An international leader in genetics research was named the new director of UF’s Genetics Institute.
Patrick Concannon will succeed Kenneth Berns, 74, who said that after nine years in the position, “it was time to get some fresh blood in the institute.”
Concannon will come to UF from the University of Virginia, where he currently serves as a professor of biochemistry and molecular genetics. He is also the associate director of the Center for Public Health Genomics at UVA and has been an affiliate professor of immunology at the University of Washington.
His research interests include cellular DNA damage responses, breast cancer genetics and the roles of genetics in Type 1 diabetes.
Concannon’s interest in diabetes corresponds with UF, which has an international reputation for Type 1 diabetes research, and its Diabetes Center of Excellence.
“I think that having that kind of expertise will really strengthen our program in diabetes research,” Berns said. ”I was very pleased to see the university go through a national search and bring in somebody who is well-known to become the next director.”
Concannon said he was attracted to UF because of its multidisciplinary approach to research.
“I’m looking forward to the opportunity to take on the challenges of being the institute director,” he said. “I think there is going to be some great advancement for my own research, and I’m looking forward to working with investigators with interests similar to mine.”
Concannon earned a doctorate in biology at the University of California, Los Angeles and is supported by more than $12 million in grants, according to a press release. His work has led to more than 150 peer-reviewed papers in top journals.
Concannon said he does not have an official start date at UF but is anticipating beginning in early January. For now, Interim Director Henry Baker is in charge.
Berns, who formally retired on June 30, remains an emeritus professor and member of some medical committees.
