About the Speakers & Session Chairs

Mark A. Melanson, PhD, COL, MSC, USA
Director
Armed Forces Radiobiology Research Institute in Bethesda, Maryland

COL Melanson earned a Bachelor of Science in Physics from Dickinson College in Carlisle, Pennsylvania. After graduation, he went on to receive both his master's and doctorate degrees in radiation health sciences from The Johns Hopkins University School of Hygiene and Public Health. COL Melanson is recognized internationally as an expert in the area of radiation sciences and has served as a consultant to both the World Health Organization and the International Atomic Energy Agency. He was also a member of a United Nations team of scientific experts responsible for assessing the risks associated with NATOs use of depleted uranium munitions on the Balkans.

William F. Blakely, PhD
Senior Scientist, Scientific Advisory Board Member of Biological Dosimetry
Armed Forces Radiobiology Research Institute in Bethesda, Maryland

Dr. Blakely earned a Doctor of Philosophy in Radiation Biology from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. He went on to complete postdoctoral studies in DNA radiation chemistry in Dr. John F. Wards laboratory at the University of California, San Diego. In 1983, Dr. Blakely joined the Armed Forces Radiobiology Research Institute (AFRRI), where he remains today. His research activities have focused on molecular mechanisms of radiation sensitivity, cell cycle effects, DNA damage and repair, and biological dosimetry. Dr. Blakely is currently the Biodosimetry Research Group Advisor for AFRRI, a representative on the ISO TC85/SC2 (Radiation Protection) Working Group 18 (Performing Criteria for Service Laboratories Performing Biological Dosimetry by Cytogenetics), chair of a NATO Research Study Group on Radiation Bioeffects and Countermeasures (RTG-033) and serves on the council for the National Council on Radiation Protection and Measurements (NCRP).

Alexander Romanyukha, PhD
Technical Manager
Naval Dosimetry Center at the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland

Dr. Romanyukha earned a PhD from the Russian Academy of Science in Moscow. Currently, he is the technical manager for the Naval Dosimetry Center and an Assistant Professor of Radiology and Preventive Medicine and Biometrics at the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences in Bethesda, Maryland. He has been working in the field of electron paramagnetic resonance retrospective dosimetry since 1992. Dr. Romanyukha also served as a chief scientific investigator for the IAEA research project; is a member of the ICRU Report Committee for Retrospective Assessment of Exposures to Ionizing Radiation; authored or co-authored more than 100 peer-reviewed publications including the IAEA-TECDOC-1331, ICRU report 68; and is a US delegate for the ISO/TC85 WG18, Minimum criteria for Electron Paramagnetic Resonance retrospective dosimetry of ionizing radiation. Currently his research interests include EPR dosimetry in tooth enamel, bone and fingernails as well as TLD and OSL dosimetry.

Vitaly Nagy, PhD
Chief of the Operational Dosimetry Division
Armed Forces Radiobiology Research Institute in Bethesda, Maryland

Dr. Nagy earned a Master of Science from Moscow State University in Russia before earning a doctor of philosophy from the USSR Academy of Sciences.He worked as a research scientist at the USSR Academy of Sciences and later joined the Radiation Interactions and Dosimetry Division of the U.S. National Institute of Standards and Technology.In 2004, Dr. Nagy came to the Armed Forces Radiobiology Research Institute, where he currently works as the chief of the Operational Dosimetry Division.He is the editor for Applied Radiation and Isotopes, an international journal.Dr. Nagy also reviews manuscripts for many journals and grant applications for the National Science Foundation and the Department of Energy.Throughout his career, Dr. Nagy has earned many prestigious awards including the Annual National Prize of the USSR Cabinet of Ministers for research in magnetic resonance.

Maria Moroni, PhD
Radiation Countermeasures Research Associate
Armed Forces Radiobiology Research Institute in Bethesda, Maryland

Dr. Moroni completed her studies at the University of Pisa in Italy. While there, she specialized in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. In 1997, Dr. Moroni was awarded a post-doctoral fellowship at the National Institute of Health (NIH). She characterized post-translational modifications of small Heat Shock Proteins from the lens of humans and NHP at NIH. Between the years 2000 and 2006, Dr. Moroni worked on the identification of cancer biomarkers, both at Georgetown University and for the Clinical Breast Care Project at Walter Reed. In 2006, she joined the Armed Forces Radiobiology Research Institute (AFRRI), her present affiliation. Dr. Moroni's research activities at AFRRI have focused on automated biological dosimetry and development of the minipig as a large animal model for testing of advanced countermeasures. She also serves as a member of the steering committee for the North American Minipig Research Forum.

Benjamin B. Williams, PhD
Assistant Professor
Department of Radiology at the Dartmouth Medical School in Hanover, New Hampshire

Dr. Williams earned a Doctor of Philosophy in Medical Physics from the University of Chicago in 2003 with a focus on the development of in vivo electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy and imaging. He has continued this research at the Dartmouth Medical School with a special emphasis on clinical applications of this technology, including oximetry and biodosimetry. Dr. Williams was promoted to assistant professor in 2006 and appointed associate director of the Dartmouth EPR Center the following year. He is an investigator at the Cancer Imaging and Radiobiology Research Program at the Norris Cotton Cancer Center. As an associate director of the Dartmouth Physically-based Biodosimetry Center for Medical Countermeasures against Radiation, his most recent research has focused on the development of in vivo EPR of tooth enamel for biodosimetry during triage following a large-scale radiation accident or attack.

Paul Okunieff, MD
Director of the Florida Shands Cancer Center
Department of Radiation Oncology at the University of Florida College of Medicine in Gainesville

Dr. Okunieff completed a fellowship in medicine at Harvard Medical School in Cambridge Massachusettes and a fellowship in radiation medicine at Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital. He later joined the University of Florida as director of the Shands Cancer Center and chair of the Department of Radiation Oncology. Prior to joining the University of Florida, Dr. Okunieff was the Philip Rubin professor in radiation oncology and chair of the department of radiation oncology at the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry. He is board-certified in therapeutic radiology and is among the pioneers of in-vivo nuclear magnetic resonance imaging of tumors. Dr. Okunieffs research interests includes developing a novel method to measure radiation-induced DNA fragments in the bloodstream to estimate radiation exposure and indentifying molecules that provide genetically based protection against radiation hazards. Furthermore, Dr. Okunieff is a diplomate of the National Board of Medical Examiners and serves on several committees that oversee the safety and quality of therapeutic radiation delivery.

Francis J. Hérodin, PharmD, PhD
Head of the Radiobiology Unit and Radiation Biodosimetry Laboratory
Army Biomedical Institute in La Tronche, France

Dr. Hérodin earned a Doctor of Pharmacy and a Doctor of Philosophy from the University of Paris in France. Currently, he is head of the Radiobiology Unit and Radiation Biodosimetry Laboratory at the Army Biomedical Institute (IRBA) in La Tronche, France. Dr. Hérodin’s research interests include cell biology; radiobiology and hematology; and preclinical studies dealing with the treatment of irradiation/chemotherapy-induced hematopoietic failure and extra-hematologic toxicity based on cytokine therapy, cell and gene therapy. He also has expertise in rodent and non-human primate models of acute radiation syndrome as well as stem cell transplantation. Dr. Hérodin is a French delegate at a NATO Human Factors Panel Research Task Group involved in medical countermeasures against nuclear accidents and terrorist events involving radioactive material.

Gregory L. King, PhD
Research Physiologist
Armed Forces Radiobiology Research Institute in Bethesda, Maryland

Dr. King earned a Doctor of Philosophy in Physiology from the Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas. While there, he received the Minoru Suzuki Award for Excellence in Neuroscience for his dissertation work. Dr. King went on to complete postdoctoral studies in electrophysiology and neuropharmacology in the laboratories of Dr. George Somjen at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina and Dr. Raymond Dingledine at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill. During this timeframe, he was awarded a National Institutes of Health post-doctoral award and also a Fellowship award from the Grass Foundation to perform experiments at Woods Hole, MA. In 1985, Dr. King joined the Armed Forces Radiobiology Research Institute, where he remains today. His early research efforts used the ferret as an animal model for studies in radiation-induced emesis and evaluated both the physiological and pharmacological mechanisms involved in that response. Dr. King played an integral role in developing 5-HT3 receptor antagonists as antiemetics for both NATO and the Department of Defense. Because of this previous experience, Dr. King was recently invited by the National Space Biomedical Institute to collaborate with the Center for Acute Radiation Research to compare the effects of proton irradiation with those of gamma irradiation in the ferret model. Dr. King has helped organize several international symposia, co-edited several books, and numerous publications regarding his early work in the field of epilepsy as well as radiation. His current interests are in evaluating biomarkers for radiation injury to the intestine.

Caroline H. Johnson, PhD
Visiting Fellow
Laboratory of Metabolism in the Center for Cancer Research at the National Cancer
Institute, National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland

Dr. Johnson earned her PhD in 2009 from Imperial College London in the United Kingdom. Currently, she is a visiting fellow in the Laboratory of Metabolism at the National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health. Dr. Johnson's research activities include the use of UPLC-MS-based metabolomics for the discovery of biomarkers of environmental intervention. One of her projects is to find urinary biomarkers for ionizing radiation exposure. Most recently Dr. Johnson published a paper in Radiation Research on the discovery of novel urinary biomarkers of ionizing radiation exposure in the rat through the utilization of metabolomics, and she is now looking for biomarkers in other species.

Ronald E. Goans, PhD, MD, MPH
Senior Medical Consultant
MJW Corporation

As senior medical consultant to MJW Corporation, Dr. Goans provides radiation medicine consultation to the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health dose reconstruction project operated under the Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program Act. He also provides radiation accident consultation to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, the International Atomic Energy Agency, and the Radiation Emergency Assistance Center/Training Site. Dr. Goans is also a faculty member at Tulane University, teaching courses in health physics and the pathological basis of disease. He developed two of the clinical tests commonly used in early evaluation of radiation injuries. His current research interests include mathematical modeling of radiation accidents, early radiation accident triage techniques, and ultrasound techniques for the evaluation of acute local radiation injury. Furthermore, Dr. Goans is an associate editor of the Health Physics Journal and a council member of the National Council on Radiation Protection and Measurements (NCRP). Most recently, he participated in writing NCRP Commentary 19, “Key Elements of Preparing Emergency Responders for Nuclear and Radiological Terrorism,” and the report of Committee SC 4-1, “Management of Persons Contaminated with Radionuclides.”

Mitsuaki Yoshida, PhD
Professor in the Department of Radiation Biology
Institute of Radiation Emergency Medicine at Hirosaki University in Japan

Dr. Yoshida earned a Doctor of Philosophy in Cancer Cytogenetics from Hokkaido University in Sapporo, Japan. After graduating, he joined Roswell Park Memorial Institute in New York. Several years later, Dr. Yoshida returned to Japan to work at the Medical Research Institute of Tokyo Medical and Dental University before joining the National Institute of Radiological Sciences as head of the Biological Dosimetry Section. In 2010, Dr. Yoshida joined the Institute of Radiation Emergency Medicine at Hirosaki University and is currently working to establish a cytogenetic biodosimetry system for the university and is primarily focused on cytogenetic biodosimetry and radiation induced carcinogenesis education and research. He is a member of a chromosome network in Japan for cytogenetic biodosimetry and the ISO TC85/SC2 (Radiation Protection) Working Group 18 (Biological Dosimetry). Furthermore, Dr. Yoshida is on a World Health Organization steering committee working to develop an International Biological Dosimetry Network. He was also recently elected as the member of the Scientific Committee of the International Association of Biological and EPR Radiation Dosimetry.

Christophe E. Redon, PhD
Staff Scientist
National Cancer Institute in Bethesda, Maryland

Dr. Redon earned a Doctor of Philosophy in Biochemistry and Cellular Biology from the University of Reims Champagne-Ardenne in France. In 1999, he was awarded a post-doctoral fellowship in Dr. William M. Bonner's group at the National Institutes of Health, where he currently works as a staff scientist. Dr. Redon studies the cellular mechanisms involved in the repair of DNA damage, and especially the relationship between DNA double-strand breaks and the phosphorylated form of histone H2AX, named γ-H2AX. In recent years, he developed the use of γ-H2AX for translational studies investigating the parameters necessary to make this protein a useful biomarker for radiation exposure and for the clinical evaluation of new cancer therapeutic drugs.

Michael Abend, MD
Deputy Director
Bundeswehr Institute of Radiobiology in Germany

Colonel Abend earned a Doctor of Medicine at the University of Cologne in Germany in 1987, a professorship at Technical University of Munich in Germany in 2009 and a Master of Science in Epidemiology at Johannes Gutenberg-University of Mainz in Germany in 2009. After finishing coursework in human medicine, Colonel Abend joined the Bundeswehr Institute of Radiobiology in Germany in 1987. His thesis for a professorship focused on cell death mechanism. Other continued research efforts have centered on gene expression analysis, cell death regulation on the transcriptome level, and epigenetic modifications for explaining tumorigenesis caused by long term memory effects. Colonel Abend’s research is combined with biostatistical tools used in epidemiology. His master thesis was accomplished at the Radiation Epidemiological Branch at the National Cancer Institute in Maryland. Several fruitful collaborations on the interface between radioepidemiology, medicine and radiobiology evolved from this work. Colonel Abend also works as a subchair of a NATO Research Study Group on Radiation Bioeffects and Countermeasures (RTG-033).

Steven G. Swarts, PhD
Research Associate Professor
Department of Radiation Oncology at the University of Florida in Gainesville

Dr. Swarts earned a PhD in biomedical sciences with a specialization in health and environmental chemistry from Oakland University in Michigan in 1987. He completed his postdoctoral study on DNA damage and repair in Dr. Ken Wheeler's laboratory of Dr. Ken at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center (WFUBMC). After graduating, he became an assistant professor at WFUBMC and was later promoted to an associate professor in the Department of Radiation Oncology, where he continued his studies of ionizing radiation induced damage to DNA and its repair. At WFUBMC, Dr. Swarts also developed assays for measuring biomarkers of cancer susceptibility and tumor response to radiation therapy. In 2001, Dr. Swarts went on to become a senior scientist at Syracuse Research Corporation, where he helped draft toxicological profiles and human risk assessments for various radioisotopes for the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry. In 2007, he joined the Department of Radiation Oncology at the University of Rochester in New York to focus on the development of biomarkers for use in human biodosimetry and new drug agents as radiation mitigators. Currently, Dr. Swarts is continuing these lines of research and product development at the University of Florida.

Natalia Ossetrova, PhD
Research Biologist
Armed Forces Radiobiology Research Institute in Bethesda, Maryland

Dr. Ossetrova earned a Doctor of Philosophy in Experimental Particle Nuclear Physics at the Institute for Nuclear Research of the Russian Academy of Sciences in Moscow, Russia. Several years after graduation, she joined BioTraces, Incorporated in Herndon, Virginia before coming to the Armed Forces Radiobiology Research Institute (AFRRI). At AFRRI, Dr. Ossetrova's research activities have focused on the validation of radiation-responsive protein biomarkers for biodosimetry applications in order to evaluate their utility as diagnostic biomarkers for early dose and injury assessment. She has also conducted research on the development and optimization of immunoassays; development of improved methods in proteomics; algorithm design; mathematical modeling and Monte Carlo simulations of the nuclear physics process; investigation and application of electron, gamma and neutron detectors; and development of Multi Particle Detection technology instrumentations for biology and medicine.

Thomas J. MacVittie, PhD
Professor of Radiation Oncology and Pathology
University of Maryland School of Medicine in Baltimore

Dr. MacVittie earned a Master of Science and Doctor of Philosophy in Radiation Biology at the State University of New York in Buffalo. He has more than 30 years of experience as a radiobiologist in the field of experimental hematology. Currently, Dr. MacVittie is a professor of radiation oncology and pathology at the University of Maryland School of Medicine in Baltimore. He is also recognized internationally as an expert on the effects of radiation on the hematopoietic and gastrointestinal systems in large animal models and their treatment, in vivo, with supportive care and selected organ-specific medical countermeasures against acute and delayed effects of acute radiation exposure. Dr. MacVittie has published 142 peer-reviewed manuscripts, 45 chapters in books or proceedings and co-edited five books published from meetings organized on radiation effects and treatment.

Tomisato Miura, PhD
Lecturer
Department of Biomedical Sciences at the Hirosaki University Graduate School of Health Sciences in Hirosaki, Japan

Dr. Miura earned a PhD in 2001 at the Hirosaki University School of Medicine. His doctoral advisor was Dr. Akio Nakane. In 2001, he joined the Hirosaki University School of Health Sciences, where he remains today. Dr. Miura's research activities have focused on molecular mechanisms of antioxidants, apoptosis, cell cycle effects, DNA damage and repair, and biological dosimetry. He is a member of the Cytogenetic Biodosimetry Group in the Radiation Emergency Medicine department of his university. Dr. Miura also started the National Research Council (NCR) Research Associateship Program as a NRC senior fellow at the Armed Forces Radiobiology Research Institute.

Alexandra C. Miller, PhD
Senior Scientist
Armed Forces Radiobiology Research Institute in Bethesda, Maryland

Dr. Miller earned a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry from the University of Maryland at College Park and a Doctor of Philosophy in Radiation Biology from the Roswell Park Memorial Institute Division of the State University of New York in Buffalo. She held a research associate program post-doctoral position at the Armed Forces Radiobiology Research Institute (AFRRI) and another post-doctoral position at the Department of Pathology at the Uniformed Services University (USU). Dr. Miller is currently a senior scientist at AFRRI and holds faculty positions at USU, the University of Southern Maine, and the University of Paris in France. Dr. Miller has been awarded the AFRRI Radiobiology Research Award and was nominated for the Michael Fry Radiation Research Society research award three times. Her research interests include the health effects and mechanisms of damage resulting from radiation exposure and from embedded metal fragments and the development of DU biomarkers. Dr. Miller is also interested in the development of chemopreventive agents for radiation-and heavy metal-induced late effects.

Pat Prasanna, PhD
Program Director of the Radiation Research Program
National Cancer Institute in Rockville, Maryland

Dr. Prasanna earned a PhD in Radiobiology from the Mangalore University in India. While there, he completed research on radiation-induced normal tissue injury and radiation protection. After graduating, Dr. Prasanna held a faculty position at the Kasturba Medical College in Manipal, India, before coming to the Armed Forces Radiobiology Research Institute (AFRRI) on a post-doctoral research associateship. At AFRRI, Dr. Prasanna established a molecular cytogenetic laboratory to study genotoxic and clastogenic effects of ionizing radiation and chemical agents. As an AFRRI scientist, he also conducted research in biological dosimetry and assessed radiation doses to individuals accidentally exposed to ionizing radiation. Dr. Prasanna also worked as a research biologist at AFRRI, serving as a principal investigator for Department of Defense intramural and extramural research projects focused on radiation biology and related fields. As a subject matter expert in biological dosimetry, he also participated in several national and international research efforts in biological dosimetry. Dr. Prasanna serves as a consultant to the International Atomic Energy Agency in cytogenetic biodosimetry. After leaving AFRRI, he joined the National Institute of Cancer in 2009 and currently oversees a portfolio of grants, which study radiation-induced normal tissue injury, radiation protection, radioimmunotherapy, nanotechnology, boron-neutron capture therapy, and radiogenomics.

Ruth Wilkins, PhD
Research Scientist and Division Chief of Radiobiology
Health Canada in Ottawa

Dr. Ruth Wilkins earned a Doctor of Philosophy in Medical Physics from Carleton University in Ottawa, Canada. After graduation, she joined Health Canadas Consumer and Clinical Radiation Protection Bureau as a research scientist and was later promoted to division chief of the Radiobiology Division. Dr. Wilkins studies biological effects ionizing radiation in mammalian systems both in vitro and in vivo with a strong focus on cytogenetic biological dosimetry. Furthermore, she currently leads development of the Canadian National Biological Dosimetry Response Plan efforts for large scale exposures to ionizing radiation. Her additional research focuses on the development of new, higher throughput methods for biological dosimetry. Dr. Wilkins is also a member of the ISO TC85/SC2 (Radiation Protection) Working Group 18 (Biological Dosimetry) and is one of the steering committee members for the World Health Organizations efforts to develop an International Biological Dosimetry Network (BioDoseNet). She was also recently elected as the Secretary of the Scientific Committee of the International Association of Biological and EPR Radiation Dosimetry.

Gordon K. Livingston, PhD
Researcher
Radiation Emergency Assistance Center at the Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education

Dr. Livingston earned degrees from Utah State and Oregon State Universities and a Doctor of Philosophy in Genetics from the University of Washington in Seattle. After graduation, he completed a post-doctoral fellowship in radiobiology at the University of Nijmegen in the Netherlands. Dr. Livingston has held faculty positions in environmental and occupational health at the University of Cincinnati and the University of Utah where he also served four years as the technical director of the clinical cytogenetics laboratory in the Department of Pediatrics. Dr. Livingston also held a National Research Council Senior Research Associateship sponsored by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health in Cincinnati, before coming to the Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. Over the years, his research has focused on human cytogenetic responses to environmental adversity including environmental, occupational and medical exposures to ionizing radiation.

Christopher R. Lissner, PhD, M(ASCP), CAPT, MSC, USN (Ret.)
Scientific Director
Armed Forces Radiobiology Research Institute in Bethesda, Maryland

Dr. Lissner earned a Bachelor of Science in Biological Sciences and a Master of Science in Cellular and Molecular Biology from the University of Southern California. He later earned a Doctor of Philosophy in Microbiology from the Uniformed Services University in Bethesda, Maryland. Over a twenty-six year career in the U.S. Navy’s Medical Service Corps, his positions included: head of the Microbiology Department at the Naval Medical Center in San Diego and the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda; head of the Bacteriology Department at the Naval Medical Resarch Unit No.3 in Cairo, Egypt; assistant chairman of the Department of Infectious and Parasitic Disease Pathology at the Armed Forces Institute of Pathology; assistant head of the Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology in Bethesda; executive officer at the Naval Medical Research Institute in Bethesda; and microbiology advisor and community manager for the Office of the Surgeon General, U.S. Navy. After a very illustrious military career, Dr. Lissner retired at the rank of Navy Captain. Prior to arriving at AFRRI in 2005, he was director of Sponsored Programs at the Henry M. Jackson Foundation for the Advancement of Military Medicine and a program director for Peer Review, Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs, Constella Health Sciences. Dr. Lissner became the deputy scientific director of AFRRI in 2006 and assumed the position of scientific director in November of 2008. His professional interests include the diagnosis and treatment of infectious disease, microbial host parasite relationships, and institutional research administration.

Guy Garty, PhD
Research Scientist
Columbia University in New York City, New York

Dr. Garty earned Master of Science and Doctor of Philosophy degrees in physics from the Weizmann Institute of Science in Rehovot, Israel in 1997 and 2004, respectively. His dissertations were on electron-counting detectors and ion-counting nanodosimetry. After graduating, Dr. Garty was a post-doctoral research scientist and an associate research scientist. He currently works at the Radiological Research Accelerator Facility in the Center for Radiological Research at Columbia University in New York. His research interests include automated biodosimetry, high-throughput imaging, microbeam technology, nanodosimetry and detector physics.

Kristen Herring, PhD
Science and Technology Manager
Defense Threat Reduction Agency Chemical and Biological Technologies Directorate at Fort Belvoir, Virginia

Dr. Herring earned a Doctor of Philosophy in Biochemistry from Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee. Her dissertation was focused on the application of imaging mass spectrometry to identify protein markers of drug-induced kidney toxicity directly from tissue. After graduating, Dr. Herring was named a 2008 Presidential Management Fellow where she accepted a position at the Defense Threat Reduction Agency/Joint Science and Technology Office at Fort Belvoir, Virginia. She currently serves as the science and Technology Manager for the Medical Radiological Countermeasures program.

Narayani Ramakrishnan, PhD
Senior Program Officer of the Radiation/Nuclear Medical Countermeasures Program
Division of Allergy, Immunology, and Transplantation at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland

Dr. Ramakrishnan earned a Doctor of Philosophy from the University of Bombay in India and a Master of Science from the University of Madras in India. Currently, she provides scientific and program leadership for the Radiation/Nuclear Medical Countermeasures Program at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), National Institutes of Health (NIH). In this role, Dr. Ramakrishnan is responsible for the development of biodosimetry techniques/devices and medical countermeasures to prevent, mitigate, and treat effects of radiation exposure after radiological/nuclear terrorist attacks or radiation accidents. Dr. Ramakrishnan has also served as the assistant director of the Division of Receipt and Referral at the Center for Scientific Review at NIH and managed receipt and referral for the scientific merit review of grant applications with review groups at the CSR and 27 NIH funding institutes and centers. She was a principal investigator for a research program to assess, prevent, and treat physiological and cellular damage induced by chronic and acute exposure to ionizing radiation, depleted uranium, and oxidative stress at the Armed Forces Radiobiology Research Institute for ten years. Also, she was a scientific officer leading several radiobiology research programs at the Bhabha Atomic Research Center at the Department of Atomic Energy in India. Dr. Ramakrishnan has received many awards throughout her illustrious career including the NIH and NIAID Director’s Awards.

Marcy Beth Grace, PhD
Project Officer
Biomedical Advanced Research Development Authority within the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

Dr. Grace earned a PhD in Genetics from George Washington University. Identifying the underlying molecular mechanisms associated with functional gene mutations of the human thyroid hormone receptor beta was the focus of her doctoral research at the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases of the U.S. National Institutes of Health. As part of this research, Dr. Grace developed and published several innovative techniques for detection of single nucleotide mutations. During postdoctoral fellowships at the National Human Genome Research Institute and National Institute of Mental Health, she focused on the development of rapid, molecular diagnostic and screening tools. After completing her fellowships, she joined the Armed Forces Radiobiology Research Institute (AFRRI) and served as a principal Investigator. At this time, Dr. Grace was also an assistant professor of radiobiology in the School of Medicine at the Uniformed Services University of Health Sciences (USU). Her research focused on the development of rapid, noninvasive techniques that use peripheral whole blood samples to establish radiation-responsive DNA damage and gene expression biomarkers for biodosimetry applications at AFRRI and USU. In July of 2008, Dr. Grace joined the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) as a project officer in biodosimetry for the Biomedical Advanced Research Development Authority. She also serves as a subject matter expert on several HHS Requirements Working Groups and Integrated Program Teams.

All correspondence should be addressed to the program committee by e-mail (BDSymposium@afrri.usuhs.mil) or fax (301-295-1863).

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