Mark T. Gladden, MD, Recruited as new Dean of the University of Maryland School of Medicine (UMSOM) and Vice President for Medical Affairs
University of Maryland, Baltimore (UMB) President Bruce E. Jarrell, MD, FACS, has appointed leading heart, vascular, and lung physician-scientist Mark T. Gladwin, MD, as the new dean of the University of Maryland School of Medicine (UMSOM) and Vice President for Medical Affairs. The selection was made following a rigorous national search and is effective August 1, 2022. Dr. Gladwin is the Jack D. Myers Distinguished Professor and Chair of the Department of Medicine at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine (UPSOM) and founder of the Pittsburgh Heart, Lung, Blood, and Vascular Medicine Institute.
“I could not be more pleased to announce Dr. Gladwin as the next dean of the University of Maryland School of Medicine,” Jarrell said. “I am confident he will continue to enrich the legacy of our School of Medicine and position our world-class institution to meet the challenges of the future.”
“I am very honored to have been selected as dean of one of the most prestigious medical schools in the country,” said Dr. Gladwin, who also serves as associate dean for physician-scientist mentoring at UPSOM, and associate vice chancellor for science strategy, health sciences, at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. “Everything I learned during my visit to UMB furthered my desire to join the University of Maryland School of Medicine,” he continued. “I was already well aware of its reputation for excellence in education, research, clinical care, and community outreach. I look forward to listening to, and learning from UMB faculty, staff, and students as we continue the crucial work of carrying the School’s mission forward in Baltimore, around the state, and around the world.”
Dr. Gladwin’s appointment follows a comprehensive search process led by a committee that included faculty, staff, and administrators, as well as student representatives. The committee sought the best candidates to lead the school in its academic and clinical missions, to work closely with the University of Maryland Medical System (UMMS), and represent UMSOM effectively with its many stakeholders, especially those in the Baltimore community.
“Dr. Gladwin is an exceptional choice to lead the School of Medicine,” said Claire M. Fraser, PhD, Dean’s Endowed Professor of Medicine, director of the Institute for Genome Sciences, and chair of the search committee. “I’m extremely excited and looking forward to Dr. Gladwin’s arrival,” Fraser continued. “The search committee was impressed by not only his experience, but also his vision for the future of medicine and the role of the medical school in today’s society.”
“Being the leader of the School of Medicine is a challenging, multifaceted job,” added search committee co-chair Roger J. Ward, JD, EdD, MSL, MPA, provost and executive vice president, and dean of the University of Maryland Graduate School. “With his wide range of experience, it was evident to the committee that Dr. Gladwin will excel in every aspect of what this job entails.”
One of the two student members of the selection committee, Aishwarya Iyer, an MD/PhD student in the School of Medicine and president of the University Student Government Association, agreed. “I thought his research portfolio was phenomenal,” she said. “He comes from a really strong institution and has a lot of experience managing his position very well and very efficiently. I am excited to welcome this new dean.
About University of Maryland School of Medicine:
Founded in 1807, the University of Maryland, Baltimore is Maryland’s only public health, law, and human services university, dedicated to excellence in education, research, clinical care, and public service. UMB enrolls more than 6,700 students in six nationally ranked professional schools — medicine, law, dentistry, pharmacy, nursing, and social work — and an interdisciplinary Graduate School. The university provides more than $40 million each year in uncompensated care to Maryland citizens, and receives more than $667 million in extramural research funding annually.
About Mark T. Gladwin, MD:
Mark T. Gladwin, MD was appointed as the Dean of the University of Maryland School of Medicine (UMSOM) and Vice President for Medical Affairs at the University of Maryland, Baltimore in August 2022. He is a leading heart, vascular, and lung physician-scientist. He maintains an active research group and is currently PI of two R01 awards, a P01 award, and a clinical trials U award.
Dr. Gladwin has published > 450 manuscripts (google scholar h-index of > 120). His scientific discoveries include the finding that the nitrite salt is a biological signaling molecule that regulates physiological and pathological hypoxic responses, blood pressure and flow, and dynamic mitochondrial electron transport. He also characterized the role of hemoglobin and myoglobin as signaling nitrite reductases that regulate NO production under hypoxia, and his 2003 publication on this work has been cited > 1,800 times and is in Nature Medicine’s Classic Collection.
His work on the nitrite anion has led to the development and licensing of intravenous, oral and inhaled nitrite as a human therapeutic, with completion of animal toxicology, GMP formulations and phase Ia and Ib clinical trials, with licensing of the drug. Phase II trials of inhaled nitrite are now underway for the treatment of pulmonary arterial hypertension, metabolic syndrome, and heart failure with preserved ejection fraction.
In addition to studies of nitrite, he characterized a novel mechanism of disease, hemolysis-associated endothelial dysfunction. This work has described a state of resistance to NO in patients with sickle cell disease, malaria, transfusion of aged blood, and other hemolytic conditions, caused by scavenging of nitric oxide by hemoglobin that is released into plasma during hemolysis. These studies translated to clinical, and epidemiological description of a human disease syndrome, hemolysis-associated pulmonary hypertension.
Dr. Gladwin has served as PI on several multicenter phase II-III clinical trials in SCD patients, including the DeNOVO trial of NO therapy for acute pain crisis in patients with sickle cell disease, the Walk-PHASST trial of sildenafil for PH secondary to sickle cell disease, the EPIC trial of poloxomer 188 for vaso-occlusive painful crisis, the STERIO-SCD trial of the sGC stimulator riociguat, and the currently running SCD-CARRE, a clinical trial of exchange transfusion therapy.
Source:
Doctor: https://www.medschool.umaryland.edu/profiles/Gladwin-Mark/