ENROLLED
2019 Regular Session
HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOL UTION NO. 27
BY REPRESENTATIVE MCFARLAND
A CONCURRENT RESOL UTION
To commend Dr. A. Wayne Orr for his extraordinary impact on combating cardiovascular
disease, procuring research funding, and training researchers.
WHEREAS, Dr. A. Wayne Orr is the director of the Center of Excellence for
Cardiovascular Diseases and Sciences at Louisiana State University (LSU) Health
Shreveport; and
WHEREAS, the faculty at LSU Health Shreveport works to mitigate Louisiana's
biggest health problems, and Dr. Orr has earned acknowledgment for his tireless and
successful pursuit of significant competitive grants from the National Institutes of Health to
address cardiovascular disease; and
WHEREAS, Dr. Orr is the principal investigator for three R01 grants funded by the
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute and the National Institute of Diabetes and
Digestive and Kidney Disease totaling more than $4.5 million; and
WHEREAS, Dr. Orr is the first faculty member at LSU Health Shreveport to have
three concurrent R01 grants; the R01 grant is the original and historically oldest grant
mechanism utilized by the National Institutes of Health; and
WHEREAS, over the past twenty-one years, Dr. Orr's research has sought to
understand how the local microenvironment affects vascular cell signaling in pathological
processes such as atherosclerosis, angiogenesis, and ischemia-reperfusion injury; his
laboratory has published more than fifty manuscripts on vascular cell biology, and numerous
papers on redox biology and its related pathologies; and
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WHEREAS, Dr. Orr's research has identified a critical role for the extracellular
matrix in the regulation of endothelial cell function, characterizing novel signaling
mechanisms and identifying specific receptors involved in this response; and
WHEREAS, Dr. Orr is actively involved with the American Heart Association; he
is a national reviewer for the Cell Biology 3 study section and the Collaborative Science
Awards; he is an educator for the north Louisiana American Heart Association board of
directors and he is a mentor for recipients of the American Heart Association pre-doctoral
fellowship; and
WHEREAS, Dr. Orr has generously given of his time and knowledge to mentor more
than fifty medical and basic science students and post-degree trainees, many of whom are
on course for successful careers; and
WHEREAS, Dr. Orr is a professor in the Department of Pathology and Translational
Pathobiology, the Department of Molecular and Cellular Physiology, and the Department
of Cellular Biology and Anatomy; he is director of the Division of Research in the
Department of Pathology and Translational Pathobiology; and
WHEREAS, the work Dr. Orr does at LSU Health Shreveport complements his
involvement in the North American Vascular Biology Association, the American Heart
Association, the American Diabetes Association, and the American Society of Cell Biology;
he is a charter member of the National Institutes of Health Vascular Cell and Molecular
Biology Study Section and serves on the editorial board of Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis, and
Vascular Biology; Dr. Orr also provides reviews for more than thirty professional journals;
and
WHEREAS, the research acumen of Dr. A. Wayne Orr, his ability to procure
research funding, and the training he provides to medical students and researchers is
invaluable to the successes LSU Health Shreveport has achieved in mitigating the effects of
cardiovascular disease on the citizens of the state, the nation, and the world.
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Legislature of Louisiana does hereby
commend Dr. A. Wayne Orr for his remarkable intellect and dedication in finding treatments
for diseases that impact our citizens and does hereby recognize his efforts in enhancing the
economy of north Louisiana through the procurement of significant extramural grant
funding.
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BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a suitable copy of this Resolution be transmitted
to Dr. A. Wayne Orr.
SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE
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