Jason R. Becker, Wei Du, Tharick Ali Pascoal and Alejandro Soto-Gutiérrez are among the newly elected members of the American Society for Clinical Investigation (ASCI).
Becker, an associate professor of medicine, studies the molecular mechanisms regulating the pathogenesis of genetic and acquired cardiomyopathies to identify novel methods for preventing heart failure and sudden death.
Du, an associate professor of medicine, works to define the cellular and molecular mechanisms that drive hematologic diseases, particularly bone marrow failure and leukemia, with the goal of translating these insights into targeted therapies that improve patient outcomes.
Pascoal is an associate professor of psychiatry with a secondary appointment in neurology. His research focuses on quantifying brain pathophysiology in Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias to enhance diagnostic precision and therapeutic monitoring.
Soto-Gutiérrez, Professor of Experimental Pathology and professor of pathology, is focused on treating end-stage organ diseases using regenerative and disruptive approaches to alleviate the scarcity of transplant organs through the Center for Transcriptional Medicine.
ASCI is a nonprofit medical honor society composed of more than 3,000 physician-scientists representing all medical specialties. It is dedicated to the advancement of research that extends understanding of diseases and improves treatment, and members are committed to mentoring future generations of physician-scientists.
Each year, the ASCI council considers membership nominations of several hundred physician-scientists, aged 50 or younger, and recommends up to 100 candidates for election based on outstanding scholarly achievement. According to the ASCI website, “election is a milestone in the physician-scientist career path, and the ASCI holds its members to the highest standards of integrity, professionalism, mutual respect and collegiality.”
Additionally, Megan Culler Freeman, assistant professor of pediatrics, earned a Young Physician-Scientist Award from ASCI. The honor recognizes physician-scientists who are early in their first faculty appointment and have made notable achievements in their research. Her laboratory currently focuses on the study of enteroviruses like D68, a polio-like illness in children.