Newswise — Dr. D. Scott Merrell, assistant professor for the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences' (USU) Department of Microbiology and Immunology has been selected to receive the 2008 Merck Irving S. Sigal Memorial Award from the American Society for Microbiology.
The Merck Irving S. Sigal Memorial Award is presented in memory of Irving S. Sigal, who was instrumental in the early discovery of therapies to treat HIV/AIDS, to recognize excellence in basic research in medical microbiology and infectious diseases.
Merrell is responsible for identifying an important regulatory protein, known as Fur, which he has gone on to characterize in his own laboratory. Since joining USU in 2004, Merrell has established an NIH-funded research program and developed several local and international collaborations to study Fur-dependent gene regulation in H. pylori. He has authored 17 papers, including 10 as first author, along with numerous reviews and several book chapters. He serves on the editorial board of Infection and Immunity, has reviewed papers for more than a dozen prestigious journals, and is a frequent invited speaker.
Merrell was nominated by Alison O'Brien, chair, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, USU, and a fellow of the American Academy of Microbiology.
USU educates health care professionals dedicated to career service in the Department of Defense and the United States Public Health Service. The university provides military and public health-relevant education, research, service, and consultation to the nation and the world, pursuing excellence and innovation during times of peace and war. The university's nationally ranked military and civilian faculty conduct cutting edge research in the biomedical sciences and in areas specific to the DoD health care mission such as combat casualty, infectious diseases, and radiation biology.
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