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The scientists that AFAR supports have made major inroads in our understanding of how and why we age, leading to important discoveries about age-related diseases and disorders. Here are a few of the more than 2,400 AFAR-supported scientists.
The research of Nir Barzilai, M.D., director of the Institute for Aging Research at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine, focuses on the basic mechanisms of the biology of aging. He is currently leading a program to investigate the metabolic decline with aging and its impact on longevity, as well as another project to identify longevity genes in centenarians. Dr. Barzilai's research has been published in Science and The Journal of the American Medical Association, and featured in the AARP Bulletin, The Scientist, New York Times and The Wall Street Journal. Dr. Barzilai recently appeared on The Today Show to discuss problems with aging research. He is a recipient of the Beeson Career Development Award in Aging Research and an AFAR Research Grant. W. Ted Brown, M.D., Ph.D., a 1983 AFAR Research Grant recipient, is considered the world expert on Hutchinson-Gilford Progeria Syndrome, an extremely rare genetic disease that accelerates the aging process to about seven times the normal rate. In addition to being chairman of the department of human genetics, director of the George A. Jervis Clinic, and director at the New York State Institute for Basic Research in Developmental Disabilities, Dr. Brown is also a professor of genetics at the State University of New York's Medical School in Brooklyn. He is an active member of the Progeria Research Foundation's scientific research committee and a consortium that recently discovered the gene mutation that causes progeria (G608G in LMNA). He has published more than 300 papers in a number of medical journals, including American Journal of Human Genetics and Nature, and he has also been featured in The New York Times.
Christopher Callahan, M.D., is a 1996 Beeson Scholar and the director of the Indiana University Center for Aging Research. His research found that treatment for depression in older adults can be effective, and that when successful, may help slow physical decline and extend independent living. The results of this study were featured in Journal of the American Geriatrics Society and USA Today. At the age of 31, Anne Cappola, M.D., Sc.M., received the 2001 Pfizer/AFAR Research Grant for her research on the hormonal alterations that occur with aging and the clinical impact of these changes in older women. Her innovative research may lead to the design of a new form of hormone replacement therapy that will help slow the development of sarcopenia, a condition that develops with age and results in the involuntary loss of skeletal muscle mass and strength. Dr. Cappola is currently an assistant professor of medicine and epidemiology at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine. Her research has been published in many medical journals, including the Journal of Gerontology: Medical Sciences, and her research on testosterone's affect on heart disease in women was covered by several online media. Zheng-Yi Chen, DPhil, a 2004 recipient of a Pfizer/AFAR Innovations in Aging Research Grant currently at the Massachusetts General Hospital Neurology Service, found that selectively turning off a protein that controls the division and growth of cells could allow regeneration of the inner ear's hair cells -- the sensory cells that convert sound vibrations into nerve impulses. His findings have enormous ramifications for the treatment of hearing and balance disorders. In addition to being published in Science, the results of his study were also featured in USA Today. Jay Edelberg, M.D., Ph.D., formerly an associate professor of medicine at the Weill Medical College of Cornell University, is conducting research using adult stem cells to help grow functional heart muscle. Essentially one day soon, there may be less need for heart transplants and heart pumps as doctors will be able to use a person's own cells plus growth factor to repair aging and diseased heart tissue. Dr. Edelberg's research examines the molecular and cellular basis of the aging heart's diminished ability to grow new blood vessels. Dr. Edelberg is a 1999 AFAR/Pfizer Research grantee, a 2001 Beeson Scholar and a 2004 Pfizer/AFAR Innovations in Aging Research Award recipient. His work has been featured in BusinessWeek. Karyn Frick, Ph.D., is an assistant professor of psychology at Yale University, where she is researching strategies to reduce age-related memory decline. Her 2001 Pfizer/AFAR Research Grant in Hormones & Aging allowed her to further research on the long and short-term effects of estrogen treatment on memory. Her findings may have implications for treating older women who develop memory dysfunction as they progress through menopause. Dr. Frick was interviewed for Glamour magazine's feature on aging and her work has been published in dozens of medical journals, including European Journal of Neuroscience, Behavioral Neuroscience and Neurobiology of Aging. Adam Gazzaley, M.D., Ph.D., is conducting research at the Memory and Aging Center at the University of California, San Francisco. A recipient of the 2002 Glenn/AFAR Research Grant for Postdoctoral Fellows and the 2005 Pfizer/AFAR Innovations in Aging Research Award, Dr. Gazzaley's research uses a novel approach towards understanding the neural mechanisms underlying cognitive aging. Leaders in his field consider Dr. Gazzaley's research a vital stepping stone to a greater understanding of many age-related neurological disorders such as dementia, as well as providing a basis for developing rehabilitative strategies for treating individuals with cognitive deficits. He has been published in several scientific journals, including Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience and NeuroImage, and featured in several media, including The Wall Street Journal. His publication in Nature Neuroscience describes an important discovery using functional MRI to reveal that short-term memory problems in healthy older adults are associated with difficulties in filtering distracting information. Stephen Helfand, M.D., a 1992 and 1995 AFAR Research Grant recipient, is a professor of molecular, cellular biology, and biochemistry at Brown University. Dr. Helfand is interested in understanding the molecular mechanisms underlying the development, maturation, and aging of the adult animal. His research, published in several medical journals, such as BioEssays and Science, has already identified genes in fruit flies that are regulated by age-dependent mechanisms. Dr. Helfand was interviewed for PBS' Newshour with Jim Lehrer and his work has also been featured in the Hartford Courant (CT). Mark Lachs, M.D., M.P.H., is director of geriatrics for the New York Presbyterian Health System, co-chief of the division of geriatric medicine and gerontology at the Weill Medical College of Cornell University, and a tenured professor of medicine at the College. He is also the Irene F. and I. Roy Psaty Distinguished Clinical Professor of Medicine. Dr. Lachs, a 1995 Beeson Scholar and current AFAR board member, is a prominent physician investigator in the field of elder abuse and neglect, adult protective services, the measurement of functional status, ethics, and the financing of health care. His research has been published in several medical and geriatric journals, including The New England Journal of Medicine and Gerontologist. Research conducted by Frank LaFerla, Ph.D., a 2000 Pfizer/AFAR grant recipient, found that early treatment of brain lesions resulting from beta-amyloid plaques can halt or even reverse Alzheimer's-related cognitive decline. His team demonstrated that in mice studies, injecting anti-beta-amyloid antibodies into the hippocampus was effective in clearing both types of lesions found in people affected by Alzheimer's disease. Dr. LaFerla is a professor in the department of neurobiology and behavior at the University of California, Irvine. His work has been featured on MSNBC.com and BBC Online, and in the Orange County Register (CA). He is a recipient of the 2005 MetLife Foundation Award for Medical Research in Alzheimer's Disease.
Christine Maric, Ph.D., is researching the gender-related differences in diabetes and the development of kidney disease. Her pioneering research may help to develop a therapeutic treatment that can lessen, and even completely prevent, the occurrence of diabetes, especially in aging women. Dr. Maric is an assistant professor of medicine and director of diabetes research at the Center for the Study of Sex Differences at Georgetown University. She is a member of Women in Nephrology and recently presented her work under her 2003 AFAR Research Grant at AFAR's Grantee Conference. Alison A. Moore, M.D., M.P.H., an associate professor of geriatric medicine at the University of California, Los Angeles, is interested in identifying and reducing the harmful and hazardous effects of drinking among older people. A 1998 Beeson Scholar, Dr. Moore recently found that adults reduce their alcohol consumption as they age. Her research has been featured in The New York Times and published in the American Journal of Public Health and the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society. David Morgan, Ph.D., is a professor of pharmacology and therapeutics and the director of the Alzheimer's Research Laboratory at the University of South Florida. Dr. Morgan's research focuses on the development of therapies that could delay or prevent Alzheimer's disease, determining the role that inflammation plays in the brain, and exploring the development of antibodies to prevent the buildup of beta-amyloid, the substance that clumps into plaques in the brains of Alzheimer's patients. Dr. Morgan, a 1987 AFAR Research Grant recipient, is also looking into whether certain foods such as blueberries have beneficial effects on cognitive function. His work has been published in Science, Nature and Journal of Neuroscience. Laura Niklason, M.D., Ph.D., a 2001 AFAR Research Grant recipient and 2002 Beeson Scholar, is currently associate professor of anesthesiology, and biomedical engineering at Yale University. Her research focuses on aging cells, specifically engineering tissues for therapeutic and diagnostic purposes. Most recently, Dr. Niklason announced that she had grown new human blood vessels from an individual's own old cells, a finding that represents a major step toward combating atherosclerosis, a product of aging. Her research has been published in various science and medical journals and she has been profiled in several media outlets, including MSNBC.com and US News & World Report. Watch Dr. Niklason discuss the importance of her AFAR grants for telomerase gene therapy research. Anne Louise Oaklander, M.D., Ph.D., a 1999 Beeson Scholar, is the director of the nerve injury unit at Massachusetts General Hospital and an associate professor of neurology at Harvard University. Dr. Oaklander is nationally recognized for her clinical expertise in diagnosis and management of chronic neuropathic pain and has been featured several times in the New York Times as a shingles and pain expert. Research by Dr. Oaklander and her group has furthered the general understanding of the underlying biological changes that occur with pain. This research may allow for the creation of new treatments, and perhaps a cure, for chronic pain. Dr. Oaklander is further researching her possible discovery of pathways connecting matching sensory nerves on opposite sides of the body. Her research during the last 15 years has been published in several medical journals, including Pain and Annals of Neurology. Jeong Hyeon Park, Ph.D., a postdoctoral fellow at Rockefeller University, is a recipient of the 2004 Ellison Medical Foundation/AFAR Senior Postdoctoral Research Grant. Dr. Park is studying the role of the p53 tumor suppression protein, a key mediator of permanent growth arrest in aging cells. Thomas Perls, M.D., M.P.H., is an associate professor of medicine and director of the well-known New England Centenarian Study at Boston University's School of Medicine. Under the study, Dr. Perls and his team analyze the genetic and environmental-behavioral profiles of hundreds of New England centenarians, as well as their siblings and children in an effort to identify the factors that allow these people to live longer, healthier lives. Dr. Perls, a 1998 Beeson Scholar, has had his work published in Nature, JAMA, the Journal of Gerontology and other medical journals, and featured in several national media, including TIME, The Today Show and CNN. The work of Daniel Promislow, Ph.D., associate professor at the University of Georgia, addresses the role of gene interactions in aging. He also is developing new theoretical models to further our understanding of why aging evolves. While most researchers study one or two single genes that influence aging, Dr. Promislow, a 1996 AFAR Research Grant recipient, is interested in the possibility that hundreds or even thousands of genes may affect this trait. His work has been published in medical journals in the U.S. and abroad, including Aging Cell and Proceedings of the Royal Society: Biological Sciences. Pere Puigserver, Ph.D., a 2004 AFAR Research Grant recipient at Johns Hopkins University, is interested in caloric restriction's effect in mammalian cells. Dr. Puigserver's study found that a gene triggered by caloric restriction is not only an important conduit to longevity, but may also serve as a pathway to other diseases, such as diabetes and cancer. His work has been published in Nature and featured in Forbes, The Scientist and the New York Times. Sarah Sagi, Ph.D., is a postdoctoral fellow at the University of California, San Diego, where she has completed her research under her 2004 Ellison Medical Foundation/AFAR Senior Postdoctoral Fellows Research Grant. Her research focuses on the effects of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) on Alzheimer's and holds great promise in targeting therapies to slow the progress of Alzheimer's in aging minds. Dr. Sagi's work has been published in several medical journals, such as the Journal of Biological Chemistry and the Journal of Neurochemistry.
This has profound implications not only for the possibility for extending lifespan, but perhaps more importantly, for preventing age associated diseases such as cancer, diabetes, and Alzheimer’s—all of which Sirtuins seem to prevent. Taking the implications of his original research even further, Dr. Sinclair and colleagues have identified Sirtuin-activating compounds (STACs) that have extended the lifespan of numerous simple model organisms. One of these STACs, resveratrol, found in red wine, can activate known longevity genetic pathways and prevent the early death of mice fed a high calorie diet. The study provides encouragement to scientists who are trying to develop drugs to prevent diseases like heart disease and diabetes that are associated with obesity in people.
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American Federation for Aging Research (AFAR) | 55 West 39th Street, 16th Floor | New York, NY 10018 Phone: (212) 703-9977 | Toll-free: (888) 582-2327 | Fax: (212) 997-0330 E-mail: grants@afar.org or info@afar.org |
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