Christopher Reeve, Hunter Biology Professor Marie T. Filbin and NY Times Writer Claudia Dreifus to Discuss Stem Cell Research at Hunter College
Date: October 8, 2002
Contact: Marisa Osorio (marisa.osorio@hunter.cuny.edu)
Phone: (212) 650-3736
Hunter College will present a panel discussion on stem cell research featuring actor Christopher Reeve, Marie T. Filbin, Hunter biology professor and Claudia Dreifus, contributing writer to The New York Times, at 6 p.m. on Thursday, October 10 at the Kaye Playhouse, located on 68th Street between Lexington and Park Avenues.
Hunter College President Jennifer J. Raab and Hugh Delehanty, editorial director of AARP Modern Maturity are hosting the event.
Actor, director and activist are just some of the words used to describe Christopher Reeve. From his first appearance at the Williamstown Theatre Festival at the age of 15, Reeve established a reputation as one of the country's leading actors. However, since he was paralyzed in an equestrian competition in 1995, Reeve has not only put a human face on spinal cord injury but he has motivated neuroscientists around the world to conquer the most complex diseases of the brain and central nervous system.
In 1999, Reeve became the chairman of the board of the Christopher Reeve Paralysis Foundation (CRPF). The foundation is a national, nonprofit organization, which supports research to develop effective treatments and a cure for paralysis caused by spinal cord injury and other central nervous system disorders.
His advocacy efforts include lobbying on behalf of the National Institutes of Health to double the NIH budget in five years. In part because of his leadership, the NIH budget grew from $12 billion in 1998 to nearly $27.2 billion in fiscal 2003.
His second book, "Nothing is Impossible: Reflections on a New Life," was published by Random House last month. At the same time a documentary film about his advocacy and road to recovery aired recently on ABC and was distributed around the world. A native of Princeton, New Jersey, he is the father of three children and husband to wife Dana.
Hunter College Biology Professor Marie T. Filbin was the co-recipient of the 2001 Ameritec Prize for significant accomplishment toward a cure for paralysis. Filbin ÷ the first female winner of the prize ÷ shared it that year with Professor Mu-Ming Poo of the University of California, Berkeley. Their research, conducted independently, relates to the role played by a molecule called cyclic AMP in affecting the regeneration of nerve axons after injury.
Filbin and Poo were the eighth winners of the Ameritec Prize, established in 1987 specifically to recognize scientists whose research advances the search towards a cure for paralysis.
Filbin was born in Lurgan, Northern Ireland. She received her Ph.D. from the University of Bath, United Kingdom in 1982, and over the next two years, conducted post-doctoral training in the pharmacology department at the University of Maryland at Baltimore. From 1984-1986 she was a post-doctoral fellow in the neurology department, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, advancing to research associate in the same department, where she served from 1986-1990. In the biological sciences department at Hunter College, Filbin has held the titles of associate professor (1990-1995), professor (1995-1997), Marie Hesselbach Chair in Biology (1997-1998), and distinguished professor (1998-present).
Since 2000, Filbin has served as director of the college's Specialized Neuroscience Research Program, which is funded by the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS). Her research has been sponsored by a personal grant from NINDS; the National Multiple Sclerosis Society; the New York State Spinal Cord Initiative; and the Research Centers in Minority Institutions of the National Center for Research Resources.
Claudia Dreifus has been a journalist since the 1960s. Before coming to the Science Times section of The New York Times, she was known for her incisive interviews with international political figures and cultural icons. Her work has appeared in The New York Times Magazine, Playboy, Ms., The Progressive, and Modern Maturity. A senior fellow at the World Policy Institute of the New School for Social Research, she lives in New York City.
Dreifus has made a career out of talking to some of the most interesting, intelligent people the world has to offer. She has interviewed celebrities, world leaders, political dissidents and scientists. In her new book, "Scientific Conversations: Interviews on Science from The New York Times," Dreifus delves into the thoughts and lives of some of the most intriguing minds, uncovering surprising habits and extracting fascinating viewpoints on issues in science today. From Nobel-laureates to virtually unknown innovators, across a multitude of scientific disciplines, she introduces and explains the personalities behind the great accomplishments.
Hunter College, founded in 1870, has long enjoyed a national reputation for excellence in liberal arts and sciences and professional education. Hunter's main campus, located on 68th Street on Manhattan's Upper East Side, consists of the School of Arts and Sciences and School of Education. The college also includes a school of Social Work on East 79th Street as well as the Schools of the Health Professions (Nursing and Health Sciences) located at the Brookdale Health Science Center on East 25th Street; an MFA building and art gallery on the West Side; and the Hunter College Campus Schools serving gifted and talented students, preschool through grade 12.
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