The Hauptman-Woodward Medical Research Institute (HWI), an international leader in structural biology located on the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus, announced that three members were recently re-elected to three-year terms on the organization’s Board of Directors.
The re-elected board members are:
- Christina Arthurs, Esq., Counsel, Lippes Mathias Wexler Friedman
- John G. Horn, Esq., Partner, Harter Secrest & Emery
- James Obletz, President, Travel, Delaware North Companies
In addition, the board elected its officers for 2020-21:
- Chair: John G. Horn, Esq., Partner, Harter Secrest & Emery
- Vice Chair: Samuel J. Russo, CPA, Partner, Lorraine Capital
- Secretary: Jill K. Bond, Esq., Senior Vice President, Rich Products Corporation
- Finance Committee Chair: Richard C. Hamister, Senior Vice President, New York Region President, Northwest Bank
“At a time when public health is at the forefront of our local, national and global consciousness, the work being done at HWI has never been more important,” said Horn. “Our work as a board is made stronger by the incredible talents and contributions of every director. We are all tremendously proud to stand with and support the remarkable scientists, researchers and professionals as we work to propel the Institute and its mission forward.”
Earlier this year, HWI received nearly $600,000 in grant funding from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to support multiple studies to understand and discover potential therapies for the virus which causes COVID-19. The NSF grants expanded the work HWI was already doing on the COVID-19 front in Western New York, as well as at its IMCA-CAT research facility in Chicago. The National Institutes of Health (NIH) recently provided an additional $246,000 grant to support the ongoing operations of HWI’s Crystallization Center and the services it provides for the study of many diseases.
The Institute is also in the process of constructing a Cryo-Electron Microscopy (Cryo-EM) center at its Ellicott Street research facility in Buffalo, with plans to have the first microscope operational later this year. The microscope uses electrons to take pictures of individual proteins that are flash-frozen in motion and utilizes high-power computers to calculate what these proteins look like. This allows scientists and researchers to more quickly develop life-saving pharmaceuticals. The HWI center will be the first Cryo-EM facility in all of Upstate New York with this groundbreaking capability.
“Through our work, we make the invisible visible,” Dr. Edward Snell, CEO, Hauptman-Woodward Medical Research Institute, said. “Our research unlocks important information that can impact public health today and for generations to come. As a non-profit organization, our board plays an important role in making each successive wave of innovation at HWI possible.”