Another 13 Ohio State University faculty members have earned the rank of Fellow from the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), and 11 of them are members of the OSU Comprehensive Cancer Center (OSU CCC).
For the second straight year, OSU led all institutions in the nation for new AAAS Fellow membership. Eight of the 13 new OSU Fellows in AAAS are faculty in the College of Medicine and Public Health (COMPH), and 12 of the 13 are in OSU Health Sciences colleges or research institutes.
AAAS represents the world's largest federation of scientists and works to advance science for human well-being through its projects, programs and publications. It conducts programs in science policy, science education and international scientific cooperation. AAAS members are elevated to the rank of Fellow for their efforts in advancing science or fostering applications that are deemed scientifically or socially distinguished.
"That we've led the nation in new AAAS fellows for two years in a row underscores the quality of our faculty and the recognition of their success by their peers," says OSU President Karen Holbrook, PhD, herself an AAAS Fellow.
"This honor is the latest indication of the increasing quality and quantity of research that goes on at Ohio State," adds Robert McGrath, PhD, senior vice president for research. "Coupled with the news that the University received more than a half-billion dollars in research funding during the last year, it is evident that OSU has developed a critical mass of nationally recognized scholars in a variety of disciplines and fields."
OSU CCC Director Michael Caligiuri, MD, also an AAAS Fellow, agrees. “The OSU CCC now has 28 members who are Fellows in the AAAS, a tribute to the high quality of basic, clinical, translational and prevention cancer research we conduct at Ohio State,” says Caligiuri, who is also deputy director of the OSU James Cancer Hospital and Solove Research Institute.
"Having so many AAAS Fellows among our cancer researchers should assure patients at Ohio State's James Cancer Hospital and Solove Research Institute that the care they receive is based on sound scientific discovery," adds David Schuller, MD, executive director of The James and deputy director of the OSU CCC. Schuller is also an AAAS Fellow.
The 2004-05 AAAS Fellows who are also OSU CCC members include:
- Barbara Andersen, PhD, professor of Psychology and a member of the OSU CCC’s Cancer Control Program. She was admitted "for distinguished contributions to the field of behavioral medicine, particularly for studies in biobehavioral aspects of cancer and psychological interventions for cancer patients." Andersen heads the Stress and Immunity Breast Cancer Project at Ohio State, which for the past 10 years has been examining women with breast cancer to determine if psychological and behavioral programs can help improve quality of life and possibly prevent recurrence. Her studies have been among the first to show that such interventions can lead to a stronger immune system among breast cancer patients, a finding that may have implications for extending life. In addition, her research has shown that psychological interventions can lead to important behavior changes among cancer patients, such as healthier diets and reduced smoking.
- Ching-Shih Chen, PhD, professor of Pharmacy and Internal Medicine, and a member of the OSU CCC's Molecular Carcinogenesis and Chemoprevention Program. He was named a Fellow "for fundamental studies of lipid-mediated signal transduction pathways in cancer and for discovery of novel therapeutic agents that modulate cancer cell activation and death." Chen's work merges synthetic organic chemistry with molecular and cellular biology to design novel chemotherapy agents that attack molecular defects in tumor cells. Currently, many of these promising compounds are undergoing tests at different laboratories in the OSU CCC to evaluate their effectiveness against a number of cancers, including prostate, breast, lung, pancreatic and ovarian cancers, as well as chronic lymphocytic leukemia.
- Yang Liu, PhD, professor and director of the Division of Cancer Immunology in the Department of Pathology; Ralph W. Kurtz Chair of Pathology; professor of Molecular Virology, Immunology and Medical Genetics; and co-leader of the OSU CCC's Immunology Program. He was admitted "for fundamental studies relating innate immunity to adaptive immunity, particularly in establishing the field of T cell costimulation and studying tumor and immune response." While all plants and animals share the ability to repel invading bacteria and viruses on a rudimentary chemical level, only humans and other highly evolved vertebrates possess immune systems that are sophisticated enough to produce customized antibodies or "killer T cells" to mount a counterattack and maintain lasting immunity. Liu performed early studies that proved these two types of immune systems are linked through induction of costimulatory molecules. He is working to develop new methods to help activate the body's immune system in response to cancer, while damping it in autoimmune diseases such as multiple sclerosis.
- Lawrence Mathes, PhD, professor of Veterinary Biosciences in the College of Veterinary Medicine; interim associate dean for research in the Department of Veterinary Biosciences; and former director of OSU's Center for Retroviral Research. He also co-leader of the OSU CCC's Viral Oncogenesis Program. Mathes has become a Fellow "for distinguished contributions to retrovirus research, particularly in the understanding of viral pathogenesis and the development of chemotherapy for feline leukemia virus and immunodeficiency virus." His research has provided critical knowledge of immunosuppressive factors in retrovirus infections and neoplastic disease, and he has a long-standing interest in treatment and prevention of retrovirus disease. He also has established a research program to evaluate anti-retrovirus drug therapy.
- Michael Ostrowski, PhD, professor of Molecular Genetics and co-leader of the OSU CCC's Molecular Biology and Cancer Genetics Program. He was honored as a Fellow "for distinguished contributions to the field of tumor biology, particularly in the elucidation of the role of signaling molecules, oncogenes, and transcription factors in cancer." Ostrowski's work has shed light on the "wiring" within cells that allows them to communicate with other cells throughout the body, during both normal cell differentiation and cancer progression. His research has helped to define how this internal wiring -- called a signal transduction pathway -- gets altered during cancer progression. Ostrowski played a pivotal role in securing for Ohio State this year a nearly $9 million grant from the National Cancer Institute to study how genes in the tumor microenvironment – the non-cancerous tissue surrounding a tumor cell – influence breast cancer progression
- Electra Paskett, PhD, MPH, professor in the School of Public Health; the Marion R. Rowley Professor of Cancer Research; associate director for population sciences in the OSU CCC; and co-leader of the OSU CCC's Cancer Control Program. She earned the rank of Fellow "for distinguished contributions to cancer control, in early detection among underserved and minority populations, and for leadership roles in cancer control, population sciences and diversity enhancement." An internationally recognized epidemiologist and expert on health issues that affect women and minorities, Paskett focuses heavily on early detection as well as cancer prevention. Through involvement in multiple cancer control studies, she has helped design intervention strategies that persuade people to change their behavior and take control of their health. She has spent much of her career working in poor, minority and underserved communities to improve cancer screening rates.
- Thomas Rosol, DVM, PhD, professor of Veterinary Biosciences in the College of Veterinary Medicine and senior associate vice president for research. Rosol is also a member of the OSU CCC's Molecular Carcinogenesis and Chemoprevention Program. He was admitted as an AAAS Fellow "for distinguished contributions to endocrinology and bone pathobiology, particularly in cancer-associated hypercalcemia and the pathogenesis of bone metastases in mouse models of human cancer." Both prostate and breast cancer metastasize to bones, but the end disease can differ. Rosol's research programs are aimed at determining how those variations occur and what approaches might be useful in reducing the migration of cancer. Through the use of bioluminescence, he has developed an improved method of producing images of tumors within animal models and is exploring the use of nanoparticles to enhance such images.
- Fred Sanfilippo, MD, PhD, dean of the College of Medicine and Public Health; senior vice president for Health Sciences; and chief executive officer of the OSU Medical Center. Sanfilippo is a member of the OSU CCC's Experimental Therapeutics Program. He was named a Fellow "for distinguished contributions to the field of transplantation immunology, while simultaneously having a significant impact on enhancing medical research as a senior administrator." Before taking his current medical leadership post as head of one of the country's largest medical centers, Sanfilippo's research focused on the humoral mechanisms of rejection in xenotransplantation and chronic graft vasculopathy, and on immunology and transplantation, especially emphasizing renal and corneal transplants.
- Daniel Schoenberg, PhD, professor of Molecular and Cellular Biochemistry and a member of the OSU CCC's Molecular Biology and Cancer Genetics Program. Schoenberg was named a Fellow "for fundamental studies of mRNA synthesis and turnover, particularly for studies of RNA stability, translation regulation, RNA-protein interaction, and genetic disorders of mRNA metabolism." He was the first to identify a class of enzymes called messenger RNA (mRNA) endonucleases. These enzymes help control the overall amount of mRNA in a cell, which in turn controls new protein synthesis. His fundamental research on these enzymes led to the identification of the molecular mechanism responsible for the defect in hemoglobin production in beta-thalassemia, an inherited disease of red blood cell production.
- Altaf Wani, PhD, professor of Radiology and Molecular and Cellular Biochemistry; director of the Molecular Carcinogenesis Laboratory; and a member of the OSU CCC's Molecular Carcinogenesis and Chemoprevention Program. Wani became a Fellow "for distinguished contributions to the field of genomic damage and repair, particularly repair regulation in human cells by tumor suppressor p53 and its target proteins." From exposures to the sun's ultraviolet light to cigarette smoke, many environmental factors damage the DNA in our cells every day. Wani discovered that the gene known as p53 participates in repairing such damage and is critical for preventing genetic mutations that lead to cancer.
- Caroline Whitacre, PhD, professor of Molecular Virology, Immunology and Medical Genetics; associate vice president for health sciences research within OSU Medical Center; and a member of the OSU CCC’s Immunology Program. She was named a Fellow "for distinguished contributions to the field of neuroimmunology, particularly the application of oral tolerance to autoimmunity and gender differences in the incidence/progression of autoimmune disease." Whitacre's laboratory uses both cellular and molecular approaches to devise therapeutic regimens aimed at thwarting multiple sclerosis, and focusing on the animal model, experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE). The primary focus of this research is to understand the mechanisms underlying the disease suppression that can follow the oral administration of an antigen (oral tolerance). Her laboratory also studies the effects of stress and central nervous system trauma on the immune system.
OSU CCC members previously named AAAS Fellows include:
Jessie L.-S. Au, PharmD, PhD, Distinguished University Professor in the College of Pharmacy, and a member of the OSU CCC's Experimental Therapeutics Program;
Clara D. Bloomfield, MD, professor of Internal Medicine; OSU Cancer Scholar and Senior Adviser to the OSU CCC-James; William Greenville Pace III Endowed Chair in Cancer Research; former OSU CCC director; member of the OSU CCC's Molecular Biology and Cancer Genetics Program;
Robert Brueggemeier, PhD, professor and dean of the College of Pharmacy, member of the OSU CCC’s Molecular Carcinogenesis and Chemoprevention Program;
Michael Caligiuri, MD, professor of Internal Medicine; director of the Division of Hematology and Oncology in the Department of Internal Medicine; director of the OSU CCC; deputy director of the OSU James Cancer Hospital and Solove Research Institute; Distinguished University Scholar; John L. Marakas Nationwide Insurance Enterprise Foundation Chair in Cancer Research; member of the OSU CCC's Immunology Program and of the Molecular Biology and Cancer Genetics Program;
Albert de la Chapelle, MD, PhD, Distinguished University Professor of Molecular Virology, Immunology and Medical Genetics; director of the Division of Human Cancer Genetics in the Department of Molecular Virology, Immunology and Medical Genetics; co-leader of the OSU CCC's Molecular Biology and Cancer Genetics Program; OSU Cancer Scholar; Leonard J. Immke, Jr., and Charlotte L. Immke Chair in Cancer Research;
Charis Eng, MD, PhD, professor of Internal Medicine; director of the Division of Human Genetics in the Department of Internal Medicine; director of the Clinical Cancer Genetics Program at the OSU James Cancer Hospital and Solove Research Institute; Dorothy E. Klotz Chair in Cancer Research; member of the OSU CCC's Molecular Biology and Cancer Genetics Program;
Ronald Glaser, PhD, professor of Molecular Virology, Immunology and Medical Genetics; director of the Institute of Behavioral Medicine Research at OSU; member of the OSU CCC's Immunology Program;
Michael Grever, MD, professor and chair of the Department of Internal Medicine; Charles A. Doan Chair of Medicine; associate dean for medical services; co-leader of the OSU CCC's Experimental Therapeutics Program;
Samson Jacob, PhD, professor of Molecular and Cellular Biochemistry; William C. and Joan E. Davis Professorship in Cancer Research; co-leader of the OSU CCC's Experimental Therapeutics Program;
Janice Kiecolt-Glaser, PhD, professor and director of the Division of Health Psychology in the Department of Psychiatry; member of the OSU CCC's Cancer Control Program;
Stanley Lemeshow, PhD, professor and dean of the School of Public Health; professor of Statistics; member of the OSU CCC's Cancer Control Program;
Wolfgang Sadee, Dr.rer.nat, professor and chair of the Department of Pharmacology; director of the School of Biomedical Sciences; member of the OSU CCC's Experimental Therapeutics Program;
David Schuller, MD, professor and chair of the Department of Otolaryngology; executive director of the OSU James Cancer Hospital and Solove Research Institute; deputy director of the OSU CCC; John W. Wolfe Chair of Cancer Research; member of the OSU CCC's Experimental Therapeutics Program;
Gary Stoner, PhD, professor of Internal Medicine; head of the Cancer Chemoprevention and Support Program in the Department of Hematology and Oncology; co-leader of the OSU CCC's Molecular Carcinogenesis and Chemoprevention Program; Lucius A. Wing Chair of Cancer Research and Therapy;
Ming Daw Tsai, PhD, professor of Chemistry; member of the OSU CCC's Molecular Biology and Cancer Genetics Program;
M. Guillaume Wientjes, PhD, professor of Pharmacy, member of the OSU CCC's Experimental Therapeutics Program;
Allan Yates, MD, PhD, professor and director of the Division of Neuropathology in the Department of Pathology; member of the OSU CCC's Molecular Biology and Cancer Genetics Program.
Altogether, Ohio State now boasts nearly 90 AAAS Fellows. The AAAS published the names of all 308 new Fellows in the Oct. 29, 2004, issue of the journal Science.