The Child Health Institute of New Jersey (CHINJ) honored one of its former board members and long-time supporter, Jack Borrus and his wife Adele, with the dedication of a laboratory.
Hosted by Arnold Rabson, MD, Laura Gallagher Chair of Developmental Biology and director of the institute, along with the Rutgers University Foundation, the event honored the couple who both passed away in recent years, with the dedication of the "Jack and Adele Borrus Asthma Research Laboratory." According to Dr. Rabson, Mr. and Mrs. Borrus, along with the Dr. James J. O'Connell Fund, which Mr. Borrus administered, provided a large amount of philanthropic support for the institute, including support for the development of an asthma research program.
The Borrus' children–Janet, Amy and David–attended the dedication, along with members of Mr. Borrus' law firm. Grant funding provided by the Borrus' and the O'Connell Fund helped to develop an immunology and asthma research infrastructure at the CHINJ and to recruit outstanding immunologists including Qi Yang, MD, PhD, associate professor of pediatrics and resident scientist at the institute, who joined the medical school in October 2021. Dr. Yang gave a short presentation about her research during the event, as did Derek Sant'Angelo, PhD, professor of pediatrics and pharmacology, and associate director for basic sciences at the institute, and Cynthia Koziol-White, PhD, assistant professor of pharmacology and member of the Rutgers Institute for Translational Medicine and Science (RITMS). Funding has also supported the growth of collaborative research between the CHINJ and the team of Reynold Panettieri Jr., MD, professor of medicine, Director of the RITMS, and vice chancellor, clinical and translational sciences for Rutgers Biomedical and Health Sciences.
