Andrew Bergemann, Ph.D.

Andrew Bergemann completed his B.Sc., majoring in biochemistry, in 1983. Subsequently, he pursued his Ph.D. studies in the laboratory of Dr. Lloyd Finch at the University of Melbourne, developing tools to address Mycoplasma genetics. He identified and characterized the first plasmid from a Mycoplasma and also contributed to efforts in the laboratory to create complete restriction maps of Mycoplasma genomes. These were among the first complete maps for any cellular organism.

In Bergemann’s first postdoctoral fellowship, in the laboratory of Edward Johnson at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine, he identified and characterized a novel family of mammalian single-stranded DNA binding proteins, the PUR family. Subsequent work by others in the field has demonstrated the importance of these proteins in certain congenital diseases of the nervous system. In his second postdoctoral fellowship, he moved into the field of developmental neurobiology working in the laboratory of John Flanagan at Harvard Medical School. He pursued studies of the interactions of a family of axon guidance molecules, the ephrins, with their receptors. He also contributed to successful efforts to define the molecular and cellular foundations of the retinotectal map.

As a junior faculty member at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine, Bergemann continued in the field of developmental neurobiology. He created a screen for genes displaying differential expression in the dorsal-ventral axis of the developing brain. The screen led to the identification of the novel Fam53 gene family. One family member, Fam53A, maps within a small genomic region critical for the pathogenesis of Wolf-Hirschhorn syndrome.

Bergemann has a long history in education, including teaching in a biomedical graduate school and in three medical schools. A notable aspect of his teaching history is the fact that he has participated as part of the founding faculty of two new medical schools. Also of note is that he has teaching experience in a diverse array of modalities, including problem-based learning (PBL), manikin-based simulations, socratic review sessions and traditional lectures. Regardless of pedagogy, he has consistently received exceptional student evaluations.

Bergemann has a proven record of strong design and organizational skills. He led efforts to design, and subsequently to implement, three completely new courses at medical schools. Each of these courses has been deemed successful by learners, peers and leadership. At Dell Medical School, Bergemann has taken on a leadership role in developing the PBL program, providing guidance in case writing and overseeing facilitator training. Bergemann’s educational design skills, combined with his strong sense of civic duty, has been recognized by his being awarded Mount Sinai’s Junior Faculty Academic Excellence Award and by his recruitment to Dell Medical School’s Academy of Distinguished Educators.