J. Edwin “Ed” Blalock, Ph.D., professor in the Division of Pulmonary, Allergy and Critical Care Medicine, is the recipient of the senior faculty 2022 Dean’s Excellence Awards in Mentorship.
He has been an active and vibrant faculty member at UAB for over 35 years. His research has provided groundbreaking observations in neuroimmunology, endocrinology, and pulmonary medicine, publishing over 300 manuscripts and acquiring $25 million dollars of direct research funding. His work has been published in high-impact journals such as New England Journal of Medicine, Nature, Science, Nature Medicine, Proceedings of the National Academy of Science, and Journal of Clinical Investigation.
Blalock has developed a well-deserved reputation as an outstanding mentor who is passionate about the training of his mentees, driven by his deep commitment to their success. He has mentored over 60 trainees, many of whom have successful careers in both science and medicine. He has been a standard-bearer for research excellence and provided both research and career guidance for our physician-scientists and Ph.D. faculty.
Blalock has served as both official and unofficial mentor to faculty members at all levels, from instructors to tenured professors, and he has contributed to the tripling in the number of R01 and K-level awards in his division. Specifically, he has served as primary mentor for six K awardees since 2015, five of whom are now R-funded investigators.
As any of his trainees can attest, Blalock is actively involved in the development of his trainees’ careers where he maintains an “open door” policy. He is an active presence in the laboratory and carefully reviews data with trainees daily. He sets a high bar for the quality of the research coming from his lab group and demonstrates a strong example for the ethical conduct of research.
Blalock received his B.S. and Ph.D. degrees in 1971 and 1976, respectively, from the University of Florida. After one year of postdoctoral training at the University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, he joined faculty in 1977 and earned the title of professor of Microbiology in 1984. Blalock joined the UAB faculty in 1986 as professor of Physiology and Biophysics. In 2009, he joined the Department of Medicine’s Division of Pulmonary, Allergy and Critical Care Medicine.