and violence. (The University of Chicago is located on the south side of Chicago, where there was a high crime rate. In fact, it was one of the first places to install blue light emergency phones in public areas.) For a while, Cheung was distracted by the political activity among students, constant conversations about the political and social wildfire in America, and the sense of threat that came with living in an urban jungle. There were more Asian students in Chicago, but most of them were graduate students. He soon realized that as a foreign student and noncitizen, he had to set some priorities. He turned his attention back to his studies, and graduated in 1972 with honors in chemistry. His interviewer at Harvard Medical School pointed out that he was the “quantitative type,” and perhaps he should speak with Dr. London. Cheung had a successful interview and entered the HST MD program. He did well in medical school, graduating in 1978, but couldn’t help noticing that his peers had stronger science backgrounds, Nai-Kong Cheung spends time with one of his pediatric cancer patients.
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something he felt he badly needed. As he accumulated coursework and lab time in immunology, he found his way to a PhD as well. Only years later did he realize the impact of those days spent in the laboratory of Drs. Benacerraf and Dorf. Cheung said that in addition to the professors’ mentoring, his primary influence at HST was that of his peers. The people around him were driven, with clearly set goals to achieve their purpose in life. HST legitimized a role for science and quantitative research in medicine. “Yet, training is so very long, (and) some people tend to get lost,” he commented about his own desire to find some deeper meaning to
current treatments, and to use his training for this ultimate challenge. Slowly but surely, he began to appreciate the difference between curing and healing. The third step was returning to the lab in service to his patients. He must identify treatments that would not require years of research. He wanted a therapy that could be approved for human testing quickly, since patients had no time to wait. The answer seemed to lie in using one of the body’s own defense mechanisms: antibodies. When Cheung started his practice, most of his patients with advanced cancer were receiving chemotherapy and radiation for their neuroblastoma.
tion and who now also contributes to research in oncology. His son Kevin is an intern in internal medicine at BWH, and his son Clifford is in theoretical physics, studying for his PhD degree at Harvard. Cheung, who has thought deeply about his own life path, commented that—as a parent—you want so much to share the wisdom gained from your own experiences with your children, but they will eventually have to find their own way. Looking back over his life, Cheung sees his initial lab work as necessary for training, but isolated from the people who matter: patients. Through listening to and understanding his
But something was not right, he thought. Cancer patients were being treated, but they were not being cured. his life’s work. After graduation, he moved to Palo Alto and completed his short-track residency and fellowship in pediatric hematology and oncology at Stanford University. Remembering this period in his life, he sees it now as the first of three steps moving him towards understanding and fulfilling his life’s purpose. He realized that what he missed was having contact with patients. He took the second step when he accepted a position as assistant professor at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland. True to his conviction, he practiced medicine in addition to bench research. He began to focus his efforts on a pediatric tumor called neuroblastoma, which generally affects infants and children but can also present itself in newborns or adults up to their 50s. But something was not right, he thought. Cancer patients were being treated, but they were not being cured. Only a few of the high risk patients survived. These sad and emotional encounters with his patients and their parents underscored how much more needed to be done. He realized that he had to re-examine what was wrong with
Other treatments included surgery to remove the tumor, followed by bone marrow transplantation. The damage from some of these aggressive therapies required years to repair, and typically failed to suppress the cancer. For the past 20 years, Cheung has explored the use of immunotherapy to wipe out tumor cells that conventional chemotherapy and radiation failed to eradicate. He developed monoclonal antibodies against abnormal gangliosides and glycoproteins, and moved them into the clinic. He now devotes a substantial time and effort to make sure that these “orphan drugs”—so called because these therapies are for rare diseases without many “sponsors”—are available for his patients. With these treatments, nearly 50 percent of children with metastatic neuroblastoma are surviving the disease today, without the necessity of stem cell transplantation. He is most excited about his team’s recent success in saving patients whose cancers recurred in the brain. Along the way, Cheung married Irene Cheung, MD, who graduated from the Harvard School of Public Health with a doctorate in nutri-
All who know and appreciate Joseph V. Bonventre, MD ’76, PhD, are invited to a reception in honor of his 15 years of leadership at HST, first as Associate Director, then co-Director.
patient’s needs, Cheung tried to develop a responsive mode of research to help real people in real time. He is proud that he has successfully built a team dedicated to this disease, and has been able to sustain the program for nearly two decades to help his young patients live for a better future. At the end of our conversation, Cheung reflected that when he pursued higher education, the United States had an open-door policy for foreign students. If you were qualified, you could study here. While there was no federal support, there was institutional and foundation support, for which he is still very grateful. Now, as the Enid A. Haupt Chair in Pediatric Oncology at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center and Professor of Pediatrics at Cornell University’s Weill Medical College and Attending Pediatrician at Memorial Hospital in New York, he expressed the hope that there will continue to be that kind of opportunity for young people who simply do not have these options available where they are. — Sarah Griffith
Date:
Thursday • May 10, 2007
Time:
5:00 – 7:00 pm Remarks at 6:00 pm
Place:
Benjamin Waterhouse Faculty Room, HMS 25 Shattuck Street Boston, Massachusetts
The Connector
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alumni news 1980s Mel Konner, PhD, MD ’85, the Dobbs Professor and Head of the Department of Anthropology at Emory University, author of The Tangled Wing and eight other books, is a master of the art of book reviews, as shown again in his reviews of Elizabeth Marshall Thomas’ The Old Way: A Story of the First People. Before addressing the book, he treats us to a review of Montaigne’s description and assessment of Brazilian cannibals in the sixteenth century, and of Thomas Hobbes’ characterizations in the seventeenth, followed by the analyses of cultural anthropologists of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. He gives full credit to the work of other members of Thomas’ remarkable family, dealing with the hunter-gatherer !Kung population of Namibia. Konner also refers to the fieldwork of his late wife, Marjorie Shostak, in Botswana in the 1960s, and gently reprimands the volume reviewed for not citing it. We are also told that Konner returned to Botswana in 2005, in the company of his son, daughter and son-in-law. At that time, he was able to reconnect with Nisa, the main subject of Shostak’s book, as well as other earlier contacts, permitting comments about 30 years of development and change. (The New York Review of Books, 54 (3): 26-29.)
Professor of Gene and Cell Medicine at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York City. George Q. Daley, MD ’91, has been elected as a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. A member of the HST affiliated faculty, he is Associate Professor of Biological Chemistry and Molecular Pharmacology and of Pediatrics at HMS and CHB. Scott Berkenblit, MD ’96, PhD ’96, and his wife, Gail, are thrilled to announce the birth of their daughter, Elissa, who arrived on Dec. 8, 2006. Berkenblit recently joined the Orthopaedic Specialty Care Group at Harbor Hospital in Baltimore, Md. He writes, “My practice is a mix of general orthopedics and total joint replacement, including all the cutting-edge new surgical techniques and materials for treating hip and knee arthritis in the younger, active patient.” Gail is currently on maternity leave from her position as Assistant Professor of Medicine at Johns Hopkins University. Naomi Chesler, PhD ’96, and Dan Sidney, PhD ’97, welcomed Amelia Rose Sidney on August 12, 2006. Amelia joins her sister, Josephine, age 2.
Dana Leifer, MD ’85, MPhil, is Associate Professor of Neurology at Weill Cornell Medical College and Director of the Stroke and Neuroscience Step-Down Unit as well as of the Neurovascular Ultrasound Laboratory, since 2005. Since 1997, he had been Chief of Vascular Neurology at North Shore University Hospital and Associate Professor of Neurology at NYU. Robert Cothren, Jr., PhD ’87, is Chief Scientist of Health Solutions at Northrop Grumman Corporation in Falls Church, Va. He is senior author of a recent paper emphasizing the importance of community and regional health-information sharing, as well as nationwide health information networks. (TA Kass-Hout et al., J Public Health Manag Pract 2007; 13: 31-34.) Mark B. McClellan, MD, PhD ’89, who was formerly administrator for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration, is now a Visiting Senior Fellow at the American Enterprise Institute–Brookings Joint Center in Washington, D.C. He is still Associate Professor of Genomics and of Medicine at Stanford University.
1990s Roger J. Hajjar, MD ’90, Associate Professor of Medicine at HMS and MGH, has accepted the position of Professor of Medicine/Cardiology and
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Stelios Smirnakis, MD ’97, Instructor in Neurology at HMS and MGH, is the recipient of a Physician-Scientist Early Career Award from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. This award provides $150,000 over three years for direct research expenses.
2000s Stephan H.W. Heckers, MD, SM ’00, formerly Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at HMS and Director of the Schizophrenia and Bipolar Disorder Program at McLean Hospital, is now the James E. Blackmore Professor and Chairman of Psychiatry at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. Vadim Backman, PhD ’01, was promoted to the rank of Professor in the Biomedical Engineering Department at Northwestern University. It was the first time that Northwestern granted a full professorship to a faculty member within five years after joining the university. He writes, “I consider the training and support I received at HST as the major reason behind this promotion. I will always be proud to be an HST alum.” Vadim directs the Biophotonics Laboratory at Northwestern. His research interests include optical imaging and light scattering spectroscopy. Wynn H. Kao, PhD, MD ’04, writes, “I am at the University of Puerto Rico where I am going to start Dermatology Residency this July. I was in Baltimore last year for a year of preliminary surgery internship.”
Naomi Chesler and Dan Sidney with daughters Amelia and Josephine
Chesler is Assistant Professor in the Department of Biomedical Engineering at the University of Wisconsin–Madison. In 2006 she received a Polygon Teaching Award, as chosen by engineering undergraduates at UW, and had three papers published. Chesler’s research focuses on the biomechanics and pathophysiology of the pulmonary circulation in an isolated mouse lung preparation. She has investigated hypoxia-induced pulmonary hypertension and the effects of small pulmonary emboli. Sidney has been promoted to Scientist at TomoTherapy, Inc., a manufacturer and seller of a CT imaging and intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) device.
The journal Nature Medicine profiled Vikram Kumar, MD ’04, President and CEO of Dimagi, a Boston-based informatics company, in its February 1, 2007, issue. Kumar, who is finishing his residency in clinical pathology at BWH, specializes in using computer technology to improve patient care, particularly in developing nations. In collaboration with Zambia’s Ministry of Health and the US Centers For Disease Control and Prevention, Dimagi created a system called SmartCare, which stores a patient’s entire medical history on a plastic card. The system is in use by 60,000 HIV-positive Zambians. With a swipe of the card, doctors can see a patient’s entire medical history and as a result, they can make better treatment decisions. In addition, the cards access a centralized system that records every transaction, creating a database that can be mined later to track outcomes. At BWH, Kumar is tracking the spread of hospital-acquired infections by combining patient records with the hospital’s architectural plans. Alisa M. Morss, PhD ’06, is the P.C. Chou Assistant Professor of Mechanical Engineering and Mechanics at Drexel University in Philadelphia.
Roundtable around a Square Table Mario Casal
Pedro E. Huertas, MD ’93, PhD (second from left), member of the HST Advisory Broad, hosted the Fifth Alumni/Student Roundtable of this academic year. Over lunch on February 8, Huertas discussed with great candor how his career evolved from surgery to internal medicine to entrepreneurship. He talked in detail about the perils of funding a new
enterprise, the excitement of a new endeavor, the fears of uncertainty, and the triumph of success. He advised the students to maintain their relationships and be open to the unexpected. But his most salient advice was simple: “Do something you believe in.”
Richards-Kortum (continued from page 5)
developing countries. In October and November of 2006, she traveled to Malawi and Botswana to visit hospitals and clinics, where the lack of medical resources was striking and depressing, especially in comparison to resource-rich environments like Houston or Boston. In Rice’s Medical Scientist Training Program, a collaboration with the MD Anderson Cancer Center of the University of Texas and another of Richards-Kortum’s teaching areas, students enroll in an internship program with clinical experience—similar to HST’s Introduction to Clinical Medicine for doctoral students—during the summer before they begin their graduate work. The advantage of having an early start to clinical exposure, she says, is that it exposes students to a range of ideas and helps them choose a thesis project. In their first year, students find an advisor; a second clinical experience—at the end of the first year—is related to thesis research and the student’s work with the advisor. Richards-Kortum noted that she would have liked to have experienced an even earlier clinical exposure as a MEMP student. “It was clear to me right after my first rotation that I shouldn’t do an MD,” she said. She also remembered helpful conversations about the MD-PhD decision with Prof. Roger Mark, whose
to-the-point advice to her was “do the MD-PhD if you want to take care of sick people.” Like so many HST graduates, RichardsKortum talked about the power of mentorship in her career path. “I received wonderful mentoring at HST. Michael Feld (HST affiliated faculty, Director of MIT’s George R. Harrison Spectroscopy Laboratory, and Professor of Physics ) was my thesis advisor,” she said, “and he set a standard I try to live up to.” A particular interest is supporting the careers of young female scientists. She was one of the organizers of a recent conference at Rice on career advancement issues women face in science and engineering, a very successful event to which more than 650 women applied for one of the 46 spots. Richards-Kortum said that the large number of prospective attendees reached through word of mouth and email illustrates young scientists’ need for advice and mentoring. She shared some of her own experiences at the conference, where, as a New York Times article (Dec. 19, 2006) noted, “Dr. Richards-Kortum won admiring gasps when she disclosed she is a mother of four who successfully interviewed for a tenured position while visibly pregnant.” She told the audience that she faced the tenure process with less worry once she realized
“it was OK with me if I had kids and didn’t get tenure, but it would not be OK with me if I got tenure and didn’t have kids.” Also among her mentoring activities has been participating as a research supervisor in a number of summer institutes at UT–Austin designed to promote and foster diversity in the undergraduate student body. Richards-Kortum proudly points to one of her former summer program students who eventually spent three and a half years in her lab, then went on to work in industry before returning to school for a Masters in Public Health, which led to her being hired as program director for Rice’s Global Health Technologies program. She noted that there is a conflict between the time she would like to devote to teaching and the time needed for research. “There aren’t enough hours in the day” for someone who wants to give sufficient time to both as well as to engage in service activities. Her advice for young scientists faced with the same need to make choices? “If something is truly important to you, you should give your time to it,” Richards-Kortum said. “It’s harder to say ‘yes’ to the right things at the start of your career, but you can pick one thing and stay with it.” — Catherine Modica The Connector
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Non-Profit Organization US Postage PAID Cambridge, MA Permit No. 54016
The Harvard-MIT Division of Health Sciences and Technology 77 Massachusetts Ave., E25-519 Cambridge, MA 02139 USA
June 6, 2007 • Harvard Club 374 Commonwealth Ave., Boston
Keynote Speaker
M. Judah Folkman, MD HST Faculty Julia Dyckman Andrus Professor of Pediatric Surgery HMS, Children’s Hospital Professor of Anatomy and Cellular Biology, HMS
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Second-year show pays homage to soon-to-retire HMS dean HMS Dean Joseph Martin is stepping down this year. Who will replace him? This question—currently on the minds of all faculty, students and administrators at HMS—got the “Second Year Show” treatment in this year’s HMS/HSDM production, “Joseph Martin and the Amazing Technicolor White Coat,” held February 22-24 at Roxbury Community College. As the faculty squabble amongst themselves (“anything you can cure, I can cure better”) jockeying for a leadership position, Dean Dienstag, the anointed successor, falls into a coma. Although they change into their superhero alter egos to save him, one by one the faculty are trapped by the evil M&M, Mortality and Morbidity, and his infectious minions. Once again, it looks like the students must step in to save the day! Several song and dance numbers later, the faculty have been rescued, M&M vanquished, and Dean Dienstag cured from within by miniaturized students and Otto the M2 bus driver! This year’s Centennial production featured several HST second-year students. Tian Zhang was one of the show’s producers, as well as set painter, dancer, actor and chorister. The roles of Sam Kennedy, Dan Goodenough and Shiv Pillai were played by Jordan Amadio, Matthew Wright and Sanjat Kanjilal, respectively. Timmy Ho had a memorable role as a cross-dressing yeast. Fan Liang designed the program and poster, plus played a role as Surgeon Gunner #2. Other students who danced, sang, moved sets, took pictures, handed out tickets or played an instrument included Dunia AbdulAziz, Adewole Adamson, Vincent Auyeung, Irun Bhan, Vijay Ganesh, Brice Gaudilliere, Emily Gillett, Peter Miller, Jared Niska, Sidharth Puram, Xavier Rios Villanueva, Naveen Sangji, Takahiro Soda, and Ai-ris Yonekura. —Patty Cunningham
designed by Fan Liang (MD ’09)
HST Graduation