The National Institutes of Health hasn’t had a permanent chief since radiologist Elias Zerhouni left in September after 6 1/2 years at the helm. Today President Obama nominated a noted geneticist, Francis Collins to takeover as head of 18,000-employee organization. Collins, 59 years old, served as director of the NIH’s National Human Genome Research Institute from 1993 to 2008 and oversaw the international collaboration known as the Human Genome Project . That project, completed in 2003, determined the sequence of the three billion base pairs that make up human DNA. Moreover, it spurred the field of genomics and the dream to personalize medicine for individuals based on their genes. His nomination is being applauded by organizations like the American Heart Association and Personalized Medicine Coalition , who laud his “landmark discoveries of disease genes.” As

head of the NIH, Collins would oversee nearly $40 billion a year in federal research funding. Earlier this year, Obama beefed up the research funding of the NIH by $10 billion . Of course, Collins will have to deal with the issue of conflicts of interest in researchers who receive NIH funding. Zerhouni tackled that by banning NIH scientists from industry consulting, notes Dow Jones Newswires . He is also a devout Christian who doesn’t see a conflict between religion and science, says NPR . “My administration is committed to promoting scientific integrity and pioneering scientific research and I am confident that Dr. Francis Collins will lead the NIH to achieve these goals,” Obama said in a statement. Photo: Bloomberg

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Genetist Francis Collins Nominated to Head NIH