Terence Dermody, M.D.
Dermody elected AAAS fellow
Vanderbilt University Medical Center professor Terence Dermody, M.D., has been named a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), an honor bestowed upon AAAS members by their peers.
Dermody, a professor of Pediatrics, professor of Microbiology and Immunology, director of the Elizabeth B. Lamb Center for Pediatric Research, and director of the Vanderbilt Medical Scientist Training Program, was honored for his “distinguished contributions to the field of virology and viral pathogenesis, particularly for studies of reovirus attachment, cell entry and innate immune response signaling.”
“I am tremendously honored to receive this recognition and credit members of my laboratory team for the hard work that made this achievement possible,” Dermody said.
His research focuses on the pathogenesis of reovirus infections, with particular emphasis on the attachment and cell entry strategies employed by this virus, as a model system to understand how pathogenic microbes select target cells in the infected host.
Dermody's lab is also working to develop vaccines. He and his colleagues recently reported their development of a new “reverse genetics” system for manipulating the reovirus genome, which may provide a platform for the development of vaccines to prevent AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria, and a number of other infectious diseases.
Dermody completed his medical training at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons in 1982. He came to Vanderbilt in 1990 after completing a residency in internal medicine at Presbyterian Hospital in New York and fellowships in infectious diseases and virology at Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School in Boston.
The tradition of the AAAS Fellows distinction began in 1874. Dermody is one of 471 members elected this year for their scientifically or socially distinguished efforts to advance science or its applications.
New Fellows will be presented with an official certificate and a gold and blue (representing science and engineering, respectively) rosette pin at the 2008 AAAS Annual Meeting in Boston in February.
Founded in 1848, the AAAS is the world's largest general scientific society and publisher of the journal Science.