MASONIC MEDICAL RESEARCH LABORATORY
by: Ronald P. Kamp
Never in our history has there been a better time to get
sick. From heart disease, cancer to AIDS, we are blessed today with an
unprecedented number of drugs and techniques to fight disease. Discovery will
continue because the tools at hand are more sophisticated than ever before. Just
twenty years ago, people laughed at the idea of cataloging the 3 billion DNA
base pairs in the human body. Today the human genome project is way ahead of
schedule thanks to computers and new technology.
We are also on the threshold of new scientific wonders. the
ability to introduce normal genes into the body to replace defective ones has
almost limitless applications. The ability to grow tissue to repair damaged
hearts, and other organs is mind boggling.
Scientists can now grow heart valves from human cells. The
approach, called tissue engineering, is intended to create a fresh source of
heart valves to replace those that wear out or are faulty from birth. Using the
recipient’s own cells it is hoped that the valve will grow as the patient grows.
No longer will we use animal valves or mechanical valves that require blood
thinning drugs to prevent clots. Hopefully, tissue engineering will be available
for human use within five years.
Recent work at many research centers, the Masonic Medical
Research Laboratory (MMRL) included, offer unprecedented opportunities for the
development of major advances in the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of
disease. Our contributions to medical research over the past 42 years have been
very significant ones, providing benefits to peoples of all nations. However,
they merely foreshadow what is to come.
The Masonic Medical Research Laboratory’s history dates back
to 1947 when the Masonic Grand Lodge of New York created the Masonic Foundation
for Medical Research and Human Welfare, a not for profit corporation. Over the
next seven years, the Fraternity raised and the Foundation allocated nearly $1.5
million to research programs at various institutions dedicated to the
elimination of rheumatic fever. Encouraged by their success in raising funds and
in making a significant contribution to the eradication of this dreaded disease,
the Fraternity sought a new challenge. In 1954, a decision was made by the Grand
Lodge of New York to build and equip a medical laboratory that would carry the
mantel of Freemasonry and be supported by the Masonic Fraternity. It was
dedicated on the grounds of the Masonic Home in Utica, NY in 1958.
From those humble beginnings, the Masonic Medical Research
Laboratory has developed into a world renowned research center, especially in
the area of experimental cardiology. The chief sources of extramural support
include the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the American Heart
Association (AHA). Findings generated by the research programs at the Laboratory
are published in the finest medical peer-reviewed scientific and medical
journals worldwide.
The Masonic Fraternity’s commitment in support of medical
research has never waivered. In 1994, the Grand Master of the Most Worshipful
Grand Lodge of Florida designated the MMRL as his Grand Master’s Charity. The
Laboratory continued to be named the Grand Master’s Charity of choice by every
succeeding Grand Master. In 1997, the Grand Lodge of Florida passed historic
legislation designating the Masonic Medical Research Laboratory as their
permanent ”Flagship Charity.”
The Laboratory has played and continues to play a prominent
role in providing valuable insight into many of the medical problems that
afflict humankind. The Laboratory’s achievements include research findings that
have helped to form the foundation for the modern day practice of cardiology
worldwide. Its scientific work in the field of experimental cardiology has
received 7 international awards within the last three years, an achievement that
is unprecedented for and institute its size.
Our Experimental Cardiologists have the capability of
measuring voltage signals and ion currents in single heart cells. The knowledge
gained from that single cardiac cell is translated into an understanding of the
function of the heart as a whole. The information acquired is then applied to
help physicians make better use of diagnostic tools such as the ECG.
Studies are underway to define the cellular basis for the
different waves found in the electrocardiogram (ECG). Our Cardiology team
recently published a paper dealing with the cellular basis for the J wave that
appeared in the journal Circulation. This work has led to the development
of a model that may explain why some apparently normal people experience sudden
cardiac death.
Two papers dealing with the characteristics of the M cells,
discovered at the Laboratory, and cellular basis for the T wave of the ECG in
health and disease appeared in the November, 1998 issue of the prestigious
scientific journal, Circulation. These articles are perhaps the most
important ever published by the MMRL. Both papers were selected as finalists in
two separate international research award competitions. Accompanying those
papers was an article by Dr. J. Willis Hurst, one of the fathers of modern day
electrocardiography. In that article Dr. Hurst said, “The spectacular work of
Dr. Charles Antzelevitch, MMRL Executive Director, and his coworkers should be
reviewed by every clinician who uses the ECG as a diagnostic tool.” Very high
praise indeed from a world authority.
Defining the basic, clinical and genetic aspects of a
recently highlighted forms of sudden death known as idiopathic ventricular
fibrillation and the Brugada Syndrome are a high priority of the MMRL. Working
together with scientists at Baylor College School of Medicine, our scientists
recently discovered the first gene defect responsible for the Brugada syndrome.
The finding was published in March, 1998 in one of the most widely circulated
scientific journals, Nature.
MMRL scientists have recently demonstrated the cellular
basis for the effects of the sympathetic nervous system in a hereditary disease
of the heart known as the long QT syndrome. The mechanism for this has escaped
the grasp of scientists for over 30 years, until now. Our scientists have
developed experimental models of several forms of the long QT syndrome and have
used these models to assess the protective effect of various drugs. Based on
these findings, we have provided alternatives to the current treatment
strategies and have shown that use of beta blockers (standard treatment) may be
problematic in one genetic form of the disease. Clinical trials are already
underway to examine whether these findings apply to humans.
Another major area of concentration are studies designed to
probe the basis for Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS). The specific causes of
sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) have eluded scientists and physicians for
many years. Respiratory problems, infectious diseases and cardiovascular defects
have long been suspected. Although a congenital defect of the heart known as the
long QT syndrome has long been implicated, definitive evidence has been lacking.
The first direct evidence linking SIDS to a congenital heart defect associated
with a life-threatening abnormal heart rhythm appeared in the July, 2000 issue
of the New England Journal of Medicine. The report is the result of a
collaboration between investigators at the University of Pavia in Pavia, Italy
and the Masonic Medical Research Laboratory.
Our molecular biologists are also working at the Laboratory
to probe the basis of electrical heterogeneity or differences within the heart
(work pioneered at the MMRL) at the genetic level. We have recently demonstrated
heterogeneity exists in the genetic material of cells in different parts of the
heart, indicating that the electrical differences that our Laboratory has
described over the past decade are controlled at the level of the genetic code.
This information will hopefully permit the design of better and more rational
treatments and cures to a variety of cardiac diseases.
These are indeed exciting times for science and medicine.
The Masonic Medical Research Laboratory has come far thanks to the support of
Masons everywhere, especially in New York and Florida. Our achievements and
accomplishments are a direct result of the wonderful support that we have been
privileged to receive, especially in the form of wills and bequests from friends
throughout the world.
Millions of Americans and citizens of other countries have
benefited from the research conducted at the MMRL and at similar research
facilities worldwide. The need to intensify support of medical research is
undeniable if we acknowledge a responsibility to leave, as a legacy to our
children and grandchildren the prospect for a healthier life, one free of pain
and suffering that many of us have endured. It is our hope that dissemination of
the Laboratory’s achievements will help foster pride in our great Fraternity and
makes the light of Masonry shine brighter than ever before.
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