Posted on September 13, 2002 at 10:25 a.m.
BIRMINGHAM, AL — Eminent Harvard physician and researcher Bruce R. Korf, M.D., Ph.D., will chair UAB’s Department of Human Genetics effective January 1.
Korf is medical director of the Harvard-Partners Center for Genetics, a program devoted to integrating genetics into medical practice for all of the Harvard-affiliated hospitals in Boston. He is associate professor of neurology at Harvard Medical School and directs Harvard’s postdoctoral training in medical and laboratory genetics.
He will hold the Wayne H. Finley and Sara Crews Finley Chair of Medical Genetics when he joins UAB.
“We are delighted to have a physician and scientist of Dr. Korf’s caliber to head our human genetics program,” said UAB President Dr. Carol Garrison. “Under his leadership, this institution is poised to become a preeminent center for the research and treatment of human genetic abnormalities.”
Korf’s clinical interests are in the areas of neurogenetics and molecular diagnostics. He has devoted much of his research career to the study of neurofibromatosis, a genetic disorder that causes tumors of the nervous system.
Before assuming responsibility for clinical genetics for all the Harvard-affiliated hospitals, he was director of the clinical genetics program at Children's Hospital in Boston from 1986-1999, and director of the clinical genetics program at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. He is board certified in pediatrics, neurology (child neurology), clinical genetics, cytogenetics and clinical molecular genetics.
Among his many national activities, Korf is president of the Association of Professors of Human and Medical Genetics. He also serves as vice-president for clinical genetics for the American College of Medical Genetics and was a founding fellow of that organization.
He received his undergraduate and medical degrees from Cornell University and his Ph.D. from Rockefeller University. He did a residency in pediatrics and fellowship in genetics at Children's Hospital, Boston, and a residency in neurology in the Longwood Area Neurology Training Program at Harvard Medical School.
Korf said he was drawn to UAB by the opportunity to build a program integrating clinical care, education and basic research. “We are beginning a new era based on our understanding of the human genome,” said Korf. “There will be major changes in the way medicine is practiced. We have the opportunity to help ‘write the book’ on how these changes will be implemented.” Korf said he also was attracted by UAB’s long tradition of “collaboration and collegiality.”
Korf’s recruitment is expected to draw other genetic researchers to the institution, according to Richard Marchase, Ph.D., senior associate dean for biomedical research. “Bruce’s track record in integrating research and the clinical practice of genetics will be a major factor as we continue to expand our multidisciplinary approach of moving science from bench to bedside,” he said.
In addition to his research programs, Korf also is expected to oversee expansion of UAB’s clinical services. “Patients who have diseases based on a genetic disorder will be able to come to UAB to receive counseling and treatments based on some of the best research in the field,” said David Fine, UAB Health System CEO.
UAB officials say Korf’s recruitment is part of a long-term vision. “Five years ago we identified genetics as our top-priority focus because of its promise for development both from a research standpoint and a clinical standpoint, said William Deal, M.D., vice president and dean of the School of Medicine at UAB. “The addition of Dr. Korf to our faculty positions us to live up to that promise.”
In 2001, UAB opened the Hugh Kaul Center for Human Genetics, an eight-story, $37 million building which houses clinical and research facilities. That facility, Deal said, “was key to moving our genetics program forward and to Dr. Korf’s recruitment.”
Korf is the author of numerous scientific articles and four books. He is on the editorial board of Genetics in Medicine and has recently been appointed to the editorial board of the American Journal of Human Genetics. He serves as a co-editor of Current Protocols in Human Genetics, and is a co-editor of the fourth edition of Emery and Rimoin's Principles and Practice of Medical Genetics.
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