Washington University School of Medicine faculty members Robert P. Mecham, PhD, and Patrick J. Geraghty, MD, were honored earlier this spring by the Marfan Foundation.
Mecham, the Alumni Endowed Professor of Cell Biology and Physiology, received the foundation’s first Distinguished Research Award at its Heartworks St. Louis Gala. Also a professor of medicine, of pediatrics and of biomedical engineering, Mecham is a national leader in research of elastic tissue function. His work has contributed to understanding the structure and function of fibrillin, the abnormal protein in Marfan syndrome.
Geraghty, a professor of surgery and of radiology and co-director of the Limb Salvage Center at the School of Medicine, received the foundation’s Hero with a Heart award. Geraghty was honored for his work performing life-saving surgery for people with complex connective tissue disorders.
Among its roles, the Marfan Foundation works to advance research into Marfan syndrome and related disorders.