LaBaer named president-elect of a leading national research organization
Personalized medicine expert Joshua LaBaer of Arizona State University has been elected as president-elect of the U.S. Human Proteome Organization. A founding member, LaBaer will become the sixth president of U.S. HUPO, serving from 2014-2016.
“Proteome” refers to an entire set of proteins expressed by a genome, or genetic blueprint. So it follows that proteomics – a blend of the words protein and genomics – is the large-scale study of proteins. Unraveling human protein functions is essential to developing medical care based on each individual’s unique genetic profile.
LaBaer is director of the Virginia G. Piper Center for Personalized Diagnostics and chair of the Biodesign Institute directorate. LaBaer’s team works to discover and validate biomarkers – unique molecular fingerprints of disease – that can provide early warning for those at risk of major illnesses, including cancer and diabetes.
Upon coming to ASU in 2009, LaBaer was named the first Piper Chair in Personalized Medicine. Before that, he served as director of the Harvard Institute of Proteomics.
A board-certified physician in internal medicine and medical oncology, LaBaer has contributed more than 112 original research publications, reviews and chapters. LaBaer is the editor of the Journal of Proteome Research. He also serves as co-chair of the steering committee for the National Cancer Institute’s Early Detection Research Network and serves on a number of government and industry scientific advisory boards. Last year, he was honored as a Health Care Hero Researcher/Innovator for his discoveries in breast cancer detection by the Phoenix Business Journal.
LaBaer earned doctoral and medical degrees from the University of California School of Medicine, San Francisco.
In addition to his appointments at the Biodesign Institute, Joshua LaBaer is a professor in ASU’s College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry.