Ron Tuma, Barry Burkhardt, Tom Burkholder, Judy McDonald Burkholder ’71, Michael Miller, Ned Rahn, Bruce Reitz, Barry Waterhouse ’71

In November, the Lewis Katz School of Medicine at Temple University honored Ronald Tuma ’70, Ph.D., with a portrait ceremony. Several Muhlenberg alumni (Barry Burkhardt, Tom Burkholder, Judy McDonald Burkholder ’71, Michael Miller, Ned Rahn, Bruce Reitz, and Barry Waterhouse ’71) attended the unveiling of his portrait.

Tuma is the G.H. Stewart Professor of Physiology, Professor of Neurosurgery, and Professor in the Center for Substance Abuse Research the Katz School of Medicine. The major research efforts in his laboratory are directed at investigation of inflammatory reactions that contribute to central nervous system injury following stroke, trauma, and autoimmune disease, and how modulation of the activity of specific cannabinoid receptors influences the progress of these diseases. Experimental models utilized in these investigations include animal models of stroke, head injury, spinal cord injury, and multiple sclerosis.

Tuma has published more than 125 paper and five books and has mentored numerous Ph.D., M.S., and postdoctoral students. He has served as president of the Microcirculatory Society and on editorial boards. He has received multiple Golden Apple Awards, the George E. Sowell Award for Excellence in Basic Science Teaching, and the Lindback Award for Distinguished Teaching.

“Dr. Tuma has been part of the fabric of Temple Medicine for five decades,” said Marjorie Joy Katz Dean Amy J. Goldberg, M.D., at the ceremony. “That legacy, represented by this portrait, will continue to influence and impact all those who study, teach, and seek scientific breakthroughs here in our home on Broad Street.”