Pollin Pediatric Research Prize awarded for discovery of lifesaving treatment of RDS

Dr. John A. Clements receives $200,000 Pollin Prize for 2008

NEW YORK (April 3, 2008) -- Dr. John A. Clements is the recipient of the 2008 Pollin Prize in recognition of his seminal contributions to our understanding of how lungs hold air, and to the development of a lifesaving treatment for respiratory distress syndrome (RDS) in infants. Once this country's largest contributor to infant mortality, neonatal RDS now causes very few deaths.

The sixth annual $200,000 Pollin Prize, the largest international award for pediatric research, recognizes outstanding achievement in biomedical or public health research resulting in important improvements to the health of children. Half of the award will be provided by Dr. Clements to support the research of an investigator chosen by him. He has selected Dr. Magda Petryniak of the University of California San Francisco. Her research focuses on a relevant area of neonatology: the development of the brain, its responses to injury and mechanisms for repair in newborn infants.

Dr. Clements is the Emeritus Julius H. Comroe Jr., Professor of Pulmonary Biology, emeritus professor of pediatrics, and retired member of the Graduate Program in Biophysics at the University of California San Francisco (UCSF).

The awards ceremony will take place on April 4 at the Morgan Stanley Children's Hospital of NewYork-Presbyterian Wintergarden (3959 Broadway). Presentations include one by Dr. Clements, at 10:30 a.m., and a luncheon and awards ceremony with keynote speaker at 12:15 p.m.

"In the 1950s and earlier, respiratory distress syndrome, sometimes referred to as ‘hyaline membrane disease,' was the most common cause of infant death, resulting in 30,000 deaths each year in the United States. Today, this number has been reduced by 97 percent. This amazing improvement is a direct result of research breakthroughs by Dr. John Clements. His insights have helped us to understand the essential role of pulmonary surfactant in normal lung function, a discovery that led to an effective treatment for RDS and the genesis of a new area of pulmonary biology," says Dr. Herbert Pardes, president and CEO of NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital.

Replacement surfactant is now a standard therapy for premature infants in most countries, and it is also being examined for its applicability to other diseases, such as adult RDS, asthma, cystic fibrosis and pneumonia.

Dr. Rudolph Leibel, chairman of the selection panel that coordinates the administration of the Pollin Prize, says,"It is our intent that the Prize both recognizes outstanding and important biomedical research, and encourages others to pursue research that specifically benefits children." Dr. Leibel is co-director of the Naomi Berrie Diabetes Center, chief of the Division of Molecular Genetics, and professor of pediatrics and medicine at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons. He is also a pediatrician at Morgan Stanley Children's Hospital of NewYork-Presbyterian.

Dr. John A. Clements and Discovery of Lung Surfactant