Sept. 8, 1999

Media Contact: Nancy Stringer (619) 543-6163

GENE THERAPY FOR HEART DISEASE TOPIC OF UCSD PUBLIC LECTURE

in a public lecture at UCSD School of Medicine, a leading international figure in heart disease research will discuss new laboratory findings, which may lead to gene-based therapies for preventing or reversing certain types of heart disease. 

Kenneth Chien, M.D., Ph.D., professor of medicine with the UCSD School of Medicine, will present the free lecture at 4 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 5, in the Center for Molecular Genetics Auditorium on the UCSD School of Medicine campus in La Jolla.  Chien’s lecture, titled “Toward Gene Therapy for Human Heart Disease: Problems and Prospects,” is part of the “Meet the Dean” series of quarterly lectures and updates on research and other activities at the School of Medicine.

Chien is director of the UCSD-Salk Program in Molecular Medicine and co-director of the UCSD Cardiovascular Center.  He has received numerous national and international awards, and has served as a member of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Board of Scientific Counselors.  Recently, he joined the Scientific Advisory Board of Pictet et Cie, the largest private bank in Switzerland, where he serves as an advisor on scientific and technology related investments.  He also serves as an advisor to several biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies, including Genentech, SmithKline Beecham, Rhone-Poulenc Rorer, and Roche.