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MGH investigators named to Scientific
American 50
Magazine's annual listing of national
leaders cites work to combat Alzheimer's, hearing loss
BOSTON - November 25, 2005 - Two Massachusetts General Hospital
researchers have been named to the 2005 Scientific American 50,
the magazine's annual list of outstanding leaders in science and
technology. Zheng-Yi Chen, PhD, of the MGH Neurology Service and
Bradley Hyman, MD, PhD, director of the Alzheimer's Unit in the
Mass General Institute
for Neurodegenerative Disease, are among those honored in the
magazine's December issue, which is on news stands this week.
Chen was honored for work that may lead to a gene-therapy-based
treatment for hearing loss. He and his colleagues discovered
that turning off the activity of a specific protein can lead to
renewed production of the inner ear's hair cells, which convert
sound vibrations into nerve impulses and do not normally regenerate.
Hair cells are very sensitive to damage from excessive noise, infections
or toxins; and their death accounts for most types of acquired hearing
loss.
Hyman was recognized for his laboratory's
cutting-edge work in neural imaging. Using the latest multi-photon
microscope equipment, his group has been able to examine the pathological
changes associated with Alzheimer's disease in live mouse models
of the disease, shedding considerable light on changes that occur
over time and the effects of various therapies. Their work already
has provided important clues for potential drugs to slow or stop
Alzheimer's disease.
Selected by the magazine's Board of Editors with the help of outside
advisors, the Scientific American 50 honors research, business
and policy leaders in an array of fields whose work has facilitated
science and technology advances. "The Scientific American
50 is our annual opportunity to salute the people and organizations
worldwide whose research, policy or business leadership has played
a major role in bringing about the science and technology innovations
that are improving the way we live and offer the greatest hope for
the future," says editor in chief John Rennie. The complete
list may be accessed on the magazine's
website.
Massachusetts General Hospital, established in 1811, is the original
and largest teaching hospital of Harvard Medical School. The MGH
conducts the largest hospital-based research program in the United
States, with an annual research budget of nearly $500 million and
major research centers in AIDS, cardiovascular research, cancer,
cutaneous biology, medical imaging, neurodegenerative disorders,
transplantation biology and photomedicine. In 1994, MGH and Brigham
and Women's Hospital joined to form Partners HealthCare System,
an integrated health care delivery system comprising the two academic
medical centers, specialty and community hospitals, a network of
physician groups, and nonacute and home health services.
Media Contact: Sue
McGreevey, MGH Public Affairs
Physician Referral Service: 1-800-388-4644
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