Greetings!

In May we had two of the nation’s key leaders in science visiting WFUHS – Elias A. Zerhouni, M.D., director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and Roderic I. Pettigrew, Ph.D., M.D., the first director of the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB).

Both Dr. Zerhouni and Dr. Pettigrew are strong proponents for the use of cutting-edge biotechnology to set new agendas for biomedical science into the future. Dr. Zerhouni spoke to our faculty on Monday, May 15, after WFU graduation. Dr. Pettigrew spoke during the grand opening of our new Biotechnology Research Facility 1 building in Piedmont Triad Research Park on May 16.

Dr. Zerhouni leads the nation’s medical research agency and oversees the NIH’s 27 Institutes and Centers with more than 17,000 employees and a fiscal year 2004 budget of $28 billion. He has substantially re-engineered the NIH to broaden its multi-disciplinary research mission.

Since being named the 15th Director of the NIH in 2002, Dr. Zerhouni has: overseen the completion of the doubling of the NIH budget, initiated the NIH Roadmap for Medical Research, established an NIH-wide research initiative to address the obesity epidemic, supported the NIH Neuroscience Blueprint, supported the reduction of health disparities and barriers to opportunity for minority individuals, ensured public access to NIH-funded research results, and committed to earn the public’s trust.

As head of NIH’s bioimaging institute, Dr. Pettigrew is leading the effort to integrate biomedical engineering with biomedical science. Prior to his appointment at NIBIB, Dr. Pettigrew was a Professor of Radiology, Medicine (Cardiology) and Bioengineering and Director of the Emory Center for MR Research, Emory University School of Medicine, in Atlanta, GA.

He is known for his pioneering work involving dynamic three-dimensional imaging of the heart using magnetic resonance (MRI). Dr. Pettigrew also was co-developer of the first computer software package specifically designed for cardiac imaging using MRI.

Dr. Pettigrew toured our facilities like the Center for Biomolecular Imaging while here to see firsthand how Wake Forest is integrating imaging technology, bioengineering, and clinical and basis research into a cohesive multi-disciplinary research program.

Sincerely,
William B. Applegate, M.D., M.P.H