The Movement Disorder Society,
U.S. Department of Defense, the
National Institutes of Health, and
professional associations and
patient voluntary organizations.
World Parkinson Congress Inc.
710 West 168th Street, 3rd Floor
New York, NY 10032 USA
info@worldpdcongress.org
Copyright © 2006
Committee Biographies
For more information on committee members, click on the individual names for a short biography.
Mary G Baker, MBE, (U.K.) (Steering Committee and Care Delivery and Quality of Life Committee) is President of the European Federation of Neurological Associations, the European Parkinson's Disease Association, Vice President of the European Brain Council, Consultant to the World Health Organization (WHO) and Chair of the Working Group on Parkinson's Disease, formed by the WHO in May 1997. She is Director at Large for the World Stroke Association, patient editor of the British Medical Journal, member of the ABPI Code of Practice and has received an Honorary Doctorate from the University of Surrey in recognition of her work within the world of Parkinson's disease. Mary has been invited as a World Parkinson Congress committee member to bring a European flavor to this important global initiative and to ensure that the patients and their families' needs are central to the congress program.
M. Flint Beal, M.D. (U.S.) (Program Committee) is the Anne Parrish Titzell Professor and Chairman of the Department of Neurology and Neuroscience at the Weill Medical College of Cornell University and Director of the Neurology service at the New York Presbyterian Cornell Campus. Dr. Beal received his medical degree from the University of Virginia in 1976 and did his internship and first year residency in Medicine at New York-Cornell before completing his residency in Neurology at The Massachusetts General Hospital. He joined the neurology faculty at Harvard in 1983. Dr. Beal was Professor of Neurology at the Harvard Medical School and Chief of the Neurochemistry laboratory at Massachusetts General Hospital before moving to Cornell. Dr. Beal's research has focused on the mechanism of neuronal degeneration in Alzheimer's disease, Huntington's disease, Parkinson's disease and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).
Dr. Beal is the author or co-author of more than 350 scientific articles and more than 125 books, book chapters and reviews. He is a co-editor of the "Dana Guide to Brain Health" and "Neurodegenerative Diseases, Neurobiology, Pathology and Therapeutics". Dr. Beal is a member of the Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences.
Judith Blazer, M.S. (U.S.) (Steering Committee; Co-chair, Organization and Government Relations Committee; and Care Delivery and Quality of Life Committee) is the Executive Director of WE MOVE. She has been with WE MOVE since its inception in 1991 and has functioned as Executive Director since 1994. Ms. Blazer earned her Bachelor's Degree in health education from New York University, and her Master's Degree from Columbia University, School of Dental and Oral Surgery. Ms. Blazer combined a career of healthcare administration with a teaching position at Columbia SDOS for over 15 years. Utilizing her experience in health care delivery, education, marketing, communications, and administration, Ms. Blazer has overseen WE MOVE's evolution from a small, University-based program, to an internationally recognized and highly respected not-for-profit organization. WE MOVE is an accredited provider of continuing medical education (CME) and the only not-for-profit organization that provides medical and scientific information about all movement disorders to patients and their families as well as healthcare professionals. Ms. Blazer, a recognized leader in the movement disorder community, serves on numerous committees and advisory boards of not-for-profit organizations including the American Academy of Neurology/Movement Disorder Society Planning Committee for regional CME courses; American Academy of Neurology, Subcommittee on the Education of the Non-Neurologist; the American Brain Coalition; American Society for Experimental NeuroTherapeutics (ASENT) Advocacy Task Force; Child Neurology Foundation, Subcommittee for Advocacy Relations; Easter Seals, Spasticity National Advisory Board; and American Academy of Cerebral Palsy & Developmental Medicine, Continuing Education Committee.
Alba Bonetti (Italy) (Care Delivery and Quality of Life Committee) is Nurse coordinator of Centro per la Malattia di Parkinson e Disturbi del Movimento at the Istituti Clinici di Perfezionamento, in Milan. She has a Masters Degree in Health Care Services Management. She is a founding member of Associazione Italiana Parkinsoniani (AIP). She has been involved in care delivery and quality of life of people affected by Parkinson's disease and their families since 1990 by promoting multidisciplinary care plans. She has a 14 years experience on clinical trials in Parkinson's disease. She is involved in teaching and she has served in numerous committees of Parkinson Study Group.
Nancy Bonini, Ph.D. (U.S.) (Program Committee) is Associate Professor of Biology and Assistant Investigator of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. She studies Drosophila neurogenetics, with focus on modelling neurodegenerative diseases including alpha-synucleinopathies. Her research has shown that molecular chaperone Hsp70 mitigates alpha-synuclein pathogenicity in Drosophila, and that molecular chaperones are altered in human Parkinson's disease and other alpha-synucleinopathies. She was asked to serve on the Program Committee due to her expertise in modeling Parkinson's disease in a model organism.
Robert E Burke, M.D. (U.S.) (Finance Committee and Program Committee) is a Professor of Neurology and Pathology and the Director of Laboratory Research in Parkinson's Disease at Columbia University Medical Center. He is currently the Program Director of the Morris K. Udall Parkinson's Disease Research Center of Excellence at Columbia. He has demonstrated that programmed cell death (apoptosis) occurs in dopamine neurons of the substantia nigra both during normal development and in living animal models of PD. His current work is focused on the regulation of developmental cell death in dopamine neurons by neurotrophic factors such as GDNF, and the molecular basis of programmed cell death in models of parkinsonism. Dr Burke has been invited to participate on the Program Committee to provide expertise on mechanisms of cell death in dopamine neurons.
Donald Calne, M.D. (Canada) (Steering Committee) received his Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Science and Doctor of Medicine degrees from Oxford University. He served as a neurologist at the Hammersmith Hospital and Royal Postgraduate Medical School in London and then as Clinical Director and Chief of the Experimental Therapeutics Branch of the National Institute of Neurological Disease at the National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland. In 1981 he was appointed Director of the Neurodegenerative Disorders Centre at the University of British Columbia (Canada). He held this position until 2001.
Dr. Calne is the founding editor of the journal Parkinsonism and Related Disorders. Dr. Calne has received many awards including a Killam Research Prize, the British Columbia Science and Engineering Gold Medal, the Germania Rossetto International Award from the University of Pavia, the Alice Wilson Award from the University of Kansas, the Fred Springer Award from New York University, and the Professor Jacob Biely Faculty Research Prize from the University of British Columbia. In October 1998 he was appointed an Officer of the Order of Canada. In July 1999 he chaired the World Federation of Neurology's XIIIth Congress on Parkinson's Disease, attended by over 2,300 neurologists from all over the world. In August 2000 he received the Frederic Newton Gisborne Starr Medal from the Canadian Medical Association, for his lifetime of research in clinical neuroscience. In 2001 Dr. Calne received the Research Prize for Movement Disorders from the American Academy of Neurology. He also became a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada, and later the same year he was elected Chairman of the World Federation of Neurology Research Committee on Parkinsonism and Related Disorders. Because of this position, Dr. Calne was invited to serve on the Steering Committee. In May 2002, Dr. Calne was conferred an Honorary Doctor of Science Degree, honoris causa, from the University of British Columbia.
Julie Carter, R.N. (U.S.) (Care Delivery and Quality of Life Committee) is an Associate Professor of Neurology and Associate Director at the OHSU Parkinson Center of Oregon. She holds a joint appointment at the School of Nursing and the School of Medicine. In addition to her own research and clinical care, she directs the clinical research program and educational program at the center. Ms. Carter received her BSN in 1973 and her M.S. in 1976 from Oregon Health and Science University. She joined the Movement Disorders Program at OHSU in 1979.
Ms. Carter is dedicated to improving the lives of people with Parkinson's disease and their families. She approaches Parkinson's disease as a family disease and provides care accordingly to both the patient and their family. She has taken a special interest in setting up innovative programs to help patients and families with Parkinson's disease and has been involved in multiple clinical trials over the last 20 years. Her current focus is on neuroprotective therapies and she heads up the neuroprotective site at the Parkinson Center of Oregon.
Ms. Carter has authored and co-authored 44 journal articles, 13 book chapters and 37 abstracts. She also co-authored A Handbook for People with Parkinson's Disease, which is an invaluable resource to those living with Parkinson's disease.
Kathleen E. Clarence-Smith, MD PhD (U.S.) (Steering Committee) is currently Chief Executive Officer of Prestwick Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a pharmaceutical company headquartered in Washington, DC. Following an M.S. in Chemistry, Dr. Clarence Smith received an M.D. and a Ph.D. in Neuroscience from the University of Tours ( France). She is Board Certified in Neurology ( Paris, France). Following a post-doctoral fellowship at Johns Hopkins Medical School, Dr. Clarence-Smith joined Sanofi, a pharmaceutical company headquartered in Paris, France. From 1980 to 1987 she headed the CNS group (discovery and clinical trials worldwide). In 1987, she was recruited by Hoffmann-La Roche ( Basel, Switzerland), where she headed Phase I to Phase III clinical projects in Neurology. In 1989, she was transferred to Hoffman-La Roche ( Nutley, NJ) as Senior Director, CNS Clinical Development, and headed Neurology development programs worldwide. In 1992, she moved to Washington, DC, and was recruited by Otsuka America Pharmaceuticals, to head clinical trials, Phase I through Phase III, in Neurology and Psychiatry. In 1996, together with an investment bank, she founded Prestwick Scientific Capital, Inc. and later, Prestwick Pharmaceuticals. Dr. Clarence-Smith is also Chairman of the Board and Founder of Prestwick Chemical, Inc., a medicinal chemistry company.
Dr. Clarence-Smith has published over 100 full-length research papers in areas relating to neurodegeneration, epilepsy, Parkinson’s disease, depression, schizophrenia, and neuro-immunology. She is the author of 18 patents. She served on Research Review Committees for the CNRS and INSERM (France). At Sanofi and at Hoffmann-La Roche she was a member of several task forces, as well as research and development committees. Dr. Clarence-Smith is a Fellow of the American Academy of Neurology, a member of the Society for Neuroscience, and a member of the Association Française des Pharmacologistes. She is the current President of the American Society for Experimental NeuroTherapeutics (ASENT), where she also served as President-Elect, Secretary and Chair of the Development Committee.
Amy L. Comstock, Esq., (U.S.) (Steering Committee and Co-chair, Organization and Government Relations Committee) began as Executive Director of the Parkinson Action Network (PAN) on December 8, 2003. Prior to joining PAN, she served as the sixth Director of the U.S. Office of Government Ethics, having accepted the nomination to the Senate-confirmed position in 1999. Prior to her appointment to the Office of Government Ethics, Ms. Comstock was Associate Counsel to the President in the White House Counsel's Office. Ms. Comstock began her federal service as an attorney at the U.S. Department of Education in 1988; she ended her tenure there in 1998 as Assistant General Counsel for Ethics. Ms. Comstock began her professional career at the law firm of Beveridge & Diamond. She received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Bard College and a Juris Doctor degree from the University of Michigan.
Ted M. Dawson, M.D., Ph.D. (U.S.) (Program Committee) is the Leonard Madlyn Professor of Neurodegenerative Diseases in the Departments of Neurology and Neuroscience and the Graduate Program in Cellular & Molecular and the Institute for Cell Engineering at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. He is the Director of the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine's Morris K. Udall Parkinson's Disease Research Center of Excellence and Director of the Neuroregeneration and Repair Program in the Institute for Cell Engineering. Dr. Dawson is world-renowned for his novel contributions on the role of nitric oxide in neuronal injury. He has published over 300 full-length manuscripts and review articles. He is one of the top five cited Neuroscientists in the last decade (see http://www.sciencewatch.com/jan-feb2001/index.html). He has a strong background in neuroanatomy, pharmacology, molecular biology, protein biochemistry, and the use of in vivo and in vitro model systems to study pathogenic mechanisms. Dr. Dawson has won several awards including the Derek Denny-Brown Young Neurological Scholar Award, the Paul Beeson Physician Faculty Scholar Award, the Santiago Grisolia Medal (2001). He was honored in 2000 with the ISI Highly Cited Researcher Award. Many advances in neurobiology of disease have stemmed from Dr. Dawson's identification of the mechanisms of neuronal cell death and the elucidation of the molecular mechanisms of neurodegeneration. He pioneered the role of nitric oxide in neuronal injury in stroke and excitotoxicity and elucidated the molecular mechanisms by which nitric oxide and poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase kills neurons. His studies of nitric oxide led to major insights into the neurotransmitter functions of this gaseous messenger molecule. He co-discovered the neurotrophic properties of non-immunosuppressant immunophilin ligands. Dr. Dawson's discoveries have led to innovative approaches and enhanced the development of new agents to treat neurologic disorders, such as Parkinson's disease and Alzheimer's disease and other neurodegenerative disorders. Due to Dr. Dawson's interest and expertise in PD he was asked to serve on the Program committee.
Ariel Y. Deutch, M.D. (U.S.) (Steering Committee) is Professor of Psychiatry and Pharmacology at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. His broad interests focus on the involvement of central dopamine systems in neuropsychiatric conditions. His major current research efforts revolve around a center that he directs that examines the mechanisms of dendritic plasticity in striatal neurons in Parkinson's disease. Other areas of investigation include novel neuroproteomics (mass spectrometric imaging) studies of the subthalamic nucleus in Parkinson's disease, interactions of dopamine and orexin in the regulation of frontal cortical function, and environmental modification of disease progression in Parkinson's disease. Dr. Deutch is a member of the Scientific Council of NARSAD. In addition to his research activities, Dr. Deutch is involved in teaching and training at both the graduate student and resident level. Because Dr. Deutch is the chair of the Scientific Advisory Board of the National Parkinson Foundation, he was asked to serve on the Steering Committee.
Alessando DiRocco, M.D. (U.S.) (Care Delivery and Quality of Life Committee) Dr. Di Rocco graduated from the University of Genova, Italy, and then completed his residency in Neurology and a fellowship in Movement Disorders and geriatric neurology with Dr. Melvin D. Yahr and Dr. Warren Olanow at Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York. He is currently Associate Professor of Neurology at Albert Einstein College of Medicine. Dr. Di Rocco’s clinical activity in Parkinson's disease emphasizes the team approach and he has been active in promoting the care of Parkinson’s disease in minority and underserved populations and has pioneered programs for family caregivers attending patients with Parkinson’s disease. He is involved in a number of clinical research projects, and his research interest is in the role of trans-methylation in Parkinson's disease and other neurological disorders. He is currently the Principal Investigator of an NIH-funded study on depression and Parkinson’s disease that includes a comparative trial with two antidepressants and an investigational part on the role of homocysteine and other metabolites of the methylation pathway in depression and cognitive abnormalities associated with Parkinson's disease. He is a member of several public and private panels and commissions, and has been recently appointed by the World Federation of Neurology Research Committee on Parkinsonism and Related Disorders to lead an effort to study Parkinson's disease in developing countries.
Mr. Robin Elliott (U.S.) (Steering Committee; Co-chair Organization and Government Relations Committee, and Communications Committee) has been executive director of the Parkinson's Disease Foundation, Inc. since October 1996. Active in development, communications and not-for-profit management in New York City for more than 30 years, he has served variously as vice president for development and external affairs at Teachers College, Columbia University (1988-95) and (with the same title) at Hunter College, The City University of New York (1982-88); as deputy to the Chancellor for University Relations at the City University of New York (1979-82); and as director of information and education at the Planned Parenthood Federation of America (1971-79).
Mr. Elliott grew up in southern England and received his formal education at Bradfield (a preparatory school; 1954-59); Magdalen College, Oxford University (B.A. in philosophy, politics and economics, 1962); and Columbia University (M.A. in American Government and Politics, 1965). He is active in reproductive health and rights (as member of the board of directors of Washington-based Advocates for Youth, an organization he co-founded in 1980) and serves also on the boards of directors of the St. Cecilia Chorus (an oratorio group, to which he contributes a lusty bass-baritone), and Community Health Charities (on both national and New York State levels).
Ms. Marian Emr (U.S.) (Steering Committee and Chair, Communications Committee) is the Director of the Office of Communications and Public Liaison at the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke. As the NINDS' senior manager for public communications, she plans and directs the Institute's program of media relations, community relations, public education, and scientific information. Before joining the NINDS in 1990, Ms. Emr served as the Deputy Information Officer for the National Institute on Aging at the National Institutes of Health. Prior to that, she was a medical and science writer specializing in the areas of mental health and aging. Ms. Emr received her Bachelor of Arts degree summa cum laude in journalism and political science from Syracuse University in 1976. She is a member of the Executive Committee of the Brain Attack Coalition, a member of the NIH MEDLINEplus Advisory Group, and one of the founding fathers of the Alzheimer's Association, a national voluntary health organization with more than 200 chapters worldwide. She has received numerous awards for public service and is active in community affairs.
Ms. Christiana Evers, (U.S.) (Communications Committee) is the Director of Communications at the Parkinson's Disease Foundation (PDF). Before joining PDF in 2004, Ms. Evers served as the Director of Special Projects, Information Services at the National Alliance of Breast Cancer Organizations (NABCO). Ms. Evers received her master's degree in Public Administration with a specialization in Public and Nonprofit Management from the Robert F. Wagner School of Public Service at New York University.
Stanley Fahn, M.D. (U.S.) (Chair, Steering Committee) is the H. Houston Merritt Professor of Neurology and Director of the Center for Parkinson's Disease and Other Movement Disorders at Columbia University Medical Center. He is the Scientific Director of the Parkinson's Disease Foundation. He currently is the immediate Past-President of the American Academy of Neurology (AAN). He founded the Movement Disorder Society and served as the Chairman of its Steering Committee. After its constitution was approved, he was elected its first president. The Movement Disorder Society, an international organization of professionals active in this subspecialty; has honored him by naming one of the two principal lectureships at its annual International Congresses after him. He was the founding co editor of the journal Movement Disorders, and served in this capacity for the first 10 years of the journal's existence, until 1996. He has also served as Associate Editor of Neurology for 10 years. Dr. Fahn has twice served as Chairman of the Advisory Committee on Peripheral and Central Nervous System Drugs for the Food and Drug Administration. He currently serves on an NIH Oversight Committee to review and give advice on clinical trials on neuroprotection for PD. Dr. Fahn and his scientific colleagues at Columbia University were awarded a Morris K. Udall Parkinson's Disease Research Center of Excellence by the National Institutes of Health in 1999, and it is currently ongoing.
Dr. Fahn organized and executed the development of the Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS) and modified and popularized the use of the Schwab England ADL score for global severity of this disease. Both of these rating scores are used world wide, the former to determine the severity of PD, and the latter as a measure of quality of life. He has participated in many clinical trials of a variety of pharmacotherapeutic agents for PD. Along with Dr. Ira Shoulson, Dr. Fahn was a co founder of the Parkinson Study Group (PSG), a consortium of clinical investigators dedicated to conduct controlled clinical trials on the prevention and treatment of Parkinson's disease.
Dr. Fahn has received numerous honors and delivered many titled lectures at a variety of universities around the world. The American Academy of Neurology honored him with the Wartenberg Award for outstanding clinical research in 1986, the First Movement Disorder Prize for outstanding contributions in this field in 1997, and their A. B. Baker Award for outstanding educator in neurology in 1996. The American Neurological Association awarded him the First Soriano Lectureship for excellence in research; the American Parkinson Disease Association, their Fred Springer Prize; and the Blepharospasm Association enrolled him in their Hall Of Fame. NIH selected Dr. Fahn to deliver the 2000 Neurodegeneration Lecture. He received the Srinivasan Award in Chennai, India, in February 2002. In October 2002 he was elected a member of the Institute of Medicine of the U.S. National Academies. In November 2002, he was elected an Honorary Member of the Movement Disorder Society. In October 2003, he was elected an Honorary Member of the American Academy of Neurology. Dr. Fahn has been elected an Honorary Member of several foreign neurological societies: Associacion Colombiana de Neurologia, 1986; Sociedad Español de Neurologia, 1987; "Membre d'honneur à titre étranger" (Foreign Honorary Member) of the Société Française de Neurologie (French Neurological Society), 2002.
Howard J. Federoff, M.D., Ph.D. (U.S.) (Steering Committee and Chair, Program Committee) received his M.D. and Ph.D. degrees from the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York City. Following clinical training in Internal Medicine and Endocrinology and a post-doctoral fellowship in molecular neurobiology at Harvard Medical School's Massachusetts General Hospital he joined the faculty of the Albert Einstein College of Medicine. In 1995, Dr. Federoff founded the Division of Molecular Medicine and Gene Therapy in the Department of Neurology at the University of Rochester School of Medicine. In 1997, he was appointed Director of the University's Neuroscience Program. In 2002, he was appointed Senior Associate Dean for Basic Research. Dr. Federoff has helped to create the field of CNS gene therapy and his own group places particular emphasis on treatments for neurodegenerative diseases. He formed and leads the national consortium "The Parkinson's Disease Gene Therapy Study Group" whose mission is to establish a rigorous basis for moving novel gene therapeutics from preclinical studies to clinical trials. He serves on four editorial boards, has chaired NIH Study Section BDCN 3 and is a member of the Board of Scientific Counselors of NIDCR.
H. Christian Fibiger, Ph.D. (U.S.) (Program Committee) is Vice President and Global Head of Neuroscience at Amgen. He is responsible for Amgen's worldwide Neuroscience discovery efforts ranging from early exploratory research through clinical candidate selection. He is also responsible for evaluating and implementing collaborate efforts, external alliances and licensing agreements in Neuroscience with biotechnology companies and academic institutions.
Dr. Fibiger received his B.Sc. in Chemistry and Psychology from the University of Victoria in 1966 and his Ph.D. in Physiological Psychology from Princeton University in 1970.
Prior to joining Amgen in 2003, Dr. Fibiger served as Vice President of Neuroscience Discovery Research and Clinical Investigation, and LRL Europe at Eli Lilly and Company. Before moving to Lilly in 1998, Dr. Fibiger served as Professor and Head of the Division of Neurological Sciences at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver. He has made major contributions to neuroscience research and is among the top 100 most cited scientists in neuroscience. He is a Fellow of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology (ACNP). He has received numerous honors for his research contributions, including the Clark Institute Prize in Psychiatry, the Heinz Lehmann Award of the Canadian College of Neuropsychopharmacology, the Killam Research Prize, the Gold Medal in Health Sciences from the Science Council of British Columbia and the Tanenbaum Distinguished Scientist Award in Schizophrenia Research.
Dr. Fibiger serves on the editorial boards of ten journals in the field of neuroscience and has been coeditor of Neuropsychopharmacology, the official publication of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology. He has authored or coauthored more than 400 scientific papers focused mainly on the neurobiological substrates of Alzheimer's disease, schizophrenia, depression and drug abuse. Dr. Fibiger has served on numerous national and international scientific advisory boards including the National Institute of Mental Health (USA), the Canadian Psychiatric Research Foundation (Canada), the Medical Research Council (Canada), the Human Frontiers Science Program (International), and the National Alliance for Research on Schizophrenia and Affective Disorders (USA).
Leslie Findley, Ph.D.(U.K.) (Care Delivery and Quality of Life Committee) Since 1981 Professor Findley has been consultant neurologist at the Essex Neurosciences Unit, Old Church Hospital and is currently Chairman of the Neurosciences Board. He is Professor of Health Sciences (Neurology) at London University - South Bank.
Karl Friedl, M.D. (U.S.) (Program Committee)
Medical Service Corps, holds a Ph.D. in Physiology from the University of California at Santa Barbara. His early research on steroid hormones and responses to military stressors at the Department of Clinical Investigation, Madigan Army Medical Center, in Tacoma, Washington, was followed by research on body composition and nutrition at the United States Army Research Institute of Environmental Medicine, in Natick, Massachusetts. Beginning in 1993, he served as a staff officer in the Army Systems Hazards Research Program, eventually becoming the Research Area Director (RAD) for the Military Operational Medicine (MOM) Research Program, at the United States Army Medical Research and Materiel Command, Fort Detrick, Maryland. As the RAD, he established a coordinated plan of biomedical research on protection and enhancement of the Soldier, instituted program-level external scientific review of all MOM research, and expanded inter-service cooperation and collaborative projects with other federal agencies including the Department of Veteran’s Affairs, National Institutes of Health, National Aeronautics and Space Agency, and the United States Department of Agriculture. As the RAD, COL Friedl was responsible for management of greater than one billion dollars of research funding. COL Friedl assumed command of the U.S. Army Research Institute of Environmental Medicine, the lead laboratory for Military Operational Medicine research, in August 2003. He has published over 100 papers including 57 original reports, 18 book chapters, and other reviews and technical reports. COL Friedl received recognition from members of Congress for his work on Gulf War Illnesses research and the Parkinson’s disease related research program: the Neurotoxin Exposure Treatment Research Program.
Steven Frucht, M.D. (U.S.) (Creativity and Parkinson’s Subcommittee) – no bio
Oscar Gershanik, M.D. (Argentina) (Care Delivery and Quality of Life Committee) is presently Professor of Neurology at the University of Buenos Aires, Medical School. He is also Chairman of the Department of Neurology at the French Hospital in Buenos Aires, and Director of the Post-graduate Training Program in Neurology at the University of Buenos Aires. In addition he is Director of the Laboratory of Experimental Parkinsonism at the Institute of Pharmacological Research of the Argentine Research Council of Science and Technology. His clinical and basic research group has been designated a “ Center of Excellence” by the National Parkinson Foundation ( Miami, Fla., USA).
Prof. Gershanik graduated with honors as an MD in 1972 from the University of Buenos Aires Medical School. He trained in Neurology at the French Hospital in Buenos Aires under Professor A. Thomson. He obtained his Certificate in Adult Neurology from the Argentine Ministry of Health in 1979.
From 1978 to 1979 he was a visiting research fellow in the Department of Neurology, Mt. Sinai School of Medicine, New York under Dr. Melvin D. Yahr, and from 1981 to 1982 he returned to the USA this time as Visiting Associate Professor of Neurology in the Department of Neurology, University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey, Rutgers Medical School working under Dr. Roger C. Duvoisin. Upon his return to Argentina he was appointed Section Chief in the Extrapyramidal Diseases Section of the Department of Neurology, French Hospital Buenos Aires, a position he held until becoming Chairman of the Department in 2003.
Prof. Gershanik’s research interests have always been related to the field of Parkinson’s disease and movement disorders, with special emphasis in early-onset PD, drug-induced movement disorders and in later years in Tourette’s syndrome. His contributions in basic research have been focused on dopamine receptor pharmacology, dopamine receptor interactions, and the role of the different subtypes of dopamine receptors in the control of motor behavior in animal models of PD. His research has also contributed to dispel the concept of “in vivo” levodopa toxicity and is presently oriented to explore the expression of genes related to trophism and plasticity by this drug.
Prof. Gershanik actively participates in medical societies, having served in the International Executive Committee of the Movement Disorder Society. He is a member of the Research Committee on Extrapyramidal Disorders of the World Federation of Neurology. He also serves in the Physician Advisory Boards of WE MOVE and the International Tremor Foundation.
Nir Giladi, M.D. (Israel) (Care Delivery and Quality of Life SubCommittee) – no bio
Gladys González-Ramos, Ph.D. (U.S.) (Care Delivery and Quality of Life Committee) is Associate Professor at New York University School of Social Work, and Adjunct Associate Professor of Neurology at the New York University School of Medicine. She received her Masters and Doctoral degrees in Clinical Social Work from NYU. Dr. Gonzalez-Ramos has worked in the field of mental health for over twenty-five years. She has been particularly interested in access to care and developing community- based services for diverse families. Her primary areas of research and publications have been in the provision of culturally-competent services.
For the past several years, Dr. González-Ramos has been working closely with The National Parkinson Foundation, particularly in the areas of service delivery to persons and family caregivers from culturally diverse backgrounds affected by Parkinson disease. Through her work with NPF, she has helped develop several grant funded programs to create nationally-based model educational and care initiatives that are responsive to underserved persons affected by Parkinson disease and that train the allied health professionals who provide care. She helped to develop and is on the social work faculty of the Allied Team Training for Parkinson program, an interdisciplinary model training program for allied health professionals working with persons affected by Parkinson's disease. She is also Co-director of the Community Partners for Parkinson Care, health promotion and community outreach program designed to partner with communities to improve access to Parkinson care.
Peter Hagell, R.N., Ph.D. (Sweden) (Care Delivery and Quality of Life Committee)is associate professor at the Department of Nursing, Faculty of Medicine, Lund University, Lund, Sweden. Dr. Hagell has a clinical background as a neuroscience nurse and subspecialized in movement disorders. He received his Ph.D. (doctor of medical science, in the field of neurology) from the Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Faculty of Medicine, Lund University, Lund, Sweden. His scientific background involves the study of graft effects and function in cell replacement therapy for Parkinson's disease. Current scientific interest and activities are focused on measuring and understanding outcomes in Parkinson’s disease, and involves development, application and evaluation of health economic, clinician- and patient-reported outcome measures, with an emphasis on methodological aspects such as measurement validity and interpretation. Dr. Hagell is the current scientific chair and vice president of the Word Federation of Neuroscience Nurses (WFNN), and has served on several editorial, organizing and scientific committees as well as in leadership positions of professional organizations. Dr. Hagell has received several awards, including the Swedish Parkinson's Disease Association’s Bronze Medal of Honor, and the WFNN Agnes Marshall Research Award.
Ruth Hagestuen, RN (U.S.) (Steering Committee and Chair of the Program Subcommittee for Care-givers and Patients) is Director of Field Services for the National Parkinson Foundation. She plans, coordinates and directs the delivery of program services to the Parkinson community through their network of Centers of Excellence, Care Centers, Outreach Centers, Chapters, and support groups. She is director of the Allied Team Training for Parkinson's (ATTP) program, a program designed to train allied health care professionals and teams to provide state of the art, culturally competent, interdisciplinary care in Parkinson's disease, and is co-director of the Community Partners Program, a program designed to address health care disparities in the Parkinson community.
Ruth has lived and worked for about 13 years as a nurse and collaborator in developing health care programs first in Madagascar and then in Bangladesh. Her work with Parkinson's disease began in 1987. Ruth has extensive clinical experience as an RN working on an interdisciplinary team dedicated to the care of persons with Parkinson's and has been active through the years in the development of support services and comprehensive care programs designed to serve people with Parkinson's and their families. Her passion continues to be that of collaborating to improve healthcare strategies designed to meet needs of people whose lives are affected by Parkinson's disease as they strive to achieve maximum quality of life.
David Hardesty, MD (US) is a neurologist at Columbia University Medical Center (CUMC), where he completed a movement disorders fellowship under Dr. Stanley Fahn. He is currently a research fellow studying emotional and behavioral complications of Parkinson's disease (PD), and recently began a study to examine the effects of deep brain stimulation (DBS) on mood and thought in patients with PD. Outside interests include music and life in NYC.
Marti Haykin, M.D. (U.S.) (Creativity and Parkinson’s Subcommittee) received her undergraduate degree in mathematics from the University of Virginia and her master of fine arts degree in printmaking from Indiana University. She taught studio art at Georgia College and State University in Milledgeville, Georgia for five years before attending medical school. She received her MD degree from the Medical College of Georgia and will soon complete her residency in neurology at Yale University.
Franz F. Hefti, Ph.D. (U.S.) (Steering Committee) is responsible for the development of several drug candidates for neurodegenerative diseases at Rinat Neuroscience Corporation, a young biotech company in California specializing on neurodegenerative diseases. Before joining Rinat as Executive Vice President, Drug Development, Dr. Hefti was Senior Vice President of Neuroscience Research at Merck & Co. for eight years, where he coordinated the company's neuroscience research worldwide, serving as site head for the company's neuroscience research centers in the U.K. and San Diego. Prior to Merck, Dr. Hefti was a Director of Neuroscience Research at Genentech for two years, where he supported the development of NGF and other neurotrophic factors for diabetic neuropathy that were in Phase II development and as well as drugs for chemotherapy-induced neuropathy, multiple sclerosis and Alzheimer's. He spent nine years in academia as Professor at the University of Southern California and Associate Professor at the University of Miami School of Medicine and Research Scholar of the National Parkinson Foundation. Research during these years generated seminal discoveries for neurotrophic factor therapy of Parkinson's and other neurodegenerative diseases. Dr. Hefti received his Ph.D. from the University of Zurich and did his postdoctoral research at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the Max Planck Institute for Psychiatry in Munich.
Peter Heutink, Ph.D. (The Netherlands) (Program Committee) has been trained as a molecular biologist at the University of Amsterdam and started his Ph.D. project in 1988 at the Erasmus University in Rotterdam, The Netherlands were he worked with Doctors Oostra and Sandkuijl on developing strategies for the mapping of genetic risk factors for complex diseases. After receiving his Ph.D. Dr. Heutink started his own research group and worked on numerous gene mapping and identification studies at the department of Clinical Genetics of the Erasmus University. Over the years he located many disease genes, and by positional cloning strategies identified pathogenic mutations in genes for frontal temporal dementia, hereditary hemochromatosis, benign hereditary chorea, autosomal dominant ataxia and early onset Parkinson’s disease.
In 2003 Dr. Heutink moved to the VU University Medical Center in Amsterdam were he became the head of the newly founded section of Medical Genomics of the Department of Human Genetics. The main line of research is to identify and characterize genetic risk factors for complex neurological disorders, for neurodegenerative disorders such as dementia and parkinsonism but also for behavioral traits such as attention and depression.
Dr. Heutink is the director of the Center of Integrated Genomics of the VU University and coordinator of Epidemiology for the national center of excellence: The Center for Medical Systems Biology (CMSB).
Etienne Hirsch, M.D., (France) (Program Committee) is a neurobiologist involved in research on Parkinson's disease and related disorders. He obtained his PhD in 1988 from the University of Paris VI (Pierre et Marie Curie) and is currently the chairman of the INERM Unit 289 " Experimental neurology and therapeutics " at Pitié-Salpêtrière hospital in Paris. His work is aimed at understanding the cause of neuronal degeneration in Parkinson's disease and is focused on the role of the glial cells, the inflammatory cytokines and apoptosis but also on the consequences of neuronal degeneration in the circuitries downstream to the lesions.
Currently, he is chairing the neuroscience section at INSERM (French NIH) and is the Chairman of the scientific committee of the Association France Parkinson (patient association).
Robert Iansek, Ph.d., FRACP, (Australia) (Care Delivery and Quality of Life Committee) is Professor of Geriatric Neurology at Monash University in Melbourne, and Director of the Victorian Comprehensive Parkinson Program (VCPP) as well as Director of Geriatric Research Unit at the Kingston Centre in Melbourne.
He is a Neurologist by training and has over 25 years neurophysiological research experience, having published over 150 articles, books and videos. His main research interests concern basal ganglia function and malfunction in Parkinson’s disease.
Professor Iansek has used this research knowledge to develop and utilize a specific rehabilitation program for people with Parkinson's disease. The rehabilitation approach is combined with multi disciplinary teams and applied in a holistic manner to revolutionize treatment by providing a lifelong tailored approach to management of people with Parkinson’s. The program is currently administered through two public hospitals, three private hospitals, with five multi disciplinary clinics, 30 inpatient beds and a community based caregiver support service in the South Eastern region of Melbourne. Telehealth complements the service by providing the same program, at a distance, to numerous country locations around Victoria and interstate. The program has now been running for ten years and is responsible for approximately 5,000 patients.
The program is scientifically based and specifically tailored to people with Parkinson’s. It is clinically effective and provides substantial cost savings to the health dollar. Rehabilitation is utilized with medical and surgical treatment to optimize functional difficulties commonly experienced in everyday life, which threatens independence and quality of life. Rehabilitation strategies are as effective as medication in reversing the symptoms of Parkinson’s.
Professor Iansek is currently the President of the Asian & Pacific Parkinson’s disease Association and will be hosting the 5th International Symposium on Parkinson’s disease in Melbourne 2005.
He is also on the Editorial Board of the Movement Disorder Journal and serves on the Education and Membership Committees of the International Movement Disorder Society.
Russell Katz, M.D. (Program Committee) received his Bachelor's Degree in Mathematics from Queens
College, New York, in 1975. He graduated from the Albert Einstein College of
Medicine in New York in 1977 and did a General Surgery Internship and 2 years of
a Neurological Surgery Residency, followed by 2 years of a Neurology Residency.
He started at the FDA in 1983 as a medical reviewer in the Neuropharmacology
Division, and became Deputy Director of that division about 2-3 years later.
He was acting director of the division from January 1999 to November 1999, after
which he was appointed Director, a position which he holds presently.
Annette Kirshner, Ph.D. (U.S.) (Program Committee) is a program administrator of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS).
Isobel Robins Konecky (US) (Creativity and Parkinson’s Subcommittee) has served on the Parkinson’s Disease Foundation Board of Directors for many years. She is President of New Dramatists, a member of the Literary League of American Theaters and Producers, and—in her spare time—has produced five shows on Broadway! .
Allan Kroland, DC, (U.S.) (Program Care Delivery and Quality of Life Subcommittee)
Dr. Kroland has been in health care for more than 25 years and has focused on empowering others to live healthy and happy lives. Dr. Kroland has drawn from many formal and informal sources to aid in the education and support of patients. Now, challenged with Parkinson’s disease himself, his unique background and personality encourage People Living With Parkinson’s and their care partners to lead healthy lifestyles and become proactive in the fight for a cure for PD.
Dr. Kroland has an undergraduate degree in Psychology, and in 1983 earned his Doctor of Chiropractic degree. In private practice he incorporated both nutrition, exercise and lifestyle change to help patients with both physical and psychological pain.
In addition to speaking with PD support groups around the U.S., Dr. Kroland was a member of the planning committee for the National Parkinson Foundation (NPF)-Young Onset Parkinson Network second annual conference and also spoke at the 2004 event in Minneapolis on complimentary medicine. He has been a featured guest on television and radio talk shows in the Southeast and the Midwest and is currently a member of the volunteer advisory panel for complimentary and alternative medicine with NPF, as well as a member of the American Public Health Association.
Dr. Kroland has spoken with thousands of people about health care concerns and has discovered a common theme: people are not satisfied with their state of health and energy. Dr. Kroland’s philosophy is while waiting for a cure…stay as vital and healthy as you possibly can.
J. William Langston, M.D. (U.S.) (Steering Committee) is the Scientific Director, Chief Operating Officer, and Founder of the Parkinson's Institute in Sunnyvale, California. A graduate of the University of Missouri School of Medicine, he served as a faculty member at Stanford University and Chairman of Neurology at Santa Clara Valley Medical Center in San Jose, California, before founding the Parkinson's Institute. He is internationally recognized for the discovery of the link between a chemical known as MPTP and parkinsonism, which has provided a new tool to study Parkinson's disease and which also stimulated great interest in the possibility that environmental factors may play a role in causing the disease. His current research interests include the study of mechanisms of neuronal degeneration, the etiology of Parkinson's disease, and the development of new strategies to slow or halt disease progression. Dr. Langston published 300 papers on Parkinson's disease and related disorders and has received many awards for his work, the most recent of which was the Movement Disorders Research Award from the American Academy of Neurology. Dr. Langston serves on numerous editorial boards and advisory committees, and is also Chief Scientific Advisor for Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Disease Research. He is also a devoted father, soccer coach, and skier.
Cindy Lawler, Ph.D. (U.S.) (Program Committee) is a scientific program director at the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), one of the components of the National Institutes of Health. Dr. Lawler manages a portfolio of extramural grants focused on the potential role of environmental agents in Parkinson's disease. She was instrumental in developing and launching a novel Parkinson's disease research initiative, the NIEHS Collaborative Centers for Parkinson's Disease Environmental Research (CCPDER) Program. This Program seeks to strengthen the integrative collaboration among scientists engaged in fundamental laboratory research in PD and geneticists, clinicians and epidemiologists, allowing leads uncovered in one area to be pursued quickly in others. The centerpiece of the CCPDER Program is a highly interactive national network of three research Centers that function to share data and resources and engage in the planning and conduct of collaborative studies relevant to environmental factor causation in PD. Prior to joining the NIH in 2001, Dr. Lawler was a faculty member in the Neuroscience Center at UNC Chapel Hill, where she conducted research dopamine receptor signaling, including research to develop novel compounds for the treatment of PD and other dopaminergic disorders.
Dr. Lawler is a valuable addition to the Program Committee of the WPC in light of her expertise in the emerging area of gene-environment interactions in PD.
Andrew Lees, M.D., FRCP (U.K.) (Steering Committee) is Director of the Reta Lila Weston Institute of Neurological Studies at the University College London, and Professor of Neurology at the National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery, Queen Square, London. He is Director of the Queen Square Brain Bank for Neurological Disorders and the Sara Koe PSP Research Centre. He is President-Elect of the Movement Disorder Society, and Co-Editor-in-Chief of the Movements Disorders Journal. Professor Lees resurrected the use of subcutaneous apomorphine as an effective treatment for late stage Parkinson's, and has written a biography on Ray Kennedy, the former England football player who tragically developed Parkinson's disease at the age of 35. He is an Appeal Steward to the British Boxing Board of Control, author of the monograph "Tics and Related Disorders", and Co-author of "Parkinson's Disease, The Facts". He is Chairman of the Medical Advisory Panel of the PSP (Association) Europe and an advisor to the UK Medical Research Council. He is a visiting Professor to Universidade Federal de Ceara, Fortaleza, Brazil. He has published more than 300 original scientific publications on movement disorders and is recognized as a Highly Cited Researcher on the ISI "Highly Cited Researchers" database.
Arlene Levine (US) (Creativity and Parkinson’s Subcommittee) is a graduate of New York Univeristy and earned a Master’s in Business Administration from Fordham University. She has participated in numerous leadership positions in Scarsdale community life; Girl Scouts, PTA, and the Scarsdale School Board Nominating Committee, the League of Women Voters, and the Girl Scouts, to name a few. She has been on the Board of Scarsdale Family Counseling and the Westchester Fund for Women and Girls. She is currently Co-Chairing the Grants Award Breakfast for the Westchester Fund for Women and Girls.
Ann Loeb (US) (Creativity and Parkinson’s Subcommittee) is the Development Consultant at the Parkinson’s Disease Foundation and has worked in development with major donors for over twenty years. Her career history also includes work with an arts center as well as a museum. And she maintains her interest in the arts through her own painting, ceramics and crafts. She is also currently also on the Board of Directors of the New York Textile Study Group.
Sheree Loftus (US) (Creativity and Parkinson’s Subcommittee) is an advanced practice nurse, certified in gerontology by the American Nurses Association and in physical rehabilitation by the Association of Rehabilitation Nurses. She earned her Bachelor of Science in Biology and Nursing at Worcester State College and a Master of Science in Nursing at Anna Maria College in Paxton, MA. She completed the Consortium in Gerontology Studies Program at the University of Massachusetts Medical School, and continued her education at Cornell Medical College in New York City, obtaining certification as a Gerontological Nurse Practitioner. Ms. Loftus is recognized as a Parkinson disease educator, author and researcher. She has worked for the Parkinson Disease Foundation, the American Parkinson Disease Association and the National Parkinson Foundation. She served as an investigator in the DATATOP and Pallidotomy studies. Ms. Loftus also developed the consortium for complementary and alternative medicine for Parkinson’s (CCAMP). She has lectured extensively nationally and internationally, and has published articles on complementary care for Parkinson’s, and a wide variety of Parkinson care related topics.
Col. Brian Lukey, Ph.D., (U.S.) (Program Committee) has served 19 year in the Medical Service Corps as a toxicologist. He received a Bachelor of Science in Biology (1980) from Northern Kentucky University, a Master of Science in Pharmacology (1983) and a Doctorate of Philosophy in Toxicology (1985) at the University, and a Master of Science Administration at Central Michigan University (1990). He has been board certified by the American Board of Toxicology since 1993. His assignments include PI at US Army Medical Research Institute of Chemical Defense, Aberdeen PG, MD; Chief of Certification Division, Wiesbaden Forensic Toxicology Drug Testing Laboratory, Germany; Chief of the Laboratory Quality Management Division, Center for Health Promotion and preventative Medicine, Aberdeen PG, MD; Commander of the Tripler Forensic Toxicology Drug Testing Laboratory, Oahu, Hawaii; Chief of Drug Assessment Division, Army Medical Research Institute of Chemical Defense Aberdeen PG, MD. Currently he is assigned as Director, Military Operational Medicine Research Program, U.S Army Medical Research Materiel Command, Ft Detrick, MD. He has published 21 manuscripts, 5 technical reports, 15 abstracts, 1 patent.
Melanie Maar (Austria) is a professional contemporary dancer and choreographer. She is originally from Vienna, Austria where she started her career under the guidance of her mother, a professional Flamenco dancer and teacher. Ms Maar's father, Herbert Maar has been afflicted with Parkinson’s disease for the past 25 years. In 2003 she created a dance inspired by the movements and inner states of the disease that was part of her life growing up. "On and Off" was premiered at the European Parkinson’s Disease Association Congress in Lisbon, Portugal in 2003, where her father was part of the audience for the first time. Since then this piece has been presented in Oslo, Berlin and Vienna, to a variety of audiences, including Neurologists, patients, care takers as well as the New York art audience.
She continues to search for artistic expressions in connection with the body language of patients and how movement affects their lives and symptoms. Ms. Maar will perform this piece at the opening ceremony of the WPC in Washington, DC. She has been living and dancing in New York for the past nine years and is also a certified Yoga instructor and Thai Yoga Massage Therapist. Contact is welcome: mmaar@hotmail.com
Laura Marsh, MD (US) (Creativity and Parkinson’s Subcommittee) is Associate Professor of Psychiatry and Neurology at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore, Maryland. Dr. Marsh is a member of the Division of Psychiatric Neuroimaging in the Department of Psychiatry and an Attending Psychiatrist in the Geriatric Psychiatry and Neuropsychiatry Division at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. She is also Director and Principal Investigator of the Clinical Research Program of the Morris K. Udall Parkinson's Disease Research Center of Excellence at Johns Hopkins.
After completing her undergraduate degree at Oberlin College in Oberlin, Ohio, Dr. Marsh was a Thomas J. Watson Fellow and then earned her medical degree at The Ohio State University College of Medicine in Columbus. She completed an internship in Internal Medicine and a residency in Psychiatry at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, with additional training in Neuropsychiatry at the Institute of Psychiatry in London, England. Dr. Marsh completed fellowship training in neuroimaging, schizophrenia, and neuropsychiatry research at the National Institute of Mental Health in Washington, DC, and at Stanford University School of Medicine in Palo Alto, California. She was an Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychiatry at Stanford University School of Medicine before becoming a member of the Johns Hopkins faculty in 1998.
Dr. Marsh’s clinical and academic research interests focus on neuropsychiatry and she has specific expertise in the psychiatric aspects of Parkinson’s disease. Her primary research and outreach efforts are aimed at improving the recognition and treatment of psychiatric and cognitive disturbances in Parkinson’s disease. Dr. Marsh is a member of multiple professional societies, including the American Association of Geriatric Psychiatry, the Movement Disorders Society, and the Parkinson’s Study Group. She has been published in over 60 publications, and is co-editor of the book, Psychiatric Issues in Parkinson’s Disease – A Practical Guide, which will be available in Fall, 2005.
Ms. Dana MacNaughton (U.S.) (Communications Committee) joined the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research as communications manager in July 2004. Prior to joining the Foundation, she spent more than seven years as a public relations professional in the health care sector, representing clients including Pfizer, Novartis and Amgen. Most recently she was employed by Chandler Chicco Agency, a privately-held public relations firm in New York City where she directed and implemented various disease awareness campaigns and pharmaceutical product approvals. Ms. MacNaughton holds a B.A. in journalism from Washington & Lee University.
Ronald McKay, Ph.D. (U.S.) (Program Committee) is chief of the Laboratory of Molecular Biology in the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke. He previously held positions at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, NY. He has made contributions to the fields of molecular biology and neuroscience. His recent work has focused on the stem cells of the nervous system. In a 1988 paper, he provided the first clear proof that these precursors could be identified. His subsequent studies have generated a series of important insights into the properties of stem cells in the developing and adult nervous systems. His group is particularly focused on developing new technologies to understand the development, function and survival of neurons. McKay's work has also influenced strategies for cell- and gene-based therapies for central nervous system disease. The work of his group at the NIH has led the interest in new stem cell based approaches to degenerative diseases of the nervous system. The pioneering quality of this work is recognized around the world and McKay is the 2004 recipient of the Schering Foundation Prize in Biology.
Yoshikuni Mizuno, M.D. (Japan) (Steering Committee) is the Professor and Chairman of the Department of Neurology at Jutendo University in Tokyo, Japan. Dr. Mizuno received his MD degree from the University of Tokyo School of Medicine in 1965. Dr. Mizuno completed his residency training at the Department of Neurology, Northwestern University Medical Center, Chicago, USA. He returned to Japan as Assistant Professor of Neurology at the Jichi Medical School, Tochigi in 1973 and was appointed Professor of Neurology at the Juntendo University School of Medicine in 1989. Dr. Mizuno has published more than 200 original articles on Parkinson's disease and related disorders and is particularly interested in the etiology and pathogenesis of Parkinson's disease. His research led to the discovery of the Parkin gene. Dr. Mizuno is on the Editorial Board of international journals including Movement Disorders, Parkinsonism and Related Disorders, and Journal of Neural Transmission.
Diane Murphy, Ph.D (U.S.) (Steering Committee) received her bachelor's degree in biological sciences, after which she received a Ph.D. in anatomy and physiology at the University of Delaware. She received postdoctoral training as a research fellow in the analytical microscopy laboratories of Drs. Tom Reese and Brian Andrews in the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke Intramural research program. There, using light, confocal, and electron microscopy, she focused on studies of the cell biology of neurons and their functional and morphological properties as related to neuronal growth and plasticity. Dr. Murphy then studied at the University of Pennsylvania in the laboratories of Drs. John Trojanowski and Virginia Lee, where she focused on molecular and cell biological studies of alpha synuclein and presinilin. Dr. Murphy is currently a program director in the Neurodegeneration Group at the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, where she has primary responsibility for the coordination and management of the Parkinson's portfolio. She is particularly interested in the cell biology of neurodegenerative diseases: in how synaptic loss contributes to cell death and degeneration, and how the discovery of mutated proteins and understanding their normal and abnormal neuronal functions give insight into the disease process to reveal strategies for potential therapeutic interventions.
C. Warren Olanow, M.D. (U.S.) (Steering Committee and Chair, Finance Committee) is the Henry P. and Georgette Goldschmidt Professor and Chairman of the Department of Neurology at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York City and Chief of the Neurology Service at the Mount Sinai Hospital. He received his medical degree from the University of Toronto, performed his neurology training at the New York Neurological Institute at Columbia University, and did post-graduate studies in neuroanatomy at Columbia University. He served on the faculties of McGill University, Duke University, and the University of South Florida prior to assuming his present position. Dr. Olanow has authored more than 300 publications primarily related to Parkinson's disease and neurodegeneration. He is currently President of the Movement Disorder Society and Treasurer of the American Neurological Association. He has served on numerous editorial and scientific advisory boards and has lectured at Universities and Conferences throughout the world.
Gianni Pezzoli, M.D. (Italy) (Steering Committee) was born in 1951 in Codogno, Italy, has been a neurologist since 1979 with research training at Colombia University, New York under Dr. Stanley Fahn, which was a decisional factor in specializing in Parkinson Disease and Movement Disorders. His long career presently finds him as Director of the largest Parkinson Disease and Movement Disorders Center, Istituti Clinici di Perfezionamento, in Milan, Italy, with over 10,000 patients. President of the Italian Parkinson Disease Association and Grigioni Foundation for Parkinson Disease and member of several neurological organizations such as American Academy of Neurology, Movement Disorders Society, one of the original founders and actual Scientific Coordinator of the World Parkinson Disease Association, etc. This past and present direct contact with so many Parkinson disease patients led to an invitation to be a WPC Committee member.
Creighton H. Phelps Ph.D. (U.S.) (Program Committee) Born in Ohio in 1940, Dr. Phelps received his Ph.D. in Neuroanatomy from the University of Michigan in 1967. After post-doctoral research training at University College, London, he was a faculty member at the University of Connecticut Health Center in Farmington, Connecticut, and subsequently, Wright State University School of Medicine in Dayton, Ohio. In both positions he conducted research on brain ultrastructure and neuron-glial interactions. He was also the course director for integrated neuroscience teaching programs and administered a Ph.D. training program in the biomedical sciences. In 1985, Dr. Phelps joined the staff of the National Institute on Aging (NIA) as Executive Secretary to the Aging Review Committee where he coordinated the review of program project research grant applications related to the neurobiology of aging and Alzheimer's disease and other neurodegenerative diseases. In 1987, he joined the Neuroscience and Neuropsychology of Aging Program at the NIA where he was Program Director in charge of neurobiology and neuroplasticity. Dr. Phelps joined the national office of the Alzheimer's Association in Chicago, Illinois as Vice President for Medical and Scientific Affairs in 1989 and became Senior Vice President in 1991. In that position he directed the research grant program, served as a spokesperson for AD research to the lay public and the scientific community, and helped to set the scientific policies of the Association. In 1992, Dr. Phelps returned to NIH and the National Institute on Aging where he directs the Alzheimer's Disease Centers Program which funds research centers at 29 major U.S. Medical Schools. He is also the Project Officer for the National Alzheimer's Coordinating Center and the National Cell Repository for Alzheimer's Disease. Dr. Phelps serves on the NINDS Parkinson's Disease Coordinating Committee.
Zvezdan Pirtosek, M.D. (Slovenia) (Care Delivery and Quality of Life Committee) is the Head of the Centre for Extrapyramidal Disorders at the University Clinical Centre of Ljubljana and Associate Professor in Neurology at the Ljubljana Medical and Psychology Faculty, Slovenia. Following his clinical training in Clinical Neurology he continued his postgraduate training in movement disorders at the National Hospital for Neurology Queen Square London (1987 – 1993). He formed Slovenian Society for Parkinson's Disease and is an active member of the Medical Board of EPDA (European Parkinson's Disease Association). He participates in teaching courses of the EFNS (European Federation of Neurological Societies) and is a founding member of the Alpine Basal Ganglia Club. Currently he is the Chairman of the scientific committee of the Slovenian Parkinson Association. Dr. Pirtosek's research has focused on the fields of cognitive neurology, cognitive neurophysiology and movement disorders.
Werner Poewe, M.D. ( Austria) (Finance Committee) is a Professor of Neurology and the Director of the Department of Neurology at Innsbruck Medical University in Innsbruck, Austria.
He held a Residency in Clinical Neurology and Psychiatry at the University of Innsbruck, Austria from 1977 to 1984. Following this position, Professor Poewe was a British Council Research Fellow at University College and Middlesex Hospital Medical School, London. From 1986-1989, he was a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Neurology at the University of Innsbruck, Austria. This position was directly followed by four years where he served as Professor of Neurology and Acting Director of the Department of Neurology at the Virchow Hospital of the Free University of Berlin.
His main research interests are in the field of movement disorders with particular emphasis on the clinical pharmacology of Parkinson’s disease and dystonia. He served as President of the International Movement Disorder Society from 2000 trough 2002, as President of the Austrian Society of Neurology from 2002 to 2004 and is the current President of the Austrian PD Society.
Michael Pourfar, M.D. (U.S.) (Creativity and Parkinson’s Subcommittee) – no bio
Serge Przedborski, MD, PhD, (U.S.) (Program Committee) is a Professor of Neurology and Pathology and on the faculty of the Center for Neurobiology and Behavior at Columbia University. He has dedicated his research efforts to elucidating the mechanisms by which neurons die in experimental animal models of neurodegenerative disorders, especially Parkinson's disease (PD). His laboratory proposes that the demise of neurons in PD results not from the action of a single deleterious factor, but rather from the concerted effects of multiple noxious events. Most significantly, these events include energy crisis and oxidative stress, and, while responsible for the death of some neurons, these perturbations are actually responsible for the activation of other intracellular molecular pathways such as Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK), cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2), and apoptosis. Only then, under the effects of these true cell executioners, are the neurons dying. In addition, studies emanating from his laboratory suggest that while the neurodegenerative process evolves in PD, indices (including the activation of pro-inflammatory enzymes such as inducible nitric oxide synthase, NADPH-oxidase, and myeloperoxidase) of neuroinflammation develop. His laboratory has demonstrated that these activations do increase the amount of stress to which the neighboring compromised neurons are subjected, thereby promoting their demise. This important fact was demonstrated by blocking the activation of neuroinflammation, by blocking specific neuroinflammatory mediators, and by using vaccination strategies to modify the behavior of neuroinflammatory cells from being deleterious to being beneficial. This complex cascade of cellular and molecular events integrates many of the main discoveries accomplished over the past two decades and offers a host of appealing targets for the development of effective neuroprotective therapies for PD.
Elizabeth Schaaf (US) (Creativity and Parkinson’s Subcommittee) is the Coordinator of the NJ American Parkinson Disease Information and Referral Center at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital. She is also the Coordinator of the Community Education Department at RWJUH. She has a Bachelors of Science in Health Education & Gerontology from Richard Stockton College of NJ and a Masters in Business Administration with a concentration in Health Care Administration from Eastern University in St. Davids, PA.
As the Coordinator of the NJ APDA Information and Referral Center, Elizabeth assists people with Parkinson’s disease and their families in finding specialists, community resources, support groups, information on the disease and organizes monthly and annual educational events on Parkinson’s disease for people with PD, their families and healthcare professionals. She also facilitates two monthly support groups for patients and caregivers. In 2005, the center designed an Art of Living Well with Parkinson’s calendar highlighting artists with Parkinson’s disease. In April 2005, she also organized a gallery show showcasing these artists’ works.
Ira Shoulson, M.D., (U.S.) (Steering Committee) is the Louis C. Lasagna Professor of Experimental Therapeutics and Professor of Neurology, Pharmacology and Medicine at the University of Rochester School of Medicine in Rochester, New York. He received his MD degree (1971) and postdoctoral training in medicine (1971-73) and neurology (1975-77) at the University of Rochester and in experimental therapeutics at the National Institutes of Health (1973-75). Dr. Shoulson founded the Parkinson Study Group (1985) and the Huntington Study Group (1994), international academic consortia devoted to research and development of treatments for Parkinson's disease, Huntington's disease and related neurodegenerative and neurogenetic disorders. He has served as principal investigator of the National Institutes of Health-sponsored trials "Deprenyl and Tocopherol Antioxidative Therapy of Parkinsonism" (DATATOP), the "Prospective Huntington At Risk Observational Study" (PHAROS), and more than 25 other multi-center controlled trials. He is the Director of the Experimental Therapeutics Program at the University of Rochester Department of Neurology, the chair of the executive committees of the Huntington Study Group and the Parkinson Study Group, an associate editor of Archives of Neurology, a member of the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke Council, a consultant for the Food and Drug Administration, and the immediate past-president of the American Society for Experimental NeuroTherapeutics (ASENT). He has authored more than 200 scientific reports.
Lisa Shulman, M.D. (U.S.) (Care Delivery and Quality of Life Committee) is a neurologist specializing in Parkinson's Disease and other Movement Disorders. In addition to neurology, her diverse background includes training in nursing, education and health policy. She is currently Associate Professor of Neurology and Co-Director of the Maryland Parkinson's Disease and Movement Disorders Center at the University of Maryland School of Medicine. Dr. Shulman is the endowed Rosalyn Newman Distinguished Scholar in Parkinson's Disease.
Dr. Shulman's major research interest is the evaluation of the impact of chronic disease and the development and testing of interventions to prevent disability and improve quality of life. Related interests include neurobehavioral problems in movement disorders and women's health issues in Parkinson's disease, She is Principal Investigator of the Parkinson Study Group's POETRY and POEMS clinical trials, studies of estrogen's effects in postmenopausal women with Parkinson's disease. Dr Shulman is co-author of the reference book, Parkinson's Disease: A Complete Guide for Patients and Families.
During a health policy fellowship (1999-2000) sponsored by the American Academy of Neurology, American Neurological Association and Child Neurology Society, Dr. Shulman was instrumental in the introduction of The Chronic Illness Care Improvement Act of 2000, a comprehensive legislative initiative to improve the care of serious and potentially disabling chronic illness. She continues to be active in promoting health policy initiatives in both chronic illness care and long-term care.
Eric Siemers, M.D. (U.S.) (Program Committee) is a Medical Advisor at Eli Lilly and Company, Indianapolis, and a Clinical Associate Professor of Neurology at the Indiana University School of Medicine. His research in neurodegenerative diseases and experimental therapeutics began during his neurology residency, and continues currently. He has participated in numerous clinical trials for investigational drugs for Parkinson and Huntington diseases. His research has included some of the first studies clearly demonstrating subtle motor and cognitive changes in presymptomatic individuals with Huntington's disease. He currently serves on the steering committees for NIH-funded studies seeking to identify susceptibility genes for Parkinson disease and seeking to characterize clinical progression in presymptomatic subjects with Huntington disease. He currently leads clinical research efforts at Eli Lilly concerning experimental treatments for Alzheimer's disease. In addition to experimental therapeutics themselves, Dr. Siemers has developed an interest and expertise in the use of biomarkers to aid drug development efforts for neurodegenerative diseases.
Matthew B. Stern, M.D. ( U.S.) (Finance Committee) is Director of the Parkinson’s Disease and Movement Disorder’s Center and Parker Family Professor of Neurology at the University of Pennsylvania. He also directs the Parkinson’s Disease Research, Education and Clinical Center at the Philadelphia Veteran’s Administration Hospital, one of six such Centers in the United States. The Center at Penn is one of the largest of its type in the country and has a long track record of achievement in clinical trials and experimental therapeutics. It is also one of the National Parkinson Foundation's Worldwide Centers of Excellence. Dr. Stern has authored or co-authored numerous papers on Parkinson’s disease and edited or co-edited 6 books on Parkinson’s and related disorders. He has served on the Executive Committee of the American Academy of Neurology’s Movement Disorders Section, is a member of the American Neurological Association and Fellow of the American Academy of Neurology. In addition to serving as institutional investigator for numerous clinical trials, Dr. Stern has been the Principal Investigator or Co-Principal Investigator of many research studies related to Parkinson’s disease and serves on a number of steering committees, executive committees and safety monitoring boards. He has lectured throughout the world on Parkinsonism and other Movement Disorders.
Sharon Stone, M.A. (U.S.) (Care Delivery and Quality of Life Committee) – is the Director of Research and External Programs at the Parkinson’s Disease Foundation in New York City. Ms. Stone earned her Bachelor’s Degree in English and Comparative Literature from Columbia University and her Master of Arts in Higher and Adult Education from Teachers College, Columbia University. She is a strong advocate for doctor/researcher education and quality of life issues for patients.
Michele Torrecilla (US) (Creativity and Parkinson’s Subcommittee) is the WPC Creativity and PD Assistant, working with Sharon Stone at the Parkinson's Disease Foundation. She received a BA in Fine Arts History from Tufts University and a MA in Applied Psychology from Antioch University in New England. Before joining PDF Michele was the Academic Director of the Kaplan English Language Programs in New York city for six years.
Jane Baum Wachsler (US) has worked in the field of Education for over 40 years. After a number of years teaching in various school systems, working mainly with special needs children, she has been, for the past 23 years, a volunteer docent at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, working with adults and children who have special needs. She has been a consultant to other museums on this subject.
Peggy Willocks (U.S.) (Creativity and Parkinson’s Subcommittee) is a former elementary school principal and 1997 Tennessee Principal of the Year. Peg was diagnosed with Parkinson's in 1994 and retired in 1998 on disability. She, her husband, three grown children, and two grandchildren reside in Johnson City, Tennessee.
Ms. Willocks is an active advocate for people living with Parkinson’s disease and volunteered for a group of the same name People Living With Parkinson’s (PLWP) as co-editor of their newsletter, Virtuality, and one of their on-line journalist for four years. She has been the President of NE Tennessee Parkinson's Disease Support Group since 1999. In 2004 she founded the Tri-State Young Onset Parkinson's Support Group in Tennessee and filled the role of Parkinson Action Network (PAN) Tennessee State Co-Coordinator for grassroots advocacy from 2002 to 2004. In 2003 she received PAN’s Louis Fishman Advocacy award. She is a core member of the Parkinson Pipeline Project.
G. Frederick Wooten, M.D. (U.S.) (Steering Committee) is a neurologist with post-doctoral training in pharmacology. Dr. Wooten is a founding member of the Parkinson Study Group and has 20 years experience in clinical trials in Parkinson's disease. He is director of the Movement Disorders Program and director of the American Parkinson's Disease Association Research Center of Excellence at the University of Virginia School of Medicine. He has served as a member of the United Parkinson's Disease Scientific Advisory Board, as a member of the Medical Advisory Board of the Parkinson's Disease Foundation and, currently, chairs the Scientific Advisory Board of the American Parkinson's Disease Association. In addition, he has served on numerous committees of the Parkinson Study Group.