Professor David Salant to give this year's AJ Orenstein Memorial Lecture

Entitled, 'Serendipity and the journey to a human autoantigen', Professor Salant will address one of the persistent conundrums of modern medicine: the so-called collagen or autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, lupus erythematosus, rheumatic carditis and various forms of nephritis, where the body's immune system attacks and destroys healthy body tissue by mistake. Identifying the target in the organs under attack has been considered a holy grail of medical science.

In this lecture, Professor Salant, who graduated from the Wits Medical School in 1969, will describe his own journey in the search of the protein that is the target of a common form of autoimmune kidney disease. The discovery has yielded a simple means to diagnose the condition and may lead to more specific treatment than cortisone and other immune suppressant drugs commonly used today.

To commemorate the memory of Major General Orenstein, the Adler Museum has hosted the AJ Orenstein memorial annually since 1967. Says Rochelle Keene, Curator at the Museum, "The AJ Orenstein Memorial Lecture is one of the most important and long standing talks within the Faculty.

"It is always with great pride that graduates of the Faculty who have made major international contributions to medicine come back to the University to address us. We believe this is testament to the excellent training provided by the Faculty that there are probably hundreds of alumni who hold important positions internationally," concludes Keene.

The inaugural lecture was held in 1962, entitled 'Mine eyes have seen' and delivered by Major General Orenstein. In 1974, the name was changed to the AJ Orenstein Memorial lecture to honour the part he played in the establishment of the medical services in the mining industry.

Members of the public are welcome to attend the lecture, as this will be of interest to a broad audience, not only academic. Secure parking is available at Wits Medical School. For further information, call +27 (0)11 717 2067 or email az.ca.stiw@muesum.relda.