HOUSTON – Dr. Jeanne L. Becker has been named associate director of the National Space Biomedical Research Institute (NSBRI), a consortium of leading biomedical institutions.
The NSBRI focuses on developing solutions to the health-related problems and physical and psychological challenges men and women will face on long-duration space flights. Through an integrated team approach, the Institute utilizes the expertise of scientists at laboratories across the United States.
"Through ground-based and space-based research, NSBRI has the opportunity to solve many of the critical health questions that must be addressed before men and women can journey on missions beyond Earth’s orbit," Becker said. "I’m pleased to become part of such a worthwhile objective."
NSBRI’s research program addresses bone and muscle loss, cardiovascular changes, remote medical care, sleep and human performance, immunology and infection, balance and orientation, radiation exposure, neurobehavioral and psychosocial issues, nutrition, physical fitness, and rehabilitation. The findings will also impact the understanding and treatment of medical conditions experienced on Earth.
As associate director, Becker will serve as the Institute’s chief scientist and will work closely with the NSBRI director on day-to-day aspects of managing the scientific program. Funded by NASA, the Institute currently supports nearly 100 peer-reviewed projects involving scientists at 80 research institutions.
"Dr. Becker’s research experience and her leadership of NASA-funded flight experiments will be an asset as the projects within the NSBRI’s research program mature and prepare to enter the realm of space flight. She has a clear understanding of the benefits of space-based research to health issues on Earth," said Dr. Jeffrey Sutton, NSBRI director.
Becker, currently an associate professor of obstetrics and gynecology and medical microbiology and immunology at the University of South Florida College of Medicine, will relocate to the NSBRI’s headquarters at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston. She plans to continue her research focused on investigating growth regulation and drug resistance in hormonally-responsive diseases of women, including endometriosis and ovarian, breast and endometrial cancers.
She holds a bachelor’s degree in zoology from the University of Florida in Gainesville and a doctoral degree in medical sciences from the University of South Florida College of Medicine in Tampa.
Established in 1997 through a NASA competition, the NSBRI consortium includes Baylor, Brookhaven National Laboratory, Harvard Medical School, The Johns Hopkins University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Morehouse School of Medicine, Mount Sinai School of Medicine, Rice University, Texas A&M University, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, University of Pennsylvania Health System and University of Washington.
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