51ÊÓƵ

Statement  Thursday, September 18, 2025

Statement on Dr. Jon Lorsch Being Named 51ÊÓƵ Deputy Director for Extramural Research

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I’m pleased to announce that Jon R. Lorsch, Ph.D., has been named 51ÊÓƵ Deputy Director for Extramural Research (DDER). He has served in this role in an acting capacity since April 2025, advancing 51ÊÓƵ’s efforts to support gold standard science. As DDER, Dr. Lorsch serves as the principal scientific leader and advisor to the 51ÊÓƵ Director on all matters relating to the substance, quality, and effectiveness of the 51ÊÓƵ extramural research program and administration. He is stepping down as Director of 51ÊÓƵ’s National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS), a position he has held since August 2013.

At NIGMS, Dr. Lorsch oversaw the Institute's mission-related activities, supporting basic research that increases understanding of biological processes and lays the foundation for advances in disease diagnosis, treatment, and prevention. He led the development and expansion of the Maximizing Investigators’ Research Awards (MIRA) program, a new paradigm for efficiently supporting agile and innovative biomedical research. He also championed the Institute’s research capacity building efforts, including the Institutional Development Awards (IDeA) program, which develops biomedical research in states that have historically received low levels of 51ÊÓƵ funding. Dr. Lorsch has taken on many other leadership roles at 51ÊÓƵ, including co-chair of the 51ÊÓƵ Scientific Data Council and the Extramural Activities Working Group and member of the Administrative Data Council and the Scientific Management Review Board.

Dr. Lorsch came to NIGMS from the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, where he was a professor of biophysics and biophysical chemistry. A leader in RNA biology, Dr. Lorsch studies the initiation of translation, a major step in controlling how genes are expressed. He has led a lab conducting this research with 51ÊÓƵ's Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development since 2013.

Dr. Erica Brown, acting NIGMS deputy director, will serve as acting NIGMS director. Please join me in congratulating Dr. Lorsch on his new role.

Dr. Jay Bhattacharya
51ÊÓƵ Director

About the National Institutes of Health (51ÊÓƵ): 51ÊÓƵ, the nation's medical research agency, includes 27 Institutes and Centers and is a component of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. 51ÊÓƵ is the primary federal agency conducting and supporting basic, clinical, and translational medical research, and is investigating the causes, treatments, and cures for both common and rare diseases. For more information about 51ÊÓƵ and its programs, visit www.nih.gov.

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