ANN ARBOR — The University of Michigan led the nation with 22 faculty members — 14 of them affiliated with the U-M Medical School — elected as 2019 fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.
The U-M researchers are among 443 newly elected fellows announced today by AAAS.
The Medical School faculty, and their U-M and U.S. colleagues, were chosen as AAAS Fellows by their peers for their “scientifically or socially distinguished efforts to advance science or its applications.” U-M had more 2019 fellows than any other single university, according to AAAS.
The new U-M fellows are listed below; those with a primary or joint appointment in the Medical School are marked with an asterisk:
* Brian D. Athey, Michael Savageau Collegiate Professor and chair, Department of Computational Medicine and Bioinformatics, professor of psychiatry, Medical School, director of Data Science Initiative, for distinguished contributions to bioinformatics, launching the integrative biomedical informatics field to create Visible Human, Virtual Soldier, Cell Line Ontology, and tranSMART data analytic platforms.
Daniel Atkins, professor emeritus, School of Information, professor emeritus of electrical engineering and computer science, College of Engineering, for distinguished contributions to computer architecture, collaboratories and digital libraries, and national leadership in computer and computational science policy.
* David A. Bloom, Jack Lapides Professor of Urology, Medical School, for distinguished contributions to pediatric urology, particularly for the management of neurogenic bladder, laparoscopy in cryptorchidism, hypospadias repair and vesicoureteral reflux outcomes, and medical history.
F. DuBois Bowman, professor of biostatistics and dean, School of Public Health, for outstanding innovative statistical research advancing the field of biomedical imaging statistics and yielding breakthroughs particularly in neurological disorders and mental health.
* Susan V. Brooks, Christin Carter-Su Collegiate Professor of Physiology, professor of molecular and integrative physiology, Medical School, professor of biomedical engineering, College of Engineering, for distinguished contributions to the field of muscle biology, particularly understanding age-associated skeletal muscle wasting and weakness, increased susceptibility to injury, and impaired recovery.
* Vernon B. Carruthers, professor of microbiology and immunology, Medical School, for distinguished contributions to the field of molecular parasitology, particularly with respect to his work on the egress of Toxoplasma parasites from host cells.
* Maria G. Castro, R.C. Schneider Collegiate Professor, professor of neurosurgery and professor of cell and developmental biology, Medical School, for distinguished contributions to the field of neuroimmunology, brain tumor biology, and development of immune-mediated gene therapies for treating brain cancer, and for mentoring women and minorities.
William S. Currie, professor, School for Environment and Sustainability and Program in the Environment (SEAS and College of Literature, Science, and the Arts), for advancing society’s understanding of ecosystem function through advanced modeling, particularly nutrient cycling and carbon balance in forests and wetlands and their responses to human-driven change.
Meghan Duffy, professor, Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, College of Literature, Science, and the Arts, for outstanding research into the ecology and evolution of infectious diseases in natural populations of Daphnia, and for contributions to the mental health of graduate students.
* John Francis Greden, Rachel Upjohn Professor of Psychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences, professor of psychiatry and research professor, Molecular and Behavioral Neuroscience Institute, Medical School, for distinguished contributions to the fields of stress, neuroendocrine, sleep, and pharmacogenomic neurosciences, and for advancing precision health approaches for major depressive disorders and treatment resistant depression.
Odest Chadwicke Jenkins, associate professor of electrical engineering and computer science, College of Engineering, for distinguished contributions to the field of robotics and artificial intelligence, particularly for robot learning from human demonstration, cloud robotics, and broadening participation in computing.
* Kenneth M. Langa, Cyrus Sturgis Research Professor of Internal Medicine, professor of internal medicine, research professor, Institute of Gerontology, Medical School, research professor, Survey Research Center, Institute for Social Research and professor of health management and policy, School of Public Health, for distinguished contributions to the fields of medicine and gerontology, particularly to the understanding of the risk factors and societal burden of Alzheimer’s and dementia.
* Jun Li, professor of human genetics and professor of computational medicine and bioinformatics, Medical School, for distinguished contributions to studies of the genetic and functional basis of complex human diseases, including genomic and computational infrastructure and single-cell transcriptome analyses.
* Suzanne M. Moenter, Fred J. Karsch Collegiate Professor of Physiology, professor of molecular and integrative physiology, professor of obstetrics and gynecology, professor of internal medicine, research professor, Reproductive Sciences Program, Medical School, for her outstanding work in neuroendocrinology and the role of GnRH in hypothalamic function, fertility and stress.
Knute Nadelhoffer, professor, Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology and director, Biological Station, College of Literature, Science, and the Arts, for outstanding contributions to our understanding of plant-soil interactions in the arctic tundra and temperate forests, including predictions of ecosystem responses to human-induced change.
Nathan A. Niemi, professor, Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, director, Camp Davis Field Station, College of Literature, Science, and the Arts, for distinguished contributions in advancing understanding of tectonics and climate in affecting evolution of mountain systems and in the education of young earth scientists.
* Linda C. Samuelson, John A. Williams Collegiate Professor of Gastrointestinal Physiology, professor of molecular and integrative physiology, professor of internal medicine, gastroenterology, and interim director of the Center for Organogenesis, Medical School, for distinguished contributions to the field of gastrointestinal physiology, particularly for definition of niche pathways regulating gastrointestinal stem cell function.
* Emily E. Scott, professor of medicinal chemistry, College of Pharmacy, professor of pharmacology, Medical School, professor of biophysics, College of Literature, Science, and the Arts, for distinguished contributions to the field of structural and functional studies on cytochrome P450s with the goal of understanding human drug metabolism by these enzymes.
* Michele S. Swanson, professor of microbiology and immunology, director of postdoctoral studies, Medical School, adjunct professor of curriculum support, College of Literature, Science, and the Arts, for distinguished contributions to microbial pathogenesis research, service to her profession, wide dissemination of scientific knowledge, and active promotion of gender equality in science.
* Shaomeng Wang, Warner-Lambert/Parke-Davis Professor of Medicine, professor of internal medicine, professor of pharmacology, Medical School, professor of medicinal chemistry, College of Pharmacy, for distinguished contributions to the field of pharmaceutical sciences, particularly the discovery and development of new small-molecule therapeutics for cancer treatment.
James Wells, professor, Department of Physics, College of Literature, Science, and the Arts, for distinguished contributions to the field of particle physics, particularly in regard to extensions of the Standard Model including supersymmetry or extra dimensions.
* Weiping Zou, Charles B. de Nancrede Research Professor of Surgery, professor of surgery and professor of pathology, Medical School, for distinguished contributions to the field of tumor immunology and immunotherapy, particularly for dissecting multiple human cancer immunosuppressive mechanisms, including PD-L1, and application in immunotherapy.
Founded in 1848, the American Association for the Advancement of Science is the world’s largest general scientific society and publisher of the journal Science. This year’s AAAS Fellows will be formally announced in Science on Nov. 29 and will be honored in February at the AAAS annual meeting in Seattle.