Dr. Gollan: ‘The world waits’ for Dr. Dunman’s MRSA vaccine

College of Medicine Dean John Gollan, M.D., Ph.D., presents the 2009 Gilmore Award to Paul Dunman, Ph.D., during a ceremony last week in the Durham Research Center Auditorium.

You could say College of Medicine Dean John Gollan, M.D., Ph.D., was impressed after he listened to a presentation by Paul Dunman, Ph.D., at last week’s Gilmore Award presentation.

“That’s really remarkable, the world is truly waiting for that,” Dr. Gollan said after he heard Dr. Dunman describe his development of a vaccine that can kill all 11 known strains of Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus (MRSA) in animal models.

MRSA — which has become more prominent in recent years — is responsible for more deaths in the United States each year than HIV/AIDS.

Dr. Dunman — an assistant professor in the department of pathology and microbiology — received the Gilmore Award for his research into ways to combat MRSA.

Since his 2004 arrival at UNMC, Dr. Dunman has secured several grants, including an RO1 award from the National Institutes of Health, published nearly 25 articles and designed his staph-killing antibiotic.

The Gilmore Award is named in honor of the late Joseph P. Gilmore, Ph.D., a distinguished UNMC scientist and administrator who died in 2007 at the age of 78. The award was established to recognize outstanding research contributions by young UNMC faculty members. It is awarded annually at a formal convocation and lectureship.