Taubman Institute appoints new class of scholars

ANN ARBOR, Mich., May 21, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The six physicians, each of whom is both a practicing doctor and research scientist, are senior members of the U-M Medical School faculty and world leaders in their respective fields of investigation.  Each will receive an unrestricted grant of $150,000 per year for three years, to be used to pursue high-risk, high-reward translational medical science.

The grants are effective July 1.

"We are delighted to welcome these distinguished new members to the ranks of Taubman Scholars," said Eva Feldman, M.D., Ph.D., director of the Taubman Institute.  "They are extraordinarily gifted researchers whose ideas and discoveries represent our best hope for solutions to challenging medical problems."

The aim of the Taubman Scholar grants is to speed new cures and treatments to patients suffering from life-altering conditions such as cancer, stroke and heart disease, diabetes and other metabolic disorders, and neurological conditions like Alzheimer's disease and ALS.

The Taubman Scholar grants encourage bold, innovative research that conventional conservative sources of funding shy away from, and the results have been transformative leaps forward in the understanding and treatment of diseases. Since the institute's establishment in 2008, Taubman Scholars have initiated more than 50 human clinical trials of new therapies for a wide variety of conditions.

The new class of Taubman Scholars brings to 30 the number of talented U-M clinician-scientists whose medical discoveries benefit from the institute's innovative grant programs.   These eminent physician-researchers are conducting ground-breaking research and establishing new paradigms of discovery in fields ranging from regenerative medicine to deep-brain stimulation to cancer stem cells.

"I can think of no greater goal than to alleviate human suffering by promoting and encouraging the best ideas in medical science," said A. Alfred Taubman, founder and chair of the institute.  "I am thrilled by the productivity of our scholars in just six years and am confident that our newest scholars will add to this impressive body of achievement."

Six scholars from the class of 2011-2014 will complete their terms as Taubman Scholars this year and have been approved by the institute's Governing Council to move to Senior Taubman Scholar status, which will continue their grants at a lesser amount.  Current Senior Taubman Scholars will become Founding Taubman Scholars and continue to advise the institute's members and Governing Council.

The new class of Taubman Scholars includes:

• Kathleen Collins, M.D., Ph.D., Professor of Internal Medicine
  Improving therapies for HIV
• Pavan Reddy, M.D., Moshe Talpaz Professor of Translational Oncology
  To understand and harness the role of inflammation in mitigating the graft-versus-host disease after bone-marrow transplant.
• Benjamin Segal, M.D., Holtom-Garrett Professor of Neurology; Director, University of Michigan Multiple Sclerosis Center; Director, Holtom-Garrett Program in Neuroimmunology
  The immunopathology of multiple sclerosis
• John Carethers, M.D., John G. Searle Professor and Chair, Department of Internal Medicine
  The role of inflammation in colon cancer
• Sharlene Day, M.D., Associate Professor, Internal Medicine
  Understanding the disease mechanisms of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy
• Jon-Kar Zubieta, M.D., Ph.D., Phil F. Jenkins Research Professor of Depression; Professor of Psychiatry and Radiology
  Mechanisms that promote recovery from Major Depression and chronic neuropsychiatric disorders

About the Taubman Institute:  In 2008 Michigan businessman, philanthropist and noted patron of the arts A. Alfred Taubman provided the initial funds to establish the institute bearing his name at the University of Michigan Medical School. Its mission is to provide the university's finest medical scientists the freedom, resources and collaborative environment they need to push the boundaries of medical discovery, to produce breakthroughs in cures to speed the development of effective treatment for some of the most devastating illnesses. Currently, 30 Taubman Scholars are advancing their research with the assistance of grants from the institute.

For more information, visit www.taubmaninstitute.org.

SOURCE A. Alfred Taubman Medical Research Institute