Gift to UB Supports Special Environments Researchers

BUFFALO, N.Y. -- A former post-doctoral fellow at University at Buffalo has provided a gift to support young researchers in honor of the training in the field of pulmonary medicine, environmental physiology and bioengineering that he received at the Center for Research and Education in Special Environments (CRESE) and Department of Physiology and Biophysics in the UB School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences.

Seiji Tamaya, M.D., Ph.D., chair of the board of directors of Tokyo Angel Hospital, Hachiouji, Tokyo, gave $19,990 to the UB Center for Research and Education in Special Environments (CRESE) in gratitude for time spent at UB as a post-doctoral fellow with the late Leon Farhi, M.D., SUNY Distinguished Professor. Tamaya said he also appreciated his continued interactions with CRESE faculty, including Claes Lundgren, M.D., Ph.D. professor of physiology and biophysics, and CRESE director.

Tamaya is an expert in hyperbaric chambers and the problems of decompression associated with underwater diving. His work is a continuation of that done with Farhi, Lundgren, David Pendergast, Ed.D., professor and associate director of CRESE, and other members of CRESE. Tamaya also researches and treats sleep apnea syndrome and Alzheimer's disease.

The gift -- Dr. Tamaya's Research Fund for Environmental and Applied Physiology -- is earmarked for CRESE members in the first five years of their research career, helping them with conference fees and travel expenses.

"We are grateful to Dr. Tamaya for his gift," said Lundgren, "and proud that the people he met and the education he received while at UB have encouraged him to ensure that others have equally stimulating experiences."

CRESE contains one of the world's most advanced facilities to simulate environmental stress. Researchers at the center have studied respiratory and cardiac challenges that humans face in environments as diverse as space shuttles and underwater. Current project partners include NIH, the U.S. Navy, various pharmaceutical companies, and the U.S. Coast Guard.