Michal Melamed

Three researchers at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine recently received their first R01 grants from the National Institutes of Health—a major milestone in an academic scientist’s career. Dr. Michal Melamed, associate professor in the department of epidemiology and public health and the department of medicine, has been awarded $3.5 million over five years to take part in NIH’s ongoing clinical trials to prove the effectiveness of using Vitamin D and omega-3 fatty acids to protect against kidney disease.

Julie Secombe

Dr. Julie Secombe, associate professor in the department of genetics, has been awarded a five-year, $1.6 million grant to study a particular family of transcription regulators—cells responsible for regulating the process that coverts DNA into messenger RNA, thus enabling the construction of new proteins—which, due to a mutation, are overproduced in a number of cancers, such as breast, colorectal and melanoma.

James C.M. Brust

Dr. James C.M. Brust, associate professor in the department of medicine, received a five-year, $3.6 million grant to study bedaquiline – the first new tuberculosis (TB) drug to receive FDA approval in 40 years.