PHRI's Symposium Attracts World-Class Presenters

PHRI's second annual symposium, entitled Infectious Diseases and Threats to Public Health, featured a roster of world-class researchers and attracted a standing-room-only audience of over 300 attendees from healthcare, biomedical research, and pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries. Highlights included Dr. Donald A. Henderson, who led the worldwide effort to eliminate smallpox, discussing the possible re-emergence of smallpox as an agent of bioterrorism, Dr. Michael Iseman, one of the world's leading tuberculosis physicians, describing implications of the frightening co-infection of patients with TB and HIV, and Dr. Donald Low, who led Toronto's fight to control the SARS outbreak, commenting on our degree of preparedness for this and other unexpected infectious disease problems.

The day-long Symposium was held on November 3rd, 2003 at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC), and zeroed in on some of the most pressing diseases of our time, including TB, SARS, West Nile virus, and potential agents of bioterrorism such as anthrax and smallpox.

The program was organized by Dr. Issar Smith, a member of the PHRI TB Center. Chairs for the morning and afternoon sessions were Dr. Jerrold Ellner, University Professor and Director, Ruy V. Laurenco Center for the Study of Emerging and Reemerging Pathogens, UMDNJ; and Dr. William Halperin, Chairman, Deptartment of Preventive Medicine at the UMDNJ-New Jersey Medical School. PHRI's President Lewis Weinstein welcomed the attendees, and PHRI Scientific Director, Dr. David Perlin, gave the concluding remarks.

Support for the Symposium was received from Horizon Blue Cross and Blue Shield of New Jersey, the Ellison Medical Foundation, Merck Research Laboratories, Sanyo Scientific, Wyeth Research, Wyeth Pharmaceuticals, and Johnson & Johnson.




Speakers at the 2003 PHRI Symposium

Dr. Stephan Corber
Dr. David Ho
Dr. Donald A. Henderson
Dr. Michael Iseman
Dr. W. Ian Lipkin
Dr. Donald E. Low
Dr. James M. Musser
Dr. Thomas E. Wellems




Dr. Stephan Corber

Manager, Area of Disease Prevention and Control
WHO's Regional Office for the Americas (PAHO), Washington, DC
"Importance of Global Strategies for Major Infectious Diseases"







Dr. David Ho

Head of Aaron Diamond AIDS Research Center
Professor, Rockefeller Univ.
"The AIDS Epidemic and Prospects for Control"







Dr. Donald A. Henderson

Chairman, Secretary's Council on Public Health Preparedness
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
"Smallpox and the Threat of Bioterrorism"







Dr. Michael Iseman

Chief, Clinical Mycobacteriology Service
National Jewish Medical And Research Center, Denver
"Drug Resistant tuberculosis: A Challenge to Global Health in the Era of AIDS"






Dr. W. Ian Lipkin

Director, Center for Immunopathogenesis and Infectious Diseases
Mailman School of Public Health
Professor of Epidemiology & Neurology
"The Pandora's Box Project: A Voyage in Pathogen Discovery"






Dr. Donald E. Low

Chief, Microbiology, Mt. Sinai Hospital
Professor of Microbiology, University of Toronto
"The SARS Outbreak in Toronto"







Dr. James M. Musser

Chief, Laboratory of Bacterial Human Pathogens
NIAID, Rocky Mountain laboratory, Hamilton, Montana
"Genome-wide Analysis of Host-Pathogen Interactions: The Group A Streptococcus Model"






Dr. Thomas E. Wellems

Head, Malaria Genetics Section, Laboratory of Parasitic Diseases
NIAID, Bethesda, MD
"Chloroquine-Resistant Malaria"