FOCUS - October 15, 2004

October 15, 2004

Neurobiology:
Ion Channel Protein in Inner Ear Is Likely Long-sought Key to Hearing

Anesthesia:
Study Finds How Aspirin Dampens Inflammation

Genetics:
Broken Calcium Gate Leads to Heart Syndrome with Related Autism

State of the School
Martin Draws Picture of Tangible Progress at HMS

Biomedical Computing:
Faculty Receive Funding for Two National Biomedical Computing Centers

Calcium Supplements During Pregnancy Linked to Healthy Blood Pressure in Children

Newly Found Cancer Gene Offers Model for Breast Tumor Development

Cell-Cell Interaction Not Needed for Normal Neuron Size in Retina

Scholars Program Maintains Growth in Junior Faculty Awards

Former HMS Professor Wins 2004 Nobel Prize

HMS Revamps Program in Medical Education

NIH Pioneer Award Funds Developmental Biology Research

Modeling Disease: New Windows on a Hidden World

Grant Promotes Clinician-scientists in Eye Research

NIH Roadmap Supports Pilot for Vision Research Center

HMS Unveils New Web Pages

Escape from the Stereotype Trap

Front Page

STATE OF THE SCHOOL

Martin Draws Picture of Tangible Progress at HMS

In his seventh annual State of the School address, HMS dean Joseph Martin opened with a quotation from Ralph Waldo Emerson defining the School's progress over the past year: "Do not go where the path may lead. Go instead where there is no path and leave a trail."

In his State of the School address, HMS dean Joseph Martin praised the many multidisciplinary collaborations that have been fosterd by the opening of the new research building. (Photo by Steve Gilbert)

Among the many trailblazing efforts he mentioned were those of the HMS Division of AIDS, research collaborations on the North and South Quads, recruitment of new faculty, and the near completion of two new graduate programs. Martin called the planning of Harvard's Allston campus one of the most important issues of the upcoming year. He also reviewed recent changes in the School's graduate programs, the Program in Medical Education, and the Medical Education Reform initiative.

"It has been truly remarkable how many things have happened just in the last 12 months."

From these and other achievements and challenges, Martin drew out four strategic issues that the Medical School will face over the coming year. "The first of these is to manage our budget while continuing to grow new academic and educational initiatives," he said. "The second is to explore the implications of a new trans-Harvard focus, which has been delivered quite explicitly to the deans by President Larry Summers. Third, to marshal new resources to meet our opportunities through more successful fund-raising. And fourth, to transform the educational experiences for our medical students and our graduate students in a way that will make their experience here even better than it already is." After praising the 10 HMS department chairs--three of whom are women, with the appointment of Joan Brugge in Cell Biology--Martin discussed one of the particular achievements of the Medical School, the AIDS activities conducted by the faculty. "If one looks at the many different things that we are doing around the world, there is probably no focus more important than that involving the AIDS work," he said. Martin highlighted the Vietnam-CDC-Harvard AIDS Partnership, developed and directed by Eric Krakauer, an HMS instructor in social medicine and HMS instructor in medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital. In just a few years, the program has trained more than 300 Vietnamese doctors. Martin also cited Harvard Medical International, which supports AIDS education in India, China, and other countries.

Research Growth

"It has been truly remarkable how many things have happened just in the last 12 months," Martin said, referring to the HMS research enterprise. He pointed to the expansion of investigations in the new research building on the North Quad, which has freed up lab space on the South Quad. And he commented specifically on several faculty collaborations: "Li-Huei Tsai and Lew Cantley, who's at the Beth Israel Deaconess and now on the 10th floor of the new building, and Kun Ping Lu of Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, together with Dennis Selkoe, who is also in the building and in HIM ... [and] the Harvard Center for Neurodegeneration and Repair, are using a proteomic approach to look at the cellular events that lead to neurodegenerative disorders, a wonderful combination of clinically trained and basic science-trained people."

He said he did not have time to list all the remarkable collaborations, though he added, "Very important has been the work of Norbert Perrimon, who has received major funding for the Drosophila RNAi screening facility." In his discussion of research, he also named some of the new recruits to the Quad departments, including Rachel Wilson in neurobiology, "one of the sought-after neuroscientists of our decade," he said.

New Graduate Programs

Martin discussed two new graduate programs on the verge of completion, one in chemical biology and the other in systems biology. He expanded upon the year-old Systems Biology Department, headed by Marc Kirschner, naming the department's three new full professors, Pam Silver, Eric Lander, and Walter Fontana, who joined the faculty only the month before. Martin noted that one of the department's new junior faculty members, Vamsi Mootha, recently received a MacArthur "genius" award.

Addressing the planning process for the new Allston campus, Martin said, "One of the most important issues we will be facing this academic year is exactly how the Medical School engages in this set of activities and how we build strengths through the opportunity, but not in any way diminish our strength here by the relocation of programs or activities that would distance us from our students or from our hospitals."

Changes in educational programs were also one of the year's major efforts. Martin recognized four new leaders of graduate programs, Bob Kingston, David Knipe, Gary Yellen, and Chris A. Walsh. He also discussed reorganization of the Program in Medical Education, with Nancy Oriol filling the new position of dean for students and Ron Arky taking the new role of dean for curriculum (see Bulletin). Martin outlined some of the progress of the Medical Education Reform initiative, led by dean for medical education Malcolm Cox. He said the five central challenges are the content of the curriculum, student costs, compassionate and culturally competent care, the compensation of clinical teachers, and the chaos of academic health centers. Despite these hurdles, the initiative is on track to roll out the new curriculum in fall 2006.

Likewise, Martin said, budgetary challenges face the School in building on the accomplishments of the past year, but the administration is optimistic about closing the remaining deficit and continuing on its present course of growth and discovery.