Elias Zerhouni

Elias Zerhouni (; born April 12, 1951) is an Algerian American radiologist and biomedical engineer who has held leadership roles in academia, government, and the pharmaceutical industry.

Zerhouni was a faculty member at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and served as the executive vice-dean from 1996 to 2002. He also served as the 15th director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) from May 2, 2002, to October 31, 2008, under the George W. Bush administration. In 2009, under the Obama administration, he was appointed as one of the first presidential science envoys. He was a senior fellow for the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation from 2009 to 2010. From January 2011 until his retirement on June 30, 2018, he was the president of Global Research and Development at the pharmaceutical company Sanofi.

In October 2020, Zerhouni co-founded ModeX Therapeutics, a privately held biotechnology company focused on immune-based therapies for cancer and infectious diseases. In 2022, ModeX Therapeutics was acquired by OPKO Health, wherein Zerhouni was appointed as the vice-chairman and president.

Career From 1981 to 1985, he served as the vice-chair for the Department of Radiology at Eastern Virginia Medical School and its affiliated DePaul Hospital. In 1985, Zerhouni returned to Johns Hopkins School of Medicine as co-director of full-body CT and MRI, and was later promoted to associate professor. He was appointed director of the MRI division in 1988 and promoted to full professor in 1992. He then served as vice-dean for Clinical Affairs and president of the Clinical Practice Association (1996–1999) and vice dean for Research (1999–2002).

In the early 1980s, Zerhouni established Computerized Imaging Reference Systems (CIRS) (now part of Mirion Technologies), which manufactured tissue-equivalent phantoms used in medical imaging and radiation therapy. He also established the Advanced Medical Imaging Institute, an integrated outpatient medical imaging center. Zerhouni also: Co-invented a breast biopsy method for diagnosing breast cancer. Co-founded Biopsys Medical, which was acquired by Johnson & Johnson in 1997. Co-founded a company with community-based radiologists that focused on providing advanced outpatient imaging services, which was later acquired by the American Radiology Services Corporation.

Zerhouni served as a consultant to the White House under President Ronald Reagan (1985) and to the World Health Organization (1988), and served on the National Cancer Institute's Board of Scientific Advisors (1998–2002).

Role as Director of National Institutes of Health (2002–2008) Zerhouni was appointed as the 15th director of the NIH by President George W. Bush. He was confirmed by the Senate in April 2002 and served until October 2008, becoming the first immigrant to serve as NIH director. He is known for establishing the NIH Roadmap for Medical Research, a plan to foster trans-NIH initiatives. The Roadmap drew criticism from researchers for diverting funding from traditional individual grants during a period of declining success rates. Despite this, the Roadmap drew support from Congress.

In his tenure as director, he implemented a ban on agency scientists consulting for pharmaceutical companies. Additionally, he defended the value of sexual health research, which drew criticism from a Republican Congress.

Zerhouni is on the board of the Foundation for the National Institutes of Health.

Post-NIH career Following his tenure as NIH director, Zerhouni served as a presidential science and technology envoy for President Barack Obama and as a senior fellow at the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation from 2009 to 2010.

In 2011, Zerhouni joined Sanofi as the head of Research and Development. He retired from Sanofi in June 2018.

Following his retirement from Sanofi in 2018, Zerhouni joined several boards, including Research!America, the Lasker Foundation, and the Danaher Corporation. He is a founding board member of the Davos Alzheimer's Collaborative (DAC). He also joined the board of directors of B-FLEXION (formerly Waypoint Capital).

In 2020, Zerhouni co-founded ModeX Therapeutics, a biotechnology company focusing on multi-specific biologic drugs for cancer and infectious diseases.

Memberships and awards

Zerhouni has served on the board of trustees of the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology.

He is an elected member of both the U.S. National Academy of Medicine and the U.S. National Academy of Engineering. He serves as an emeritus public trustee of the Mayo Clinic and is a member emeritus of the Radiological Society of North America. He is professor emeritus of radiology and biomedical engineering at Johns Hopkins University. He also sits on the Board of Fellows of Stanford Medicine. In addition, Zerhouni serves on the boards of Research America, the Foundation for the NIH, and the Lasker Foundation. He is also a founding board member of the Davos Alzheimer's Collaborative and a member of the French Academy of Medicine.

In 2008, French President Nicolas Sarkozy awarded Zerhouni the Legion of Honour for fostering collaboration between the NIH and the Pasteur Institute.