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National Disease Research Interchange Appoints Broxmeyer Board Chairman

Posted on: Wednesday, 6 December 2006, 09:01 CST

The National Disease Research Interchange (NDRI) has appointed Hal E. Broxmeyer, Ph.D., as Board Chairman effective January 1, 2007. Dr. Broxmeyer, a leading researcher in the cause of blood-related disorders, is Chairman of the Department of Microbiology and Immunology and Scientific Director of the Walther Oncology Center of the Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis. He succeeds outgoing Chairman D. Walter Cohen, D.D.S., Chancellor Emeritus of the Drexel University College of Medicine, Philadelphia.

Dr. Broxmeyer was one of the originators of using umbilical cord blood as an alternative source for stem cells. The first cord blood transplant was performed in France in October 1988 as part of a multi-institutional, international effort. The cord blood used to treat the young patient with a rare disease, Fanconi anemia, was banked and processed at IUSM by Dr. Broxmeyer.

Today his research continues into the feasibility of using stem cells from cord blood in transplants of children and adults suffering from diseases such as leukemia and anemia. Dr. Broxmeyer has received numerous honors including the Variety Club Heart Award for outstanding research that benefits children. In 2002, he received the Karl Landsteiner Memorial Award by the American Association of Blood Banks for his research in the regulation and use of stem and progenitor cells.

"NDRI is fortunate to have had a continuous stream of talented and dedicated chairs at its helm," said Lee Ducat, Founder and President of NDRI. "Walter served with distinction and we look forward to his continued participation on the board, while we enthusiastically welcome the next era under Hal's leadership with his own vision and ideas in the field."

About the National Disease Research Interchange (NDRI):

The non-profit NDRI was established in 1980 to provide research scientists with the human tissue samples necessary to study human systems and human disease. In the past 20 years, NDRI has served some 5,000 scientists with more than 200,000 human biomaterials, leading to more than 2,500 papers published in scholarly journals on diseases from diabetes to cancer to HIV and rare diseases. Funded in part by the National Institutes of Health, NDRI obtains tissues that would ordinarily be discarded and distributes them to the top research institutions in the world. Institutions working with NDRI include the National Institutes of Health, the U.S. Food & Drug Administration, Harvard Medical School, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Mt Sinai School of Medicine, Duke University, Baylor College of Medicine, the Wistar Institute, the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Stanford University, and the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, among others. NDRI also has a strong tradition of working with top pharma and biotech R&D programs nationwide.

For more information about NDRI, please call 1-800-222-6374 or visit www.ndriresource.org.

Photo available upon request.

Source: Business Wire

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