Recognizing and honoring Dr. Luis J. Montaner for his outstanding and groundbreaking research to foster a cure for HIV.

The Council of the City of Philadelphia is pleased and proud to recognize and honor Dr. Luis J. Montaner on his appointment to the Herbert Kean, M.D., Family Professorship at The Wistar Institute, for his high-risk, high-reward science that can lead to major biomedical advances to foster an HIV Cure.

WHEREAS, Dr. Montaner obtained his D.V.M., in Veterinary Medicine at Kansas State University in 1989 and his D. Phil., in Experimental Pathology at the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom in 1995. He joined The Wistar Institute in 1995 as an assistant professor and was promoted to professor in 2007; and

WHEREAS, Dr. Luis Montaner, D.V.M., M.Sc., D. Phil., studies the mechanisms of disease in HIV-1 infection and explorers new ways to boost the natural function of the immune system in order to combat infection or viral-associated disease; and

WHEREAS, Dr. Luis Montaner’s research focuses on how the immune system recovers after antiretroviral therapy and how it may be best redirected towards HIV eradication. His team showed that using interferon-alpha in the laboratory subjects stably suppressed with antiretroviral drugs could kill HIV-infected cells; and

WHEREAS, Dr. Montaner has now begun the first and largest randomized trial of its kind to drain HIV reservoirs in affected individuals through his partnership with Philadelphia FIGHT, a regional health services organization, and Penn Presbyterian Medical Center; and

WHEREAS,

The Wistar Institute is an international leader in biomedical research with special expertise in cancer research and vaccine development. Founded in 1892 as the first independent nonprofit biomedical research institute in the country, Wistar has long held the prestigious Cancer Center designation from the National Cancer Institute

; and

WHEREAS, Dr. Luis J. Montaner has been appointed to the Herbert Kean, M.D., Family Professorship, an endowed professorship, which recognizes the accomplishments of a distinguished member of Wistar’s current scientific staff and provides the resources to pursue the types of high-risk, high reward science that can lead to major biomedical advances; and

WHEREAS, Dr. Luis Montaner is respected by his team, colleagues, others in the medical field for his outstanding contribution to HIV research. Dr. Montaner has made a positive impact on the world of medicine with his ground breaking research to hopefully end the global epidemic that has affected millions globally. Many have described Dr. Montaner as a very determined individual who has never lost sight of the goal, while others have gone on to call him the leader in the field of HIV/AIDS research; and

WHEREAS, Dr. Luis Montaner is a native of Puerto Rico, where he attended La Academia Perpetuo Socorro until sixth grade and went onto Colegio de San Ignacio de Loyola before heading to Kansas State University; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY VIRTUE OF THIS CITATION, THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA, Hereby recognizes and honors the outstanding and groundbreaking research that Dr. Luis Monta ner has done in finding a cure for HIV, and congratulate him on his appointment to the Herbert Kean, M.D. Family Professorship. We honor the work and research of Dr. Montaner, and extend the sincere respect and admiration of this legislative body.

FURTHER RESOLVED, That an Engrossed copy of this resolution be sent to the Dr. Luis ner, as evidence of the sincere respect and admiration of this legislative body.

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