Dr. Nehal N. Mehta joins the NHLBI intramural program as inaugural Lasker Clinical Research Scholar

Office of the Director - July 9, 2012

We warmly welcome Nehal N. Mehta, M.D., M.S.C.E., to the NHLBI intramural program, which he joins today as the inaugural Lasker Clinical Research Scholar. This new competitive award arises from a historic intramural-extramural partnership between the NIH and the Lasker Foundation. Mehta comes to the NHLBI from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania and will serve as the head of the new Laboratory of Inflammation and Cardiometabolic Diseases within the NHLBI's Cardiovascular and Pulmonary Branch.

Through the Lasker Clinical Research Scholarships, the NIH and the Lasker Foundation hope to provide a select group of talented researchers with the resources needed to overcome the many barriers typically facing early-stage clinical scientists. These barriers include limited time to conduct laboratory research, lack of access to clinical facilities or patient enrollments, and limited chances to travel to important meetings. Lasker Clinical Research Scholars will receive a unique opportunity to work on the NIH campus and have access to all our resources, including the NIH Clinical Center. They will also participate in many external scientific activities, including attending the prestigious Lasker Award ceremonies.

The first round of Lasker Clinical Research Scholar applications brought forth many exceptionally talented researchers, and the NHLBI is excited that the inaugural scholar will become a part of our institute. Mehta is a gifted researcher whose studies into the association between vascular inflammation and heart disease will become an integral component of our intramural research program.