The National Institutes of Health (NIH) announced that Dr. Elias Zerhouni will be stepping down as NIH’s Director at the end of October. In an email to members of NIH’s extramural community, Dr. Zerhouni said, “I have had the unparalleled privilege of leading one of the great institutions in history,” and he included that he was leaving “to explore new opportunities and to devote much of my attention to writing.” Dr. Zerhouni has held the position at NIH since May of 2002.

“During his tenure, Zerhouni worked to lower barriers between disciplines of science and encourage trans-NIH collaborations,” said NIH’s press release announcing his departure. It went on to say “Zerhouni also led a major reform of the translational and clinical research system in the United States.”

To read the NIH press release and learn about Dr. Zerhouni’s accomplishments, click here.

The National Institutes of Health “is the primary federal agency for conducting and supporting basic, clinical and translational medical research, and it investigates the causes, treatments, and cures for both common and rare diseases.” It is composed of 27 Institutes and Centers, including The National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) which established the SMA Project, “a model translational research program to accelerate the process of developing a safe and effective treatment for spinal muscular atrophy.”