Holder of:

• The Lisa K. Simmons Distinguished Chair in Comprehensive Oncology

Carlos L. Arteaga, M.D., a devoted cancer researcher and clinician, was named Director of the Harold C. Simmons Comprehensive Cancer Center at UT Southwestern Medical Center in September 2017. He also serves as Associate Dean of Oncology Programs. Dr. Arteaga is internationally recognized for his work in laboratory-based translational research and advancing the care of breast cancer patients.

The majority of Dr. Arteaga’s career has been as a physician-scientist in Medical Oncology at the Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center of Vanderbilt University, where he served as Associate Director for Translational/Clinical Research and Director of the Center for Cancer Targeted Therapies. At Vanderbilt, he also led a successful translational research program that includes a National Cancer Institute/National Institutes of Health SPORE award in breast cancer.

He is a member of the American Society for Clinical Investigation and the Association of American Physicians. He has earned numerous accolades from the American Cancer Society, the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR), Susan G. Komen for the Cure Foundation, and the American Society of Clinical Oncology. A former President of the AACR, he serves on the boards of advisors of several cancer centers and breast cancer programs.

Dr. Arteaga earned his medical degree from Facultad de Ciencias Médicas at the Universidad de Guayaquil in Ecuador. He trained in Internal Medicine at Emory University and in Medical Oncology at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio.

Holder of the: 

• Regental Professor
• Raymond and Ellen Willie Distinguished Chair in Cancer Research, in Honor of Laverne and Raymond Willie, Sr.

Bruce Beutler, M.D., serves as Director of the Center for the Genetics of Host Defense and on the faculty of the Department of Immunology. He is known for his work in unlocking the secret of how the body detects infection and launches an inflammatory response. His research on mice converged with French scientist Dr. Jules Hoffmann’s studies in flies, and together with Ralph Steinman, they shared the 2011 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for their work on innate immunity. Dr. Beutler was elected to the National Academy of Sciences and to the National Academy of Medicine (formerly the Institute of Medicine) in 2008 and to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences (AAAS) in 2013.

Dr. Beutler, who started his scientific career at UT Southwestern as an internal medicine intern and neurology resident, served as a faculty member from 1986 to 2000 and was an Investigator for the Howard Hughes Medical Institute at UT Southwestern during those years.

He completed his undergraduate work at the University of California, San Diego, and earned his medical degree from the University of Chicago. After postgraduate training at UT Southwestern, he completed a two-year fellowship at Rockefeller University, where he also was an Assistant Professor.

Holder of the: 

• Lois C.A. and Darwin Smith Distinguished Chair in Neurological Mobility Research

William T. Dauer, M.D., a neurologist acclaimed for his research into dystonia and Parkinson’s disease, joined UT Southwestern Medical Center in July 2019 as the inaugural Director of the Peter O’Donnell Jr. Brain Institute.

Most recently, Dr. Dauer was Director of the Movement Disorders Group and the Morris K. Udall Center of Excellence for Parkinson’s Disease Research at the University of Michigan.

For nearly two decades, Dr. Dauer’s groundbreaking research has focused on the molecular basis of dystonia and the mechanisms of neurodegeneration in Parkinson’s disease. His findings have elucidated the critical role of the torsinA protein in the progression of dystonia, which is marked by disabling, involuntary movements. The studies of his Udall Center team dissecting the neurobiologic basis of falls in Parkinson’s are being used to pioneer a therapy for this currently untreatable symptom.

Dr. Dauer is an elected member of the American Society for Clinical Investigation, and has been honored with the Dystonia Medical Research Foundation’s Fahn Award and Columbia University’s Harold and Golden Lamport Award for excellence in clinical science research.

He attended medical school at Washington University in St. Louis. After postdoctoral work at Massachusetts General Hospital and a medical internship at Beth Israel Hospital in Boston, he completed his residency in neurology and fellowship in Parkinson’s disease and related movement disorders at Columbia University in New York, where he established a laboratory in 2001. In 2009, he joined the faculty of the University of Michigan Medical School.

Holder of the:

• Distinguished Chair in Basic Brain Injury and Repair

Marc Diamond, M.D., is the founding Director of the Center for Alzheimer’s and Neurodegenerative Diseases. The Center is comprised of a multidisciplinary group of investigators focused on understanding the basis of progressive protein aggregation in human disease.

Dr. Diamond, also a Professor of Neurology and Neurotherapeutics, completed an internship, residency, and chief residency in neurology at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF). After a postdoctoral fellowship, he spent eight years as a faculty member in the neurology department at UCSF. Dr. Diamond served as the David Clayson Professor of Neurology at Washington University in St. Louis before being recruited to UT Southwestern in 2014.

His research focuses on molecular mechanisms of neurodegeneration in Alzheimer’s disease and related disorders, with the goal of developing novel therapies and diagnostic tools. A therapeutic antibody he co-developed at Washington University in St. Louis is now entering clinical trials for treatment of dementia.

Holder of the:

• Diane and Hal Brierley Distinguished Chair in Biomedical Research

Anke Henning, Ph.D., an expert in medical imaging technology development, has been Director of the Advanced Imaging Research Center since January 2019. Dr. Henning has developed novel magnetic resonance imaging methods for noninvasive visualization of disease-related structural, functional, and metabolic changes in the human brain, spinal cord, and heart.

Her specific expertise is in ultra-high field magnetic imaging technology, magnetic resonance spectroscopy, and non-proton imaging. She also directs clinical research with respect to brain imaging in psychiatric disorders, spinal cord imaging in traumatic injury, and imaging of the human heart. At UT Southwestern, Dr. Henning has expanded her research interests to include imaging glioblastoma with the ultimate goal of enhancing the treatment of this otherwise challenging malignancy.

She obtained a master’s degree in physics from the Technical University of Chemnitz in Germany and her Ph.D. in biomedical engineering from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich (also known as Eidgenössische Technische Hochschule or ETH). She remained at the ETH for postdoctoral training and then was a visiting scientist in the Department of Radiology at the University Medical Center in Utrecht, the Netherlands. In 2012, she joined the Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics in Tübingen, Germany, as a Research Group Leader, and in 2017 was made a full Professor of Medical Physics at the Ernst-Moritz Arndt University in Greifswald, Germany.

Holder of the:

• 1995 Dallas Heart Ball Chair in Cardiology Research
• Eugene McDermott Distinguished Chair for the Study of Human Growth and Development
• Philip O’Bryan Montgomery Jr., M.D., Distinguished Chair in Developmental Biology

Helen Hobbs, M.D., was elected to the National Academy of Sciences in 2007. In addition to her role as Chief of Clinical Genetics at UT Southwestern Medical Center, she is Director of both the Eugene McDermott Center for Human Growth and Development and the Donald W. Reynolds Cardiovascular Clinical Research Center. Noted for discovering new genes and gene variations that explain individual differences in blood levels of LDL (“bad” cholesterol), Dr. Hobbs has been awarded the American Heart Association Clinical Research Prize, the international Heinrich Wieland Prize for metabolism research, and the 2007 American Heart Association Distinguished Scientist Award. Dr. Hobbs’ research support has come from, among others, the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, the National Institutes of Health, and the Department of Defense.

Dr. Hobbs earned her medical degree from Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine in Cleveland, completed an internship in internal medicine at Columbia-Presbyterian Medical Center in New York City, then moved to UT Southwestern, where she completed her clinical training and served as Chief Resident in Internal Medicine at Parkland Memorial Hospital.

Holder of the:

• The Dr. Robert C. and Veronica Atkins Chair in Obesity & Diabetes Research
• Center for Human Nutrition Director’s Endowed Chair
• Distinguished Chair in Human Nutrition
• Scott Grundy Director’s Chair

Jay Horton, M.D., an internationally acclaimed physician and scientist, was named Director of the Center for Human Nutrition in June 2015. He also is Professor of Internal Medicine and Molecular Genetics, as well as Chief of the Division of Digestive and Liver Diseases. In their research, he and the Center for Human Nutrition are helping to understand abnormal metabolism and the contributions of nutrition and genetics in humans. Among his many accomplishments, Dr. Horton’s work has provided the foundation for a new class of agents approved by the FDA for lowering serum cholesterol levels.

A UT Southwestern faculty member since 1988, Dr. Horton earned his medical degree from University of Iowa in 1977. He came to UT Southwestern for his residency in internal medicine subsequently completing a fellowship in gastroenterology and a Howard Hughes Medical Institute fellowship in molecular genetics.

Holder of the:

• Cecil H. and Ida Green Distinguished Chair in Reproductive Biology Sciences

W. Lee Kraus, Ph.D., is the Director of the Cecil H. and Ida Green Center for Reproductive Biology Sciences, which for more than 50 years has promoted integrative and collaborative research in female reproductive biology, with a focus on signaling, gene regulation, and genome function. Dr. Kraus is a thought leader in the PARP/ADP-ribosylation field and an expert in transcription, gene regulation, and chromatin. His research has been supported by a Career Award in the Biomedical Sciences/Reproductive Biology from the Burroughs Wellcome Fund, as well as grants from the National Institutes of Health, the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas, the American Cancer Society, the Endocrine Society, and the National Science Foundation.

Dr. Kraus holds a doctorate in physiology and biophysics from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign and completed a postdoctoral fellowship in biology at the University of California, San Diego.

He has published more than 120 original research articles and reviews in peer-reviewed journals. He also has won a number of research and teaching awards, including the Endocrine Society’s Richard E. Weitzman Memorial Award, the Endocrine Society’s Ernst Oppenheimer Award, the Cornell University College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Young Faculty Teaching Excellence Award and Undergraduate Research Mentoring Award.

Holder of the:

• Sarah M. and Charles E. Seay Distinguished Chair in Cancer Research
• Max L. Thomas Distinguished Chair in Molecular Pulmonary Oncology

As Director of the Nancy B. and Jake L. Hamon Center for Therapeutic Oncology Research and the W.A. "Tex" and Deborah Moncrief Jr. Center for Cancer Genetics, John D. Minna, M.D., leads a team that unites the health science disciplines in the lab and the clinic with the goal of developing and implementing new methods of prevention, detection, and treatment of the various types of cancer.

Dr. Minna, who is also a Professor of Internal Medicine and Pharmacology, focuses his research on understanding the molecular pathogenesis of common human cancers, such as lung and breast cancer. Dr. Minna has received the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Award for Lifetime Scientific Achievement and was named an ASCO Statesman for his volunteer contributions to the organization.

A graduate of Stanford University School of Medicine, Dr. Minna spent time at both the National Cancer Institute and the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland, before joining the faculty at UT Southwestern Medical Center in 1991.

Holder of the:

• Kathryne and Gene Bishop Distinguished Chair in Pediatric Research at Children's Research Institute at UT Southwestern
• Mary McDermott Cook Chair in Pediatric Genetics

Sean J. Morrison, Ph.D., is founding Director of the Children's Medical Center Research Institute at UT Southwestern, Professor of Pediatrics, a Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator, and a CPRIT Scholar in Cancer Research. Dr. Morrison’s laboratory at CRI studies the mechanisms that regulate stem cell self-renewal and stem cell aging, as well as the role these mechanisms play in cancer.

Dr. Morrison obtained his bachelor of science degree in biology and chemistry from Dalhousie University in Halifax, Canada, then completed a Ph.D. in immunology at Stanford University, followed by a postdoctoral fellowship in neurobiology at the California Institute of Technology. From 1999 to 2011, he was on faculty at the University of Michigan; he served as director of the Center for Stem Cell Biology from 2005 to 2011, when he was recruited to UT Southwestern.

Holder of the:

• Annie and Willie Nelson Professorship in Stem Cell Research
• Pogue Distinguished Chair in Research on Cardiac Birth Defects
• Robert A. Welch Distinguished Chair in Science

The pioneering work of Eric N. Olson, Ph.D., regarded as a major step in finding genetic targets for the treatment of congenital heart defects and adult heart disease, has illuminated the fundamental principles of organ formation and has demonstrated that many of the genes that control heart formation are called into play in the adult heart under pathological stress.

Most recently, Dr. Olson has turned his attention to microRNAs, which are recognized to activate cell functions. He is a recipient of the Institut de France Lefoulon-Delalande Fondation Grand Prize and a member of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Medicine (formerly the Institute of Medicine), and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Dr. Olson serves as the Director of the Hamon Center for Regenerative Science and Medicine, and as a consultant to miRagen Therapeutics, a biotechnology company that he co-founded

He received his doctorate in biochemistry from the Bowman Gray School of Medicine at Wake Forest University.

Holder of the:

• W.A. (Monty) Moncrief Distinguished Chair in Cholesterol and Arteriosclerosis Research
• Regental Professorship
• Paul J. Thomas Chair in Medicine

Michael S. Brown, M.D., serves as Director of the Erik Jonsson Center for Research in Molecular Genetics and Human Disease and on the faculty of the Department of Molecular Genetics. Together with his longtime colleague, Joseph L. Goldstein, M.D., Dr. Brown discovered the low-density lipoprotein (LDL) receptor, which controls cholesterol levels in blood and cells. Their work laid the groundwork for the development of a class of drugs called statins that block cholesterol synthesis, increase LDL receptors, lower blood cholesterol, and prevent heart attacks.

Drs. Brown and Goldstein have received many awards for this work, including the U.S. National Medal of Science and the Nobel Prize for Medicine or Physiology.

Dr. Brown is also a member of the Board of Directors of Regeneron Pharmaceuticals and is Chairman of its Technology Committee.

He received his M.D. from the University of Pennsylvania, served a residency at Massachusetts General Hospital, and completed a postdoctoral fellowship with Dr. Earl Stadtman at the National Institutes of Health.

Holder of the:

• Maclin Family Distinguished Professorship in Medical Science, in Honor of Dr. Roy A. Brinkley
• Carl H. Westcott Distinguished Chair in Medical Research

Joel K. Elmquist, D.V.M., Ph.D., is Director of the Hypothalamic Research Center at UT Southwestern Medical Center, which investigates the causes of obesity, metabolic syndrome, and diabetes. Since 2006, Dr. Elmquist has been a Professor of Internal Medicine, Pharmacology, and Psychiatry, and the Director of the Division of Hypothalamic Research at UT Southwestern.

Research at the Elmquist Lab focuses on the functional neuroanatomy of the mammalian hypothalamus. He has been invited to speak at meetings and symposia all over the United States and internationally in more than a dozen countries. In 2008, he received the Oppenheimer Award in recognition of meritorious accomplishments in the field of basic or clinical endocrinology.

He received his doctorate in veterinary medicine and his Ph.D. in anatomy and neuroscience from Iowa State University, then spent 12 years at Harvard Medical School/Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, first as a postdoctoral fellow and eventually as Associate Professor.

Holder of the:

• Presbyterian Village North Foundation Distinguished Chair in Alzheimer's Disease Therapeutic Research
• Thomas O. and Cinda Hicks Family Distinguished Chair in Alzheimer’s Disease Research

Joachim Herz, M.D., joined the UT Southwestern Medical Center Department of Molecular Genetics in 1989. Noted for his groundbreaking research into how a mutation in a single protein triggers the devastation of Alzheimer’s disease, Dr. Herz was named Director of the Center for Translational Neurodegeneration Research.

Tirelessly dedicated, Dr. Herz participated in the 2010 Alzheimer’s Breakthrough Ride, cycling from Dallas to Oklahoma City in 100-degree weather to raise awareness and promote federal funding for research.

Born in Southern Germany, Dr. Herz graduated from medical school at the University of Heidelberg, Germany, training as a resident in surgery in Germany and England. He has been honored for his numerous contributions to research related to lipid and cholesterol regulation, receiving the prestigious Heinrich Wieland Prize for Excellence in Lipid Research and the Wolfgang Paul Award of the Humboldt Society of Germany and the Ministry of Education of Germany. 

Holder of the:

• James T. Willerson, M.D. Distinguished Chair in Cardiovascular Diseases
• Frank M. Ryburn, Jr. Chair in Heart Research

Joseph A. Hill, M.D., Ph.D., is Director of the Harry S. Moss Heart Center, an interdisciplinary research program related to cardiovascular diseases. He also serves as Professor of Internal Medicine and Molecular Biology and Chief of Cardiology at UT Southwestern Medical Center. A Fellow of the American Heart Association (AHA), Dr. Hill has served as President of both the Association of Professors of Cardiology and the Association of University Cardiologists.

The author of more than 100 peer-reviewed articles, he has received grant support from, among others, the AHA, the American Diabetes Association, and the Cancer Prevention & Research Institute of Texas (CPRIT).

He came to UT Southwestern in 2002 after time as a fellow at the Institut Pasteur in Paris; as an intern and resident at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School; and at the University of Iowa. He earned both his M.D. and Ph.D. in pharmacology from Duke University.

Holder of the:

• Kimberly-Clark Distinguished Chair in Mobility Research

Heakyung Kim, M.D., joined UT Southwestern in May 2022 as Chair of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation.

Her body of research focuses on spasticity management, robotic therapy, and exercise for weak muscles in children with cerebral palsy. Dr. Kim also is studying quality of life for adults with cerebral palsy. An expert in single event multilevel chemoneurolysis with botulinum toxin and phenol or alcohol, she led the development of the Spasticity Management Program at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia that decreased orthopedic surgery by 70% for children with cerebral palsy. Dr. Kim established a multidisciplinary drooling management program with botulinum toxin injections to the salivary gland, which prevented repeat pediatric intensive care unit (PICU) admissions of children with frequent aspiration pneumonia and decreased PICU length of stay. She also led an interdisciplinary team that built a life span-care model for individuals with cerebral palsy.

Dr. Kim earned her M.D. from Ewha Womans University College of Medicine in Seoul, South Korea, and trained in the Department of Rehabilitation Medicine of Yonsei University College of Medicine in Seoul. After completing her combined pediatric and PM&R residency at Rutgers Biomedical and Health Sciences in New Jersey, she joined the faculty at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, serving as Medical Director of the Cerebral Palsy Clinic and Section of Rehabilitation Medicine.

Before joining UT Southwestern, Dr. Kim was at Columbia University Irving Medical Center and NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center, where she served as Vice Chair of the Department of Rehabilitation and Regenerative Medicine, Director of Pediatric Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Fellowship Program Director of Pediatric Rehabilitation Medicine, and Associate Director of Weinberg Family Cerebral Palsy Center.

Holder of the:

• Charles Pak Distinguished Chair in Mineral Metabolism
• Donald W. Seldin Professorship in Clinical Investigation

As the Director of the Charles and Jane Pak Center for Mineral Metabolism and Clinical Research, Orson W. Moe, M.D., leads basic science and patient-oriented research to identify and implement new knowledge of mineral metabolism and its disorders, as well as provide exceptional care for people with kidney diseases and disorders of mineral metabolism. From the cell level to the whole patient, Dr. Moe’s personal research is centered on renal physiology, metabolism, and epithelial biology and the pathophysiology of nephrolithiasis.

The co-editor of Seldin and Giebisch’s The Kidney: Physiology and Pathophysiology, Dr. Moe received his medical degree and completed his residency at the University of Toronto, followed by a fellowship in nephrology, also at the University of Toronto. Following a fellowship in renal physiology at UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dr. Moe joined the faculty in 1990 as an Assistant Professor, with a joint appointment as a staff physician at the Dallas Veterans Affairs Medical Center. He is currently a Professor in both the Department of Internal Medicine and Department of Physiology.

Carl Noe, M.D., is the Director of the Eugene McDermott Center for Pain Management, which offers a full range of clinical treatment to sufferers of chronic pain, and is a member of the Anesthesiology and Pain Management faculty. An instructor and examiner with the World Institute of Pain, Dr. Noe has received certification as a Fellow of Interventional Pain Practice, certification by The American Board of Anesthesiology, and subspecialty certification by the ABA in critical care medicine and pain management.

Dr. Noe, who earned his M.D. from the UT Health Science Center at San Antonio, completed his internship and residency training at Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, cardiovascular anesthesia and critical care fellowship training at Stanford University, and a pain management fellowship at TTUHSC. He served on the Texas Tech University Board of Regents from 1993 to 1999.

Holder of the:

• Gifford O. Touchstone, Jr. and Randolph G. Touchstone Distinguished Chair in Diabetes Research
• Touchstone/West Distinguished Chair in Diabetes Research

Philipp Scherer, Ph.D., is currently Director of the Touchstone Diabetes Center, which is devoted to the study of cells and tissues that play a role in diabetes and its co-morbidities. Current efforts in the Scherer laboratory are focused on the identification and physiological characterization of novel proteins that serve as potential links between the adipocyte, liver, the pancreatic beta cell, and the processes of whole body energy homeostasis, inflammation, cancer, and cardiovascular disease, thereby identifying novel targets for pharmacological intervention and further defining the role of adipose tissue as an endocrine tissue.

Dr. Scherer received his Ph.D. from the University of Basel, Switzerland, working on mitochondrial biogenesis, followed by postdoctoral training at the Whitehead Institute at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Prior to joining the faculty of UT Southwestern Medical Center, he was a Professor for Cell Biology and Medicine at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine.