Barry London, M.D., Ph.D., Named Chief of the Division of Cardiology at University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine

PITTSBURGH, August 13, 2003 Barry London, M.D., Ph.D., has been named chief of the Division of Cardiology at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, and director of the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center Cardiovascular Institute.

"Dr. London is an outstanding cardiologist who has distinguished himself both as a clinician and researcher," said Arthur S. Levine, M.D., senior vice chancellor for the health sciences and dean, School of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh. "Through his leadership, the division of cardiology will continue to gain prominence as one of the elite academic cardiology groups nationally in basic, translational and clinical research."

"We will continue to foster clinical and scientific growth and development in the Cardiovascular Institute and provide outstanding clinical care to residents of southwest Pennsylvania," said Dr. London. "At the same time, we plan to recruit additional scientists in heart failure, electrophysiology and vascular biology to develop the next generation of clinical cardiology tools."

Dr. London holds an A.B., Magna Cum Laude, in Chemistry and Physics from Harvard College. In 1987, Dr. London graduated from the Albert Einstein College of Medicine, New York, with both his Ph.D. and M.D. in physiology and biophysics, and medicine respectively. He has been a member of the University of Pittsburgh faculty since 1996 when he was named assistant professor of medicine. During his tenure at Pitt, Dr. London has held numerous positions including acting research director at the Cardiovascular Institute, assistant dean of admissions at the School of Medicine and as a member of the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine admissions committee.

Prior to joining the University of Pittsburgh faculty, he was an instructor in medicine at Harvard Medical School, an assistant in cardiology at Children's Hospital in Boston, and an assistant in medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital.

He was a Fellow of the American Heart Association, Massachusetts Affiliate, in 1992; a Howard Hughes Medical Institute Fellow at Children's Hospital, Boston, in 1993; and a Fellow of the American College of Cardiology in 1998. He is board certified in internal medicine and in cardiovascular disease.

In 1998, Dr. London received the Astra-Merck Cardiovascular Young Investigator's Award. He also has served as a permanent member of the Cardiovascular Study Section of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) since 2001. He was co-chairman of the Genetics Study Section of the American Heart Association, Mid-Atlantic Affiliate, in 2001-2002.

Dr. London is principal investigator or co-investigator in numerous ongoing studies funded by the NIH, the American College of Cardiology and the American Heart Association. His research into cardiovascular disease includes studies on potassium channels in the heart using transgenic mice; the molecular genetics of inherited arrhythmias that may eventuate in sudden death such as the Brugada syndrome; gene therapy for congestive heart failure; and the effects of nitric oxide on survival of patients with congestive heart failure.

Dr. London is a member of numerous professional societies including the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the Biophysical Society, the Massachusetts Medical Society, the American College of Physicians, the Basic Science Council of the American Heart Association and the American College of Cardiology. He was recently elected to the American Society for Clinical Investigation, the nation's most prestigious clinical research organization.