Janice Kiecolt-Glaser, a professor of both psychology and psychiatry, was among the 60 new members announced today (10/15) by the Academy in Washington, D.C. Membership in the Institute of Medicine, as well as in the NAS or the National Academy of Engineering, is considered one of the highest honors American researchers can attain.

Kiecolt-Glaser's career has led her to a position of international prominence in the emerging field of psychoneuroimmunology - the study of the impact that psychological stress can have on the immune system. She and her colleagues at Ohio State's Institute of Behavioral Medicine Research have made remarkable strides in the last two decades that have helped bring the field from infancy to its current status as thriving area of study.

By examining the impact of normal, daily stress on people in different populations, she and her colleagues have shown that activities such as students taking major examinations, care-giving to the ill or elderly, divorce and death of a spouse can all cause a long-term dysregulation of a person's immune system which can expose them to serious disease.

The studies she and her colleagues have conducted have shown that:

· Hypnosis and other relaxation techniques may counteract the negative effects that stress can cause to the immune system;

· Stress can slow the pace of wound healing, a critical factor in surgical recovery;

· High stress levels can diminish the effectiveness of both influenza and pneumonia vaccines;

· Spouses who suffer chronic stress from caring for Alzheimer's patients or the elderly can have a weakened immune system for years after the care has stopped;

· Even minor stress, such as that of students facing major exams or newlyweds having their first fights, can lessen a person's immune response.

"Dr. Kiecolt-Glaser is a model medical researcher who is at the cutting edge of her field," explained Fred Sanfilippo, dean of the College of Medicine and Public Health and vice president for health sciences at Ohio State.

"For years, she has done important basic research that has direct clinical relevance and which has broadened our understanding of complex interactions of biomedical processes. Her work is the epitome of patient-oriented research excellence."

C. Bradley Moore, vice president for research at Ohio State, agrees saying, "Dr. Kiecolt-Glaser has consistently demonstrated an ability to design innovative research projects that produce important new knowledge - knowledge that may have a dramatic effect on improving human health."

"To be elected to the IOM is a great honor for any researcher and a grand acknowledgement of the importance of the work she and her colleagues have accomplished over the years," explained Moore, himself a member of the NAS.

She is currently the principal investigator on five National Institute of Health multi-year research grants totally nearly $22 million and has been supported by grants from the National Institute of Aging, the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research, the Dana Foundation and the Fetzer Institute.

Kiecolt-Glaser said, "The work I do is very strongly interdisciplinary, reflecting crucial contributions from my distinguished colleagues and collaborators in immunology and endocrinology. Most importantly, I see this honor as an acknowledgement of the seminal immunological work from Ron Glaser, who shares the primary responsibility for the design and conduct of our studies. Additionally, Bill Malarkey has made pivotal contributions in endocrinology. Without their efforts, and those of others in our group, the research would simply not have been possible."

She has served as a peer reviewer of research proposals for both the National Institutes of Health and the National Science Foundation. She currently serves on the editorial boards of three international research journals and has held similar posts with at least seven others.

She has been elected a fellow in both the Academy of Behavioral Medicine Research and the American Psychological Association. She is the immediate past president of the Division of Health Psychology in the APA and has been a council member in the Psychoneuroimmunology Research Society.

She has been the author, or co-author, of 161 book chapters or papers published in some of the leading scientific journals including The Lancet, the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Journal of the American Medical Association, the Journal of Abnormal Psychology and the Psychological Bulletin. She is also the author of two books of fiction, both mystery novels published by Avon.

Kiecolt-Glaser received her bachelor's degree from the University of Oklahoma in 1972 and her doctorate in clinical psychology from the University of Miami in 1976. She joined the Ohio State faculty in 1978, rising through the ranks to her current position as professor of psychiatry and psychology. She also serves as the current director of the Division of Health Psychology in the university's Department of Psychiatry.

New members of the IOM are elected by a vote of the current membership. Candidates are nominated based on their major contributions to health and medicine, although researchers in the fields of social and behavioral sciences, law, administration and economics may be proposed as well. Members are told their election is both an honor and an obligation since they often are asked to serve on national committees investigating major issues of health research or policy.

Before this year's elections, there were 745 members of the Institute of Medicine. Only two other current Ohio State faculty members, Charles Capen, professor and chair of veterinary biosciences, and Clara Bloomfield, director of the Comprehensive Cancer Center, are on the IOM roles.

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Contact: Contact: Janice Kiecolt-Glaser (614) 292-0033; kiecolt-glaser.1@osu.edu

Written by Earle Holland, (614) 292-8384, Holland.8@osu.edu