TAMEST Welcomes Four Elected to the National Academy of Medicine (NAM)

TAMEST congratulates two new members and two current members on their election to the National Academy of Medicine (NAM). The National Academy of Medicine (NAM) announced the election of 90 regular members and 10 international members during its October annual meeting.

The 100 elected include a past TAMEST conference speaker, past Edith and Peter O’Donnell Award recipient, a member of the TAMEST Board of Directors and the second TAMEST member to be elected to all three U.S. National Academies. Dr. Rebecca R. Richards-Kortum’s triple academy-election makes her the second TAMEST member to achieve this remarkable distinction, one only 28 other individuals across the world hold.

Election to the NAM is considered one of the highest honors in the fields of health and medicine and recognizes individuals who have demonstrated outstanding professional achievement and commitment to service.

TAMEST will welcome these and other new Texas-based National Academy members at the opening reception of the TAMEST 2026 Annual Conference on February 2, 2026, in San Antonio, Texas.

Their election brings the current TAMEST membership to 366.

Meet our new NAM members:  

• Joshua Mendell, M.D., Ph.D. (NAM), Professor and Vice Chair, Department of Molecular Biology; Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator; and Charles Cameron Sprague, M.D., Chair in Medical Science, UT Southwestern Medical Center*

For his groundbreaking discoveries related to the functions of diverse classes of noncoding RNAs, including microRNAs, small nucleolar RNAs, tRNAs, and long noncoding RNAs, which have revealed their fundamental mechanisms of action, their roles in physiology, their aberrant activity in disease, and their potential as therapeutic targets.

*2016 Edith and Peter O’Donnell Award in Medicine Recipient; TAMEST 2023 Annual Conference Co-Chair; Past TAMEST Protégé  

• Duojia Pan, Ph.D. (NAM, NAS), Fouad A. and Val Imm Bashour Distinguished Chair in Physiology, Department of Physiology, Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator, UT Southwestern Medical Center*

For discovering the Hippo signaling pathway, which regulates tissue growth. His laboratory elucidated key components of the Hippo pathway and established a conserved role for Hippo signaling in control of organ size, tumorigenesis, and regeneration. He also elucidated the function of TSC1 and TSC2, which regulate TOR. 

*Treasurer-Elect, TAMEST Board of Directors

• Rebecca R. Richards-Kortum, Ph.D. (NAM, NAE, NAS), Malcolm Gillis University Professor, Bioengineering and Electrical and Computer Engineering, Rice University*

For major contributions to global health by creating low-cost, lifesaving technologies for underserved communities. Her innovations, from cervical cancer diagnostics to neonatal care technologies, have transformed health systems worldwide. She established educational programs, training future engineers to develop impactful, affordable health technologies globally.

*Second TAMEST Member Elected to All Three National Academies, Past TAMEST Protégé

• Kathleen Rubins, Ph.D. (NAM), Professor of Computational and Systems Biology, University of Pittsburgh; Astronaut (retired), NASA; Major, 75th US Army Reserve Innovation Command; and Microbiologist, US Army Medical Department*

For leading the development of modern molecular and cellular biology methods for use in low-Earth orbit and low-resource environments, including the first successful DNA sequencing in space. Previously, she pioneered methods for studying viral diseases in Africa, including mpox and Ebola.

*Speaker, TAMEST 2018 Annual Conference