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| P. D. Allen, M.D., Ph.D. |
FAER
Honorary Research Lecture
“Calcium: This Is Everything”
Monday, October 16, from
2 p.m. to 3 p.m. at McCormick Place, Room E450A-B.
 he
Foundation for Anesthesia Education and Research (FAER)
will present the sixth annual FAER Honorary Research
Lecture at the ASA 2006 Annual Meeting in Chicago,
Illinois. FAER has created this annual lectureship
as a means of recognizing outstanding scholarship
by an anesthesiologist in an effort to encourage young
anesthesiologists to consider careers in research
and teaching, which are crucial if anesthesiology
is to maintain its reputation as a medical specialty
continuously striving for excellence in patient care.
Previous FAER Honorary Research Lectures have been
delivered by Debra A. Schwinn, M.D., Duke University
(2001); James C. Eisenach, M.D., Wake Forest University
(2002); Jeanine P. Wiener-Kronish, M.D., University
of California-San Francisco (2003); David C. Warltier,
M.D., Ph.D., University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee (2004);
and Alex S. Evers, M.D., Washington University, St.
Louis (2005).
This year’s selection is P. D. Allen, M.D.,
Ph.D., Professor of Anesthesia at Harvard Medical
School and an anesthesiologist at Brigham and Women’s
Hospital (BWH) in Boston.
Dr. Allen received his M.D. from Boston University
in 1967 and his Ph.D. from the University of Florida
in 1973. He completed his anesthesiology residency
at Tufts New England Medical Center in 1978. One of
our specialty’s current concerns is convincing
young people to invest one to three years in research
training. Dr. Allen has had five years of research
training. In 1978 he was appointed Instructor in Anesthesia
at the Harvard Medical School and an anesthesiologist
at BWH.
He has had major clinical and administrative responsibilities
at BWH, including Associate Clinical Director of Anesthesia.
More specifically he acted as “floor manager”
of the operating rooms on a weekly basis and is Director
of Renal Transplant Anesthesia.
His contributions to anesthesiology research have
been fundamental and extensive. He has more than 150
peer-reviewed publications in our most distinguished
journals. He has been consistently funded by the National
Institutes of Health (NIH) for more than 25 years.
He is currently chairman of an NIH Study Section.
Dr. Allen is a longtime national and international
authority on malignant hyperthermia (MH) and the molecular
mechanisms of human heart failure. Using innovative
in vivo recording of intracellular free calcium, his
group demonstrated that MH-susceptible humans and
swine release free calcium concentrations in skeletal
muscles, which is increased from normal by three-fold.
Exposure to certain anesthetics increases calcium
by 100- to 1,000-fold and causes a hypermetabolic
state. Subsequently Dr. Allen et al. established the
use of dantrolene in MH. They also established the
site of the genetic lesion to be the ryanodine receptor.
Dr. Allen was able to study molecular changes of heart
failure in human heart muscle. The major focus of
his research is with myosin isoforms, which establish
differences in human versus rodent models of heart
disease. His research has led to the development of
markers for myocardial infarction.
For years he has been a leader in “bridging”
clinical and basic research. He has demonstrated flexibility
in adapting his research to current technology and
knowledge. Of particular merit was his “mid-career”
change to more molecular based research. His more
contemporary position is that of an outstanding molecular
biologist who is an anesthesiologist. Dr. Allen is
a model for young anesthesiologists who want to pursue
a research career. Accordingly he is an outstanding
choice as the 2006 FAER Honorary Research Lecturer.
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Ronald D. Miller, M.D., is Professor and Chair,
Department of Anesthesia and Perioperative Care,
University of California San Francisco, San
Francisco, California. |
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