Molly Baber Research Fund

for

Diabetes and Transplantation Medicine

The Molly Baber Research Fund was created by her husband, Mark Baber, in memory of his beloved wife. It was my pleasure to know Molly and experience this incredible person's sense of life and unselfish commitment to helping people. In creating this Research Fund, we are honoring her spirit and will dedicate our research to her passions for health, scientific and human understanding, integrity and excellence.

Before her unexpected passing, Mark, Molly and I were working together to create a Center for Diabetes and Transplantation Medicine at The Scripps Research Institute and Scripps Health. Our developing concept was to support research in both the clinical and basic science of diabetes and transplantation. In this process the theme evolved that these efforts had to center around really helping patients and families deal with these situations, the chronic disease of diabetes and the life long commitment represented by an organ transplant. While we recognized that working for cures and promising bold new initiatives at the very cutting edges of science and technology was an integral part of the process, we promised to remain pragmatic and give equal weight to efforts in health education and improving the lives of diabetic and transplant patients by also contributing to improvements in their day to day care and the many complications of these diseases and the present therapies.

The objectives of the Molly Baber Research Fund for the next three years will be to advance our ongoing studies in two areas: the use of genomic medicine including high density DNA arrays, proteomics and genetics to improve the care of organ transplant patients and to develop tissue engineering tools for islet transplantation based on endothelial progenitor cells, gene therapy and delivery of therapeutic proteins to a transplant site.

Contributions to the Molly Baber Research Fund:

Molly Baber Research Fund
c/o Dr. Daniel R. Salomon
Department of Molecular and Experimental Medicine - MEM 241
The Scripps Research Institute
10550 North Torrey Pines Road
La Jolla, CA 92037

For any questions or assistance, please contact:

Cathy Perez (858) 784-9975 <cdperez@scripps.edu>
Daniel R. Salomon, M.D. <dsalomon@scripps.edu>