For Release: November 29, 2012
Contact: Derik Hertel, 603-650-1211 or derik.hertel@dartmouth.edu
Three Geisel School of Medicine Professors Named Fellows by American Association for the Advancement of Science
Christopher Amos
Mark Israel
Ronald Taylor
Hanover, N.H.—Three Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth scholars have been selected as fellows by the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), the world's largest general scientific society and the publisher of the journal Science. The medical school's new fellows—professors Christopher Amos, Mark A. Israel and Ronald K. Taylor—are among six named from Dartmouth College and 702 scholars selected overall this year.
The award recognizes distinguished efforts to advance science and its applications to society. Fellows are chosen based on an evaluation by peers in the same academic discipline.
"The AAAS recognition of these outstanding faculty members and their important scientific achievements is indicative of the significant research activity taking place at the medical school, " says Wiley "Chip" Souba, MD, ScD, MBA, dean of the Geisel School of Medicine and vice president for health affairs at Dartmouth. "They embody the Dartmouth ideals of improving lives through leadership, intellectual curiosity, and collaboration."
"In addition to creating an exceptional educational experience for students and providing quality patient care, the top academic medical centers in the world are defined by the quality and impact of their research. These superb faculty researchers—and the dynamic research they and their colleagues work on—are exemplars of why the medical school has become a desired destination for top faculty and students," adds Souba.
The new fellows from Dartmouth's Geisel School of Medicine are:
Christopher Amos is professor of community and family medicine at the Geisel School of Medicine and associate director for population sciences at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Norris Cotton Cancer Center. Since joining Dartmouth in September 2012, Amos has been leading the development of a center for genomic medicine. He also leads an international grant that is identifying new loci influencing lung cancer susceptibility, studying the new loci using animal and cellular models and then characterizing the impact that these variants have in population-based studies.
Mark A. Israel is a professor of pediatrics and of genetics at the Geisel School of Medicine and the director of the Dartmouth-Hitchcock Norris Cotton Cancer Center. As a cancer physician and translational scientist, he specializes in the molecular and cellular biology of brain tumors, and has made discoveries about nervous-system tumors to benefit children and young adults with cancer. He has identified genetic cues that go awry, causing cells to undergo malignant transformation and produce tumors.
Ronald K. Taylor, PhD is a professor of microbiology and immunology in the Geisel School of Medicine. Since joining Dartmouth in 1993, he has helped establish the Microbiology and Molecular Pathogenesis Program, which he directs. The research in Taylor's lab focuses on the molecular pathogenesis mechanisms of the intestinal pathogen, Vibrio cholerae, which is the agent of the potentially fatal diarrheal disease, cholera. This work has led to the development of prototype cholera vaccines. Taylor also directs the NIH-funded New Hampshire Network of Biomedical Research Excellence, which promotes a culture of student-driven biomedical research at colleges throughout the state.
"This is an important recognition for these investigators who have done so much to further the research programs at Dartmouth in Cancer, Biostatistics, and Molecular Pathogenesis," says Duane Compton, PhD, senior associate dean for research and professor of medicine at the Geisel School of Medicine. Compton was selected as a AAAS fellow in 2011.
Geisel School of Medicine faculty now represent 18 of the 34 total Dartmouth faculty who are AAAS fellows. Additional Geisel faculty (active and emeriti) who are AAAS fellows:
- Charles K. Barlowe, PhD, chair and professor of biochemistry, Geisel School of Medicine
- Ta Yuan Chang, PhD, professor of biochemistry, Geisel School of Medicine
- Ambrose Cheung, MD, professor of microbiology and immunology, Geisel School of Medicine
- Duane Compton, PhD, senior associate dean for research and professor of biochemistry at Geisel School of Medicine
- Jay Dunlap, PhD, chair and professor of genetics and professor of biochemistry, Geisel School of Medicine
- Jennifer Loros, PhD, professor of biochemistry and of genetics, Geisel School of Medicine
- Martin Lubin, MD, PhD, emeritus professor of microbiology and immunology, Geisel School of Medicine
- Jason Moore, PhD, Third Century Professor and professor of genetics and community and family medicine, Geisel School of Medicine
- George O'Toole, PhD, professor of microbiology and immunology at Geisel School of Medicine
- Elmer Pfefferkorn, PhD, emeritus professor of microbiology and immunology emeritus, Geisel School of Medicine
- Roger P. Smith, PhD, emeritus professor of pharmacology and toxicology, Geisel School of Medicine
- Hilda Weyl Sokol, PhD, emeritus professor of physiology and neurobiology Geisel School of Medicine
- Michael Sporn, MD, professor of pharmacology and toxicology and of medicine, Geisel School of Medicine
- Harold Sox, MD, emeritus professor of medicine and of The Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy & Clinical Practice, Geisel School of Medicine
- William T. Wickner, MD, the James C. Chilcott 1920 Distinguished Professor of Biochemistry, Geisel School of Medicine
The Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, founded in 1797, strives to improve the lives of the communities it serves through excellence in learning, discovery, and healing. The nation's fourth-oldest medical school, the Geisel School of Medicine has been home to many firsts in medical education, research and practice, including the discovery of the mechanism for how light resets biological clocks, creating the first multispecialty intensive care unit, the first comprehensive examination of U.S. health care cost variations (The Dartmouth Atlas), and helping establish the first Center for Health Care Delivery Science, which launched in 2010. As one of America's top medical schools, Dartmouth's Geisel School of Medicine is committed to training new generations of diverse health care leaders who will help solve our most vexing challenges in health care.
The American Association for the Advancement of Science, founded in 1848, is a nonprofit organization that includes 261 affiliated societies and science academies and serves 10 million people. The association's mission is to "advance science and serve society" through initiatives in science policy, international programs and science education, including its website devoted to science news, EurekAlert!, at www.eurekalert.org.
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