Seminar Speaker: George Weiner, MD, Professor of Internal Medicine and Director of the Holden Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of Iowa

Dr. Weiner’s research focuses on understanding the mechanisms of action of anti-cancer monoclonal antibodies, and on development of novel approaches to immunotherapy of lymphoma. He has been continually funded by the NCI since 1991 and has been the PI on the University of Iowa / Mayo Clinic Lymphoma Specialized Program of Research Excellence (P50 CA097274) since it was initiated in 2002. This grant was renewed competitively in 2007 and 2012. Dr. Weiner’s research extends from basic laboratory investigation to clinical trials. He was the first to demonstrate Toll Like Receptor 9 agonists could be used successfully as immune adjuvants in tumor immunization. He has made major contributions to our understanding of the mechanisms of action responsible for the anti-tumor activity of monoclonal antibodies, including providing evidence that, in some cases, complement can inhibit the efficacy of some monoclonal antibodies. He has established a number of collaborative research programs, including working with Dr. Aliasger Salem from the UI College of Pharmacy on novel uses of nanoparticles to enhance the anti-tumor immune response.

In addition to serving as a biomedical mentor in the BBIP, Dr. Weiner is also invovled in the numerous training programs in the College of Medicine, including the Interdisciplinary Graduate Program in Immunology, the Interdisciplinary Graduate Program in Informatics, the Interdisciplinary Graduate Program in Translational Biomedicine,  and the Medical Scientist Training Program.  Dr. Weiner will share findings from his research as well as describe the ongoing research in his lab.  He will also discuss his perspectives on training for 21st century behavioral-biomedical scientists.