Howard L. Weiner

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Howard L Weiner
Dr. Howard Weiner.jpg
Born (1944-12-25) December 25, 1944 (age 79)
Denver, Colorado, U.S.
Alma mater University of Colorado Medical School
Known for multiple sclerosis research
Children Ron Weiner, [1] Dan Weiner
AwardsJohn Dystel Prize for Multiple Sclerosis Research (2007) [2]
Scientific career
Fields Neurology, Immunology
Institutions Brigham and Women's Hospital

Howard L. Weiner (born December 25, 1944) is an American neurologist, neuroscientist and immunologist who is also a writer and filmmaker. [3] He performs clinical and basic research focused on multiple sclerosis (MS) and other neurologic diseases such as Alzheimer's disease and Lou Gehrig's disease (ALS). His work also focuses on autoimmune diseases such as diabetes. Weiner is the Robert L. Kroc Professor of Neurology at Harvard Medical School, director of the Brigham MS Center [4] at the Brigham and Women's Hospital and co-director of the Ann Romney Center for Neurologic Diseases [5] established in 2014, at the Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts.

Contents

Personal life

Weiner was born in 1944 in Denver, Colorado. His mother, Charlotte (Wasserstrom) was born in Vienna, Austria in 1922 and his father, Paul, was born in Vienna, Austria in 1917, both to Ashkenazi Jewish families. His mother's family worked as furriers and his father's family owned a large clothing store in the fashionable Am Graben district in the center of Vienna.

In 1968 he married his wife, Mira (Avinery), settled in the Boston area and raised two sons. Dan Weiner, is the co-founder and managing partner of RevelOne, a marketing talent and strategy firm for technology companies. [6] His younger son is Ron Weiner, a television writer with credits such as Silicon Valley (TV series) and 30 Rock . [1] [7]

Education

Weiner majored in philosophy as an undergraduate at Dartmouth College (1962-1965), leaving after three years to attend medical school.

Weiner received his medical degree from the University of Colorado Medical School in 1969, and performed his medical internship at Sheba Medical Center in Tel HaShomer, Israel, his medical residency at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston (1970-1971) and his neurology residency at the Harvard Longwood Program in Neurology (1971-1974).

In 1972, during his neurology residency, Weiner published Neurology for the House Officer [8] with Lawrence P. Levitt, a fellow neurology resident. Neurology for the House Officer became a widely used manual that offered a practical approach to treating neurologic diseases. It was translated into French, Spanish, Portuguese, Russian, Chinese, Japanese. It is currently in its 8th edition, now authored by Alex Rae Grant, MD and entitled Weiner and Levitt's Neurology for the House Officer. Weiner also published Pediatric Neurology for the House Officer [9] with Levitt and Mike Bresnan and Case Histories in Neurology for the House Officer with Levitt and Stephen Hauser. An entire House Officer Series was created based on Neurology for the House Officer. Following his residency, Weiner received a special fellowship from the Colorado MS Society to study immunology in the laboratory of Henry Claman at the University of Colorado School of Medicine where he studied the stimulation of B cells by anti-immunoglobulin. He then returned to Harvard Medical School to take a research position in the laboratory of Bernard N. Fields where he studied viral host interactions using the reovirus model system.

Career at Harvard Medical School

In 1985, Weiner was awarded an endowed chair from the Kroc Foundation of Santa Inez California for his study of MS with a gift of $1M to the Harvard Medical School. The chair was named for Robert L. Kroc, the brother of Ray Kroc, the founder of McDonald's. Three Kroc chairs were established in the United States to support research in the autoimmune diseases of MS, diabetes, and rheumatoid arthritis as members of the Kroc family suffered from these diseases. In 1985, together with Dennis J. Selkoe, [10] Weiner established the Center for Neurologic Diseases at Brigham and Women's Hospital that he currently co-directs with Selkoe. In 2014, it was renamed The Ann Romney Center for Neurologic Diseases. [11] The center carries out basic and translational research in MS, Alzheimer's disease, ALS, Parkinson's disease and glioblastoma and consists of 250 scientists and research personnel. In 2003, in honor of Weiner's 60th birthday and in recognition of his research in MS and other neurologic diseases, a gift of $3.3M was made to Harvard Medical School by Biogen, a Boston-based biotechnology company, to establish the Howard L. Weiner chair in neuroscience at Harvard. Because a chair cannot carry the name of an active faculty member, the chair was named for Samuel L. Wasserstrom, Weiner's maternal grandfather who was murdered in The Holocaust. Vijay K. Kuchroo was named the first incumbent of the Wasserstrom chair. The chair will carry Weiner's name upon his retirement. During the course of his career, Weiner has trained over 110 clinicians and scientists.

Medical research

The major focus of Weiner's career has been the study of MS, which he began in 1972 as a resident in neurology at the Peter Bent Brigham Hospital in Boston. More recently he has studied immune mechanisms in other neurologic diseases including Alzheimer's disease and ALS. He has published over 600 articles in the scientific literature. In 1983, he alongside Stephen L. Hauser, now Director, Weill Institute for Neurosciences and Professor of Neurology at University of California, San Francisco, published a seminal article on the treatment of MS in The New England Journal of Medicine. This demonstrated in a controlled trial a profound effect of the immunosuppressant and chemotherapy drug cyclophosphamide in stopping active, progressive MS. [12] The article introduced the timed 25-foot walk (ambulation index) that subsequently has become a classic clinical measure in MS. In 2000, Weiner founded the Partners Multiple Sclerosis Center (now called the Brigham MS Center) at Brigham and Women's Hospital. The Brigham MS Center encompasses both adult and pediatric patients the Brigham and Women's Hospital and the Massachusetts General Hospital, respectively. Both are member hospitals of the Mass General Brigham system in Boston. The Brigham MS Center has served as a model for the comprehensive care of MS patients and includes clinical care and research, an infusion center and dedicated MRI magnet. The Brigham MS Center has 6,000 patient visits per year. Weiner established the CLIMB Study (Comprehensive Longitudinal Investigation of Multiple Sclerosis at Brigham and Women's Hospital). The CLIMB natural history study of MS, which in an analogous fashion to the Framingham Heart Study; follows over 2000 patients with annual exams, blood studies, and MRI imaging to understand the course of MS over time. Weiner has pioneered the basic investigation and application of oral tolerance for the treatment of autoimmune and inflammatory diseases. [13] In 2021, he initiated human trials of a nasal vaccine for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease. [14]

Biotechnology

In 1994, Weiner founded Autoimmune, Inc a biotechnology company which developed the application of oral tolerance for the treatment of autoimmune diseases including MS, rheumatoid arthritis and type 1 diabetes. Susan Quinn, a writer known for her biography of Marie Curie, chronicled Weiner's journey with Autoimmune, Inc in a book entitled, Human Trials: Scientists, Investors, and Patients in the Quest for a Cure [15] . The clinical development of oral and nasal tolerance using anti-CD3 monoclonal antibody (foralumab) is currently being developed by Tiziana Life Sciences, including studies in COVID-19. [16] Based on Weiner's research, Tilos Therapeutics was formed in 2016 and is developing the treatment of cancer using a monoclonal antibody directed against LAP which a new checkpoint inhibitor that targets TGF-beta and regulatory T cells. Tilos Therapeutics was acquired by Merck & Co in 2019. [17]

Awards

In 2003, Weiner was awarded the John Dystel Prize in multiple sclerosis research for his work on the immunology and immunotherapy of multiple sclerosis, by the American Academy of Neurology and the National MS Society. [18] In 2012, Weiner received a National Institutes of Health Transformative Research Award [19] from the institutes' Directors office for the investigation of the innate immune system in Alzheimer's Disease. [20] Of 750 applications for the award, only 20 were given, and Weiner's video won first place.

Film career

Weiner wrote, produced and directed a documentary film entitled, What is Life: The Movie which was released in 2011. [21] The film won four 2011 Los Angeles Movie Awards in the category of Documentary Feature: Award of Excellence, Best Cinematography, Best Editing, and Best Visual Effects. [22] His second film, The Last Poker Game, is a narrative feature film which Weiner wrote, produced and directed, starring Martin Landau and Paul Sorvino. It had its world premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival on April 24, 2017. [23] It won Best Feature Drama and Martin Landau won Best Actor at the 20th Annual California Independent Film Festival in 2017. The film had a limited theatrical release on January 12, 2018 as Abe and Phil's Last Poker Game and is now available on iTunes and Amazon. [24] The film has also received critical acclaim in Variety [25] and the Village Voice. [26]

Books

Weiner published the novel The Children's Ward (Putnam New York) in 1980. [27] In 2007, Weiner published Curing MS: How Science is Solving the Mysteries of Multiple Sclerosis (Crown: New York). [28] The book chronicles both the history of MS and Weiner's personal journal in investigating and treating MS. Weiner's latest book, The Brain Under Siege [29] was published in 2021. In his book, Weiner likens the brain to a crime scene, showing readers how “clues” point to causes and suggest paths to a cure.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Neurology</span> Medical specialty dealing with disorders of the nervous system

Neurology is the branch of medicine dealing with the diagnosis and treatment of all categories of conditions and disease involving the nervous system, which comprises the brain, the spinal cord and the peripheral nerves. Neurological practice relies heavily on the field of neuroscience, the scientific study of the nervous system.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Multiple sclerosis</span> Disease that damages the myelin sheaths around nerves

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an autoimmune disease in which the insulating covers of nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord are damaged. This damage disrupts the ability of parts of the nervous system to transmit signals, resulting in a range of signs and symptoms, including physical, mental, and sometimes psychiatric problems. Specific symptoms can include double vision, vision loss, eye pain, muscle weakness, and loss of sensation or coordination. MS takes several forms, with new symptoms either occurring in isolated attacks or building up over time. In the relapsing forms of MS, between attacks, symptoms may disappear completely, although some permanent neurological problems often remain, especially as the disease advances. In the progressive forms of MS, bodily function slowly deteriorates and disability worsens once symptoms manifest and will steadily continue to do so if the disease is left untreated.

Experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis, sometimes experimental allergic encephalomyelitis (EAE), is an animal model of brain inflammation. It is an inflammatory demyelinating disease of the central nervous system (CNS). It is mostly used with rodents and is widely studied as an animal model of the human CNS demyelinating diseases, including multiple sclerosis (MS) and acute disseminated encephalomyelitis (ADEM). EAE is also the prototype for T-cell-mediated autoimmune disease in general.

Inflammatory demyelinating diseases (IDDs), sometimes called Idiopathic (IIDDs) due to the unknown etiology of some of them, are a heterogenous group of demyelinating diseases - conditions that cause damage to myelin, the protective sheath of nerve fibers - that occur against the background of an acute or chronic inflammatory process. IDDs share characteristics with and are often grouped together under Multiple Sclerosis. They are sometimes considered different diseases from Multiple Sclerosis, but considered by others to form a spectrum differing only in terms of chronicity, severity, and clinical course.

Research in multiple sclerosis may find new pathways to interact with the disease, improve function, curtail attacks, or limit the progression of the underlying disease. Many treatments already in clinical trials involve drugs that are used in other diseases or medications that have not been designed specifically for multiple sclerosis. There are also trials involving the combination of drugs that are already in use for multiple sclerosis. Finally, there are also many basic investigations that try to understand better the disease and in the future may help to find new treatments.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stephen L. Hauser</span> American physician

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Dennis J. Selkoe is an American physician (neurologist) known for his research into the molecular basis of Alzheimer's disease. In 1985 he became Co-Director of the Center for Neurological Diseases and from 1990, Vincent and Stella Coates Professor of Neurological Diseases at Harvard Medical School. He is also a Fellow of the AAAS and a member of the National Academy of Medicine.

Alan J. Thompson, MD, FMedSci, FRCP, FRCPI, is Dean of the Faculty of Brain Sciences at UCL; Pro-Provost for London at UCL; Garfield Weston Professor of Clinical Neurology and Neurorehabilitation at the UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology. He is also a consultant neurologist at the University College London NHS Hospitals Foundation Trust working at the National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery. He is Editor-in-Chief for Multiple Sclerosis Journal.

Vijay K. Kuchroo is an Indian-American immunologist and serial entrepreneur. He is the Samuel L. Wasserstrom chair of Neurology at Harvard Medical School, and Brigham and Women's Hospital. He is also the director of the Evergrande Center for Immunologic Diseases at Harvard Medical School and Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts.

Keith Johnson is an American neurologist and radiologist. He is Professor of Radiology and Neurology at the Harvard Medical School, and Associate Radiologist and Director of Molecular Neuroimaging at the Massachusetts General Hospital. He also is co-director of the Neuroimaging Program of the Massachusetts Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center.

Brenda Banwell is Chief of the Division of Neurology and Co-Director of the Neuroscience Center, and Professor of Neurology at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia and holder of the Grace R. Loeb Endowed Chair in Neurosciences. She also holds the title of Professor of Pediatrics and Neurology at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania.

References

  1. 1 2 "30 Rock". nbc.com . April 24, 2017. Retrieved July 16, 2017.
  2. ↑ "John Dystel Prize Winners".
  3. ↑ "Howard Lee Weiner, MD - Brigham and Women's Hospital". brighamandwomens.org.
  4. ↑ "Brigham MS Center".
  5. ↑ "Ann Romney Center for Neurologic Diseases - Brigham and Women's Hospital". brighamandwomens.org.
  6. ↑ "Who We Are". RevelOne. Retrieved 2019-01-30.
  7. ↑ "Silicon Valley | Trailers, Characters, Behind the Scenes & More". HBO. Retrieved 2019-01-30.
  8. ↑ Weiner, Howard L.; Levitt, Lawrence P. (1978). Weiner and Levitt's Neurology. Williams & Wilkins. ISBN   9780683089004.
  9. ↑ Weiner, Howard L.; Urion, David K.; Levitt, Lawrence P. (1988). Pediatric Neurology for the House Officer. Williams & Wilkins. ISBN   978-0-683-08904-2.
  10. ↑ "Selkoe Laboratory".
  11. ↑ "Ann Romney Center for Neurologic Diseases - Brigham and Women's Hospital". www.brighamandwomens.org. Retrieved 2021-12-10.
  12. ↑ Hauser, SL; Dawson, DM; Lehrich, JR; Beal, MF; Kevy, SV; Propper, RD; Mills, JA; Weiner, HL (27 January 1983). "Intensive immunosuppression in progressive multiple sclerosis. A randomized, three-arm study of high-dose intravenous cyclophosphamide, plasma exchange, and ACTH". The New England Journal of Medicine. 308 (4): 173–80. doi:10.1056/nejm198301273080401. PMID   6294517.
  13. ↑ Ochi, H; Abraham, M; Ishikawa, H; Frenkel, D; Yang, K; Basso, A; Wu, H; Chen, ML; Gandhi, R; Miller, A; Maron, R; Weiner, HL (15 November 2008). "New immunosuppressive approaches: oral administration of CD3-specific antibody to treat autoimmunity". Journal of the Neurological Sciences. 274 (1–2): 9–12. doi:10.1016/j.jns.2008.07.027. PMC   3167084 . PMID   18804221.
  14. ↑ "Alzheimer's Disease Nasal Vaccine To Be Tested At Brigham And Women's Hospital". 2021-11-16. Retrieved 2021-12-10.
  15. ↑ Emanuel, Ezekiel J. (September 2001). "Human Trials: Scientists, Investors, and Patients in the Quest for a Cure". Nature Medicine. 7 (9): 991. doi: 10.1038/nm0901-991a . ISSN   1546-170X. S2CID   19566974.
  16. ↑ Moreira, Thais G.; Matos, Kimble T. F.; De Paula, Giovana S.; Santana, Thais M. M.; Da Mata, Raquel G.; Pansera, Fernando C.; Cortina, Andre S.; Spinola, Marcelle G.; Keppeke, Gerson D.; Jacob, Jules; Palejwala, Vaseem (2021). "Nasal Administration of Anti-CD3 Monoclonal Antibody (Foralumab) Reduces Lung Inflammation and Blood Inflammatory Biomarkers in Mild to Moderate COVID-19 Patients: A Pilot Study". Frontiers in Immunology. 12: 3255. doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2021.709861 . ISSN   1664-3224. PMC   8406802 . PMID   34475873.
  17. ↑ "Merck to Acquire Tilos Therapeutics". Merck.com. Retrieved 2021-12-10.
  18. ↑ "John Dystel Prize for Multiple Sclerosis Research".
  19. ↑ "Transformative Research Award Recipients". 18 September 2018.
  20. ↑ "Role of the Innate Immune System in Aging and Development of Alzheimer's Disease".
  21. ↑ "IMDB:What is Life: The Movie". IMDb .
  22. ↑ "LAMA 2011 (II) Winners".
  23. ↑ Grobar, Matt (April 28, 2017). "'The Last Poker Game' Star Martin Landau On Ageism In Hollywood And Roles He Is Happy To Turn Down — Tribeca Studio". Deadline Hollywood . Retrieved July 16, 2017.
  24. ↑ "Abe & Phil's Last Poker Game". IMDb . 24 April 2017.
  25. ↑ "Film Review: 'Abe & Phil's Last Poker Game'". 12 January 2018.
  26. ↑ "Martin Landau Gives a Quietly Powerful Final Performance in "Abe & Phil's Last Poker Game"". 9 January 2018.
  27. ↑ "The Children's Ward on Goodreads".
  28. ↑ "Curing MS: How Science is Solving the Mysteries of Multiple Sclerosis".
  29. ↑ "The Brain Under Siege". The Brain Under Siege. Retrieved 2021-12-10.
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