Cedars-Sinai Appoints Director of Newly Established Translational Research Institute

LOS ANGELES ( Aug. 9, 2024) — Cedars-Sinai has appointed Ze’ev Ronai, PhD, as director of a newly established Translational Research Institute, professor in the Department of Biomedical Sciences and the Jim and Eleanor Randall Department of Surgery as well as the scientific director of the Surgical Melanoma Research Program in the Randall Department of Surgery.

Ronai will accelerate Cedars-Sinai’s leading translational research program with new initiatives and collaborations serving all departments in identifying opportunities for enriching the medical center’s translational research and scholarship, as well as nurturing an environment that emphasizes equity, inclusion and belonging.

“Dr. Ronai is an internationally recognized cancer investigator whose prolific research has elucidated our understanding of epigenetic mechanisms that underlie tumor development, progression and resistance,” said Shlomo Melmed, MB, ChB, executive vice president of Medicine and Health Sciences and dean of the Medical Faculty. “We look forward to his many contributions to our scientific enterprise.”

As scientific director of the Surgical Melanoma Research Program, Ronai will provide research and strategic direction for Cedars-Sinai’s comprehensive melanoma program.

“We are eager for Dr. Ronai to begin his tenure with Cedars-Sinai, where he will participate in programmatic, teaching and research activities that propel our mission in melanoma,” said Cristina Ferrone, MD, chair of the Jim and Eleanor Randall Department of Surgery.

Ronai joins Cedars-Sinai from Sanford Burnham Prebys (SBP) Medical Discovery Institute in La Jolla, where he served as director of the National Cancer Institute-designated basic laboratory cancer center. He led multiple programs, including the Signal Transduction Program, and was chief scientific advisor to SBP. He was also instrumental in establishing the Technion Integrated Cancer Center in Haifa, Israel.

“Dr. Ronai’s lengthy career has garnered international recognition for his studies focused on the rewiring of signal transduction pathways, the role of ubiquitin ligases in controlling fundamental cellular processes, and development and progression of melanoma, including how tumors escape the immune system and resist therapy,” said Jeffrey A. Golden, MD, executive vice dean of Research and Education and director of the Burns and Allen Research Institute.  

Ronai was previously a professor at the Ruttenberg Cancer Center at Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York City and chaired the Programmatic Vision Committee in Melanoma at the Department of Defense. He received his bachelor’s degree and doctorate from the Hebrew University in Jerusalem and received postdoctoral training at Columbia University.

He has several patents for the diagnosis and treatment of cancers and has published more than 300 scientific papers with nearly 30,000 citations.

“The opportunity to advance the pioneering research and science at Cedars-Sinai is invigorating,” Ronai said. “I am excited to grow these programs with the goal of turning research discoveries into meaningful treatments for patients.”

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