Mark Tuszynski Awarded the Reeve-Irvine Research Medal
The Reeve-Irvine Medal Symposium celebrated Mark Tuszynski as the recipient of the Reeve-Irvine Research Medal. In 1996 well known philanthropist Joan Irvine Smith established an annual award originally named the “Christopher Reeve Research Medal”, with Christopher’s blessing became the “Reeve-Irvine Research Medal”. The medal recognizes an individual who has made highly meritorious scientific contributions in the area of spinal cord repair, and whose research has stood the test of time and scrutiny. The medal and a $50,000 cash award is provided through the generosity of the Joan Irvine Smith and Athalie R. Clarke Foundation, whose kindness has made it possible to continue to recognize the work of pioneering investigators whose research has brought us closer to cures for afflictions affecting the spinal cord.
Mark Tuszynski is a physician-scientist exploring the topics of spinal cord injury, degenerative disorders of the nervous system, and fundamental mechanisms underlying learning and memory. Dr. Tuszynski obtained his bachelor of science and M.D. degrees at the University of Minnesota, and completed residency training in neurology at Cornell University Medical Center / The New York Hospital. He then earned a Ph.D. in neuroscience at the University of California-San Diego. He has been a faculty member at the University of California-San Diego since 1991, and is currently the Director of the Center for Neural Repair and Founding Director of the UCSD Translational Neuroscience Institute.
Dr. Tuszynski has published over 190 research articles and 3 books. The overarching goal of his research is to develop effective therapies for untreatable neurological disorders. Dr. Tuszynski performed the first human clinical trial of gene delivery in the adult central nervous system: Nerve Growth Factor gene therapy for has received 15 awards for his research. His research is supported by the NIH, the Veterans Administration and has received 15 awards for his research.
