Download Nominator - Carnegie Science Center

2017 Carnegie Science Awards
Category: Life Sciences
Additional Categories:
Nominee
Name: John Kellum MD
Title: Professor of Critical Care Medicine,
Medicine, Bioengineering and Clinical
Translational Science
Organization: University of Pittsburgh,
Department of Critical Care Medicine
Address: Room 604, Scaife Hall 3550 Terrance
Street Pittsburgh, PA 15261
Phone Number: (412) 647-7810
Email: [email protected]
Nominator
Name: William Federspiel PhD
Title:
Professor-Department of Bioengineering,
Chemical Engineering
Organization: University of Pittsburgh
Address: 302E Benedum Hall 3700 O’Hare
Street Pittsburgh, PA 15261
Phone Number: (412) 383-9499
Email: [email protected]
Personal Narrative
In 150 words or less, please provide a brief statement of why the nominee excels relative to the award
category.
Dr. Kellum is physician-scientist who is internationally recognized for his pioneering advances in science,
and translation of scientific discoveries to clinical products and procedures. He is Vice Chair for
Research, and Director of the Center for Critical Care Nephrology, Department of Critical Care Medicine
at the University of Pittsburgh.
Dr. Kellum has led a world-wide effort to define acute kidney injury (AKI) and establish diagnostics and
therapeutics for this condition that kills more than 3 million people annually. Among his many
accomplishments include development of the first international consensus definitions for AKI known as
the RIFLE criteria, serving as co-chair for the Kidney Disease Improving Global Outcomes (KDIGO) AKI
workgroup that produced the first comprehensive clinical practice guideline for AKI, leading the clinical
studies that culminated in the first FDA approved biomarker for AKI (Nephrocheck), and pioneering
novel treatments for AKI including immune modulation, mitochondrial resuscitation and remote
ischemic preconditioning.
Achievements
Please identify the novel, innovative, and unique achievement(s) relative to the award category you are
submitting this nomination.
Dr. Kellum is a prolific and highly cited author (over 25,000 citations and an h-index of 72). As noted
above, he has a superb record of translating advancements in science into practical activities and tools.
As an example, he was the lead investigator of a now FDA-approved lab test that will be used to help
determine if critically ill hospitalized patients are at risk of developing moderate to severe acute kidney
injury (AKI) in the 12 hours following the administration of the test. Early knowledge that a patient is
likely to develop AKI may prompt closer patient monitoring and help prevent permanent kidney damage
or death. This is significant as many physicians are aware of the need to assess patient risk for AKI,
however until this development there has not been a reliable method of performing this risk
assessment.
2017 Carnegie Science Awards
Some of his most significant contributions to the literature include:
Bihorac A, Chawla LS, Shaw AD, Al-Khafaji A, Davison DL, Demuth GE, et al. Validation of cell-cycle arrest
biomarkers for acute kidney injury using clinical adjudication. American Journal of Respiratory and
Critical Care Medicine, 2014 189(8), 932–939. PMID:24559465
Zarbock A, Schmidt C, Van Aken H, Wempe C, Martens S, Zahn PK, Wolf B, Goebel U, Schwer CI,
Rosenberger P, Haeberle H, Görlich D, Kellum JA, Meersch M. Effect of remote ischemic preconditioning
on kidney injury among high-risk patients undergoing cardiac surgery: a randomized clinical trial. JAMA
2015 Jun 2;313(21):2133–41. PMID: 26024502
Regional Impact
Please describe the impact of the candidate’s contributions to the Western Pennsylvania region.
John's work has brought great attention to the need for, and the benefits of the state-of-the-art clinical
care that is available in the region. He collaborates with clinicians in other departments at UPMC in the
assessment and care of critically ill patients suffering with potentially debilitating kidney disease.
Dr. Kellum has always performed his research with a particular focus on translating therapies to
patients, and as such he has made significant efforts to reach out to the community through
programming to inform patients and their loved ones of the research being done at the University of
Pittsburgh that may one day lead to improved treatments. John and his team recently developed an
“ap” for smart phones and pads that allows patients who have sustained AKI to keep track of their
kidney function and medications that might harm them. The National Kidney Foundation is working with
Dr. Kellum to promote the ap.
Finally, Dr. Kellum works with high school and university students from the region to train and inspire
the next generation of scientists.
Impact Beyond the Region
Please describe the impact of the candidate’s contributions outside of the Western Pennsylvania region.
John is highly sought after for his expertise in a number of domains. As noted above, he routinely
collaborates with peers across the US and in other countries, in the development and assessment of
innovative therapies. Dr. Kellum is a past president of the Acute Disease Quality Initiative
(www.adqi.org), an international, interdisciplinary group that publishes research and practice
recommendations in critical care nephrology. He has led multiple national and international studies and
continues to mentor research teams in Belgium, Germany, Brazil and China. He holds an Adjunct
Professorship, at Shandong University, in Jinan, China.
Examples
Please upload work examples of the nominee.
Please see addendum.
Additional Information
Please add any additional information that you feel would be relevant for consideration.
While the listed accomplishments are applicable to AKI, they have broad-based interests and
applicability. Dr. Kellum’s work in the biomarker field began as Co-PI of GenIMS (Genetic and
Inflammatory Markers of Sepsis R01GM61992) the first large epidemiologic study of sepsis secondary to
2017 Carnegie Science Awards
community-acquired pneumonia that characterized the inflammatory mediatory profiles and their
relationship to outcomes. As PI of Biomarkers of Recovery for the Kidney (BioMaRK), he led a team of
investigators who evaluated numerous markers for recovery after severe AKI. Finally, he led a discovery
and validation effort for acute kidney injury biomarkers that culminated in the first diagnostic to receive
U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval. Perhaps more importantly though, the biomarkers
discovered appear to modulate cell-cycle progression in renal tubular epithelial cells and represent
exciting new targets for therapy including remote ischemic preconditioning.
Dr. Kellum is a pioneer in the treatment of sepsis. His work in AKI, sepsis and blood purification has been
intertwined. He has provided much of preclinical data evaluating sorbents as blood purification
modalities in sepsis. This work has opened numerous new avenues to approach the problem of sepsis by
removal of damage and pathogen-associated molecular patterns to reprograming the immune response
by manipulating chemokine gradients. He has studied the long-term effects of sepsis not only on the
kidney but on the inflammatory response and on coagulation. These studies have led directly to his
current work on late effects of sepsis on risk for new infection and cardiovascular events.
Dr. Kellum has seven issued U.S. patents; nine pending patent applications and three additional
invention disclosures.