Newswise — The capability and scope of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) studies at Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University are being significantly expanded with the appointment of two nationally recognized leaders in the field. Craig Branch, Ph.D., has been named director, and Michael Lipton, M.D., Ph.D., has been named associate director of Einstein's Gruss Magnetic Resonance Research Center (MRRC). Both are faculty in the department of radiology, which will manage the center under the guidance of its chair, Dr. Stephen Amis. The announcements were made by Allen M. Spiegel, M.D., The Marilyn and Stanley M. Katz Dean at Einstein.
The MRRC, a 19,000-square-foot facility located on the main Einstein campus, was established in 2000 with a generous gift to Einstein from the Gruss Lipper Foundation. Its cutting-edge technology will provide Einstein researchers with the most advanced noninvasive means currently available to investigate disorders and diseases attacking the anatomy and physiology of living organisms.
"Under Craig and Michael's leadership, the MRRC will support MRI research in numerous health-related areas, including neuropsychiatric disorders, cancer, and cardiac and metabolic disorders," said Dr. Spiegel. "The Center will also support studies of cognition and development and the creation of new imaging technologies while offering expanded learning opportunities for Einstein students, as well as clinical and basic science investigators."
"We are very excited about the many possibilities for broader research collaborations and education that the Center can offer," said Dr. Branch. "Our aim is to invigorate magnetic resonance imaging and spectroscopy applications research within the Einstein community. Toward that aim, we're installing the most advanced equipment available for clinical, basic, and translational research, which will provide for a strong educational program. We've also begun initiatives to expand existing research programs in areas that include cancer, diabetes, brain trauma, obesity, psychiatry, and hematology. Stimulating research collaborations between the clinical and basic science departments by providing translational imaging methodology is a primary mission of the Center."
"I am delighted that Drs. Branch and Lipton have been recruited to oversee the programs at the Gruss Center. Their extraordinary breadth of knowledge and dynamic vision for the future will greatly enhance the Center's impact, both on biomedical research and on the education of Einstein students," said Evelyn Gruss Lipper, M.D., a trustee of the Gruss Lipper Foundation and a member of the Einstein Board of Overseers. A 1971 graduate of Einstein and a former faculty member of the College of Medicine, Dr. Lipper has served on its Board of Overseers since 2004. (In 2006, a second major gift from the Gruss Lipper Foundation established the Biophotonics Center at Einstein.)
"Education will be an important component of our overall program," noted Dr. Lipton. "In addition to Educational Outreach Programs for Einstein students and for clinical and basic science investigators, we plan to establish an invited lecture series focused on MRI research methods."
Renovations to the MRRC will include installation of a state-of-the-art 3.0 Tesla magnetic resonance imaging and spectroscopy system from Philips Medical Systems along with a complete overhaul of the existing 9.4 T imaging and spectroscopy system. "These renovations, coupled with new computing infrastructure will aid translational research efforts by providing access to the latest advances in MR technology and image analysis software," noted Dr. Branch. The renovations will allow an exciting range of imaging studies to be conducted, from cellular studies to full body scans.
"By adding a clinical component to our imaging capabilities, we can bridge research with clinical applications located on the Einstein campus and within Montefiore Medical Center," added Dr. Lipton. "For example, the human scanner we'll be installing is based on the same platform as nearly all of the MRI equipment throughout the entire Montefiore system. This provides a unique advantage to the MRRC in that new methods developed at the Center can be readily translated to the clinic for use in clinical studies and patient care." Montefiore Medical Center is the University Hospital and Academic Medical Center for Einstein.
In addition to making these critical renovations, designed to broaden the Center's capabilities, Drs. Branch and Lipton are hiring new staff to optimize services. These include Dr. Xiaobo Li, an image analysis expert; Dr. Jeremy Smith, manager of computing systems; Dr. Min-Hui Cui, 9.4 T and Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy support; and Mr. Richard Alaimo, administration. Additionally, Dr. Linda Jelicks has joined the MRRC core support team and will continue assisting high field-imaging and spectroscopy at the Center. There are plans to add two MRI technicians and another imaging physicist to the team.
Drs. Branch and Lipton have worked together previously through the collaborative relationship between Einstein and the Center for Advanced Brain Imaging (CABI) at the Nathan S. Kline Institute for Psychiatric Research, where Dr. Branch had served in numerous capacities since 1995 − most recently as senior research scientist, director of CABI and Basic Neuroimaging, and chief of the division of medical physics. Both researchers are longstanding members of the Einstein faculty; Dr. Branch as associate professor of radiology and of neuroscience since 1997, and Dr. Lipton as assistant professor of radiology since 1997. Since 2007, Dr. Lipton has served as associate professor of both radiology and psychiatry and behavioral sciences. In addition to his previous roles at the Nathan Kline Institute, Dr. Branch is a member of the board of directors for Advanced Veterinary Technologies, Inc., a company which he co-founded and where he had served as chief operating officer and vice president of product development from 2000 to 2007. He received his bachelor's, master's and doctoral degrees from Oakland University, in Rochester, Michigan. Prior to Nathan Kline Institute, he performed research in the neurology department at Henry Ford Hospital and was on the biomedical engineering faculty at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. His research has centered on the development of MRI-based measures of brain function and their application to brain disorders.
A board-certified neuroradiologist, Dr. Lipton is the founding director of the Division of Radiology Research at Montefiore Medical Center, The University Hospital for Einstein, where he maintains the Translational Neuroimaging Laboratory. He has served in this role since 1999. He also is the medical director for MRI Services at Montefiore. He came to Einstein in 1991, completing a residency in diagnostic radiology, followed by a clinical fellowship in neuroradiology. In 1997, he became an attending radiologist at Montefiore. He received his bachelor's and medical degrees from Boston University, after which he completed an internship in internal medicine at Brookdale Hospital Medical Center. He earned his master's and doctoral degrees, in neuroscience, at Einstein. His research in neuroimaging has redefined our understanding of somatosensory cortical organization and revealed the effects of mild traumatic brain injury on cognition.
About Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva UniversityAlbert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University is one of the nation's premier centers for research, medical education and clinical investigation. It is the home to some 2,000 faculty members, 750 M.D. students, 350 Ph.D. students (including 125 in combined M.D./Ph.D. programs) and 380 postdoctoral investigators. Last year, Einstein received more than $130 million in support from the NIH. This includes the funding of major research centers at Einstein in diabetes, cancer, liver disease, and AIDS. Other areas where the College of Medicine is concentrating its efforts include developmental brain research, neuroscience, cardiac disease, and initiatives to reduce and eliminate ethnic and racial health disparities. Through its extensive affiliation network involving five hospital centers in the Bronx, Manhattan and Long Island " which includes Montefiore Medical Center, Einstein's officially designated University Hospital " the College runs one of the largest post-graduate medical training program in the United States, offering approximately 150 residency programs to more than 2,500 physicians in training. For more information, please visit www.aecom.yu.edu.
Montefiore Medical Center encompasses 125 years of outstanding patient care, innovative medical "firsts," pioneering clinical research, dedicated community service and ground-breaking social activism. A full-service, integrated delivery system caring for patients in the New York metropolitan region and beyond, Montefiore is a 1,491-bed medical center that includes: four hospitals -- the Henry and Lucy Moses Division, the Jack D. Weiler Division, the North Division and The Children's Hospital at Montefiore; a large home healthcare agency; the largest school health program in the US; a 25-site medical group practice integrated throughout the Bronx and Westchester; and, a care management organization providing services to 179,000 health plan members.
In 2008, The Children's Hospital at Montefiore was ranked as one of "America's Best Children's Hospitals" in US News & World Report's prestigious annual listing. The Leapfrog Group lists Montefiore among the top one percent of all U.S. hospitals based on its strategic investments in sophisticated and integrated healthcare technology.
Montefiore is committed to meeting the healthcare needs of the future through medical education and manages one of the largest residency programs in the country. Montefiore is The University Hospital and Academic Medical Center for Albert Einstein College of Medicine and has an affiliation with New York Medical College for residency programs at the North Division.
Distinguished centers of excellence at Montefiore include cardiology and cardiac surgery, cancer care, tissue and organ transplantation, children's health, women's health, surgery and the surgical subspecialties. Montefiore is a national leader in the research and treatment of diabetes, headaches, obesity, cough and sleep disorders, geriatrics and geriatric psychiatry, neurology and neurosurgery, adolescent and family medicine, HIV/AIDS and social and environmental medicine, among many other specialties. For more information, please visit www.montefiore.org or www.montekids.org.
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