News Release

Katherine A. High, M.D., elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences

Hematologist and gene therapy expert at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia joins an elite honorary society

Grant and Award Announcement

Children's Hospital of Philadelphia

Katherine A. High, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia

image: Dr. Katherine A. High, a leader in gene therapy, directs the Center for Cellular and Molecular Therapeutics at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. view more 

Credit: The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia

Katherine A. High, M.D., a gene therapy expert at The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, has been elected to the 2011 class of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. The Academy is one of the nation's most prestigious honorary societies and is a leading center for independent policy research.

Dr. High joins a select group of scholars, scientists, writers, artists, civic, corporate and philanthropic leaders that includes Nobel laureates, Pulitzer Prize awardees, and winners of MacArthur Fellowships, Oscar Awards and Kennedy Center honors.

A hematologist, Dr. High is internationally recognized for her research on gene therapy, particularly in developing and conducting landmark clinical studies. She has been in the forefront of the effort to develop gene therapy for the inherited bleeding disorder hemophilia and continues to pursue this research. She directs the Center for Cellular and Molecular Therapeutics at Children's Hospital. In 2009, that center sponsored a clinical trial that produced dramatic improvements in children and young adults with Leber's congenital amaurosis, a congenital form of blindness.

Dr. High is a Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator and the William H. Bennett Professor of Pediatrics at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine. She also is a past president of the American Society of Gene Therapy.

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Founded in 1780 by John Adams, John Hancock, and other scholar-patriots, the Academy elects leading "thinkers and doers" from each generation. Past members have included George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, Daniel Webster, and Albert Einstein.

The Academy announced its newest members on April 19. They will be honored in an induction ceremony on Oct. 1, at the Academy's headquarters in Cambridge, Mass. Among the 212 members of the 201l Academy class are astronomer Paul Butler, stem cell scientist George Q. Daley, singer-songwriters Bob Dylan and Paul Simon, filmmaker Ken Burns, jazz musician Dave Brubeck, novelist Oscar Hijuelos, and actors Daniel Day-Lewis and Sam Waterston.

About The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia: The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia was founded in 1855 as the nation's first pediatric hospital. Through its long-standing commitment to providing exceptional patient care, training new generations of pediatric healthcare professionals and pioneering major research initiatives, Children's Hospital has fostered many discoveries that have benefited children worldwide. Its pediatric research program is among the largest in the country, ranking third in National Institutes of Health funding. In addition, its unique family-centered care and public service programs have brought the 516-bed hospital recognition as a leading advocate for children and adolescents. For more information, visit http://www.chop.edu.


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