Lou Cortina
Ronna P. Hertzano, MD, PhD
School of Medicine
Professor, Department of Otorhinolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery
About Dr. Hertzano
Hertzano is a highly respected otolaryngologist, surgeon, educator, and researcher who holds a secondary appointment in the School of Medicine’s (UMSOM) Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology and is an affiliate faculty member of UMSOM’s Institute for Genome Sciences (IGS). She was born in Israel and received her medical degree and PhD in human molecular genetics and biochemistry from Sackler School of Medicine at Tel Aviv University.
Impact
With significant grants from the National Institutes of Health and other sources, Hertzano’s research is focused on developing new therapeutics to prevent and treat genetic and acquired hearing loss. Hertzano and her IGS colleagues also have developed a research portal called gEAR (gene Expression Analysis Resource), an online tool that could more quickly advance medical discoveries designed to reverse progressive hearing loss.
Quotes
“Our lab forms a unit with a shared identity, values, and knowledge base. We are all driven by the hope of making meaningful contributions that will alleviate or prevent the suffering from hearing loss.” — Hertzano
“When Dr. Hertzano became an assistant professor, I offered advice on grant writing, how to make connections with other departments, and suggested collaborators. While this advice helped to kick-start her independent career, within a few years she started offering me advice — the mentee became the mentor — and her rise as a physician-scientist has been meteoric.” — Martin Flajnik, PhD, professor, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, UMSOM
