GENUTH RECEIVES NIDDK OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT AWARD The National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Disease of the NIH presented Saul Genuth, MD, professor in the Department of Medicine, with an Outstanding Achievement Award to recognize his exemplary scientific leadership of the Diabetes Control and Complications Trial and the Epidemiology of Diabetes Interventions and Complications Study, which transformed the management of diabetes worldwide. “It hasn’t been that long since people with diabetes, whose glucose levels were not closely monitored and controlled, commonly suffered devastating consequences,†said the NIDDK director, Dr. Griffin P. Rodgers, who presented Dr. Genuth a plaque during a “Saulebration†dinner June 24 at the American Diabetes Association meeting in San Diego. “Saul helped change the paradigm by proving the importance of tight glucose control. Saul was very good at his job in the DCCT, EDIC and other landmark studies funded by the National Institutes of Health. But he also did everything within his power to ensure the rest of us were good at our jobs. His gentle strength, his questioning mind, his compassion, his ceaseless quest for excellence in the smallest detail, his grace and modesty, and his unswerving commitment were a model for everyone to follow and brought out the best in each.†KNOTHE TATE RECEIVES $50,000 FROM CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS FELLOWSHIP FOUNDATION Melissa Knothe Tate, PhD, professor of Biomedical Engineering, received a $25,000 Chairmen's Distinguished Life Sciences Scientist Award from the Christopher Columbus Fellowship Foundation. Knothe Tate is an internationally recognized leader in the fields of orthopaedic mechanobiology as well as the development and clinical translation of novel technologies and materials. Her work involves studying the mechanobiology of living cells and how stresses, strains and mechanical forces affect cell signaling, differentiation, etc. This expands understanding of bone healing and supports development of synthetic tissues. Knothe Tate will also receive up to $25,000 in research funds from the foundation. The Christopher Columbus Fellowship Foundation was established by the U.S. Congress in 1992 to support research, study and labor designed to produce new discoveries in all fields of endeavor for the benefit of mankind, according to the organization. The foundation began giving out the Life Sciences Awards three years ago and founded the Agriscience Awards last year.

PROFESSOR OF NUTRITION MARIA HATZOGLOU, PHD, RECEIVES PRESTIGIOUS MERIT AWARD FROM NIH Maria Hatzoglou, PhD, professor, Department of Nutrition, has received a Merit Award from the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) to study a novel signaling mechanism that promotes cell death in response to stress. The prestigious Merit Award provides a five-year, renewable grant of $2.6 million to expand upon Dr. Hatzoglou’s prior research and better ascertain the molecular factors that determine cell fate in response to stress. With grant support from the National Institute of Health’s NIDDK over the past 10 years, Dr. Hatzoglou has produced innovative work concerning the molecular mechanisms of gene expression in cells that are exposed to diseases, such as cancer and diabetes, in addition to other environmental and nutritional stressors. It is known that cells tend to succumb, rather than to adapt, to prolonged stress. Dr. Hatzoglou’s research has identified several pathways used by cells to adapt to the reduced availability of nutrients. The studies underwritten by the Merit Award funding will provide greater insight into how cells react to stress, establishing a greater basis for the development of new drugs used to prevent the death of healthy cells. Merit Awards, which stand for “Method to Extend Research Time,†provide outstanding investigators with the opportunity for long-term stable grant support with the aim of enhancing their continued scientific creativity and lessening the administrative burdens associated with filing competing grant applications.

KAELBER RECEIVED THE AMDIS INFORMATICS AWARD David Kaelber, MD, PhD, MPH, Assistant Professor of Internal Medicine and Pediatrics at the School of Medicine and chief medical informatics officer of MetroHealth System was one of six individuals to be awarded the Association of Medical Directors of Information Systems (ADMIS) for outstanding achievement in applied medical informatics. MetroHealth was one of two healthcare organizations to win the same award. AMDIS President Dr. William Bria said the winners this year reflect the advances in the use of data gathered by health information technology to improve direct patient care. In years past, he said, winners were often chosen for championing the successful implementation of health IT systems. The awards will be presented at the 20th annual AMDIS Physician-Computer Connection from July 12-15 in Ojai, Calif. SILA NAMED THE HEDWIG VAN AMERINGEN ELAM PROGRAM FOR WOMEN FELLOW Cathy Sila, MD, professor of neurology has received The Hedwig van Ameringen Executive Leadership in Academic Medicine (ELAM) Program for Women Fellowship at Drexel University College of Medicine. Each year, the fellowship prepares senior women faculty for positions of leadership at academic health centers. ELAM is a core program of the Institute for Women's Health and Leadership. The Institute continues the legacy of advancing women in medicine that began in 1850 with the founding of the Female Medical College of PA, the nation’s first women's medical school and a predecessor of today's Drexel University College of Medicine. To be accepted into the program each Fellow must be nominated and supported by the dean or other senior official at her institution and conduct an Institutional Action Project developed in collaboration with the dean or other senior official. Fellows will have online assignments and community building activities. The program runs May 2011 to April 2012. DUERK RECEIVES ISMRM SILVER MEDAL The International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine (ISMRM) has selected Jeffrey L. Duerk, chairman and professor, Department of Biomedical Engineering, director, Case Center for Imaging Research, as a recipient of its Silver Medal. The award is conferred to individuals for outstanding service. The Silver Metal is awarded at such time the Board of Trustees feels particularly notable service achievements have been demonstrated and is presented at the ISMRM annual meeting. Professor Duerk’s selection as a recipient of the Silver Medal comes with the recognition of his unprecedented contributions to the Society. PONSKY RECEIVES 2011 LEONARD TOW HUMANISM IN MEDICINE AWARD Lee Ponsky, MD, associate professor of Case Western Reserve School of Medicine received the 2011 Leonard Tow Humanism in Medicine Award presented by the Arnold P. Gold Foundation. The award is given annually to one faculty member and one graduating medical student for exemplifying outstanding humanism in medicine and scientific excellence. DEAN DAVIS RECEIVES YWCA WOMEN OF ACHIEVEMENT AWARD The YWCA provides sponsors with a unique opportunity to recognize the contributions of exceptional women within their organization through the Women of Achievement Awards. The award honors women who demonstrate outstanding leadership qualities, as well as excellence, accomplishment and commitment in their careers and communities. Pamela B. Davis, Dean of the School of Medicine was selected for her professionalism and commitment to helping other women achieve. Dean Davis was recognized at the YWCA Women of Achievement Awards Luncheon held May 16, 2011 at the Renaissance Cleveland Grand Ballroom. ABBOTT IS RECEPIENT OF CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS HEALTHCARE HERO AWARD FOR ADVANCEMENT IN HEALTHCARE Derek Abbott, MD, PhD, Assistant Professor, Dept. of Pathology Awarded by Crain's Cleveland Business for his leadership approach to health care and philanthropy/community service and advancement in the categories of health care, allied health, health care advocate, nurse, physician and volunteer. Awardees are selected by a panel of independent judges. Winners and finalists were honored and received their awards on May 18th. Dr. Abbott is recognized for his work on the NOD2 gene found to be responsible for regulating the body's immune responses, potentially allowing for more target treatment of Crohn’s and sarcodosis. GRIMBERG RECEIVES SCHOLAR AWARD FOR CYTOMETRY LEADERSHIP Brian Grimberg, PhD, assistant professor in the Department of General Medicine and the International Health- Center for Global Health and Diseases has received a scholar award from the International Society for Advancement of Cytometry (ISAC). This award recognizes the world's emerging leaders in the field of cytometry for their scientific skills and leadership potential while enhancing their knowledge and experience over a 5-year term. The awardees receive five years full membership to ISAC, registration to CYTO conferences and up to $1,000 in travel support. KAISER-PERMANENTE EXCELLENCE IN TEACHING AWARD Each year, the Kaiser-Permanente Excellence in Teaching Award is given at commencement to faculty members who demonstrate exceptional commitment to the education of medical students. The winners of the award are chosen by the students and the award is given to two pre-clinical and two clinical faculty members from the University and College Tracks. This prestigious award reflects the importance of teaching at Case Western Reserve School of Medicine. The recipients of 2010-2011 awards are: Pre-clinical (University Track): Sue Wish-Baratz, PhD; Anatomy Pre-clinical (College Track): Marvin Natowicz, MD, PhD; Pathology Clinical (University Track): Michael J. Katz, MD, PhD; Anatomy Clinical (College Track): Kristin Englund, MD; Medicine

Two undergraduates who are integral researchers in labs on campus have been awarded Barry M. Goldwater Scholarships.

Rising seniors Ilya Kolb, who is earning his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in biomedical engineering, and Chad Schaber, majoring in biology and chemistry, plan to use the scholarship money to help pay for next year’s tuition.

The scholarships, which are named for former U.S. Sen. Barry Goldwater, recognize outstanding potential and commitment to excellence in science, engineering and mathematics.

“I saw the scholarship was for people whose focus is scientific research… that’s me,” Schaber said.

In the lab of biology professor Mark Willis, Schaber designed and built the experimental apparatus used to study how night-flying moths are able to find targets when there are no visual cues to guide them. He then supervised a local high school student who came to assist and collected data yielding new findings about the animals.

Schaber, who spent the spring semester overseas, plans to get back into research when he returns in the fall.

Willis said Schaber is years ahead of peers: “As a junior, he’s been working on the level of a young graduate student already.”

Kolb has worked in the lab of biomedical engineering professor Dustin Tyler since he was a freshman, helping develop nerve implants that enable a stroke victim or paralyzed patient to swallow without inhaling food or water into his lungs.

He also served this year as president of Case’s Rising Engineers and Technical Entrepreneurs, which sponsors undergraduate teams of engineering students each summer as they design and build solutions to problems faced by local hospitals and businesses.
 
Tyler praised Kolb’s efforts in the lab and out, adding, “Despite all this activity, he’s maintained spectacular academics.”

Kolb will continue working with Tyler next year, on an implant designed to enable an amputee to better control prosthetics.

“With the scholarship, I can complete my BS/MS here, then apply for a PhD program,” Kolb said.

AMERICAN SOCIETY FOR BIOCHEMISTRY AND MOLECULAR BIOLOGY RECOGNIZES STARK George R. Stark, PhD, FRS, professor emeritus of genetics, was awarded the 2011 Herbert Tabor/ Journal of Biological Chemistry Lectureship Award by the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (ASBMB). The lectureship recognizes outstanding lifetime scientific achievements and was established to honor the many contributions of Herbert Tabor to both the society and the journal, for which he has served as editor for nearly 40 years. Dr. Stark will be the eighth person so honored, joining a luminous group of recipients that includes the 2010 awardee, Nobel Laureate Phillip A. Sharp. Dr. Stark presented his award lecture titled "Genetic Analysis of Signaling Pathways in Human Cells†at the annual meeting of the ASBMB in Washington, DC. BORON RECEIVES AMERICAN PHYSIOLOGICAL SOCIETY HONOR Walter Boron, MD, PhD, professor and chair of the Department of Physiology and Biophysics, received the Ray G. Diggs Award from the American Physiological Society. The award, which honors the Society's first Executive Secretary, is presented to the physiologist who is judged to have provided distinguished long-term service to the science of physiology and, in particular, to the American Physiological Society by holding a prominent position in the Society. Established in 1973, the Ray G. Daggs Award is presented at the spring Business Meeting of the Society.

Zimbabwean human rights attorney Beatrice Mtetwa is a hero to victims of human rights abuses, civil society activists and foreign journalists covering unrest in her country. In recognition of her tremendous contributions, she will be honored with Case Western Reserve University’s 2011 Inamori Ethics Prize.

The Inamori International Center for Ethics and Excellence will recognize Mtetwa during on-campus events Sept. 6-8.

“It was truly a gratifying bolt from the blue and a wonderful start to a year which we all hope will bring better things to the long suffering people of Zimbabwe,” Mtetwa said of the award. “I am humbled by this honor, which I gratefully accept on behalf of all the human rights defenders in Zimbabwe."

The selection of Mtetwa came after a rigorous review of her contributions.

Dragged, beaten and nearly choked to death, Mtetwa has not wavered in her quest to use the law to further a free press for foreign and domestic reporters and to fight for social justice for her country’s most vulnerable residents, particularly women.  

Among the foreign journalists grateful to Mtetwa is New York Times South Africa Co-Bureau Chief Barry Bearak. Mtetwa rescued him from the squalor and filth of a Zimbabwe prison after he was charged with “committing journalism.” Bearak and other journalists from major news organizations have benefited from the human rights crusader’s support of a free press in Zimbabwe.

Bearak wrote about his 2008 arrest in a front-page story in the New York Times. “The detectives’ evident glee at our capture was soon tempered by the arrival of a familiar and implacable foe, Beatrice Mtetwa, the nation’s top human rights lawyer,” he wrote.

Mtetwa worked within the legal system to free Bearak and Stephan Bevans, a freelancer from the Sunday Telegraph arrested at the same time. The two fled the country by car before any additional arrest attempts could be made.

“One of the tremendously compelling characteristics of Beatrice Mtetwa is that she comes from humble beginnings,” said Shannon French, director of the Inamori Center and the Inamori Professor of Ethics. “But even from the start, she exhibited bravery. As a child she took on her father, a wealthy farmer who had dozens of children from multiple wives and did not provide well for them.” From a young age, French said, Mtetwa was compelled to confront injustice.

Mtetwa was born in 1958 in Swaziland. She was the first in her family to graduate from college. She earned a law degree from the University of Botswana and Swaziland. Between 1981 and 1983 she served as a prosecutor in Swaziland before moving to Zimbabwe where she was a prosecutor from 1983 to 1989.

She left public service to open a private practice in 1989, and her sense of fairness earned her a reputation as an advocate for the repressed, especially for those suffering under the rule of the nation’s current president, Robert Mugabe.

Mtatwa has fought against Mugabe’s efforts to silence and hide conditions in Zimbabwe, and she has become a hero to his victims, from the country’s most vulnerable citizens to reporters from some of the world’s most prominent news outlets—including Bloomberg News, Associated Press, The Times of London, The Sunday Telegraph (London), The Guardian (London) and The Mail and Guardian (South Africa).

Mtetwa has endured physical pain, Bearak said during a Committee to Protect Journalists ceremony, where Mtetwa was honored with the Burton Benjamin Award for her fight to free journalists.

He spoke about her ordeals: “She has been brutally beaten by the police. She knows the feel of clubs and fists, of a pummeling that actually went on for hours, of being sarcastically told that someone who complains so much about police brutality ought to be given first-hand experience on the receiving end.”

What is unique about Mtetwa’s nonviolent struggles, French said, is that she has created a public history of court records and newspaper articles that chronicle the actions of corrupt and unjust governments and will serve as a legacy for current and future generations.

For more information, visit case.edu/provost/inamori/.