PENN Fall 2006 Psychiatry Perspective Aaron T. Beck, MD 2006 Albert Lasker Clinical Medical Research Award aron T. Beck, MD, Uni- fastest growing short-term Aversity Professor Emeri- psychotherapy in the world. In This Issue tus of Psychiatry, is the Since 1954, Dr. Beck has been recipient of the 2006 Albert a faculty member in Penn’s Lasker Clinical Medical CHAIRMAN’S REPORT . 2 Department of Psychiatry, an Research Award, considered PROGRAM HIGHLIGHTS association that has proved the most prestigious honor Pain Medicine . 3 beneficial to his path-breaking bestowed in American sci- Behavioral Genetics . 5 research. “I have been partic- ence. Called “America’s OUR DISTINGUISHED FACULTY ularly helped by the warm Nobel,” the Lasker Award is Awards and Honors . 7 atmosphere in the Department often a precursor of a Nobel News & Goings-On . 9 toward clinical research dating Research News . .11 Prize. Since the first Lasker back many decades to the Research Grants . .14 Award was conferred in chairmanships of Dr. Kenneth Faculty in the News . .16 1962, 71 awardees have later Appel (1953-1962) and Dr. CORNERSTONES won a Nobel. Albert Stunkard (1962-1973),” he says. Faculty Spotlight . .17 In a stellar career stretching over five Voluntary Faculty Profile . .19 Dr. Beck views the Lasker Award as more decades, Dr. Beck revolutionized the psy- Employee Snapshot . .21 than personal recognition. “This award chological understanding and treatment EDUCATIONAL HIGHLIGHTS acknowledges that psychological of depression and other psychiatric disor- Resident Class of 2010 . .22 approaches to the understanding and ders, pioneered the development of Cog- Resident Activities . .23 treatment of mental ills presents a scientif- Family Systems Program . .24 nitive Therapy to treat these maladies, ically valid form of investigation,” Dr. developed sophisticated instruments for DEPARTMENT PICNIC . .26 Beck emphasizes. “Specifically, it recog- assessing the severity of specific psychi- CALENDAR OF EVENTS . .27 nizes the value of Cognitive Therapy in atric syndromes, and continues to make clarifying and ameliorating various prob- seminal additions to our understanding of lems.” suicide classification, assessment, predic- tion, and prevention. The School of Medicine is holding a recep- tion to honor Dr. Beck on November 6 at Dr. Beck, featured in the Faculty Spotlight the Union League, 5:00-7:00 pm. All column in the Winter 2006 issue of Penn Department of Psychiatry Department faculty and staff are invited and Psychiatry Perspective, is widely known as PENN Behavioral Health to attend. Please contact Tina Callaghan the “Father of Cognitive Therapy,” the University of Pennsylvania at (215) 662-2818 for details. O Communicating better... enn Psychiatry Perspective has a new look. We have created distinct sections within the newsletter and have utilized a two- or Pthree-column page structure to make it easier to locate our features and read our stories. We have also added the portrait of Benjamin Rush to our cover page. Rush, the first Chair of Chemistry in America and one of the earliest teachers in Penn’s medical school, was the world’s leading expert on mental diseases in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. In 1812, Rush published Med- ical Inquiries and Observations Upon Diseases of the Mind, the first American textbook of psychiatry. Rush is recognized as the “Father of American Psychiatry.” We have also redesigned the Department web site to improve ease of use and to expand the information available to users. Start- ing in November, the new web site address will be: www.med.upenn.edu/psych. This and future issues of Penn Psychiatry Per- spective will be posted on the web site. Also, we are developing a new web site for the Department’s residency program, to be launched in November (www.med.upenn.edu/psychres). O PAGE 2 PENN PSYCHIATRY PERSPECTIVE O FALL 2006 Chairman’s Report bout a decade ago, biomedical researchers began to the recipient of the presti- Ause a term which succinctly describes what we do. gious 2006 Albert Lasker According to the NIH, translational research is the process Clinical Medical Research by which “scientific discoveries [are] translated into practi- Award. Over five decades, cal applications.” all spent in our Department, Dr. Beck developed the theo- Translational research is the place where science and medi- ry and practice of cognitive cine meet to conquer disease. therapy, used world-wide to Conducting research to improve patient care is one of the treat patients suffering from fundamental reasons why academic medical centers and a wide range of mental and departments such as ours exist. How well we create knowl- medical disorders. edge to improve the public health largely determines our Clinical Research – At the value to society and our reputation among our peer clinical research end of the departments. investigative spectrum, faculty in the Neuropsychiatry Sec- Translational medicine takes many forms, from laboratory tion, including the newly established Center for Transla- or “bench” research to studies of human subjects, and vice tional Research in Psychiatry and the Center for Neu- versa, with the same goal – improved drugs, therapies, and roimaging in Psychiatry, study brain-related disorders other treatments. associated with complex behavior change, particularly schizophrenia. The Center for the Treatment and Study of While the boundaries are somewhat blurred, I like to view Anxiety explores new psychotherapeutic approaches to the translational research efforts in our Department in three treat posttraumatic stress disorder and other anxiety disor- categories: 1) basic research; 2) behavioral medicine ders, and the Mood and Anxiety Disorders Program gives research; and 3) clinical research. special attention to drug therapies for mood and anxiety Basic Research – The path from basic investigation to the disorders. The Center for Cognitive Therapy develops bedside is not always straightforward. Basic science inves- treatments for depression and borderline personality disor- tigators may pursue questions without immediate clinical der, the Depression Research Unit conducts studies in bipo- significance, though their efforts may produce findings that lar disorder and depression, and the Center for Psychother- ultimately unlock medical puzzles to improve patient care. apy Research identifies the appropriate therapies for specif- Other basic researchers stick closer to clinical applications, ic disorders. The Center for Mental Healthy Policy and Ser- such as identifying genes that cause or exacerbate disease. vices Research seeks to improve the delivery of care to peo- ple with serious mental illness and the Section on Geriatric The Center for Neurobiology and Behavior is the focal Psychiatry studies the mental disorders that most afflict the point for our basic translational work. Here, scientists elderly. study the neurobiology of disease, working at cellular or molecular levels to understand how the essential building To answer their questions, Department researchers inte- blocks of the neural system develop and change. They grate scientific disciplines and methodologies and tap the search for genes that may predispose individuals to certain expertise of researchers across Penn’s departments and disorders, including mood and anxiety disorders and schools and at other universities and research institutions. schizophrenia. Others seek the genetic basis for human Through formal training programs – such as the highly obesity or examine how anti–depressant, anti-anxiety, and regarded Clinical Research Scholars Program – and infor- anti-psychotic drugs work in the human body. mal mentorship, Department faculty pass on their research expertise to residents and other trainees, transferring to Behavioral Medicine Research – Behavioral medicine exam- future generations the necessary tools to conduct transla- ines the role of behavioral and cognitive factors in the etiol- tional research. ogy, prevention, treatment, and outcomes of major medical illnesses. The Center for Studies of Addiction and the The ultimate goal of this interdisciplinary and interinstitu- Treatment Research Center focus on addictive illness. The tional effort is to translate science into improved clinical Division of Sleep and Chronobiology investigates the basis care. It’s a responsibility our faculty take seriously and, as for sleep disorders, the Weight and Eating Disorders Pro- the results show, fulfill expertly. gram focuses on the prevention and treatment of obesity, the Transdisciplinary Tobacco Use Research Center studies tobacco use and nicotine addiction, and the HIV Preven- Dwight L. Evans, M.D. tion Research Division tests HIV/AIDS prevention inter- Ruth Meltzer Professor and Chair ventions. Professor of Psychiatry, Medicine and Neuroscience In this issue, we pay tribute to Aaron T. Beck, MD, founder and director of the Psychopathology Research Unit, who is www.med.upenn.edu/psych www.med.upenn.edu/psych PAGE 3 Program Highlights UNDERSTANDING AND TREATING THE NATION’S SILENT EPIDEMIC: The Center for Pain Medicine, Research and Policy Begins Its Work f you experience pain on a fre- PENN Behavioral Health. The orthopaedic trauma ward at the Iquent basis, the numbers sug- Center complements the work of University of Vermont. He cared gest that you have company. the Penn Pain Medicine Center in for the same patients in follow-up the Department of • Over 50 million Americans suf- Anesthesiology and fer from chronic pain, one-fifth Critical