Rheumatoid Arthritis Support

Research is one of SUNY Downstate’s primary missions. In 2000, funding for sponsored research, including 506 basic science investigations and 44 programs funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), totaled close to $50 million. Downstate is the birthplace of many modern medical developments including:

;Development of MRI

First in country to develop MRI machine capable of producing whole body images, and first to propose fundamental science underlying MRI technology. Built on the Downstate campus by Dr. Raymond Damadian, who was awarded the National Medal of Technology in 1988.

;Nitric Oxide Molecule and Its Role in the Body

Discovery of nitric oxide molecule and its relaxation effect on blood vessels has been the basis for heart medications and drugs to combat erectile dysfunction. Professor emeritus Robert F. Furchgott was awarded the Nobel Prize for this work in 1998.

;First Open Heart Surgery in New York

Dr. Clarence Dennis, chair of the Department of Surgery from 1951 to 1971, built his own heart/lung machine from scratch in his Brooklyn laboratory. He missed performing the first successful open heart surgery in the country by a matter of days, but did perform the second successful procedure– and the first in New York State—using his heart/lung machine, which is now part of the Smithsonian collection.

;Rheumatoid Factor Discovery

Rheumatoid factor was discovered by Erik Waaler

Recent Milestones

;Neuroscience

With over 40 scientists studying the hippocampus, Downstate is one of the largest facilities in the country for the study of neuroscience. Research by Todd Sacktor and Andre Fenton on the core molecular mechanism for memory storage was highlighted by Science magazine as one of the top10 science breakthroughs of the year in 2006.

;Genetics of Alcoholism

The late Dr. Henri Begleiter was the first to define the role that genetics plays in the development of alcoholism. His research has helped redefined medical science’s view of alcoholism. The nine-site Collaborative Study on the Genetics of Alcoholism, which he spearheaded, is the world’s largest study of the genetics of alcoholism.

;HIV Treatment and Research

In 1985, at a time when the public and most of the medical establishment considered AIDS a disease of gay men, SUNY Downstate launched the first federally funded study of HIV transmission from mother to baby. Later, Dr. Howard Minkoff, led the first federally funded study of the manifestations of AIDS in women. With funding from the NIH’s Fogarty International Center, Dr. Jack DeHovitz established the Central/East European HIV Education Center. To date, it has trained more than 5,300 health care workers in Central and Eastern Europe, and in Africa.

;Research Centers and Major Laboratories

*Alzheimer’s Disease Research Program

*Brooklyn Center for Health Disparities

*Center for Biomedical Imaging

*Center for Cardiovascular Muscle Research

*Center for Neurorobotics and Neuroengineering

*Center for Treatment and Study of Endometriosis

*Cancer Research Focus Group

*Henri Begleiter Neurodynamics Laboratory (Genetics

of Alcoholism)

*HIV Center for Women and Children

*Northeast Terrorism Preparedness, Training, Education,

*and Research Center

*Transgenic Mouse Core Facility


Adapted from the Wikipedia article SUNY Downstate Medical Center, under the G. N. U. Free Documentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki