RESEARCH EINSTEIN RESEARCH FIRSTS

The excellence of an academic institution is a reflection, first and foremost, of the talent, creativity and productivity of its faculty. Nowhere is this truer than at Albert Einstein College of Medicine. From its very beginning in 1955, the new medical school's illustrious faculty placed the institution in the top rank of great medical schools. And it remains so to this day.

In recent years, the faculty's high level of scientific achievement has resulted in impressive growth in peer-reviewed research funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Today, Einstein receives more than $130 million annually in support from the NIH. This includes the funding of major research centers at Einstein in diabetes, cancer, liver disease, AIDS and the brain and neuroscience. These centers reflect the innovative, multidisciplinary research that has always been a hallmark of the College of Medicine's collaborative approach to biomedical science.

Einstein research has led to important advances in our understanding of health and disease. These notable discoveries by Einstein physicians and scientists include the following:

In 2006, Einstein becomes the only medical institution in New York City, New York State and the northeast to serve as a research site for the Hispanic Community Health Study, the largest research study of Hispanic health ever. (Sylvia Wassertheil-Smoller, Ph.D., principal investigator)

Einstein researchers demonstrated the association between reduced levels of high-density lipoproteins (HDL) or "good" cholesterol, and heart disease.

Researchers at Einstein developed pioneering techniques for the diagnosis and treatment of cancer based on the genetics of both the tumor and the patient. (Robert H. Singer, Ph.D.)

Researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine played a fundamental role in the historic, international project to map the human genome.

Researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine were among the first to test vaccines as a treatment for multiple forms of cancer.

Einstein researchers helped to develop ground-breaking new protocols for the treatment of diabetes based on more sophisticated methods of monitoring glucose levels.

In 1994, Albert Einstein College of Medicine becomes the only New York City medical school selected by the NIH to participate in the Women's Health Initiative, the largest research study of women's health ever. (Sylvia Wassertheil-Smoller, Ph.D., principal investigator)

Einstein researchers identified a key missing neurotransmitter in the brain of Alzheimer's patients, a finding that influenced all subsequent Alzheimer's disease research. (Peter Davies, Ph.D.)

Researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine were the first to use gene therapy techniques in the laboratory to successfully treat abnormally high cholesterol.

In 1988, the first Center for AIDS Research at Einstein is funded by the NIH. Researchers at the Center are the first to identify pediatric AIDS as a distinct disease and established the first day-care center in the world for children with AIDS. (Arye Rubinstein, M.D.)

Einstein researchers helped discover the mechanisms responsible for the extraordinary diversity of antibodies and their remarkable precision in mounting an immune response. (Matthew D. Scharff, M.D.)

Researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine founded the science of neuroendocrinology, which gave rise to a new understanding of how the body's cells communicate with each other.

In 1976, researchers at Einstein identified the mechanism of action of Taxol, one of the most significant cancer treatment drugs ever developed. (Susan B. Horwitz, Ph.D.)

In 1974, Einstein's Liver Research Center -- now the Marion Bessin Liver Research Center -- is the first institute in the nation devoted to the study of liver disease and injury.

Researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine discovered structural abnormalities of brain cells that explain deficiencies in cognitive development, greatly contributing to our understanding of mental retardation. (Dominick P. Purpura, M.D.)

Researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine pioneered research leading to improved methods of avoiding organ transplant rejection. (Stanley G. Nathenson, M.D.)

In 1964, Albert Einstein College of Medicine is the first medical school in the United States to establish a Department of Genetics.

Researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine developed landmark techniques to grow human tissue cells under laboratory conditions, an advance that helped make possible all subsequent cellular biology research. (Harry Eagle, M.D.)