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Healthcare Journal of New Orleans
I
MAR/ APR 2013
53
LSMS Honors Local Physicians
The Louisiana State Medical Society (LSMS) honored several physicians at its annual House of Del-
egates meeting. Among themwere local physicians Samuel A. “Andy” Leonard, MD of Slidell, Carlos
Rodriguez-Fierro, MD, of Metairie, and Mrya A. Kleinpeter, MD, of NewOrleans.
Leonard was elected into the LSMS Hall of Fame, established to recognize members, both living
and deceased, who have contributed long-termmeritorious service and valuable leadership to the
LSMS.
Leonard graduated fromTulaneUniversity School of Medicine, NewOrleans, in 1960. He thenwent
on to complete his internship, residency in internal medicine, and residency in urology at Touro Infir-
mary from1960-1965 inNewOrleans. Hewas inprivate practice from1965-1993. He has been amem-
ber of the LSMS since 1973 and served as president from 1992-1993.
Drs. Rodriguez-Fierro and Mrya A. Kleinpeter were presented with the LSMS Physician Award for
Community Service. The award was established to provide recognition to a member who is actively
involved in community and civic activities above and beyond their responsibilities in the practice of
medicine.
Rodriguez-Fierro participates on the Board of Hearts of the Americas, an organization that pro-
motes cardiovascularmedicine inunderserved areas of LatinAmerica. In 2005 on a visit toNicaragua,
he traveled with a group that performed that country’s first bypass surgery. Afterwards, he founded
the organization, Doctors to the Rescue. Doctors to the Rescue organized a trip to Honduras to pro-
vide medical care following Hurricane Mitch. The organization continued annual visits to Honduras
for the following five years and eventually expanded into other areas of Latin America. The organiza-
tion also provides care for the homeless and uninsured in the NewOrleans area.
Kleinpeter serves as the director of the Peri-
toneal Dialysis Program for Tulane/Dialysis Clin-
ics, Inc., and is director of the Tulane Nephrology
Clinic at theMedical Center of Louisiana. She also
serves on the Board of Trustees of the American
Kidney Fund, serving as chair of medical affairs
of the American Kidney Fund. She serves as
current president of the board for the National
Kidney Foundation of Louisiana; is a past presi-
dent of the Orleans Parish Medical Society and
currently serves as a commissioner for Hospital
District A in Orleans Parish. Kleinpeter conducts
research on chronic disease management, out-
come, assessment, modifying patient education
programs to improve health outcomes, and pro-
viding healthcare to underserved populations.
LSUHSC Research Finds Protein
to Prevent Degeneration
Research led by Minghao Jin, PhD, Assistant
Professor of Ophthalmology and Neuroscience
at the LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans
Neuroscience Center of Excellence, has found a
protein that protects retinal photoreceptor cells
fromdegeneration caused by light damage. This
protein may provide a new therapeutic target
for both an inherited retinal degenerative dis-
ease and age-relatedmacular degeneration. The
paper is published in the February 13, 2013 issue
of the
Journal of Neuroscience
.
RPE65 is a key enzyme involved in the visual
cycle. RPE65 mutations have been linked to
early onset vision loss, retinal degeneration, and
blinding eye diseases. Despite such importance,
the mechanisms that regulate the function of
RPE65 are unknown. To identify and character-
ize previously unknown inhibitors of RPE65, the
scientists tested five candidate proteins. Using
gene screening, the LSUHSC research team dis-
covered that one of them – fatty acid transport
protein 4 (FATP4) – is a negative regulator; it
inhibits RPE65.
“These findings suggest that FATP4 may
be a therapeutic target for the inherited reti-
nal degenerative disease caused by RPE65
mutations and age-related macular degenera-
tion,” concludes Dr. Jin.
The LSUHSC research team also included Drs.
Songhua Li, Yongdong Zhou, William C. Gordon,
and James M. Hill. Researchers from Cellerant
Therapeutics and Washington University School
of Medicine also participated.
n
Above
Samuel A. “Andy” Leonard, MD, of Slidell, was
recently elected to the LSMS Hall of Fame at the annual
LSMS House of Delegates meeting.
Below
Carlos Rodriguez-Fierro, MD, Metairie, and Mrya
A. Kleinpeter, MD, New Orleans, were both presented
with the LSMS Physician Award for Community Service.