Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation scientist Jordan J.N. Tang, Ph.D., has been named a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). The announcement will appear in the December 19 edition of the journal Science.
This year Tang is among 486 individuals honored nationally as a Fellow by AAAS because of their scientifically or socially distinguished efforts to advance science or its applications. A presentation ceremony for new Fellows will be held on February 14 at the 2009 AAAS Annual Meeting in Chicago.
As part of the Section on Biological Sciences, Tang was elected as an AAAS Fellow for his contributions to the biochemistry and biophysics of proteases, and his work as chair of the Protein Studies Research Program at OMRF.
Tang is one of the world’s leading experts on proteases, a group of proteins crucial to human health. His work has led to a deeper understanding of these vital proteins and to new treatments for HIV/AIDS, hypertension and, most recently, an Alzheimer’s drug that is currently in human clinical trials.
His research has been recognized and honored by the Guggenheim Foundation, National Institutes of Health, Chinese Academy of Sciences and United Nations. The holder of the J.G. Puterbaugh Chair in Medical Research at OMRF, Tang is the only Oklahoman ever to receive the Alzheimer’s Association of America’s highest research prize: the $1 million Pioneer Award.
The tradition of AAAS Fellows began in 1874. Currently, members can be considered for the rank of Fellow if nominated by the steering groups of the Association’s 24 sections, or by any three Fellows who are current AAAS members (so long as two of the three sponsors are not affiliated with the nominee’s institution), or by the AAAS chief executive officer.
Each steering group then reviews the nominations of individuals within its respective section and a final list is forwarded to the AAAS Council, which votes on the aggregate list.
The Council is the policymaking body of the Association, chaired by the AAAS president, and consisting of the members of the board of directors, the retiring section chairs, delegates from each electorate and each regional division, and two delegates from the National Association of Academies of Science.
OMRF (omrf.org) is an independent, nonprofit biomedical research institute dedicated to understanding and developing more effective treatments for human disease. Chartered in 1946, its scientists focus on such critical research areas as Alzheimer’s disease, cancer, lupus and cardiovascular disease.
AAAS is the world’s largest general scientific society, and publisher of the journal Science (www.sciencemag.org). AAAS was founded in 1848, and includes some 262 affiliated societies and academies of science, serving 10 million individuals. Science has the largest paid circulation of any peer-reviewed general science journal in the world, with an estimated total readership of 1 million. The non-profit AAAS (www.aaas.org) is open to all and fulfills its mission to “advance science and serve society” through initiatives in science policy; international programs; science education; and more. For the latest research news, log onto EurekAlert!, www.eurekalert.org, the premier science-news Web site, a service of AAAS.
