C. Ronald Kahn Explained

C. Ronald Kahn
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Birth Date:January 14, 1944
Birth Place:Louisville, Kentucky, United States
Education:University of Louisville
Module:
Profession:Physician, scientist
Field:Endocrinology
Specialism:Diabetes and Obesity
Research Field:Diabetes and Obesity research
Prizes:
  • Banting Award, American Diabetes Association (1993)
  • Fred Conrad Koch Award, Endocrine Society (2000)
  • Hamden Award for Medical Research, UAE (2000)
  • J. Allyn Taylor International Prize in Medicine (2002)
  • Manpei Suzuki International Award for Diabetes (2009)
  • Wolf Prize in Medicine (2016)

Carl Ronald Kahn (born January 14, 1944) is an American physician and scientist, best known for his work with insulin receptors and insulin resistance in diabetes and obesity. He is the Chief Academic Officer at Joslin Diabetes Center, the Mary K. Iacocca Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School[1] and a member of the National Academy of Sciences since 1999.[2]

Early life and career

Kahn was born in Louisville, Kentucky. He received his undergraduate and medical degree from the University of Louisville in 1964 and 1968. He became interested in pursuing diabetes research while serving in several positions at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) from 1970 to 1981. He moved to Boston in 1981 when he was appointed Associate Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School and Research Director of the Joslin Diabetes Center. By 1984, he was promoted to Professor of Medicine and named the Mary K. Iacocca Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School in 1986.

Appointments

Kahn became the president and director of Joslin in 2000 and held this position until 2007. In 2012, he was appointed Joslin's first Chief Academic Officer.[3]

Outside of Joslin, Kahn also held various leadership roles. In 1998 he was appointed chair of the Congressionally-mandated Diabetes Research Working Group (DRWG).[4] This group developed a strategic plan which served as the roadmap for growth of the diabetes research for the United States over the following 10 years. Dr. Kahn also served as chair of Class IV (Biomedical Sciences) of the National Academy of Sciences from 2007 to 2010.

Personal life

Kahn is married to Susan Becker Kahn, also formerly of Louisville. They have two children. Stacy Anne Kahn is a pediatric gastroenterologist at the Boston Children's Hospital. Jeffrey Adam Kahn is managing partner of Continuum Search based in Denver, Colorado. His brother Arnold Kahn was emeritus professor of developmental biology of the University of California San Francisco.

Research contributions

Kahn is an investigator in insulin signal transduction and mechanisms of altered signaling in diabetes. The main discoveries to come from his lab include the insulin receptor kinase, its two primary substrates and the molecular components of the insulin signaling network. Kahn's lab was also the first to define alterations in the signaling network in insulin resistant states, such as type 2 diabetes.[5] More recent discoveries from his lab encompass defining alterations in the signaling network in type 2 diabetes, including the important role of insulin action in unexpected tissues such as brain, both in physiologic regulation and potentially in development of Alzheimer's disease. His lab at Joslin has also made contributions to the understanding of obesity by showing that fat cells, called adipocytes, have different developmental origins and cellular functions that lead to risk of metabolic disease.

Kahn's work with adult humans has demonstrated that they have active brown fat that is central to redefining its role in metabolic regulation and protection from obesity.[6]

Awards and recognition

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Harvard BBS PhD Program . Dms.hms.harvard.edu . 2013-08-22 . 2013-11-01 . https://web.archive.org/web/20131103165723/http://dms.hms.harvard.edu/BBS/fac/Kahn.php . 2013-11-03 . dead .
  2. Web site: C. Ronald Kahn . Nasonline.org . 1993-10-31 . 2013-11-01.
  3. Web site: C. Ronald Kahn, M. D., Appointed Chief Academic Officer | Joslin Diabetes Center. 2012-01-30. Joslin.org. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20200204111633/https://www.joslin.org/about/news-media/c-ronald-kahn-md-chief-academic-officer-joslin-diabetes-center-awarded-helmholtz . 2020-02-04 . 2020-02-04.
  4. Web site: Conquering Diabetes: A Strategic Plan for the 21st Century : NIDDK . .niddk.nih.gov . 2011-02-25 . 2013-11-01 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20130326063039/http://www2.niddk.nih.gov/AboutNIDDK/ReportsAndStrategicPlanning/Conquering_Diabetes_1999.htm . 2013-03-26 .
  5. Web site: C. Ronald Kahn, MD . Aacc.org . 2013-11-01.
  6. Web site: C. Ronald Kahn: Is Brown Fat the Good Fat That Can Erase Bad Fat? - US News and World Report . Health.usnews.com . 2009-06-30 . 2013-11-01.
  7. Web site: Banting Medal for Scientific Achievement Award - American Diabetes Association® . Diabetes.org . 2013-11-01 . https://web.archive.org/web/20131102192928/http://www.diabetes.org/about-us/national-achievement-awards/national-scientific-health-care-achievement-awards/banting-medal-for-scientific-achievement-award.html . 2013-11-02 . dead .
  8. Web site: American Physiological Society > Solomon A. Berson - Distinguished Lectureship Award . The-aps.org . 2013-11-01 . https://web.archive.org/web/20131102180611/http://www.the-aps.org/mm/awards/sections/endo-metabol/E-M-past-awardees/berson.html . 2013-11-02 . dead .
  9. Web site: Albert Renold Award - American Diabetes Association® . Diabetes.org . 2013-11-01 . https://web.archive.org/web/20131102193713/http://www.diabetes.org/about-us/national-achievement-awards/national-scientific-health-care-achievement-awards/albert-renold-award.html . 2013-11-02 . dead .
  10. Web site: Dorothy Hodgkin Lecture Award - Diabetes UK . Diabetes.org.uk . 2013-07-02 . 2013-11-01.
  11. Web site: THE ENDOCRINE SOCIETY 2000 ANNUAL AWARDS . Jcem.endojournals.org . 2000-08-01 . 2013-11-01.
  12. 101120. 2001. Hall. RJ. Grand Hamdan International Award. 28. 1. 1–2. Texas Heart Institute Journal. 11330733.
  13. Web site: Dr. C Ronald Kahn - Sheikh Hamdan Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Award for Medical Sciences - HMA . 2023-04-05 . www.hmaward.org.ae . en-gb.
  14. Web site: Lilian Pagrot . Rolf Luft Award - Department of Molecular Medicine and Surgery - Karolinska Institutet . Ki.se . 2012-02-01 . 2013-11-01.
  15. Web site: Steven C. Beering Award - IU School of Medicine . Medicine.iu.edu . 2012-02-08 . 2013-11-01.
  16. Web site: Doody . Jennifer . C. Ronald Kahn first to win Manpei Suzuki International Prize for Diabetes Research | Harvard Gazette . News.harvard.edu . 2013-11-01.
  17. Web site: Environmental Factor:December 2009:C. Ronald Kahn to Give Falk Lecture . Niehs.nih.gov . 2013-11-01.
  18. Web site: 2010 Visiting Professors . Alpha Omega Alpha . 2013-11-01 . https://web.archive.org/web/20131102202749/http://www.alphaomegaalpha.org/visiting_professors_2010.html . 2013-11-02 . dead .
  19. Web site: Boston-Based Physician Receives Award from Major Physician Organization | AACE Online Newsroom . Media.aace.com . 2010-04-26 . 2013-11-01 . https://web.archive.org/web/20131102151843/http://media.aace.com/press-release/boston-based-physician-receives-award-major-physician-organization-1 . 2013-11-02 . dead .
  20. Web site: World Congress on Insulin Resistance, Diabetes, and Cardiovascular Disease . Care.diabetesjournals.org . 2013-11-01.
  21. Web site: C. Ronald Kahn, MD The Wallace H. Coulter Lectureship Award . March 23, 2021 . aacc.org.
  22. Web site: 1st Annual Helmholtz-Nature Medicine Diabetes Conference . https://web.archive.org/web/20161013055232/http://www.helmholtz-muenchen.de/hdc/service/news/scientific-highlights/article/21914/index.html . October 13, 2016 . March 23, 2021 . Helmholtz Diabetics Center.
  23. Web site: Endocrinology Colloques Médecine et Recherche . https://web.archive.org/web/20150924014240/http://www.fondation-ipsen.org/en/colloques-prizes-publications/endocrinology/ . September 24, 2015 . March 23, 2021 . Fondation Ipsen.
  24. Web site: 2015 Laureate Dr. C. Ron Kahn . https://web.archive.org/web/20161013055112/http://www.haroldhammprize.org/laureates.aspx . October 13, 2016 . March 23, 2021 . haroldhammprize.org.
  25. Web site: January 14, 2016 . Wolf Prizes for 2016 Announced . https://web.archive.org/web/20160216075121/http://thewire.in/2016/01/14/wolf-prizes-for-2016-announced-19262/ . February 16, 2016 . March 23, 2021.