UB Department of Medicine Names New Chief of Nephrology Division

BUFFALO, N.Y. -- Richard J. Quigg Jr., MD, professor of medicine at the University of Chicago and former chief of its nephrology section, has been named the inaugural Arthur M. Morris Chair in Nephrology and chief of the division of Nephrology in the Department of Medicine in the University at Buffalo School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences.

The announcement was made by Anne B. Curtis, MD, Charles and Mary Bauer Professor and chair of the Department of Medicine in UB's School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences.

The primary focus of Quigg's research laboratory is to identify pathogenic mechanisms that underlie kidney disease. He is nationally and internationally renowned for his research into diseases of the glomeruli. Glomerular diseases damage the clusters of blood vessels called glomeruli, which filter blood in the kidneys, letting protein and sometimes red blood cells leaks into the urine, ultimately interfering with proper kidney function.

Quigg's research interests include the role of the complement system, a major factor in the body's immune response and other defenses, in glomerular disease, lupus nephritis, and diabetic nephropathy. He uses a variety of contemporary techniques to investigate disease pathogenesis and to identify sites of potential therapeutic manipulation. In addition to using animal models, his lab is involved in clinical studies examining the role of the complement system in various kidney diseases and examining gene profiles from renal tissue obtained from patients with these conditions.

Quigg received his undergraduate and medical degrees from Boston University. He completed his medical residency at SUNY Stony Brook and research and clinical fellowships in nephrology at the Boston University Medical Center. He was appointed to the University of Chicago in 1994 as an associate professor, and was promoted to professor in 2001. He served as chief of the Section of Nephrology at the university and was director of its Functional Genomics Facility. Before joining the University of Chicago, he was an assistant professor at the Medical College of Virginia.