Professor Sir Ravinder Maini, FRS, “Father of Translational Research” to Speak at WCMC-Q


January 2011

Professor Maini will speak on January 31 to an
audience of WCMC-Q faculty, students, and
clinicians from the community.

Rheumatologist and immunologist, Sir Ravinder Maini, FRS, whose groundbreaking work on causes and treatments of rheumatoid arthritis won him the title of “Father of Translational Research,” will speak at WCMC-Q on Monday, January 31 at 5 p.m.

Professor Maini collaborated for more than 20 years with Professor Feldmann, FMedSci, FAA, FRS, at the Kennedy Institute of Rheumatology in basic research and clinical trials that have transformed the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis and other chronic inflammatory conditions. They identified TNF as a key cytokine, or cell signalling molecule, in the development of rheumatoid arthritis and other autoimmune diseases and developed a therapy to counteract it.

He and Feldmann have been widely honored for their work. They received the Albert Lasker Clinical Medical Research Award in 2003 and the Crafoord Prize of the Royal Swedish Academy in 2000, among others. Knighthood was conferred on Professor Maini by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II in 2003.

Professor Maini’s presentation “Bench to Bedside Research and Development of anti-TNF Therapy” will highlight the pivotal nature of translational research in the biomedical arena.

Professor Maini is currently emeritus professor of rheumatology at the Imperial College London and a trustee of the Kennedy Institute of Rheumatology Trust. He served as director of the Kennedy Institute of Rheumatology, Imperial College of London for more than a decade. He is a founding co-editor in-chief of Arthritis Research and Therapy and has authored more than 449 publications.

By Kristina Goodnough