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March 2008
Letter From Our Chair
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L. Lyndon Key, MD
Professor and Chairman
Department of Pediatrics |
Dear faculty, Children's Hospital staff and other friends,
During the DCRI 3rd Anniversary celebration, Dr. Bill Mobley from Stanford made a powerful statement about the strength of the Darby Children's Research Institute (DCRI) by asking, "What is the mission of a children's research institute?" We all listened as he noted that an institute must have a mission. This area is where we have already excelled. Our number one criterion for inclusion in the DCRI is that the discoveries that are being made and the research that is performed should help us to understand, diagnose, and treat the diseases of children. In the vision of those of us who were involved in the inception of the DCRI, the most important issues were that we needed research capabilities to recruit the best physician scientists, and scientists that can help to improve the care in the Children's Hospital through basic and translational therapies.
We have all heard the old baseball axiom, "Keep your eye on the ball." This is certainly pertinent for our upcoming review of the DCRI space. Certainly, there are some investigators who have concentrated almost completely on children's diseases. Two great examples are Dr. Singh and Dr. Hollis. Dr. Singh has helped Dr. Jenkins to protect animals and now children whose mothers have chorioamnionitis (an infection of the uterus). This type of infection can be treated with antibiotics, but this does not necessarily stop the damage that comes from the prior inflammation. This is an excellent example of an investigator in neuroscience moving from metabolic diseases and translating his knowledge of inflammation to protect the developing brain.
Another example of the power of the DCRI is a change of plan from studying breast milk components and moving to understanding of the physiology and requirements of vitamin D in children and pregnant and nursing women. This study has caused a national movement, redefining the amount of vitamin D that is needed.
Finally, we have also seen the recruitment of faculty such as Dr. Dieter Haemmerich, a cardiology faculty member who through his know ledge of engineering is creating new catheters, expanding the opportunities to heal children from dysrhythmias.
Many exciting discoveries have been made (about 252). This explosion of knowledge is moving us toward new therapies and helping us to hire new cardiologists, bone researchers (such as Dr. Reddy), and aiding in collaborations with developmental biology to discover the genesis of congenital heart disease (Dr. Markwald).
In the coming months, we will convene our DCRI Oversight Committee to look at productivity, not just productivity, but rather productivity in improving the science that will allow us to better treat children and to attract the tope physicians from the United States and beyond.
Sincerely,
L. Lyndon Key, MD
Chair, Department of Pediatrics
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