Rui Monteiro de Barros Maciel

Professor of Medicine and Director, Laboratory of Molecular and Translational Endocrinology, Division of Endocrinology, Department of Medicine, Escola Paulista de Medicina, Federal University of São Paulo (EPM/UNIFESP).Graduated in Medicine (1970, EPM/UNIFESP), where also did his Internship and Residency Training in Internal Medicine and Endocrinology (1971-74) and obtained an M.Sc. degree in Immunology (1975-76) and a Ph.D. in Endocrinology (1979-82). In the United States was Research-Fellow at University of California Los Angeles (1976-78) and Visiting-Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School/Beth Israel-Deaconess Hospital (1986-87).His research publications, granted by FAPESP, CAPES and CNPq, in the areas of thyroid hormone metabolism and cell biology/molecular aspects of thyroid diseases, included more than 200 papers, more than 100 book-chapters, edition of 3 books and the supervision/mentorship of 51 M.Sc. or Ph.D. students, many of them are presently important leaders of Brazilian and international endocrinology.His more important research contributions are: a) the demonstration that the peripheral conversion of T4 to T3 occurs at the cell membrane (Endocrinology, 1979); b) the demonstration of the autocrine production of IGF (insulin-like growth factor) by the thyroid cell (J Clin Invest, 1988); c) the demonstration that hypokalemic thyrotoxic periodic paralysis is due to mutations in potassium channels (Cell, 2010; Nature Reviews, 2011); d) several contributions to molecular pathogenesis of thyroid cancer (J Clin Endocrinol Metab 2000, 2003, 2010; J Clin Invest 2004).In addition to his research activities, has been an active member of the University, working in several committes as, for example, Chief-Resident (1974), Director of the Division of Endocrinology (1994-), and Dean for Research (1999-2001). (Source: Lattes Curriculum)