December 15, 2005

Genetics/CCGS assistant professor Leslie Lange will be the recipient of the 2006 Roger R. Williams Award for Genetic Epidemiology and the Prevention and Treatment of Atherosclerosis to be presented at the upcoming annual conference on cardiovascular disease epidemiology and prevention, sponsored by the American Heart Association. The award honors the work of Dr. Williams, a pioneer in the genetics of inherited lipid disorders and prevention of atherosclerosis.  The winner of the award is selected among all conference abstracts submitted in the category of genetic epidemiology.  Dr. Lange’s abstract describes her recent work on identifying polymorphisms in the CRP (C-reactive protein) gene that are associated with elevated levels of circulating CRP and the incidence of cardiovascular events such as heart attacks and stroke.  More broadly, Dr. Lange’s long-term research interests lie in the genetic epidemiology of complex diseases such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, cancer, and psychiatric disorders.