Edward Neuwelt is an American professor of neurology and neurosurgery at Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU) and the Portland Veterans Affairs Medical Center. He is known for his research on the blood-brain barrier and the development of new treatments for brain tumors.[1][2]

Edward Neuwelt
Alma materUniversity of Colorado School of Medicine, University of Texas Southwestern Medical School
Known forResearch on the blood-brain barrier and the treatment of brain tumors
Scientific career
FieldsNeurology, Neurosurgery
InstitutionsOregon Health & Science University, Portland Veterans Affairs Medical Center

Education and career

edit

Neuwelt received his medical degree from the University of Colorado School of Medicine in Denver and completed his residency in neurosurgery at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical School in Dallas, Texas. He then completed research fellowships in neuro-oncology and neurosurgery at the National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, and then another at Queen Square Hospital in London, England.[1]

Neuwelt joined OHSU in 1981 as an assistant professor of neurology and neurosurgery. He became a full professor in 1990. He also holds a joint appointment at the Portland Veterans Affairs Medical Center, where he directs the Blood-Brain Barrier Program.[1]

Research

edit

Neuwelt's research has focused on developing new treatments for brain tumors, including the use of chemotherapy. He has also studied the blood-brain barrier, a protective barrier that prevents many drugs from reaching the brain. Neuwelt has developed techniques for temporarily opening the blood-brain barrier to allow drugs to reach brain tumors more effectively.[2]

Later research

edit

In the later years of his research career, Neuwelt focused on the use of iron oxide nanoparticles to diagnose central nervous system inflammatory diseases and primary central nervous system lymphoma.[3][4] He also led the development and clinical trials of a new method to protect children from high-frequency hearing loss caused by chemotherapy treatment of pediatric tumors, using sodium thiosulfate.[5][6]

His research resulted in the successful licensure of sodium thiosulfate by the Food and Drug Administration in 2023, making it the first drug approved to prevent hearing loss in children receiving cisplatin chemotherapy.[6]

Publications

edit

Neuwelt has published over 400 peer-reviewed articles, book chapters, and reviews on his research topics. He has also edited several books on the blood-brain barrier and its manipulation.[7][8][9]

Some of his most cited publications include:

  • Neuwelt, E. A., Lewy, A. J. (1983). Disappearance of plasma melatonin after removal of a neoplastic pineal gland. New England Journal of Medicine, 308(19), 1132–1135. doi:10.1056/nejm198305123081905
  • Neuwelt, E. A., Barnett, P. A., Bigner, D. D., Frenkel, E. P. (1984). Effects of adrenal cortical steroids and osmotic blood-brain barrier opening on methotrexate delivery to gliomas in the rodent: the factor of the blood-brain barrier. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 81(19), 6034–6038. doi:10.1073/pnas.79.14.4420
  • Neuwelt, E. A., Hill, S. A., Frenkel, E. P., Barnett, P. A., McCormick, C. I., Kroll, R. A., ... & Rapoport, S. I. (1991). Osmotic blood-brain barrier disruption and chemotherapy in the treatment of high grade malignant glioma: patient series and literature review. Neurosurgery, 29(5), 622–632. doi:10.1007/bf00172455
  • Neuwelt, E., Abbott, N. J., Abrey, L., Banks, W. A., Blakley, B., Davis, T., ... & Weiss, N. (2008). Strategies to advance translational research into brain barriers The Lancet Neurology, 7(1), 84–96. doi:10.1016/s1474-4422(07)70326-5

Awards and honors

edit

Neuwelt has received several awards and honors for his research and teaching, including:

  • The Jacob Javits Neuroscience Investigator Award from the National Institutes of Health (1987)
  • The Grass Award for Meritorious Research in Neurological Science from the American Neurological Association (1991)
  • The Distinguished Alumnus Award from the University of Denver (1994)
  • The Farber Award from the Society for Neuro-Oncology (2008)
  • The Lifetime Achievement Award from the International Brain Barriers Society (2014)

He is also a fellow of the American Academy of Neurology and the American Association for the Advancement of Science.[1]

References

edit
  1. ^ a b c d "Faculty and Staff". OHSU. Retrieved 2 November 2023.
  2. ^ a b "In the Name of Science". Oregon Business. 2 July 2019. Retrieved 2 November 2023.
  3. ^ Farrell, B. T.; Hamilton, B. E.; Dosa, E.; Rimely, E.; Nasseri, M.; Gahramanov, S.; Lacy, C. A.; Frenkel, E. P.; Doolittle, N. D.; Jacobs, P. M.; Neuwelt, E. A. (14 June 2013). "Using iron oxide nanoparticles to diagnose CNS inflammatory diseases and PCNSL". Neurology. 81 (3). Ovid Technologies (Wolters Kluwer Health): 256–263. doi:10.1212/wnl.0b013e31829bfd8f. ISSN 0028-3878. PMC 3770167. PMID 23771486.
  4. ^ Robinson, Erik (4 May 2021). "Imaging tumors, improving outcomes". OHSU News. Retrieved 2 November 2023.
  5. ^ Brock, Penelope R.; Maibach, Rudolf; Childs, Margaret; Rajput, Kaukab; Roebuck, Derek; Sullivan, Michael J.; Laithier, Véronique; Ronghe, Milind; Dall’Igna, Patrizia; Hiyama, Eiso; Brichard, Bénédicte; Skeen, Jane; Mateos, M. Elena; Capra, Michael; Rangaswami, Arun A.; Ansari, Marc; Rechnitzer, Catherine; Veal, Gareth J.; Covezzoli, Anna; Brugières, Laurence; Perilongo, Giorgio; Czauderna, Piotr; Morland, Bruce; Neuwelt, Edward A. (21 June 2018). "Sodium Thiosulfate for Protection from Cisplatin-Induced Hearing Loss". New England Journal of Medicine. 378 (25). Massachusetts Medical Society: 2376–2385. doi:10.1056/nejmoa1801109. hdl:11343/278774. ISSN 0028-4793. PMC 6117111. PMID 29924955.
  6. ^ a b Rideout, Nicole (17 January 2023). "Driven by OHSU research, FDA approves new drug to prevent hearing loss in children with cancer". OHSU News. Retrieved 2 November 2023.
  7. ^ Neuwelt, Edward A., ed. (1989). Implications of the Blood-Brain Barrier and Its Manipulation. Boston, MA: Springer US. doi:10.1007/978-1-4613-0701-3. ISBN 978-1-4612-8039-2. S2CID 8072736.
  8. ^ Grady, Denise (16 November 2009). "Breaching the Blood-Brain Barrier With Avastin to Fight Glioblastoma". The New York Times. Retrieved 2 November 2023.
  9. ^ Interlandi, Jeneen (14 May 2013). "Breaking the Brain Barrier". Scientific American. 308 (6). Springer Science+Business Media LLC: 52–57. Bibcode:2013SciAm.308f..52I. doi:10.1038/scientificamerican0613-52. ISSN 0036-8733. PMID 23729071.