NIDDK appoints Dr. Germino; announces Dr. Nyberg's retirement

Internationally recognized kidney disease expert Gregory G. Germino, MD, has been named deputy director of the National Institute of Health’s National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK).

"Dr. Germino is a highly regarded physician-scientist, a committed mentor to the next generation of researchers, an experienced manager of budgets and people, and a compassionate communicator to professional and patient advocacy organizations," said NIDDK Director Griffin P. Rodgers, MD.

Dr. Germino’s responsibilities include supervising an annual budget of $1.9 billion and a staff of 630 scientists, physician-scientists and administrators at NIDDK’s research facilities in Bethesda, MD and Phoenix.

He previously was a research investigator at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, where he also served as professor of medicine in the division of nephrology and professor in the department of molecular biology and genetics. His research focus centered on better comprehension of genetic origins of polycystic kidney disease. Dr. Germino is a graduate of the University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine.

In related news, Leroy Nyberg, MD, PhD, will retire from the NIDDK in September. Dr. Nyberg is currently NIDDK senior urology adviser and director of urology programs at NIDDK; he was involved in such studies and projects as the Medical Therapy of Prostatic Symptoms, Complementary and Alternative Medicine for Urological Symptoms, Interstitial Cystitis Clinical Research Network, and Multidisciplinary Approach to the Study of Chronic Pelvic Pain.