About the artist...
Jeffery L. Miller
After receiving a BS Chemistry degree at the University of Nebraska, MD degree at Stanford University, and clinical training at the University of Colorado, I ventured to the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda as a Hematology Fellow. I eventually achieved tenure in the Molecular Genomics and Therapeutics Section of my Institute.
Several years were spent developing viral and non-viral gene therapy vectors, then my interests shifted toward genomics and erythroid transcriptome biology. It was a great privilege to lead a team pursuing genome-based discoveries related to anemia, transfusion medicine, and iron biology that were aimed toward improving global health. Several fine pre- and post-doctoral students assisted in those discoveries. Much of the work would have been impossible if not for my outstanding laboratory manager (Terry Lee) and flow cytometrist (Colleen Byrnes).
During those many years, I developed a true appreciation for the beauty of our human genome and its many products. Relationships between genetic sequence, structure and function are truly profound...divine. After decades of effort, my group was able to reverse the erythroid biological clock in the laboratory with the discovery of IGF2BP1 as a master regulator of hemoglobin switching. Based upon that discovery, a path was revealed for Pharma to develop a pill for global treatment of Sickle Cell Disease and Beta Thalassemia.
Having reached my medical life's goals, I made a decision to retire from NIH and begin a new journey into the world of art. My primary aim is to translate and immortalize the beauty of digital genomes into physical objects of art...and have fun.
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Ceramic hand building is particularly rewarding based upon its primal imperfection, complex chemistry, and intense curiosity experienced during each firing. Among the billions of sequences from which to choose, telomeric repeats are a favorite.