[July 16, 2013; Philadelphia, PA] – The University of Pennsylvania’s School of Veterinary Medicine (Penn Vet) announces the appointment of Ellen Puré, PhD, as Chair of the Department of Animal Biology.
As Chair, Dr. Puré will lead the department in performing pioneering, translational research; oversee the training of veterinary students; and participate in undergraduate and graduate training programs at Penn Vet.
Prior to joining Penn Vet, Dr. Puré served as Professor of Cellular and Molecular Oncogenesis at The Wistar Institute and as Wistar Professor of Medicine, Microbiology, and Pharmacology at the University of Pennsylvania’s Perelman School of Medicine.
The Puré Laboratory at The Wistar Institute studies the molecular and cellular mechanisms of inflammation and fibrosis, which play significant roles in a wide array of diseases, including atherosclerosis, asthma, rheumatoid arthritis, pulmonary fibrosis, and cancer.
Dr. Puré first joined The Wistar Institute in 1992 as an associate professor, arriving from the Rockefeller University, where she was an assistant professor from 1984 to 1992 and assistant dean from 1988 to 1990. She received her bachelor’s degree from Washington University and a PhD in immunology from the University of Texas-Southwestern Medical School.
“Dr. Puré’s expertise, her enthusiasm about forging connections across disciplines and departments, and her internationally recognized research credentials make her a perfect fit for Penn Vet,” said Joan C. Hendricks, VMD, PhD, the Gilbert S. Kahn Dean of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. “We look forward to watching the Department of Animal Biology thrive under her leadership.”
Penn Vet’s Department of Animal Biology is recognized as one of the foremost basic science departments in veterinary medicine. The department is home to 24 faculty members whose research interests fall within the fields of cancer biology, development, stem cell biology and regenerative medicine, neuroscience, metabolism and endocrinology, and the biochemical basis of disease. Penn Vet’s unique proximity to world-class academic veterinary and medical hospitals provides ample opportunity for collaboration, resulting in cutting-edge basic and comparative translational research to advance both animal and human medicine.