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| 3 | 4 | | |
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| 4 | 5 | | R E S O L U T I O N |
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| 5 | 6 | | WHEREAS, Dr. Barney Graham has contributed significantly to |
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| 6 | 7 | | the development of lifesaving COVID-19 vaccines, and he is indeed |
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| 7 | 8 | | deserving of special recognition; and |
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| 8 | 9 | | WHEREAS, A graduate of Rice University in 1975, Dr. Graham |
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| 9 | 10 | | went on to earn his medical degree at the University of Kansas |
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| 10 | 11 | | School of Medicine and to obtain a Ph.D. in microbiology and |
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| 11 | 12 | | immunology from the Vanderbilt University School of Medicine; he |
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| 12 | 13 | | then joined the faculty at Vanderbilt as a professor of medicine |
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| 13 | 14 | | with a joint appointment in the department of microbiology and |
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| 14 | 15 | | immunology; in 2000, he became a founding investigator for the |
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| 15 | 16 | | Vaccine Research Center at the National Institute of Allergy and |
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| 16 | 17 | | Infectious Diseases, and he currently serves as deputy director of |
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| 17 | 18 | | the center and chief of the Viral Pathogenesis Laboratory and |
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| 18 | 19 | | Translational Science Core; and |
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| 19 | 20 | | WHEREAS, Over the course of his career, Dr. Graham has made |
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| 20 | 21 | | invaluable advancements in vaccine science; his work on respiratory |
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| 21 | 22 | | syncytial virus led to a breakthrough in the understanding of |
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| 22 | 23 | | coronaviruses and made possible a rapid response to the COVID-19 |
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| 23 | 24 | | pandemic; and |
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| 24 | 25 | | WHEREAS, During the race to provide COVID-19 vaccines, |
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| 25 | 26 | | Dr. Graham frequently collaborated with his longtime friend and |
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| 26 | 27 | | former colleague, Dr. Bill Gruber, who is senior vice president of |
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| 27 | 28 | | vaccine clinical research and development at Pfizer; Dr. Graham's |
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| 28 | 29 | | laboratory partnered with Moderna to develop a vaccine using a new, |
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| 29 | 30 | | gene-based technology, while Dr. Gruber oversaw a similar project |
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| 30 | 31 | | at Pfizer; the two communicated regularly to exchange information, |
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| 31 | 32 | | and both vaccines were authorized for use by the Food and Drug |
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| 32 | 33 | | Administration in late 2020; and |
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| 33 | 34 | | WHEREAS, Through his monumental efforts, Barney Graham has |
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| 34 | 35 | | helped alleviate suffering and save the lives of innumerable |
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| 35 | 36 | | people, and in so doing, he has earned the deep respect and |
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| 36 | 37 | | appreciation of all who are privileged to know him; now, therefore, |
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| 37 | 38 | | be it |
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| 38 | 39 | | RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 87th Texas |
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| 39 | 40 | | Legislature, 2nd Called Session, hereby honor Dr. Barney Graham for |
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| 40 | 41 | | his contributions to the development of COVID-19 vaccines and |
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| 41 | 42 | | extend to him sincere best wishes for continued success in his |
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| 42 | 43 | | important work; and, be it further |
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| 43 | 44 | | RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be |
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| 44 | 45 | | prepared for Dr. Graham as an expression of high regard by the Texas |
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| 45 | 46 | | House of Representatives. |
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