Published in UAB Insight, Spring 2007
Saag Named Infectious Diseases Director
Michael S. Saag, MD, has accepted an appointment as director of the UAB Division of Infectious Diseases. Active in HIV/AIDS research and treatment for 25 years, Saag published the first description of the use of viral load in clinical practice, the first guidelines for using viral load, and the first description of rapid dynamics of viral replication. He wrote the first proof of concept of fusion inhibition as a therapeutic option and directed the first inpatient studies of 8 of the 22 antiretroviral drugs currently on the market. He has contributed to more than 50 medical textbook chapters and coedited AIDS Therapy.
Corbett To Head UAB Comprehensive Diabetes Center
John A. Corbett, PhD, professor of biochemistry and molecular biology at St. Louis University, will be the inaugural director of the UAB Comprehensive Diabetes Center, effective June 1. "A leader in research examining the mechanism by which pancreatic islet cells are destroyed, Corbett will aptly lead UAB' s efforts at finding better treatments, and we hope eventually a cure, for diabetes," said Robert R. Rich, MD, senior vice president and dean of the UAB School of Medicine.