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Prominent Neurologist Arrives at MUSC
3/30/2007

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Clare Morris, 803.413.6808 or clare@claremorrisagency.com

Pappolla to continue research into anti-aging treatments, will hold endowed professorship as part of the

S.C. Centers of Economic Excellence program

COLUMBIA, SC--A leading physician and scientist who has spent several decades researching brain aging and Alzheimer's disease has joined the faculty of the Medical University of South Carolina as part of a state-sponsored program geared to boost the state's output of applied research.

Miguel A. Pappolla, M.D., Ph.D. has accepted the Josephine Tucker Morse S.C. Research Centers of Economic Excellence Chair in Neuropathology at MUSC. He has also assumed a tenure track position as professor of neurology in the MUSC's department of neurosciences.

The Centers of Economic Excellence (CoEE) program, also known as the �Endowed Chairs� program, was created to attract top scientists in key research areas to help advance South Carolina's economy.

Pappolla's research has netted him two patents for neuro-protective compounds, and two more patents are pending. His compounds are similar to melatonin, an antioxidant that may be able to protect humans against the damaging effects of aging and diseases such as cancer, Alzheimer's disease and cardiovascular disease.  

Pappolla believes his compounds will have commercial applications in medical treatments and nutritional supplements. His discoveries may even have potential as an anti-aging ingredient in cosmetic creams and makeup.

"I'm excited to be here at MUSC and I'm very hopeful about the future," Pappolla said. "It's an exciting time for this area of research. There is a lot of demand for treatments that can slow the aging process, so the economic incentive to advance this research is there. My goal is to tap into this demand and get the products of my research into the market where they can improve people's lives by making them look and feel their best."

�Pappolla's work has tremendous commercialization potential, which means a tremendous opportunity for South Carolina's citizens to benefit from additional jobs and a stronger state biotechnology cluster,� said MUSC President Ray Greenberg.

�The Centers of Economic Excellence program is a critical tool in our efforts to build South Carolina's life sciences sector,� Greenberg continued. �MUSC now boasts seven highly respected CoEE professors working to develop new health technologies to improve patient care. Without the program, it would have been extremely difficult to recruit these talented individuals.�

Pappolla recently completed a sabbatical/fellowship at the University of Mississippi at Jackson, where he focused on pain management. He also served as clinical professor of neurology and neurosciences at Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center in New Orleans and maintained a private practice at the McGowin Center for Neuroscience in Gulfport, Mississippi.

Pappolla is board certified in anatomic pathology, clinical pathology, neuropathology and neurology. He is widely published in clinical and translational neurology and neuropathology, and has extensive administrative and clinical practice experience. He has held multiple grants from the National Institutes of Health, foundations and corporations, as well as from the Department of Veterans Affairs. He has published 75 peer-reviewed manuscripts, 12 invited reviews and book chapters and nearly 70 abstracts.

Pappolla received his M.D. from the University of Buenos Aires in Argentina and his Ph.D. from the University of Catalunya in Barcelona, Spain. Following his residency training in anatomic and clinical pathology and in neurology, he completed fellowships in neuropathology at Case Western Reserve University and the Cleveland Clinic Foundation.

The S.C. Centers of Economic Excellence program was established by the South Carolina General Assembly in 2002. The legislation authorizes the state's three public research institutions, MUSC, Clemson and USC, to use S.C. Education Lottery funds to create centers of excellence in research areas that will advance South Carolina's economy. The state funds must be matched dollar-for-dollar with non-state monies to be used. The program also supports CoEE endowed professors, world-renowned scientists who lead the centers of excellence. By investing in talent and technology, the CoEE program is designed to help fuel the state's knowledge economy, resulting in higher paying jobs, a stronger economy and an improved standard of living in South Carolina.