2022 Annual Report

large-scale, collaborative projects designed to shed new
light onto cancer, Parkinson’s, rare disorders and many
other diseases.
Brian Haab, Ph.D.
Professor
Dr. Brian Haab searches for new ways
to diagnose and stratify pancreatic
cancers based on the chemical
fingerprints tumors leave behind. Part
of the problem Dr. Haab aims to solve
is that cancers often look and behave normally — until after
they’ve started making people sick. Dr. Haab is sleuthing
out clues to build a library of diagnostic tools that will help
providers diagnose tumors earlier and optimize treatment.
Matt Steensma, M.D.
Associate Professor
Dr. Matt Steensma studies the
genetic and molecular factors that
cause benign tumors to become
cancers, in search of vulnerabilities
that may be targeted for treatment.
As a scientist at VAI and a practicing surgeon at Corewell
Health Helen DeVos Children’s Hospital, he is committed
to translating scientific discoveries into treatments that
improve patients’ lives.
Bart Williams, Ph.D.
Director, Core Technologies and Services;
Professor
Dr. Bart Williams studies the building
blocks of bone growth on behalf of
the millions suffering from diseases
such as osteoporosis. He seeks
new ways of altering cell signaling pathways to encourage
healthy bone development and deter cancer spread to the
skeleton. Dr. Williams also serves as director of VAI’s Core
Technologies and Services, which provide technology
and specialized expertise to Institute scientists and
collaborators.
Two VAI scientists named to elite Highly Cited
Researchers list
Dr. Russell Jones and Dr. Peter W. Laird were included in the
2022 Clarivate Highly Cited Researchers list, a distinction
marking them as leaders in their fields. The greatly anticipated
annual list identifies researchers who demonstrated
significant influence in their chosen area or areas of study
through the publication of multiple highly cited papers during
the last decade. Their names are drawn from the publications
that rank in the top 1% by citations for field and publication
year in the Web of Science citation index.
Citations, or references to a scientist’s
published work by other researchers,
are universally considered a
Around
the
Institute
measure of influence and impact
in the scientific community. Jones
studies how diet and metabolism
impact the immune system’s
ability to fight infection and
cancer. Laird investigates the
role of epigenetics in cancer.
Both were included on the
2021 list.
Craig Reynolds joins VAI as Vice President for
Research Protections
In fall 2022, VAI appointed Craig Reynolds as Vice President
for Research Protections following a national search. Reynolds
joined VAI from University of Michigan, where he most
recently served as Assistant Vice President for Research-
Sponsored Projects. He was hired during an exceptional
period of growth in our organization.
Since 2014, the Institute has recruited more than two dozen
principal investigators who have established labs at VAI and
expanded our research into new areas including metabolism
and nutrition.
RESEARCH
25