December 10, 2019—BRONX, NY— Researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine secured $178 million from the National Institutes of Health in federal fiscal year 2019, marking the largest annual total in the institution’s history (excluding supplemental stimulus funding distributed as a part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009). Major grants included those to lead international consortiums to study Ebola and HIV, as well as those focusing on neuroscience, genetics, and improving health among minority groups.

“Despite an increasingly competitive environment, our researchers have reached new heights this year, clearly demonstrating their leadership and excellence across a wide range of fields,” said Gordon F. Tomaselli, M.D., the Marilyn and Stanley M. Katz Dean at Einstein. “Whether using the latest technology to untangle complex biological puzzles or tailoring care to minority populations to reduce health disparities, our faculty continues to advance scientific knowledge and improve the health of our borough, our country, and our world.”

Among the year’s notable grants are those in which Einstein faculty lead major, national projects and centers:

• $23 million to study diseases affecting people living with HIV, led by Kathy Anastos, M.D., and Anjali Sharma, M.D., M.S.
• $22 million for an international consortium to develop antibody-based therapies against lethal viruses, led by Kartik Chandran, Ph.D. Other Einstein members of the team include Jonathan Lai, Ph.D., and Johanna Daily, M.D., M.S.

Despite an increasingly competitive environment, our researchers have reached new heights this year, clearly demonstrating their leadership and excellence across a wide range of fields.

Dean Gordon F. Tomaselli, M.D.

Among the new major grants for investigator-initiated research projects are:

• $8 million to study lower extremity arterial disease (Robert Kaplan, Ph.D.)
• Two grants totaling $4.5 million to study the role of the hypothalamus in obesity and hypertension (Dongsheng Cai, Ph.D.)
• $4.2 million to examine how HIV-related inflammation is worsened by opioid abuse (Joan Berman, Ph.D., Harris Goldstein, M.D.)
• $4.2 million to develop synthetic T cells to attack HIV-infected cells (Harris Goldstein, M.D., Steve Almo, Ph.D.)
• $4 million to investigate the link between sleep patterns and cognitive decline (Carol Derby, Ph.D.)
• $4 million to find genes that may delay aging and prevent or delay Alzheimer’s disease (Sofiya Milman, M.D.)
• $3.7 million to understand the role of antibodies in protecting against tuberculosis (Jacqueline Achkar, M.D., M.S.)
• $3.5 million to identify brain systems that control mobility in patients with multiple sclerosis (Roee Holtzer, Ph.D.)
• 3.5 million to better understand the B-cell response to tuberculosis (John Chan, Ph.D.)
• $3.3 million for a precision medicine approach to treating heart disease in those with HIV (Robert Kaplan, Ph.D.)
• $3.1 million to evaluate a diabetes prevention program tailored to Black and Hispanic men (Earle Chambers, Ph.D., Jeffrey Gonzalez, Ph.D.)