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Dr. Frank |
Robert Frank, MD, professor of ophthalmology and anatomy/cell biology, has been named to the Wayne State University Academy of Scholars, a distinctive group of just 36 faculty members from various departments in the university .
Dr. Frank joined the WSU department of ophthalmology in 1976 as associate professor. His research with laboratory animals has shown that the enzyme--aldose reductase--which has been suspected as a causal agent in several complications of diabetes, appears to be involved in the development of diabetic retinopathy. During his years at the Kresge Eye Institute, his research into diabetic retinopathy and the biochemistry of the visual process has been supported continuously by the National Institutes of Health/National Eye Institute and the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation.
Dr. Frank’s current research examines the role of protein vascular endothelial growth factor in diabetic retinopathy and he has served as principal investigator in many clinical trials throughout his career. Dr. Frank earned a bachelor’s degree in biochemical sciences from Harvard and his medical degree from Yale. He was a medical intern at Grady Memorial Hospital/Emory University and a postdoctoral fellow at The Wilmer Eye Institute at Johns Hopkins University.
The Academy of Scholars was established in 1979. It recognizes excellence in scholarship and creative achievement of faculty members. Election to the academy is the highest recognition that may be bestowed on faculty members by their colleagues.