The mission of the Department of Pathology is to advance the understanding of the causes of disease, to seek ways to prevent and cure disease, and to serve our patient population by providing the highest quality diagnostic services. Critical to this mission is the training of scientists and physicians to ask critical questions and execute the research leading to meeting these goals.

The investigative programs of the Department are among the largest and most productive in this country. In recent years major findings from the department have included the demonstration of the role of parental imprinting in human tumors, the discovery of the BCL6 oncogene, the discovery of the Kaposi's Sarcoma Virus (HHV8), and numerous contributions to the mechanisms of neuronal differentiation and degeneration. Alumni of the department hold faculty positions and chairmanships at major universities and research centers in the U.S. and abroad.

Research training in the department is available at both the predoctoral and post-doctoral levels. Programs are tailored to the interests of the student or fellow and research progress and career development are actively monitored. Major programs of the department are in oncogenesis, neuroscience, and virology. The department is starting a three year expansion in which five more faculty will be added with an emphasis on neuroscience, immunology, and human genetics. The close physical and intellectual links with the diagnostic pathology services assure access to tissues and nucleic acid specimens for research. The department also has strong bonds with The Taub Institute on Alzheimer's Disease and the Aging Brain and in collaboration with it provides research opportunities on Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, ALS and related neurodegenerations.

On behalf of our faculty, I would like to welcome applications for research training and residency training in pathology from applicants who share our excitement for scientific discovery and application of its results.

Michael L. Shelanski, M.D., Ph.D.