Academic Honors & Events

Honoring Outstanding Doctors—In June, at its annual Physician Awards Ceremony, the department of medicine recognized four clinical staff members for their exceptional service to others. David Appel, M.D., director of Montefiore’s sleep program, received the Distinguished Clinician Award for providing excellent clinical care to his patients. Vafa Tabatabaie, M.D., director of Fracture Liaison Services, received the Humanism in Medicine Award for showing exceptional compassion towards colleagues and patients. Marta Rico, M.D., attending physician at the Montefiore Comprehensive Family Care Center, received the Citizenship Award for inspiring colleagues in their work. And, Olga Aroniadis, M.D., M.Sc., attending physician of gastroenterology, received the Rising Star Award for displaying great potential as a remarkable clinician, humanist, and institutional citizen. Dr. Appel also is an associate professor of medicine at Einstein while Drs. Tabatabaie, Rico, and Aroniadis are assistant professors in the department.

Honorary Degree for Novel Research—The Hebrew University of Jerusalem presented Robert Singer, Ph.D., with an honorary doctorateat their annual convocation in Jerusalem on June 11, 2018. The honor recognizes Dr. Singer’s pioneering research on mRNA, which directs cells to make proteins. Dr. Singer labels mRNA with fluorescent probes to track it from its creation to destruction in living cells.  In developing this novel approach Dr. Singer invented new experimental methods for which he holds twelve patents. His findings and current studies help scientists understand cell behavior in many diseases, such as cancer and mental retardation. Dr. Singer is professor and co-chair of anatomy & structural biology, of cell biology, professor in the Dominick P. Purpura Department of Neuroscience and co-director of the Gruss-Lipper Biophotonics Center and of the Integrated Imaging Program at Einstein. He also holds the Harold and Muriel Block Chair in Anatomy & Structural Biology.

Dedication to Graduate Programs—The National Association for Graduate Admissions Professionals (NAGAP) presented Salvatore Calabro with its inaugural Chapter Leader Award at their annual conference in New Orleans, LA. This award recognizes Mr. Calabro’s accomplishments in growing NAGAP, the sole professional organization dedicated solely to supporting and empowering graduate enrollment workers. Mr. Calabro co-founded and served as the first president of Biomedical Sciences Association of Graduate Admissions Professionals (BIOGAP), the only NAGAP chapter to focus on biomedical research graduate programs. At Einstein, Mr. Calabro is the director of graduate admissions and enrollment for the graduate division of biomedical sciences.

Removing "Sick" from Sickle Cell Disease—The Doris Duke Charitable Foundation granted Eric Bouhassira, Ph.D., the 2017 Sickle Cell Disease/Advancing Cures Award, which funds clinical research that demonstrates potential to improve the quality of life of those suffering from sickle cell disease. More than 90,000 Americans are afflicted with sickle cell disease; dysfunctional red blood cells cause these individuals lifelong pain and organ damage, and shorten their life expectancy. Rather than treat symptoms, Dr. Bouhassira’s research targets the core of the disease. His approach involves removing blood-forming cells from patients, correcting the defective hemoglobin genes using DNA editing technology, and returning these cells to the patients. The method has been shown to restore red blood cell function. Dr. Bouhassira is a professor of cell biology and of medicine and is the Ingeborg and Ira Leon Rennert Professor of Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine.

Recognition of Excellence—The Anxiety and Depression Association of America (ADAA) awarded Simon Rego, Psy.D., the Jerilyn Ross Clinician Advocate Award at their annual meeting in Washington, D.C.. This award recognizes a mental health professional who demonstrates exemplary patient care and advocacy for those suffering from anxiety disorders. Dr. Rego specializes in assessing and treating anxiety and stress disorders using cognitive behavioral therapy. He also promotes mental health awareness and shares his expertise through media interviews, presentations, and workshops, as well as books he has written. Dr. Rego is associate professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Einstein, and chief of psychology and director of psychology training in the department at Montefiore.

Delivering Science at the Vatican—Edward Reichman, M.D., delivered two talks at the fourth international conference “Unite to Cure: A Global Health Care Initiative,” in Vatican City, on April 26 and 27, 2018. The conference theme was “How Science, Technology and 21st Century Medicine Will Impact Culture and Society,” and Dr. Reichman spoke at two symposia— “The Culture of Life and Religious Influence on Health” and “Longevity and the Morality of Extreme Life Extension.” He is professor of emergency medicine, and of epidemiology & population health at Einstein. He also is in clinical practice, in emergency medicine, at Montefiore, and teaches Jewish medical ethics in the Einstein Bioethics Master’s Program.

Honor for Service—The Einstein Postdoctoral Association (EPA) elected Elena Martynova, Ph.D., to represent Einstein at the National Postdoctoral Association Conference this April, in Cleveland, Ohio. With more than 500 postdoctoral scholars, faculty, and industry representatives expected to attend, the conference is the largest in the nation at which postdocs can network and improve their professional and leadership skills. The EPA selects one postdoc annually to attend the conference with sponsorship provided by the Belfer Institute. The honor recognizes Dr. Martynova’s dedication to improving postdoctoral life through her participation in numerous campus groups, including the Quality of Life committee, the Senate Council committee, the Einstein Senate, and the EPA. Dr. Martynova is a postdoctoral fellow in the lab of Ales Cvekl, Ph.D., who is professor of ophthalmology & visual sciences and of genetics, the Max Berger Chair in Ophthalmology, and vice chair for research in of ophthalmology & visual sciences.

Innovative Recognition—The National Academy of Inventors (NAI) has elected William Jacobs, Jr., Ph.D., as an NAI fellow. The distinction recognizes his numerous accomplishments as an innovator in biomedical research and is the highest professional accolade bestowed to academic inventors. These include development of the shuttle plasmid for use in introducing foreign DNA into mycobacteria and establishment of dual-reporter and luciferase mycobacteriophages to rapidly diagnose drug-resistant tuberculosis. Dr. Jacobs’ research focuses on developing systems to genetically manipulate the Mycobacterium tuberculosis, the  causative agent of tuberculosis. In recent years there has been an alarming increase in the incidence of tuberculosis that is resistant to some or all of the drugs currently available. The World Health Organization has declared this a global health emergency. Dr. Jacobs’ lab currently aims to identify genes that play a key role in the virulence of M. tuberculosis, and which may prove to be effective targets for drug development. Dr. Jacobs is professor of microbiology & immunology and of genetics and holds the Leo and Julia Forchheimer Chair in Microbiology & Immunology at Einstein and has been a Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator for the last 30 years. 

Rewarding Development—Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is the most common liver disorder in the United States. The Harrington Discovery Institute, in Cleveland, Ohio, has selected Victor Schuster, M.D., as a recipient of its 2018 Harrington Scholar-Innovator Award. Through support from the institute, awardees undertake innovative studies in diverse fields, ranging from cancer, diabetes, and liver disease, to osteoporosis and addiction, and are encouraged to develop products that could have commercial potential. The honor provides Dr. Schuster with a two-year grant supporting his efforts to develop a small molecule drug to mitigate and reverse nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). Using funds from the award, Dr. Schuster and his team will investigate therapeutic potential of increasing the body’s level of cell communication molecules called prostaglandins in a preclinical mouse model of NAFLD. The goal of the study is to significantly improve treatment outcomes for NAFLD and liver fibrosis/cirrhosis treatment worldwide. Dr. Schuster is senior vice-dean, professor of medicine and of physiology and biophysics, and holds the Ted and Florence Baumritter Chair in Medicine.

Invited Keynote Address—The National Cancer Institute (NCI) and the American Society for Cell Biology (ASCB) have invited John Condeelis, Ph.D., to deliver the keynote address at their workshop “Imaging Subcellular to Cellular Cancer Biology,” on April 5, 2018, at the NIH Natcher Conference Center, in Bethesda, MD.  He will present “Multiphoton Intravital Imaging at Single Cell Resolution Reveals the Mechanism of Cancer Cell Dissemination and Metastasis.” Dr. Condeelis is a pioneer in study of the tumor microenvironment using multiphoton imaging techniques to understand the mechanisms that allow cancer to spread. His discoveries have been used by clinicians at Einstein-Montefiore in the clinical prognosis and treatment of breast cancer. He is professor and co-chair of anatomy & structural biology, as well as the Judith and Burton P. Resnick Chair in Translational Research. He also is co-director of the Gruss-Lipper Biophotonics Center and of the Integrated Imaging Program, scientific director of the Analytical Imaging Facility, and director of the Tumor Microenvironment and Metastasis Program, in the Albert Einstein Cancer Center.