Todd Evans, Ph.D., Will Lead Collaborative Efforts Aimed at Advancing Breakthrough Treatments
Dr. Todd Evans
NEW YORK (May 18, 2009) — An internationally renowned researcher in the burgeoning field of regenerative medicine, Todd Evans, Ph.D., has been appointed vice chair for research and professor of cell and developmental biology in the Department of Surgery at Weill Cornell Medical College. Previously, Dr. Evans served on the faculty of the Albert Einstein College of Medicine.
"We are very pleased to welcome Dr. Evans, whose leadership and vision have advanced regenerative medicine — a field that promises to revolutionize patient care," says Dr. Fabrizio Michelassi, chairman of the Department of Surgery and the Lewis Atterbury Stimson Professor of Surgery at Weill Cornell Medical College and surgeon-in-chief at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center.
Dr. Evans will lead a basic science unit at the center of a strong translational effort between basic science research and clinical care with the goal of advancing new regenerative treatments. He will foster linkages between programs, including stem cell biologists in the Tri-Institutional community, and with tissue engineers at Cornell University in Ithaca.
"I look forward to working closely with colleagues at Weill Cornell and elsewhere to advance our understanding of regenerative approaches that will lead to new treatments," Dr. Evans says, adding that another priority will be mentoring and teaching surgical fellows in the new discipline.
Dr. Evans received his B.A. in biology from Northwestern University in 1982 and his Ph.D. in molecular biology from Columbia University in 1987. He completed a postdoctoral fellowship at the National Institutes of Health (NIH). He served as an assistant professor in the Department of Biological Sciences at the University of Pittsburgh from 1990 until 1995, when he joined the Albert Einstein College of Medicine. There, he was a tenured professor in the Department of Developmental and Molecular Biology, director of the Sue Golding Graduate Division, and also served as the assistant dean for graduate studies.
Dr. Evans is widely published, with more than 75 journal publications and book chapters. He is an active member of the American Society of Hematology, the American Heart Association, the Society for Developmental Biology, and the International Society for Stem Cell Research. He serves as a member of the editorial board for several prestigious journals, and is a frequent ad hoc reviewer for many journals. His research program has been supported by the National Institutes of Health, including a recent MERIT Award; New York State Stem Cell Science (NYSTEM); the American Heart Association; March of Dimes Foundation; American Cancer Society; and others.
Weill Cornell Medical College
Weill Cornell Medical College, Cornell University's medical school located in New York City, is committed to excellence in research, teaching, patient care and the advancement of the art and science of medicine, locally, nationally and globally. Weill Cornell, which is a principal academic affiliate of NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital, offers an innovative curriculum that integrates the teaching of basic and clinical sciences, problem-based learning, office-based preceptorships, and primary care and doctoring courses. Physicians and scientists of Weill Cornell Medical College are engaged in cutting-edge research in areas such as stem cells, genetics and gene therapy, geriatrics, neuroscience, structural biology, cardiovascular medicine, transplantation medicine, infectious disease, obesity, cancer, psychiatry and public health — and continue to delve ever deeper into the molecular basis of disease in an effort to unlock the mysteries of the human body in health and sickness. In its commitment to global health and education, the Medical College has a strong presence in places such as Qatar, Tanzania, Haiti, Brazil, Austria and Turkey. Through the historic Weill Cornell Medical College in Qatar, Cornell University is the first in the U.S. to offer a M.D. degree overseas. Weill Cornell is the birthplace of many medical advances — including the development of the Pap test for cervical cancer, the synthesis of penicillin, the first successful embryo-biopsy pregnancy and birth in the U.S., the first clinical trial of gene therapy for Parkinson's disease, the first indication of bone marrow's critical role in tumor growth, and most recently, the world's first successful use of deep brain stimulation to treat a minimally conscious brain-injured patient. For more information, visit www.med.cornell.edu.
Lezlie Greenberg
leg2003@med.cornell.edu